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Oh how I hate Ethanol

FrancSevin

FrancSevin

Proudly Deplorable
I have amodern 12 HP Brigs and Stratton limb shredder. About four years old. It gets little u8se but twice a year we limb my suburban lot and my Father's place.

Even thoughIi let it sit for four to six months ,,,it always starts. Generaly I run the tank dry. But last February, it was cold and I figured I'd be doing it soon again so I didn't. Then came the late spring,other projects and four months later I go to start it. Nuthin'

I had forgotten that I used regular gas right out of the pump.What was in the tank was essentialy 8 months old gas.

After tugging on the rope for half an hour, I decided "maybe" the gas was bad or had water in it. Drained the tank fuel & looked Okay. But the sediment bowl was full of gray putty. Looked like thread dope, thick and grey.

If I put fuel in the air filter, it runs for about thirty seconds. So, I know this is the issue. But now, I'm looking at a carbuerator rebuild. Never had these issues in the good ole' days.

I hate ETOH.
 
Every thing I have bought in the last few monthes has had a warning on the froun of the book about alki in the fuel,..and to always drain it.......hope a carb clean out is all ya have to do!!!
 
I've got a snowblower that is about 20 years old and it gets used very little as I generally move snow with tractor bucket. Anyways, anytime I run it, I always shut the fuel valve off and let it run out of fuel. The fuel that is in it is probably 1 to 2 years old and I haven't had any problems with it yet. My brother had exact same snowblower and didn't shut the fuel valve off and run it out of fuel and it took 2 days to get it running and longer than that for it to begin running right.
I found a place not too far from me that sells ethynol free gas. I'm going to start filling my cans up there to avoid problems in the future.
 
Franc, do you use Stab-il or Seafoam in your gas when you bring it home?

Whenever possible I try to use ethanol free gas but still two or three times the recommended dose of Stab-il. So far it has been working for me. On the generators I shut off the fuel supply and let them run dry. Again, never a problem.
 
EastTexFrank said:
Franc, do you use Stab-il or Seafoam in your gas when you bring it home?

Whenever possible I try to use ethanol free gas but still two or three times the recommended dose of Stab-il. So far it has been working for me. On the generators I shut off the fuel supply and let them run dry. Again, never a problem.
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No. I am generaly very cereful about this but I plain forgot to drain the fuel, No shut off valve for the tank so really , the best thing is to just let it run out. I forgot.

I use so much fuel at the ranch storage is seldom an issue. Diesel ore gasoline. But this was at home. Bottom line, i screwed up. But this is just one more thing on the list of things to which we have to pay attention because of government mandates.

And it is totaly unneccesary. ETOH isn't saving a drop of crude, it isn't saving the environment and it isn't saving any small engines.:hammer:
 
Take the carb off and the fuel bowl. Look for the brass main jet and idle jet above the float bowl. Remove and clean, reinstall. clean eveything with carb cleaner and reassemble. Even in the days before ethanol, we had to do this if the gasoline were too old. My opinion is that the gasoline formulated today without ethanol would go bad long before gasoline from say the 60-70's would. Don't know how it is formulated, but I do know there are choices the refiners make that could impact this issue.

There are single cylinder diesel engines available in that power range.....It keeps for years.

Regards, Kirk
 
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I use Seafoam in ALL my sporadic use small engines along with ethanol free gas. I have to date not seen any problems like you just encountered.

Seafoam is the best stuff in the world for this application. I have no idea what is in it, I am just following my dearly departed Dad's advice when storing engines with gas in them for a few months. He never had a problem and knock on wood I won't either.
 
TiredRetired said:
I use Seafoam in ALL my sporadic use small engines along with ethanol free gas. I have to date not seen any problems like you just encountered.

Seafoam is the best stuff in the world for this application. I have no idea what is in it, I am just following my dearly departed Dad's advice when storing engines with gas in them for a few months. He never had a problem and knock on wood I won't either.
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This matches my experiance exactly, only with E10. Except my Dad is still with us, and he never used the stuff...He just cleaned carbs when gummed up. Used to be simpler than now though.

