# Hamilton, Miller & Birthisel, LLP — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation **Citation:** 08-0100 **Type / status:** guidance / guidance **Agency:** Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration **Effective:** Not stated **Published:** 2008-07-02 08-0100 response to Hamilton, Miller & Birthisel, LLP concerning 173.220, 176.905. ## Document text <<>> U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration JUL 2 2008 1200 New Jersey Ave., S.E. Washington, DC 20590 Mr. Jules V. Massee Hamilton, Miller & Birthisel, LLP 100 South Ashley Drive, Suite 12 10 Tampa, FL 33602 Ref. No. 08-0100 Dear Mr. Massee: This is in response to your letter dated April 17,2008, requesting clarification of $ 5 172.220 and 176.905 of the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 17 1 - 180) applicable to the transportation of gasoline powered engines transported by vessel. You seek guidance as to whether the process you describe in your letter to remove the liquid fuel and flammable vapors from the engine and fuel lines renders the engine as not containing fuel as specified in $ 5 173.220(a)(l) and 176.905(i)(l). You describe the process as follows: Prior to being loaded onto the vessel: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. The discharge hose of the fuel pump is disconnected from the car's engine. The relay on the car's electrical panel is bridged to allow the fuel pump to run while the engine is off. Power is supplied to the pump via an external battery if necessary. The fuel pump is run until the car's fuel tank is completely drained, and the pump loses suction. . Once the car's fuel system has been emptied of all flammable liquid through the car's fuel pump, the fuel tank is aerated (by natural or forced ventilation) for a period sufficient, under existing air temperature and humidity, to allow the residue to evaporate and vapors to dissipate. Once the car's fuel system has been processed through the methods described above, all disconnected parts are reattached securely. Paragraph (a)(l) of 5 173.220 states that an engine may be considered as not containing fuel when the fuel tank, engine components, and fuel lines have been completely drained, sufficiently cleaned of residue, and purged of vapors to remove any potential hazard and the engine when held in any orientation will not release any liquid fuel. The process you describe could satisfy these conditions provided the liquid and the vapors have been purged to such an extent that the atmosphere in and around the engine and the engine components no longer poses a flammable hazard, and the engine when held in any orientation will not release any liquid fuel. It is the shipper's responsibility to make that determination (see 5 173.22). <<>> Paragraph (i)(l) of 5 176.905 provides an exception from the requirements of the HMR for motor vehicles and mechanical equipment with internal combustion engines using liquid fuel that has a flash point less than 38 "C (100 "F) if the fuel tank is empty, and the engine is run until it stalls for lack of fuel. The process you describe to remove the liquid fuel and vapor from the engine satisfies the conditions of this exception. I hope this satisfies your inquiry. If we can be of further assistance, please contact us. Sincerely, /i,L Susan Gorsky, Acting Chief, Standards Development Office of Hazardous Materials Standards <<>> Robert B. Bird~isel t Carlos J, Chxdon * lnri S. Cooperider Michael J. Dono .AM C. Francolin Herbert il Hmilton, of'Bur7.11d JenvD. H%nilloll& Niva M. Harney Kliirllbeth A. Marlin Jules V. k s e e Jennifer Quildon MiUer & Hector V. ~anlirez * Ira S. Hnbin Micluel A. Zuppa, Jr. t WWW.HAMILTONMILL€RLAW.COM REPLY TO: TAMPA OFFICE 100 South Ashley Drive, Suite 1210, Tampa, Flo~id.~ 33602 813-223-1900 813-223-1933 April 17,2008 VIA ELECTRONIC MAIL Office of Hazardous Materials Standards Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration ATTN: PHH- 1 @ U.S. Dept. of Transportation, East Building 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE Washington, DC 20590-0001 RE: 49 C.F.R. 173.220(a)(l) Interpretation and Guidance Request 49 C.F.R. 176.905(i)(l) Interpretation and Guidance Request Dear Sir or Madam: This inquiry focuses on shipping cars with inoperable gasoline powered engines by vessel. We b:lieve the method of preparing these cars for shipment, described in detail below, complies botl with 49 C.F.R. 173.220(a)(l) and with 49 C.F.R. 176+905(i)(l). We respectfully request the PI iMSA to render an opinion as to whether the procedure outlined below conforms with the requirements of the above-referenced regulations. Prior to being loaded onto the vessel: 1. The discharge hose of the fuel pump is disconnected from the Car's engine. 