Many businesses have started to realize the benefits of CNG, which is why they are choosing to use this natural gas to fuel their fleet. Like fleets that run on petroleum-based fuel, your compressed natural gas fleet will also need to be serviced. Some companies use a professional third party to handle their vehicle service while others decide to handle the maintenance in house. If you are interested in the latter, check out what you need to know before servicing your CNG vehicles on site.

Be sure your staff is adequately trained.

CNG vehicles and petroleum-based fuel vehicles are not serviced the same way. If you currently have a staff of mechanics or technicians that are used to dealing with diesel or gasoline vehicles, they must be trained in CNG vehicle service. This can be done by having your technicians undergo CSA certification.

There are many differences that your staff will need to learn. For instance, if your staff is used to working with diesel trucks that don’t use spark plugs, they’ll need to learn that CNG vehicles do contain spark plugs that need to be serviced every 67,000 miles. Also, since CNG generates less emissions than diesel, your vehicles will no longer need after-market treatment systems to reduce the amount of emission that comes off that vehicle.

When your staff is properly trained, you can rest assured that your fleet is in good hands and can be properly maintained on site.

Ensure your facility is up to code.

Since compressed natural gas vehicles are different than petroleum-based vehicles, they need to be handled differently. To do this, you need to ensure that your facility is adequately designed to handle these vehicles safely. The National Fire Protection Association has a list of requirements that your facility needs to meet. Some of these requirements include upgrading the ventilation and electrical systems in the building and removing certain open-flame heaters from the facility too. In order to keep your staff safe and provide an adequate space for your vehicles, be sure to follow these requirements. If necessary, you can hire a professional company to inspect your facility for you to determine what changes need to be made.

Ozinga can help you get your in-house facility off the ground by training your staff or inspecting your facility. Contact our energy professionals today to get started.