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Every well-equipped retreat should have at least one “field-expedient” twelve-VDC fuel-transfer pump. These pump rigs are popular with dirt-bike, ATV, and snowmobile enthusiasts. They are very simple to construct. Here are the materials that you will need:

(1) Automobile or truck electric fuel pump (The least expensive pumps come from automobile wrecking yards.)

(2) 15-foot lengths of heavy rubber hose—approved for use as fuel line—of the proper diameter for the fittings on the fuel pump

(2) Stainless steel fuel-line clamps (such as Breeze Aero-Seal brand, or similar, which are tightened with a screwdriver)

(15 to 20 feet) 16 AWG (or heavier) gauge insulated two conductor wire (This will be the power cord for the pump.)

(1) Cigarette-lighter-type male plug, available from any Radio Shack store (for the power cord for the pump)

(1) Roll of black plastic electrician’s tape or, better yet, some thermoplastic “heat-shrink” tubing

(1) Scrap of ⅜-inch-thick -inch-thick (or greater) plywood, measuring roughly 16 by 16 inches (to mount the fuel pump)

If you’d like, you can add an electrical switch to the power cord for convenience, but make sure that you get a high-amperage switch that is rated for DC, and that you position the switch within a couple of feet of the dashboard plug so that the switch is inside the cab of your vehicle. That way there is far less chance of generating a spark inside a gas-vapor cloud.

If your vehicle uses an electric fuel pump, then I suggest that you use a pump identical to that used in your vehicle as the basis for your transfer-pump project. That way you will have spares on hand in the event that your vehicle’s fuel pump or any portions of your fuel system’s flexible-fuel lines ever fail.

You can also add an in-line fuel filter to your fuel-transfer pump rig. Again, it is best to use a filter cartridge that is identical to that used in your vehicle. (Always think: “Spares and redundancy, spares and redundancy.”)

One other optional nicety is a one-foot-square scrap of plywood to bolt the pump onto. This will keep the transfer pump out of the mud or snow. It also provides a handy place to mount some large hooks, so that you will have a neat way to coil up the power cord and the fuel-transfer hoses for storage. A fifteen-foot length of hose should be able to reach any vehicle fuel tank, or even down into an underground tank.

There are commercially made equivalents of this fuel-pump rig, but they cost more, and they won’t provide you with a spare compatible fuel pump—in the event that your vehicle’s original pump goes Tango Uniform.

Important Provisos:

1. All of the usual commonsense precautions for handing gasoline and gas cans apply: Use only DOT-approved fuel containers; no sparks; no open flames; don’t turn on any radio transmitters; beware of static electricity buildup, etc.

2. Some later-model vehicles have anti-siphoning filler necks on their gas tanks. Check for this before you head for the boonies with an ATV trailer.

3. Cover any exposed electrical connections with tape or heat-shrink tubing, to avoid sparks or shorting.

4. Keep one eye on your vehicle’s gas gauge and your other eye on the can that you are filling (or pumping from). It is not just an expensive waste to spill gas on the ground. It is also toxic and a fire hazard!

Odds are that you will be able to find the station owner to make payment, at least while there is still fuel in the station tanks. If you build two or more such pumps in advance, then you could probably use the extras in barter—most likely to trade to gas-station owners for some of their fuel.

E85

I predict that within a few years the price of E85 in the U.S. will be about half the price of unleaded gasoline. But the bad news is that by the time this happens, standard gasoline will be probably be up to six dollars per gallon. I am hopeful that within a few years E100 ethanol vehicles will become available. These will run on pure ethanol (grain alcohol) or methanol