Dimensions / Industrial & logistics / Jerry cans / Gasoline can
A gasoline can is a consumer portable fuel container: Midwest Can’s 5 gallon 5610 is 13 × 10 × 14.5 in. Under EPA rules (40 CFR 59) and CARB’s, every can of 0.25 to 10.0 gallons made since 2009 may lose no more than 0.3 grams per gallon per day and needs a spout that closes by itself; CARB colours it red for gasoline, yellow for diesel and blue for kerosene. Since December 22, 2022 gasoline cans also need a child-resistant closure, and empty cans of 5 gallons or less a flame mitigation device.
| 5 gallon can, L × W × H (Midwest Can 5610) | Capacities EPA and CARB cover | Flame mitigation device needed up to (CPSC) |
|---|---|---|
| 13 × 10 × 14.5in5 gal | 0.25–10.0gal | 5gal |
Sources: Midwest Can, 40 CFR 59, 16 CFR 1461. Checked October 2026.
Midwest Can’s red 5 gallon can is filled in. Enter your can’s colour, label capacity and test result; each check follows a rule on this page.
Capacity in US gallons as labelled, and in litres for the filling check. The daily loss is the result of your emission test, in grams; the boiling point is on the fuel’s safety data sheet.
Under CARB’s colour code (CP-501), a red can is right for gasoline. At 5 gal it is a portable fuel container under EPA’s rule (0.25 to 10 gal, 40 CFR 59), and at 5 gal or less the empty can also needs a flame mitigation device to ASTM F3326-21 (16 CFR 1461). A gasoline can made on or after 22 December 2022 also needs a child-resistant closure to ASTM F2517-22e1 (16 CFR 1460).
Midwest Can’s red 5610, a 5 gallon gasoline can, is filled in; try diesel to see which colour CARB wants.
An initial boiling point of 26.7 °C allows 90% of the 18.9 L capacity at a 15 °C fill (RID 4.1.1.4 (a)): 17.01 L at most, so 16.5 L leaves 0.51 L in hand.
As dangerous goods, gasoline (from 26.7 °C, Delek) fills 90% of the can; 5 gallons is 18.93 L, rounded down here to 18.9 L.
1.2 g a day from a 5 gal can is 0.24 g per gallon per day, within EPA’s 0.3 g (40 CFR 59.611); this can may lose up to 1.5 g a day.
The 1.2 g a day is an example: enter your own diurnal test result. The EPA limit grows with capacity, 0.3 g per gallon.
Selling gas cans to US retailers? Photograph the can, mark its size, spout and labels in SizeMarker and send it with your quote.
Mark a photoMakers’ own pages and catalogue, except the No-Spill row, which comes from a retailer.
| Can | Size | Holds; standards or features listed |
|---|---|---|
| Midwest Can 5610, 5 gallonThis page | 13 × 10 × 14.5 in | 5 gallons; case pack of 4 |
| Midwest Can 6610, 6 gallon | 13 × 10 × 16.6 in | 6 gallons; case pack of 4 |
| Midwest Can 2310, 2 gallon | 9.25 × 7.75 × 9.75 in | 2 gallons and 8 ounces; case pack of 6 |
| Midwest Can 1210, 1 gallon | 7.50 × 5 × 9.5 in | 1 gallon and 4 ounces; case pack of 12 |
| Scepter FR1G101 SmartControl, 1 gallon | 7.7 × 5.95 × 11.75 in | CARB and EPA; ASTM F2517-17, F852-08, F839-15, 3326-19 |
| Scepter FR1G201 SmartControl, 2 gallon | 9.7 × 6.86 × 14 in | CARB and EPA |
| Scepter FSCG571, 5 gallon, rear handle | 15.25 × 12 × 10, no unit printed | Up to 3 gallons a minute; ASTM F3326-19a, F2517-17, F852-20, F839-15 |
| Scepter FG4G511 Ameri-Can, 5 gallonBeing phased out | 11.53 × 9.91 × 15.72 in | Flame mitigation device; shuts off by itself |
| No-Spill 1460 ViewStripe, 5 gallonSize from True Value | 17-1/2 × 11-1/4 × 14 in | Up to 3 gallons a minute; CARB and EPA compliant, child resistant |
Sources: Midwest Can · Scepter · Scepter · Scepter · Scepter · True Value
| Rule | What it says |
|---|---|
