Preventing Static Electricity from Initiating Gasoline Fires Fires initiated by sparks can be prevented if static electricity is not allowed to build up, particularly on conductors. One defense is to dissipate electrical charge by creating paths that allow it to flow to ground. Placing a container on the ground makes it easier for electrical charge to escape. Cement or dirt are better conductors of electricity than asphalt and, therefore, better grounding surfaces. While vehicles that are driven to a service station may not appear to be grounded, they are.
Tires are good enough conductors to allow electrical charge to escape to ground.
Keeping the dispenser nozzle in contact with the container at the inlet or with the fuel tank fill tube creates another path by which electrical charge can escape. This is because the dispenser is grounded and the nozzle is bonded to the dispenser through the dispenser hose. When a vehicle or other equipment can't be placed on the ground, a second defense is to fuel more slowly. The slower gasoline flows, the less static electricity is generated. People usually pour fuel more slowly from a portable container than it is delivered by a dispenser.