An off-grid homestead running a generator through a storm, a ranch keeping a tractor, a side-by-side, and three chainsaws fueled, and an overland truck carrying its range on a rear bumper all buy the same 20-liter steel can. What differs is everything around it: how much fuel you keep, how often it turns over, where it lives, and which rules apply. This guide walks through each of the three situations with the codes that actually govern them, and the parts of the setup that go wrong most often.
The three situations at a glance
| Off-grid property | Ranch or farm | Overland vehicle | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What the fuel runs | Generator, pump, small engines | Tractor and equipment (diesel), UTV and mowers (gasoline), saws (mix) | The vehicle itself |
| Typical reserve | A few days of generator run time | Bulk tank plus cans for the last 200 yards | One to four cans, sized to the gap between fuel stops |
| Where it lives | Detached shed or garage, off the floor, out of the sun | Fuel shed or containment pad away from buildings | Exterior mount, low and locked |
| The rule that matters most | Local fire code quantity limit | EPA SPCC (bulk tanks), OSHA if you have employees | Vehicle payload and rack rating |
| Can that fits best | 20L | 20L for diesel, 10L for gasoline and mix on the UTV | 20L in a steel holder |
The rules all three share
Before the specifics, four things are true for everyone storing fuel in cans.
The fuel lives outside the living space. The Consumer Product Safety Commission's guidance is direct: "Never store gas cans inside a house, basement, or near sources of ignition, such as fuel-burning appliances, open flames, pilot lights, stoves, heaters or electric mowers" (CPSC). Gasoline vapor is heavier than air; it collects at floor level and travels to a pilot light or a motor. A detached shed is best. An attached garage is the minimum, and a water heater in that garage is a reason to move the fuel.
The quantity is capped, and the cap is local. The model International Fire Code, adopted in some form by most US jurisdictions, says that "quantities not exceeding 10 gallons (38 L) are allowed to be stored outside of a cabinet when in approved containers located in private garages or other approved locations," and that quantities above that "shall be stored in liquid storage cabinets" (IFC 5704.3.4.4, via UpCodes). Local fire authorities publish their own guidance; the Unified Fire Authority in Utah, for example, cites the IFC's occupancy table at 30 gallons of gasoline and 120 gallons of diesel for residential occupancies and adds, "Never store gasoline or combustible liquids in the house" (Unified Fire Authority). If you have employees, OSHA's workplace rule caps gasoline kept outside a storage room or cabinet at 25 gallons, and diesel at 120 gallons in containers (29 CFR 1910.106(e)(2)(ii)(b)). Your own fire marshal's number is the one that counts. Call and ask; it takes five minutes.
Diesel and gasoline are not the same hazard. Gasoline has a flash point of about -45°F, meaning it gives off an ignitable vapor at any temperature you will store it at. Diesel's flash point is typically above 140°F, so it "is not as easily ignitable" but "still considered a fire hazard" (Grinnell Mutual loss-control bulletin). That is why every code above allows several times more diesel than gasoline. It is also why the color of the can matters: red for gasoline, yellow for diesel, blue for kerosene, so nobody puts the wrong fuel in a $40,000 tractor at dusk.
Fill the can on the ground. Static charge builds when a can sits on a plastic bed liner or carpet while fuel flows into it. The CPSC says to "always place a gas can on the ground to fill up at the gas station" (CPSC), and Grinnell adds to touch the nozzle to the container before you start and keep it in contact with the inlet while filling (Grinnell). Steel conducts that charge to ground; plastic does not, which is one of the differences covered in Steel vs Plastic Gas Cans.
Off-grid property: the generator reserve
The off-grid buyer's problem is a reserve that has to be there when the grid, the road, or the weather is not. The fuel sits for weeks or months and then has to run a generator for days. Two decisions matter: how much, and how it is kept.
Sizing the reserve
Do not guess. Your generator's manual gives fuel consumption in gallons per hour at a stated load, usually half and full. Multiply by the hours per day you would actually run it, then by the number of days you are planning for. A machine that burns three quarters of a gallon an hour at half load, run eight hours a day, uses six gallons a day, a little more than one 20L can. A three-day outage is three to four cans; a week is eight. That number tells you two things: how many cans to own, and whether you are under your fire authority's limit. If the answer is more than a couple of cans of gasoline, a diesel generator changes the math, because the codes that cap gasoline at 25 or 30 gallons typically allow 120 gallons of diesel.
Keeping it
A steel can keeps fuel best when it is full, sealed, cool, and dark. Sunlight heats the can and cycles pressure; a sealed cam-lever cap with its gasket holds vapor in and moisture out, which is the job a steel can is built for. Leave a little headspace for expansion rather than filling to the brim. Store cans off a concrete floor on a wooden shelf or pallet, label each with the fill date, and run the oldest can through the truck or the mower first so the reserve turns over. How long the fuel itself stays good is a separate question with a longer answer, laid out in How Long Can You Store Gasoline?
