Discussion:
accident cause

Hello. We recently had a rental truck which cought fire in the engine compartment. Damage wasn't much, but we have not found the cause which worries me a lot. It seems that there was a LP gas leak in the engine compartment and that a spark ignited the gas creating the fire. All LP components were installed new about 1 year ago, as well as the distributor for this truck. The truck is a Clark CMP15 with 4G63 engine. This happened at night and I was able to see the suveillance video which showed the truck in operation when you actually see the fire from underneath the hood. Any ideas on what could have happened?
regards,
OB1
  • Posted 27 Jul 2012 01:05
  • By ob1kenobi
  • joined 22 Nov'10 - 153 messages
  • SAN P.SULA, Honduras
Cheers!
Showing items 1 - 10 of 10 results.
Thanks cownd. We believe the operator could have been doing basic inspection under the hood and probably unwillingly disconnected one of the ignition wires from the distributor end. It's just an assumption, but could very well be. We still would have to figure out why the gas leak if LP setup was installed completely new about a year ago, even with new hoses.
  • Posted 28 Jul 2012 04:17
  • By ob1kenobi
  • joined 22 Nov'10 - 153 messages
  • SAN P.SULA, Honduras
Cheers!
Soapy water is what's for bubble testing LPG, NG etc... But if you would like to purchase something specifically made for this test purchase a product called Snoop for around $9.00. Every fire needs an ignition source or spark along with fuel and oxygen to combust. Have you ever seen under the hood of a forklift car etc... Especially when it's dark on a vehicle that's in need of a basic tune-up? It looks like lightening during a thunder storm and in your case case when you have a fuel leak it will catch fire and possibly explode if the leak is severe enough.
  • Posted 28 Jul 2012 02:22
  • By cownd
  • joined 18 Feb'06 - 189 messages
  • Arizona, United States
orchidlane29@gmail.com
Thanks meliftman. I guess you just saved me 50-100 bucks!
  • Posted 27 Jul 2012 13:07
  • By ob1kenobi
  • joined 22 Nov'10 - 153 messages
  • SAN P.SULA, Honduras
Cheers!
A good spray bottle with soapy water works as good as anything. Dish detergent or car wash soap shows up best. Even small leaks will show up if you watch and wait.
  • Posted 27 Jul 2012 13:00
  • By meliftman
  • joined 31 Jan'12 - 209 messages
  • Alabama, United States
Liftman
Retired
Elberta, Al.
Thanks for your input guys. Anyone knows where I can purchase a portable LP gas leak detector?
  • Posted 27 Jul 2012 12:55
  • By ob1kenobi
  • joined 22 Nov'10 - 153 messages
  • SAN P.SULA, Honduras
Cheers!
ob1,
most likly suspects would be either the filter lockoff or the vaporizer, could of possibly been a leaky hose fitting but generally when i work on LP trucks the vaporizer is usually seeping vapor if they are very old. 1yr is kinda odd but it happens i guess
  • Posted 27 Jul 2012 09:55
  • By Jplayer
  • joined 12 Apr'07 - 407 messages
  • North Carolina, United States
John Player Jr
_________________
LiftOne, LLC
Charlotte, NC
Email: jplayer@liftone.net
Might be a good idea to replace the cap and wires, this may have been the ignition source. I'd also buble test all the LPG parts before using this unit.
  • Posted 27 Jul 2012 08:29
  • By cownd
  • joined 18 Feb'06 - 189 messages
  • Arizona, United States
orchidlane29@gmail.com
Yea,id look more toward that,too.yarn or knitting cotten is very flamable.a spark ,may have ignited something.id think an lp leak,IF that bad. would be very noticable.
  • Posted 27 Jul 2012 07:58
  • By kent_w
  • joined 5 Jan'12 - 102 messages
  • North Carolina, United States
Fire developed at the distributor, its wiring and nearby hoses. Exhaust is at the other side which was untouched. Engine bay is super clean!
  • Posted 27 Jul 2012 07:49
  • By ob1kenobi
  • joined 22 Nov'10 - 153 messages
  • SAN P.SULA, Honduras
Cheers!
What got burnt on the motor? I would look more towards the exhaust starting the fire. Does the manifold or pipe have crud on it? Is the motor greasy? If the muffler gets a layer of crud on it, that could start a fire.















i
  • Posted 27 Jul 2012 05:55
  • By mrfixit
  • joined 11 Dec'08 - 1,434 messages
  • New York, United States

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