Home Storage of Flammable Liquids

Flammable liquids include gasoline and Coleman white gas.

Storage Requirements

Maximum residential storage of flammable liquids (gasoline and white gas) shall be limited to 30 gallons - preferably stored in an unattached garage or shed.
- Of this 30 gallons total, no more than 10 gallons can be stored in an attached garage, and absolutely no flammable liquid storage is allowed in a basement. (2015 International Fire Code (IFC) 5704.3.4.2.7)
Empty containers shall be counted as full when calculating storage capacity. (2015 IFC 5704.3.3.4)
Flammable liquid storage containers shall be of an approved type. (2015 IFC 5704.3.1)
- Most of these containers are labeled as approved for flammable liquid use and indicates the standards they are designed to meet. (Department of Transportation, American Society for Testing and Materials, National Fire Prevention Association 30, etc.)
- Always use an approved or original retail container. No milk jugs.
If you decide to store flammable liquids at your home, you need at least one 2A20BC rated fire extinguisher located no closer than 10 feet to any flammable liquid and no further away than 50 feet. (2015 IFC 5704.3.7.5.2)
Control of sources of ignition is mandatory! All transfer and dispensing of flammable liquids require that special attention be paid to eliminating static spark discharge and ignition of flammable vapors.
- Open flames and high-temperature devices must be controlled and approved for use with flammable liquids and smoking is prohibited in the storage area. (2015 IFC 5704.2.4)

Flammable and combustible liquids in the fuel tanks of motor vehicles (gasoline, diesel, and 2-cycle blends) are exempt; therefore these amounts will not be considered as part of your total home fuel storage quantities. (2015 IFC 5704.3.3)