Le 11/05/2015 19:38, JohnFrance a crit :
>
> Hi All,
> During a flight yesterday I had a fairly strong smell of petrol in the cabin
just after take off and while in the climb, it lasted about 2 minutes.
>
> I recently removed the drip trays from under the carbs on the advice of
> several
people. Their view was, it's better to have a few drips catching fire than
a bigger volume that has been heated up.
John and all,
Please allow me to chime in.
- Considering the Rotax layout, no drip tray means some fuel *will* drip
or leak direct onto the superheated exhaust pipes. So, I'd say *do
reinstall the drip trays*. Whoever gave yout the advice you mentioned is
not aware of the necessity to drain them with a fire resistant hose to a
safe place under the airplane. No amount of fuel should be allowed to
stand in the drip trays themselves.
- The FWL should be gas tight, whatever the conditions under the cowl.
So even with carbs flooding, no fumes should enter the cockpit. I
suggest you perform a thorough check of the firewall, or at the very
least do the "lamp-under-the-cowl" night test.
FWIW,
Best regards
Gilles
http://contrails.free.fr
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