Refueling the generator
The CPSC's generator alert is short and worth quoting: "Before refueling the generator, turn it off and let it cool down. Gasoline spilled on hot engine parts could ignite," and "never store fuel for your generator in the home" (CPSC Safety Alert). The NATO can's cam-lever spout was designed for exactly this pour, in the dark, in the rain, with no funnel; the steel spout locks onto the can and reaches a generator tank without spilling. Pour slowly; the can's internal breather pipe lets air in as fuel goes out, so the stream stays steady rather than surging.
Ranch and farm: a mixed fleet and a bulk tank
A working ranch stores more fuel than anyone else on this page, in more kinds, and moves it further. The tractor and the skid steer burn diesel; the side-by-side and the mowers burn gasoline; the saws burn two-stroke mix. Most of the volume is in a bulk tank. The cans do the last part of the job: getting fuel from the tank to a machine that is a mile away in a field.
The bulk tank and the SPCC line
EPA's Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure rule applies to a farm that stores oil products, including diesel and gasoline, and "stores more than 1,320 US gallons in total of all aboveground containers (only count containers with 55 gallons or greater storage capacity)," and that could reasonably discharge to a waterway (EPA SPCC FAQ). Tanks on trailers, fuel trucks used only on the farm, and transfer tanks in pickups all count; EPA is explicit that you "count 55-gallon drums, but don't count any container smaller than that" (EPA). Jerry cans never enter the calculation. If you are over the line, a farm under 10,000 gallons can self-certify its plan without filing it with EPA (EPA).
Where the tank sits is a fire-code question. NRCS's Ohio practice standard, which draws on the state fire code, calls for locating secondary containment "a minimum of 50 feet away from any building to limit the spread of a fire," with enough extra distance that equipment being filled from the tank is also 50 feet from structures, haystacks, or other combustible storage, and for either a UL-listed double-wall tank or containment sized to hold the full capacity of the largest tank (NRCS Conservation Practice Standard 319). Grinnell's bulletin puts the same idea at 40 feet from any building and 20 feet from an LP tank (Grinnell). Your state's standard controls; the principle is that the fuel is nowhere near the barn.
The cans
The cans are the working inventory. A 20L of diesel goes to the tractor when it is not worth bringing the tractor back. A 10L of gasoline rides in the UTV's bed for the mowers and the pump. The saws get their own small container of mix, which Husqvarna says should be stored "1 month maximum" (Husqvarna), so mix in small batches and label the date. Color-code without exception: yellow diesel, red gasoline. A steel can with the fuel name embossed in the panel is a cheap insurance policy against the most expensive mistake on the place.
If the ranch has employees, OSHA's rule applies to the shop: no more than 25 gallons of gasoline in containers outside a storage cabinet or room, and 120 gallons of diesel (OSHA). The Forest Service's own hazmat guide for its field units is a reasonable model for what a fuel shed should look like: no glass, no plastic for storage, metal containers from the original manufacturer or approved cans, kept "sound and securely closed" (USDA Forest Service).
Overland: carrying your range
The overland buyer is not storing fuel so much as carrying it, and the problem is weight, not code. Fuel on a vehicle is the heaviest thing you add per cubic foot, it sits high and far back where it does the most harm to handling, and it has to survive washboard, water crossings, and a week of sun.
The payload math
Every light vehicle sold in the US carries a placard in the driver's door jamb that reads "The combined weight of occupants and cargo should never exceed" a stated figure (NHTSA). That figure is your budget. Subtract the people, the fridge, the water, the recovery gear, the bumper and rack you bolted on, and see what is left for fuel. A full 20L can weighs about 42 lb with gasoline and 47 lb with diesel; two cans in a steel holder are roughly 100 lb, four are 200. On many mid-size trucks and SUVs with a full build, that is the difference between under and over the placard.
Where it goes
Low, centered, and as close to the axles as the vehicle allows. A rear bumper swing-out or a bed-mounted holder is better than a roof rack, and a roof rack has its own rating from the rack maker that includes everything on it, not just the cans. Mount the can in a steel holder that carries the load through the base of the can and locks it, not with a strap through the handles; a strap works loose on corrugations and a 42-lb can that leaves a vehicle at speed is a hazard to everyone behind you. The NATO can's footprint is what makes this work: it was designed in the 1930s to sit in a rack on a truck, and holders built to the pattern fit it exactly. Holder dimensions, weights, and mounting points are in How to Mount a Jerry Can. The history of that design is in The History of the Jerry Can.
