FUEL PROBLEMS with Ethonal

[hawkeye08]

There's a smartphone app for android called puregas that I use.

 

[big bubba]

you might do a search on this w/small engines, you'll get more than you expected. some of the threads have a link to non ethanol gas locations, you should have plenty in your state! stabil has a new product that not only stabilizes gas (the old red version) but also treats ethanol fuel as well. check out @ walmt. for small engines, locate non ethanol but still put some kind of stabilizer in it for long term use. dang! it gets complicated. you might ask local landscaper business guys what they do best

 

[s219]

Water and crap in tank is not related to Stabil. Ethanol has a wide range of issues, especially in two-stroke engines like chainsaws. And in general, it's got a shorter shelf life than straight gas.

I'd bet you are either getting gas from somewhere with poor tanks and/or you are storing the fuel for too long. Only buy what you can use in the short term (weeks to maybe a few months) and put stabilizer in.

For use in chainsaws, I don't like ethanol gas that's more than 4-6 weeks old. So I only fill up 1 gal containers for my saws, only as much as I need in the short term. If I know I need more for a big job, I fill up multiple 1 gal containers.

My Deere mower is a 4-stroke and I don't worry about fuel so much. I generally fill up a 5 gal container and take several months using it up. Never had problems with fuel in the Deere.

For a while I was getting straight gas, but the closest station with it closed. Even my marina has ethanol gas now, though they treat with ValvTect and say it can be stored without issues. I kept 40 gal of their ValvTect treated ethanol gas in my boat over the winter, and had no issues this spring. In fact, I didn't have to fill up my tank again until early July, so I had been running off that gas for a long time.

I used Stabil for years with no issues. Now I am using ValvTect, mainly because it has such a good reputation in marine circles.

 

[boggen]

Hi does anyone have fuel problems from ethanol? I have had to rebuild my carb 3 times now. Stable is garbage doesn't work!! when I empty the tank it has a ton of water and crap in it. Where can I buy gas with no ethanol in NJ? I heard that race gas is not good to use in my tractor but there is no ethanol in it. Looking for advise thanks

what makes you think you have water in your fuel? vs just getting bad gas.

are you parking / setting equipment were they are direct sunlight during day, and allowed to cool quickly at night, and allowing a bunch of dew to form inside the tank?

when ya say crud in it? sounds like there is more going on that just water... tank rusting out? do you have a good fitting gas cap with air breather built into it?

====
like others, small engines i run dry, (push mower, weed eater, chain saw, etc..)
large engines (tractors, etc..) stable or sea foam is what i use. and haven't much of any issues.

====
ya got kids or setting stuff outside and have some pesky kids coming around and putting junk in your fuel?

 

[MoMower]

Non ethanol fuel, stored in metal jerry cans that actually seal. I store it up to 2 years and no issues. I usually get the cans from Sportsmansguide.com and I do add the Amsoil equivalent of Stabil.

Sent from my idrankthekoolaid device c/o TractorByNet

 

[Gem99ultra]

Ethanol eats up the fuel lines on my two stroke tools within one year! I finally did find one gas station not too far away that sell non-ethanol gas which I now use in all of my gas powered tools - and my pickup if I'm low on fuel when I buy gas there. You'll probably find one in your area as well.
The downside is that the station does charge 10-cents per gallon more. For me, it's worth the price difference, but YMMV.
Here in mid-Georgia there is no down time for mowing, trimming, etc. - that's year around, so there's not much need for Stabil... thank goodness. Well, actually there is a downside to that as well

 

[Copperhead]

I hate ethanol. Simple logic says you shouldn't be burning up your food supply, or pouring corn into your vehicles. I burn nothing but non-ethanol fuel.

Well, simple logic would say to check your facts first also. We are not using the food supply to make ethanol. Of the entire US corn crop, only 20% is ever used for human consumption. Of the 80% left, 40% of that is used to make ethanol, and of that 40% that is used, the majority of the grain is returned to the livestock feed supply in the form of high protein feed supplements and other goodies. And in many cases, before the corn is even used for distillery ethanol production, the corn oil and some other products are removed. There is no threat to the food supply and we are not using it up to make ethanol. But some weird ideas just never die thanks to the internet.

I have been using at least a 10% blend of ethanol in most everything I have owned that runs on gas since the late 70's when the stuff first started showing up. I, and other family members, have taken vehicles to well over 250,000 miles using the stuff with no fuel related problems. I have owned several JD lawn mowers that have and still get fed a diet of 10%, and they have never had a problem. My pickup has seen frequent doses of E85 fuel and when it didn't get that, it got E10. runs like a champ.

Are there common sense things you should take in regards to ethanol? Of course. Just like there are common sense things you should do regarding any fuel be it gas, diesel, biodiesel, propane, NG, or ethanol blends. Gas has its own problems. it can gum up carbs and injectors among other things. One sometimes needs an additive to clean things up. It is not some sort of "the best fuel mankind has ever discovered". Ethanol is not either, but then, no fuel is perfect. They each have various issues. Like diesel, and especially biodiesel. Ok, don't treat your diesel fuel when the temps hit -30F and see what happens. Ethanol should not be stored in any vehicle or container for a long period that has a vented fuel cap or system. Condensation can build up in that type of fuel system and the ethanol will bond with the water. A small amount, no big deal. A larger amount, and you can have some fuel related issues on down the line. But one thing for sure, if you only get trace amounts of moisture in the fuel tank, ethanol will clean it out and there will be no chance of fuel line freezing in the winter. You have to have a balanced approach to using any fuel.

