Gasoline - Ethanol or Non-Ethanol

[oldpilgrim]

It is fact that even properly mixed Non E fuel can gum up a small engine if left in the carb.

Maybe with today's crap fuels.

I guess many people here are too young to remember the days when gasoline simply evaporated and left nothing remaining.

Many cars would be put away without preparation and years later you could blow the dust off of it, put a battery and gas in it and it would run as well as when it was parked.

I've done it many times in the past.

I did it in 1978 with a Model T that was driven into a barn in 1928 and forgotten. I never took the carb off, just added gas and battery. The mice that flew out the tail pipe weren't as happy as I was.

Try that with today's 'better' fuels.

Today, I;m lucky if I can go a whole winter and still get it started.

 

[buickanddeere]

My experiences are the opposite. Old stinky leaded gasoline would gum up carbs and fuel systems. Modern emissions premium without ethanol evaporates leaving minimal deposits. Of course the best fuel for storage is fuel approved for aviation use.

 

[ArlyA]

Maybe a little history would be beneficial here. Gasoline type fuels have been going bad since there were 1st being cooked out of crude, well over 100 years ago. Note that alcohols was not commonly being added to them until very recently. These fuels go sour or bad and builds a gum like material in them because of a chemical reaction with oxygen and these reactions speed up, with the raise of storage temps. When I worked in a marine, I was trained to smell the tank and if smelled "sour" the fuel had done bad and the system was gummed. It didn't pay to even to try starting them. Oh yes, back to the historic story. A fellow working as a mechanic in a marina (in MN) well over 50 years ago, got tired of cleaning out boat motor fuel systems and created SeaFoam to keep the fuels from oxygenating and the company which bares that name was made. I believe its still a Minnesota company. Less than flashy SeaFoam, is still the best stabilizer out there.

Maybe I should add, I do add stabilizer (SeaFoam) to all my seasonal fuels. And I don't run them dry at the end of there season. You can't get it all of fuel out them anyway but I don't care, since it has stabilizer in it.

 

[sixdogs]

At the end of the season, I run some of my things out of fuel. Then I add a little fuel that has Stabil and maybe a little fogging oil in it. Then I run it out of fuel again and store for the winter. Am I doing the right thing?

 

[4570Man]

Maybe I'm just lucky, but I haven't ever had any trouble leaving ethanol free gas in equipment all winter. Our winters are pretty short here. My equipment gets used until about November and gets a rest until about March.

 

[Zerk]

My experiences are the opposite. Old stinky leaded gasoline would gum up carbs and fuel systems. Modern emissions premium without ethanol evaporates leaving minimal deposits. Of course the best fuel for storage is fuel approved for aviation use.

I tend to agree. I suspect gas is better quality these days.

I got one bike for that had been parked in storage, from 70s, I got in 90s. I had to pull the choke to get over 60.

I have had a few times where a bike or sled, didn't have stabil, and started just fine the next year. I do try to run non ethanol. Sleds were ran in non area, but when I forgot with bikes, it was probably corn gas. But bikes are only parked a few months. Sleds longer.

 

[oldpilgrim]

At the end of the season, I run some of my things out of fuel. Then I add a little fuel that has Stabil and maybe a little fogging oil in it. Then I run it out of fuel again and store for the winter. Am I doing the right thing?

that's what i do too.

 

[Wa11banger]

At the end of the season, I run some of my things out of fuel. Then I add a little fuel that has Stabil and maybe a little fogging oil in it. Then I run it out of fuel again and store for the winter. Am I doing the right thing?

Doing it right and better than most.. I used to fog my big boat engines when they got put up for the winter but I must say I haven't fogged any small engines.. running small engines out of fuel is the best way to do what you can to prevent gumming up. Mixed fuels for small engines are the worst as they have oil in the fuel as well.

 

[Gem99ultra]

How much grass you cutting that $.40/ gallon matters?

It is about 20 miles for me too. I try to pick it up in my travels. But I have bought ethanol when I had to.

I'm using about 5 gallons per week for lawn mowers, trimmers, chain saw and leaf blower. Considering the comments above and below, I'm thinking that a couple bucks per week extra isn't all that bad of a deal. I'll stay with the higher priced non-ethanol.

 

[oldpilgrim]

I mentioned above, we can;t get it at the pump here, only this way:

Shop TRUFUEL Ethanol Free Fuel at Lowes.com

and I won''t pay that for real gasoline.