| Which cans40 CFR 59.600 and 59.605 | Portable fuel containers made on or after January 1, 2009, of 0.25 to 10.0 gallons; safety cans built to OSHA rules are excluded |
| ColourCARB CP-501, 2.2 | Gasoline red, diesel yellow, kerosene blue; red cans carry GASOLINE in at least 34-point Arial |
| Utility jugs40 CFR 59.680 | Red, yellow or blue utility jugs count as portable fuel containers |
| Evaporation40 CFR 59.611; CARB | No more than 0.3 grams per gallon per day; CARB tests with fuel of 10 percent ethanol |
| Spout40 CFR 59.611 and 59.653; CARB | Closes and seals by itself when not pouring; no leaks upright, tipped or upside down |
| Automatic shut-offCARB, 2016 amendments | No longer required: struck out in 2016, though some cans still have it |
| Child-resistant closure16 CFR 1460 | Gasoline cans made on or after December 22, 2022: ASTM F2517-22e1 |
| Flame mitigation device16 CFR 1461 | Empty cans of 5 gallons or less for fuels with a flash point under 140 °F: ASTM F3326-21; cans sold full: ASTM F3429/F3429M-24 |
| Label40 CFR 59.615 | EMISSION CONTROL INFORMATION, and the month and year of manufacture marked on the can |
| Warranty and life40 CFR 59; CARB | Emissions warranty of at least one year; useful life of five years from sale |
Sources: 40 CFR 59 · CARB · CARB · 16 CFR 1460 · 16 CFR 1461
| Rule or figure | What it says |
|---|---|
| Gasoline, UN 1203RID Table A; Delek US safety data sheet | Packing group II; boils from 26.7 to 255 °C; specific gravity 0.75 |
| Highest fill at 15 °C as dangerous goodsRID 4.1.1.4 (a) | Initial boiling point below 60 °C: 90% of capacity |
| 5 US gallons in litresOur conversion | 18.93 L; the check above rounds down to 18.9 L |
| In the check aboveOur calculation | 90% of 18.9 L is 17.01 L; 16.5 L leaves 0.51 L |
| US work vehicles49 CFR 173.6 | Materials of trade: up to 30 L (8 gal) per packaging, 200 kg in all; gasoline in metal or plastic packaging that meets the HMR or OSHA rules |
| Private carriage in EuropeRID 1.1.3.1 (a) | Up to 60 litres per refillable receptacle filled by or for a private person |
| Extra room in small cansMidwest Can | Its 1 and 2 gallon cans hold 4 and 8 ounces more than their rating |
Sources: RID 2025 · Delek US · 49 CFR 173 · Midwest Can
Midwest Can’s 5610 is 13 × 10 × 14.5 in, Scepter’s Ameri-Can 11.53 × 9.91 × 15.72 in and No-Spill’s 1460 is 17-1/2 × 11-1/4 × 14 in. Midwest’s 6 gallon 6610 stands 16.6 in high on the same 13 × 10 in base.
CARB’s certification procedure CP-501 colours fuel cans by fuel: red for gasoline, yellow for diesel, blue for kerosene. EPA treats any red, yellow or blue utility jug as a portable fuel container.
No. CARB struck that requirement out in 2016; what CARB and EPA require now is a spout that closes by itself and a can that loses no more than 0.3 grams per gallon per day.
An insert at the openings that keeps a flame from reaching the fuel vapour inside. Under 16 CFR 1461, empty consumer cans of 5 gallons or less must meet ASTM F3326-21.
Shipped as dangerous goods, gasoline may fill 90% of the can at 15 °C because it starts boiling at 26.7 °C: 17.01 L in a 5 gallon (18.9 L) can. Midwest Can builds a little extra room into its small cans.
Buyers and retailers ask for the size and capacity, the colour for each fuel, the spout and whether it closes by itself, the child-resistant closure, the flame mitigation device, the EPA and CARB certificates and the case pack. Mark the real can, its spout and labels on your own photo in SizeMarker, as in the picture at the top, and send one product card for WhatsApp or WeChat.
