Taginfo currently knows almost 700 different fuel:* tags out of which only 70 are listed in the Wiki. In order to improve the documentation, some input is needed on how to interpret the tags. It would be great if we could collect information either here or on the discussion page in the Wiki.
Looking through the 200 most common, undocumented tags, they mostly fall in one of the three following categories.
There are generic terms which likely differ from region to region. Some input from the local communities is needed to check if thereās any standard these tags follow:
Tag
Count
fuel:gasohol*
1600
fuel:gasoline*
7000
fuel:gasolina*
200
fuel:petrol
1700
fuel:benzin*
300
Many tags contain names which are difficult to find a proper definition for, e.g.
Tag
Count
fuel:diesel_A
16
fuel:diesel_B
2304
fuel:diesel_C
43
fuel:diesel_G2
1061
fuel:diesel_plus
75
fuel:euro_diesel
397
fuel:etanol_comum
970
A further large group of tags consists of brand names such as āV-powerā or āPertamaxā. Are these defined well enough to list them in the Wiki in the description of the already existing, generic tags like fuel:octane_*?
I see this as another argument that we need to improve the guidance for casual mappers - they need a simple way to tell that the āGasolinium_Premium_Super_23ā they see on the pump is in fact just another marketing ploy for plain fuel:octane_95.
Iām glad the laws in the U.S. and Canada require clear labeling of the octane numbers at the pump (though according to a different formula than in Europe). In countries that donāt require these labels, how do mappers normally ascertain the octane numbers? By asking the attendant or cashier? Revving your engine to 600 rpm and analyzing the exhaust? Or is it required to be documented somewhere online?
Is there any place where they are not shown on the pump? Iād assume this will only be in a small minority of gas stations.
I wouldnāt expect the Octane rating to be a major issue to find out - compared to the further details like the mixing ratio with biofuels.
To add another data point: In Germany, the octane rating is not very important to most users anymore. Only 5% of the total sales are not 95 Octane. The regular user is more interested in getting fuel with either 5% or 10% of ethanol (E5, E10). All fuels are clearly marked at the pump, including Octane rating and the EU-wide norms like E10 or B7. Only special branded fuels are a bit harder to define.
To get started: Is there any place where āgasolineā means something special?
The tag is used all across the world, sometimes combined with an octance rating. Is it safe to mark this as a duplicate of the more common octane_* tags?
Oh OK, I thought you were saying that the pumps in some country are only labeled as āGasolinium Premium Super 23ā without an octane number. If we can assume the octane number is either uniform or uniformly posted, then we only need to explain the difference between a brand and an octane number.
I assume most of these brand names enter the database because mappers have only seen the stationās monument sign from the road without going in to inspect the pump. Thatās what anyone would do when visiting a place abundant in service stations, such as Gasoline Alley. In my opinion, these values arenāt ideal, but theyāre better than nothing. At least someone familiar with the brand might be able to deduce the octane number without needing to visit in person.
If it appears in combination with an octane-qualified tag, then itās redundant. But if it appears alone, the mapper might be affirming that the station sells unleaded gas as opposed to or in addition to diesel fuel or biofuel. We donāt have as many options for some of these other fuels; mappers who must simplify āDiesel #2ā to diesel may not realize that we expect more detail about unleaded gas.
LPG usually is a mixture of propane and butane. In warmer regions and seasons it can be less than 50% propane. It might be helpful to distinguish places where you are guaranteed to get pure propane suitable for low temperatures. For example, most stations in Norway are explicitly tagged fuel:propane.
This nuance probably isnāt well-known among people who map fueling stations, fuel shops, and the propane vending machines outside convenience stores (typically for cooking). Colloquially, theyāre all āpropaneā, though the name-suggestion-index enforces fuel:lpg=yes on some major brands of these propane vending machines. The wiki mentions some differences in composition, but laypeople probably donāt know anything about composition. Perhaps another note may be appropriate.
At the consumer level nobody would know precisely what the composition of the LPG on sale is: itās not displayed at the pump by any retailer Iāve ever heard of in North America.
Just last week I was arguing with myself what the ābestā tagging solution would be for a local fuel station; I added the exact location of the pump and the (above-grade) storage tank for said fuel, and tagged them all fuel:lpg=yes instead of fuel:propane=yes. They are LPGāinsofar as the storage tank is prominently marked with UN 1075 labelsābut the tank, the pump, and the totem advertising the prices are all marked āpropaneā. If you said āLPGā to most Canadians they wouldnāt have a clue what youāre talking about.
In reality retail āpropaneā in Canada is a mixture of at least 90% propane, maximum 5% propylene (propene), maximum 2.5% butane, and the rest ethane and other hydrocarbons (including mercaptan for odour). (This is defined in a national standard, CAN/CGSB-3.14, as āGrade 1 propaneā.) As far as I know this is generally the case in most of the USA too.
Looking at the āfuel typesā page on the wiki, linked above, it seems I goofed and I should have tagged these as fuel:propane=yes. The user Vanagaudi added it to the table almost five years ago, with the description āLiquefied Petroleum Gas, liquid mixture 95% propane and balance butane as required for recreation vehicle appliances.ā
Currently the Wiki states that it needs to be tagged propane if itās pure, which I think is a bit problematic.
I propose to change the wording in the Wiki to something like āLPG is the inclusive term for different mixtures, propane is a subtype and can be tagged instead if itās guaranteed to be (almost) pure.ā
Or is it required to be documented somewhere online?