So does anyone use non ethanol gas

[3v0]

Do I use stabil, yes. Is there a problem with modern gas, yes. Is it 100% due to ethanol, not sure but ethanol sure makes a good whipping boy.

I started out looking for a video showing how ethanol attracts water instead I found a couple of videos that are questionable at best. These are not helping the cause. Sort of like the video from the people running generators with electric motors

In the first video water has to be condensing on the inside of the jar and running into the gas.

In this news video the mechanic says "it (ethanol) being from a corn base is gritty". Ethanol is collected by evaporating it then condensing it. no grit.


Most anybody who has lived where it gets really cold knows this product.



I will take ethanol over MTBE anyday but would rather have neither.

 

[grsthegreat]

I have been running non ethanol for all my small engines for 2 years now. I used to have to clean and rebuild carbs every summer after the winter storage season....no more. Everything starts right away.

Well worth the extra $1/gal it costs not to have to mess with carburetors. Besides, i dont use that much of the stuff running chain saws, push snowblower and lawn equipment.

All my vehicles are diesel, as is the tractor.

 

[cqaigy2]

I think they're making the fuel lines out of crappy material. I've been running my 20 year old stihl and haven't had the fuel lines rot yet. Borrowed a year old posthole digger from a friend and had to replace the fuel lines that had rotted off before i could use it. The only differences i could verify is the fuel line on the digger in "modern" compared to the saw and i use sta-bil in my gas.

 

[ultrarunner]

Looks like its time to beat another dead horse.

The boating industry is really taking a stand against increasing the percent of ethanol in gasoline.

Apparantly older fibreglass tanks are particularly vulnerable to ethanol and manufacturer's have denied warranty claims.

 

[3v0]

Maybe we will get lucky and oxygenated gas will go the way of the 55 mph speed limit.

 

[MossRoad]

To my pt brethren, do any if you 422/425 owners run non ethanol? I am converting over for all my small engines. I seem to be rebuilding carbs much more than I used to so hoping the change works in my favor.

I have run 10% ethenol in my PT425 with the Kholer Command engine since 2001. No problems. 12 years. Original fuel filter, lines, etc... No problems.
I have run 10% ethenol in my chainsaws.... and lose fuel lines about every 2 years. The just collapse and turn gummy.
So... given the choice, I would not run ethenol if I didn't have to.

 

[ponytug]

If you leave gas in a small engine, you probably want to be adding a fuel stabilizer. Letting fuel sit around is never a great idea, but we all do it. I put SeaFoam stabilizer or Sta-Bil in everything as soon as it comes on the property. I also run through carb/fuel injector cleaner on a regular basis.

Personally, when I finally paid attention to my Stihl manual and started putting in 89 octane as specified, all my hard start/running issues went away. Note to self: read the fine (or not so fine) print in the manual...

A large fraction of the energy in gasoline is present in some very volatile components that can evaporate out, leaving us trying to run these engines on what has become inferior fuel, often with lots of varnish/crud (technical term). I think that it isn't fair to the engine.

As others have noted, getting the right spark plug for the fuel and operating conditions makes a big difference. Many of these engines are designed for wide open throttle operation for many reasons, including fuel use, but also cooling, and proper temperatures within the engine.

Since some folks manage to get lots of hours out of these engines, there are clearly ways to use/treat the engines in ways that gets lots of use out of them. Personally, I struggle to use many of the small engines often enough to keep everything lubricated well, but I suspect we all have different challenges to deal with. I really appreciate the tips here on this forum on how to best use/maintain the equipment to get the best out of our investments.

All the best,

Peter

 

[scobrado]

I only run non-ethanol premium in all my mowers, saws, etc. You can find gas stations that carry it here:

Ethanol-free gas stations in the U.S. and Canada

 

[scobrado]

... No problems. 12 years. Original fuel filter ...

Hi MossRoad, you haven't changed your fuel filter in 12 years?!?!? That seems remarkable! Maybe I misread.

 

[washita]

I have not changed the fuel filter in 12 years and 253k miles on my minivan so that is not unreasonable, if you maintain your equipment, we rarely changed fuel filters when farming either but we payed close attention to the quality of the fuel used