I run a bottle and 15 gallons of gas through our family vehicals each year. Sure helps with fuel injectors.

Regards, Kirk
 
300 H and H said:
This matches my experiance exactly, only with E10. Except my Dad is still with us, and he never used the stuff...He just cleaned carbs when gummed up. Used to be simpler than now though.

I run a bottle and 15 gallons of gas through our family vehicals each year. Sure helps with fuel injectors.

Regards, Kirk
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I use the non ethanol gas mostly in my two stroke engines. For my tractor and Sno=Blower (4 strokers) I actually use E10. They do not seem to have any issues with E10 so no problem in my mind. Each one is stored for six months at a time or so. The E10 with Seafoam has given me zero issues with quick start up at the beginnning of the season for each. Would I have Franc's issues without Seafoam? I dunno, but I am not going to find out. :biggrin:

BTW, the other thing my Dad liked was Marvel Mystery Oil. Remember that stuff? I have never found out what is in that either. I guess that is the mystery. :yum:
 
TiredRetired said:
BTW, the other thing my Dad liked was Marvel Mystery Oil. Remember that stuff? I have never found out what is in that either. I guess that is the mystery. :yum:
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When I worked in the oilfield some rigs used Marvel Mystery Oil in everything except the coffee. I used to use it quite a bit too but got out of the habit. I think that it's now owned by Turtle Wax. For what it's worth, I pulled up the MSDS Sheet and it's constituants are Mineral Oil, Mineral Spirit and 5% ortho-Dicholobenzene. Don't ask me why or how it works but it does.
 
300 H and H said:
Take the carb off and the fuel bowl. Look for the brass main jet and idle jet above the float bowl. Remove and clean, reinstall. clean eveything with carb cleaner and reassemble. Even in the days before ethanol, we had to do this if the gasoline were too old. My opinion is that the gasoline formulated today without ethanol would go bad long before gasoline from say the 60-70's would. Don't know how it is formulated, but I do know there are choices the refiners make that could impact this issue.

There are single cylinder diesel engines available in that power range.....It keeps for years.

Regards, Kirk
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Olden days one just closed the Idle and run jet screws and then puulled the rope. Seldom ever had to take a carb apart.
Now althe carb jets are fixed.
 
No 3 is B.S. I see they have some thing to sell you. This is their down fall, and the reason they insite fear in the consumer. They need to sell you something. They are fear mongers of the first order IMHO. Not a retired mechanic, but I have burnt more E10 than perhaps anyone on this board. In Iowa we've been using it since 1978 or so. Other than the solvent properties dredging up scum from ALL the tanks of the retailers and your cars fuel tank, ended up clogging fuel filters for a while. Then nothing of note in the last how many years. We use E10 in in every thing from weed eaters to my 72 Pontiac Trans Am. It is the only fuel it has had in it since 1979 or so. It sits in the garage all winter with a FULL tank of E10, and has now for what 30 years or so? SO why isn't it DEAD from your so called engine damage??

You missed this argument on this site long ago. I can bring you contrary eveidence for all of this is you insist. Done it here before. It is also not from an "ethanol scare" site, trying to get you to buy a "test" kit for ethanol.

I have maintaned for the most part that the issues with E10 are in whole salers tanks, your retailers tanks, and your very own car's fuel tank. The crud the petroleum companies have been pumping you in your "pure" gasoline are the issue when E10 desolves this tar and resin crud, sending it through your fuel system. Fiberglass tanks are also a no no....Sorry. For many years the industry has had ethanol resistant fuel lines and carb floats, as E10 is nothing new at all. Some manufacturers have been slow in the small engine industry to adapt. But they have..

If anyone has experiance in the real world, I do. 8 cars 2 tractors 2 lawn mowers, weed eaters, 3 snowmobiles, one snow trac....and hundreds of thousands of miles on E10. Haven't had an issue since 1979....

Like to see you posting Uncle Ed. I sure don't mean to scare you away. I just have had good experiances with E10. And yes I am a corn farmer, but I don't sell to ethanol plants. I am a food grade farmer, for your bodies fuel!!

Regards, Kirk
 
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