2. The relay on the Car's electrical panel is bridged to allow the fuel pump to run while the engine is off. Power is supplied to the pump via an external battery if necessary. 3. The fuel pump is run until the Car's fuel tank is completely drained, and the pump loses suction. 4. Once the Car's fuel system, has been emptied of ail flammable liquid through the Car's fuel pump, the fuel tank is aerated (by natural or forced ventilation) for a period MIAMI 200 Soutl~msl First Street, S~iite 1101 Miami, Flo~ida 33131 305-379-3686 F a 305-379-3630 FORT IAUDIIHDAIX 101 Nortl~mt Third Avenue, Suite 1500 Forl Laudcrdale, Woridd 33301 954-703-2108 P ~ x 954-769-91 11 KINGS'KJN 68 Bmy Street Kin~slo~~, Jmnaica 876-967-1651 Fax 876-922-6557 <<>> PHMSA April 17,2008 Page 2 5 . sufficient, under existing air temperature and humidity, to allow the residue to evaporate and vapors to dissipate. Once the Car's fuel system has been processed through the methods described above, all disconnected parts are reattached securely. Please advise whether the above procedure: A) B) meets the requirements set forth in 49 C.F.R. 173.220(a)(l); meets the requirements set forth in 49 C.F.R 176.905(i)(l). Thank you in advance for your assistance in this matter, and we await your opinion in due course. Jules V. Massee EIAiVIIL'I'ON, M I L L E R r!k 13IIC1'1-IISEL LLP <<>> Eichenlaub, Kurt From: Sent: To: Subject: Richard.C.BornhorstQuscg.mil on behalf of Bornhorst, Richard [Richard.C.BornhorstQ uscg.mil] Wednesday, June 25,2008 2:29 PM Eichenlaub, Kurt RE: lnterp letter 08-0100 Looks good. Let me know if you need anything else. Richard C. Bornhorst Chemical Engineer Hazardous Materials Standards U.S. Coast Guard +1 (202) 372-1426 -----Original Message----- From: Kurt.Eichenlaub@DOT.GOV [mailto:Kurt.Eichenlaub@DOT.GOV] Sent: Wednesday, June 25,2008 1: 11 PM To: Bornhorst, Richard Subject: Interp letter 08-0100 Atttached is a letter of interpretation that needs USCG concurrence before being finalized. Please respond with concur, concur w/comment, or do not concur. Thanks. Kurt Eichenlaub Transportation Regulations Specialist U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration East Building, 2nd Floor, PHH-10 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE Washington, D.C. 20590-000 1 Phone: 202-366-8553 Fax: 202-366-7435 ## Provenance - Official: Yes - Source: - Source ID: `phmsa` - SHA-256: `01553244dbbb839568a8d1aaa38580ac4b8b512e5dfca466ca6dc528584d3958` - Retrieved: 2026-08-20T00:59:31.977Z - Exported: 2026-08-22T19:15:08.951Z - Document slug: `phmsa-interpretation-08-0100` ### Source metadata ```json { "materialSubtype": "interpretation", "interpretationArea": "hazardous_materials", "representation": "full_text_from_official_pdf", "companies": [ "Hamilton, Miller & Birthisel, LLP" ], "individuals": [ "Mr. Jules V. Massee" ], "refIds": [ "08-0100" ], "catalogDates": [ "2008-07-02" ], "catalogParts": [ 173, 176 ], "catalogRowCount": 2, "sourceRecordUrls": [ "https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/node/53041" ], "linkedAttachmentUrls": [], "unavailableResponseUrls": [], "duplicateRepresentationUrls": [], "citedSections": [ "173.220", "173.220(a)(l)", "176.905", "172.220", "173.22" ], "catalogPageUrls": [ "https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/regulations/title49/section/173220", "https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/regulations/title49/section/176905" ], "pdfUrls": [ "https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/legacy/interpretations/Interpretation%20Files/2008/080100.pdf" ], "representations": [ { "viewUrl": "https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/legacy/interpretations/Interpretation%20Files/2008/080100.pdf", "detailUrl": null, "detailHtmlPath": null, "pdfUrl": "https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/legacy/interpretations/Interpretation%20Files/2008/080100.pdf", "pdfArtifactPath": "data/sources/phmsa-interpretations/08-0100-a424e42d6d.pdf", "pdfArtifactSha256": "a37c6e9a7f6f883c84f86483736ac9de8037a0e8c3d6b657344f69fc3ca763a9", "extractedTextPath": "data/sources/phmsa-interpretations/08-0100-a424e42d6d.v2.txt", "extractedTextSha256": "274a1cfe61fda22b42bc7ab9863664a4b484a896a81317279ec708be898aaedb", "pageCount": 5, "extractionVersion": 2 } ], "caveat": "Interpretations apply regulations to the facts presented and do not create independently enforceable requirements.", "jurisdiction": "US" } ```