And there is the occasional product that has been made in the last few years that used substandard components in fuel systems that can be adversely affected by ethanol. Not the fault of the fuel, but the fault of the folks who are still putting stuff together on the cheap, knowing full well that ethanol is in almost all gasoline sold now. Put the blame where it needs to be, on the product manufacturer or don't buy their product. Same can be said of biodiesel.

 

[bumperm]

Well, simple logic would say to check your facts first also. We are not using the food supply to make ethanol. Of the entire US corn crop, only 20% is ever used for human consumption. Of the 80% left, 40% of that is used to make ethanol, and of that 40% that is used, the majority of the grain is returned to the livestock feed supply in the form of high protein feed supplements and other goodies. And in many cases, before the corn is even used for distillery ethanol production, the corn oil and some other products are removed. There is no threat to the food supply and we are not using it up to make ethanol. But some weird ideas just never die thanks to the internet.

I have been using at least a 10% blend of ethanol in most everything I have owned that runs on gas since the late 70's when the stuff first started showing up. I, and other family members, have taken vehicles to well over 250,000 miles using the stuff with no fuel related problems. I have owned several JD lawn mowers that have and still get fed a diet of 10%, and they have never had a problem. My pickup has seen frequent doses of E85 fuel and when it didn't get that, it got E10. runs like a champ.

Are there common sense things you should take in regards to ethanol? Of course. Just like there are common sense things you should do regarding any fuel be it gas, diesel, biodiesel, propane, NG, or ethanol blends. Gas has its own problems. it can gum up carbs and injectors among other things. One sometimes needs an additive to clean things up. It is not some sort of "the best fuel mankind has ever discovered". Ethanol is not either, but then, no fuel is perfect. They each have various issues. Like diesel, and especially biodiesel. Ok, don't treat your diesel fuel when the temps hit -30F and see what happens. Ethanol should not be stored in any vehicle or container for a long period that has a vented fuel cap or system. Condensation can build up in that type of fuel system and the ethanol will bond with the water. A small amount, no big deal. A larger amount, and you can have some fuel related issues on down the line. But one thing for sure, if you only get trace amounts of moisture in the fuel tank, ethanol will clean it out and there will be no chance of fuel line freezing in the winter. You have to have a balanced approach to using any fuel.

And there is the occasional product that has been made in the last few years that used substandard components in fuel systems that can be adversely affected by ethanol. Not the fault of the fuel, but the fault of the folks who are still putting stuff together on the cheap, knowing full well that ethanol is in almost all gasoline sold now. Put the blame where it needs to be, on the product manufacturer or don't buy their product. Same can be said of biodiesel.

A fine liberal response.

Ethanol, as others have noted is crap. My small motorhome gets at least 10% worse mileage with alcohol laced fuel. After figuring in costs and hydrocarbon fuel squandered in shoving ethanol fuel down our throats (well, the necks of our gas tanks anyway) it comes up to a solid net loss for everyone but those financially involved in its production.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Ethanol eats up the fuel lines on my two stroke tools within one year! I finally did find one gas station not too far away that sell non-ethanol gas which I now use in all of my gas powered tools - and my pickup if I'm low on fuel when I buy gas there. You'll probably find one in your area as well.
The downside is that the station does charge 10-cents per gallon more. For me, it's worth the price difference, but YMMV.
Here in mid-Georgia there is no down time for mowing, trimming, etc. - that's year around, so there's not much need for Stabil... thank goodness. Well, actually there is a downside to that as well

I didn't mind paying 10 cents extra per gallon, but the local stations (2) sell it for 30-40cents premium over ethanol gas.

If you are replacing fuel lines every year, you aren't using the right material or your repair guy is not and wants your return business.
Many years ago, lines would fail in a year or so, but no so for many years since they went to something (IDK what) that is no affected by ethanol.
I have a pressure washer I bought in Canada 14 years ago and same fuel lines are still on it. I did have the same issue with leaf blowers that would eat up the lines each year till I finally bought a new one that is 4 years old, gas stays in it year round and not issues.
It seems to take industry several years to catchup with design when new fuel is introduced. They never had warranty issues with bad material design as most would last over a year, so why change. Bad design is not the fault of the fuel, just the manufacturer.

As for fuel storage, I try not to keep fuel stored longer than 2-3 month. A good indication of stored fuel going bad is color change from clear to light brownish. If I have fuel going bad, I pour it into my truck tank. It has no problem burning fuel that is a year old based on personal experience from vehicles staying in the garage for a year while wife and I were in U.K. I do that with all fuels where it is 2 stroke mixed gas or straight gas for my lawnmowers. I never mix up more than a gallon of 2 stroke mix at a time.
Speaking of chainsaws, I just got a used Stihl 270 which had gas in it when I got it. It ran fine and cut good with lots of power. When I finished cutting up a tree, I poured all the gas out and saw that it was brown colored so it was stale but still ran good. Have to ask my BIL how long that gas was in there.
I do know that Stabil works. One year I forgot to put Stabil in my lawnmower fuel and the Craftsman mower with 26HP B&S engine failed to crank the next spring. I thought sure I had carb problems. I removed the tank, poured out all the old gas, refilled with fresh gas and it fired right up. To get rid of the gas, I used it to burn brush. It would hardly burn, not even like diesel. I had to fire it with a large piece of paper to heat it up and then is smoked terribly. No wonder my mower didn't like it. I have used Stabil ever since and no more fuel issues from 5 months of storage.

 

[KiotiKowboy]

About the price difference between horse p_ss ethanol and real gas ...

Studies show non-ethanol fuel produces more power and better mpg ( about 10 percent ). If the pump price is within 10 percent, you're doing alright on cost.