Heat and the pour
For fuel that rides in a vehicle, the Consumer Product Safety Commission's guidance is worth quoting directly: "Never leave fuel containers open, always put the cap back on after use," "Store gas cans and portable fuel containers in well-ventilated, cool areas only," and "Always read the instructions" (CPSC). When you do pour, the cam-lever spout lets one person empty 20 liters into a filler neck without a funnel or a second set of hands, which matters when the filler is on the wrong side of the truck and the wind is up.
Which can for which job
The 20L is the default for all three buyers: it holds 5.28 US gallons, it fits every NATO-pattern holder, and one person can carry it full. The 10L is built from the same 0.9 mm steel with the same cam-lever closure in a body seven inches shorter with the same width and depth, and it weighs about 24 lb full of gasoline; it earns its place on a ranch UTV, in a small-engine shed, or anywhere a 42-lb can is more than the job needs. Both are made in Latvia with fully welded, recessed seams, no crimped metal like cheap knockoff cans, and both carry a UN packaging marking on the body. The full comparison, including the five-gallon question, is in Jerry Can Sizes Explained, and what every part of the can does is in What Is a NATO Jerry Can?
Frequently asked questions
How much gasoline can I legally store at home?
It depends on your local fire code, so check with your fire authority. The model International Fire Code allows up to 10 gallons in approved containers outside a storage cabinet in a private garage, with larger quantities in a listed flammable-liquid cabinet, and some jurisdictions publish their own limits, such as 30 gallons of gasoline and 120 gallons of diesel in one Utah fire district's guidance. Whatever the number, the container has to be an approved one and the fuel has to be outside the living space.
Is diesel safer to store than gasoline?
Diesel is a combustible liquid with a flash point above 140°F, while gasoline is a flammable liquid with a flash point around -45°F, so diesel does not form an ignitable vapor at normal storage temperatures the way gasoline does. Fire codes reflect that by allowing several times more diesel than gasoline in the same setting. Diesel is still a fire hazard and still needs a sealed, labeled container out of the sun.
Do jerry cans count toward the EPA SPCC threshold on a farm?
No. EPA's SPCC rule applies to farms with more than 1,320 gallons of aboveground oil storage, and only containers of 55 gallons or more are counted toward that total. Jerry cans and other small containers do not count. A bulk tank, a trailer tank, or a transfer tank in a pickup does.
How many jerry cans can I carry on my vehicle?
Start from the payload figure on the door-jamb placard, subtract passengers and everything else you have loaded, and see what is left. A full 20L can weighs about 42 lb with gasoline or 47 lb with diesel, so two cans and a steel holder are close to 100 lb. Where that weight goes is set by the vehicle's placard, the owner's manual, and the rack maker's published ratings. Holder weights and mounting points are in How to Mount a Jerry Can.
Can I carry a full jerry can inside the vehicle?
Fuel suppliers publish consumer guidance on this. Chevron's guidance is to never carry a fuel container inside the passenger compartment and to tighten the cap and wipe the container down before it goes in a bed or trunk (Chevron). A holder on the outside of the vehicle or in the bed is the configuration that guidance describes.
How long will the fuel in a jerry can stay good?
It depends on the fuel more than the can. The refiner and engine-maker guidance, and why it varies from thirty days to a year, is laid out in How Long Can You Store Gasoline? Husqvarna's guidance for chainsaw fuel mix is a maximum of one month. A sealed steel can with the fuel kept cool and dark gives whatever fuel you store its best chance.
More questions about filling, storing, transporting, and mounting the can are answered in the Jerry Can FAQ. The transport regulations themselves are quoted in Is It Legal to Transport Fuel Cans?.
Sources
- International Fire Code, Chapter 57, Flammable and Combustible Liquids (2021 edition as adopted in Virginia, via UpCodes). Section 5704.3.4.4, quantity limits in private garages.
- OSHA standard interpretation, 2 December 2003, quoting 29 CFR 1910.106(e)(2)(ii)(b).
- CPSC, Fuel Container, Gasoline and Other Liquid Fuel Safety and CPSC Safety Alert: Portable Generator Hazards.
- EPA, Frequent SPCC Questions for Farms. 1,320-gallon threshold and the 55-gallon container rule.
- USDA NRCS, Conservation Practice Standard 319, On-Farm Secondary Containment Facility (Ohio, 2023).
- Unified Fire Authority (Utah), Allowable Home Storage for Flammable and Combustible Liquids.
- Grinnell Mutual, Storage, Use, and Handling of Gasoline and Diesel Fuel. Flash points and refueling practice.
- USDA Forest Service, Everyday Hazmat User's Training Guide, Flammable Liquids.
- Husqvarna, Information about storage of fuel mixture.
- NHTSA interpretation on occupant and cargo carrying capacity labels.
