5 Months Old Ethanol Gas

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by AnglaisInHull

FWIW, I just choose to avoid the question - drain and winterize the outboard, then put any leftover gas into my car. (Same thing in the spring if there's any left in the snowblower ...)

That's probably the best idea, but I like to run the engine all Winter, and it's getting harder to tell when Winter even starts. (not going by calendar dates)

I think I removed my jib and dodger in late December, early January and they are now already back on the boat ready for the first sail of the year now.

[keyway]

I quit using ethanol gas in my boat. Many gas stations have an ethanol free gas pump. Pay more but for a small outboard no matter. You can pull some fuel from the bottom corner of your tank in to a clear glass for inspection. Compared with fresh gas and you can really see the difference. Sea Foam stabilizer in regular gas works for me

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by thomm225

That's probably the best idea, but I like to run the engine all Winter, and it's getting harder to tell when Winter even starts. (not going by calendar dates)

I think I removed my jib and dodger in late December, early January and they are now already back on the boat ready for the first sail of the year now.

We haven't had a winter south of you a bit. I hope it isn't an omen of a bad hurricane season with warmer water.

[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by RONHARDIN

In the future you might visit a small airport and purchase some 100 Av Gas
That is all I use in Generator or Outboard. After 6 months with the fuel left in the Carburetor my 9.9 outboard starts on first pull. No ethanol added, just pure fuel

It’s actually illegal for them to sell you the Avgas for use in anything but an airplane, but would you believe the production of Avgas is also illegal?
Anyway 100LL is of course leaded fuel and as such the lead does contaminate the oil, will build up on the spark plug and its I believe an oxygenated fuel meaning it needs a richer mixture for the mixture of be correct, so it’s burning lean in your motors and lean means hotter.
It’s really not ideal as a small motor fuel, but I too have run it in small motors, my Husqvarna motorcycle for the octane and in a motorized Dahon folding bicycle I put together to carry in the airplane, just put my fuel samples in it and the little Honda motor ran for years with no problem, but did run hotter, and I never ran it enough to foul the plug.

[CarlF]

If you live in an area where unleaded ethanol free gas is available at marinas or gas stations, definitely buy that - but North of Virginia it's almost impossible to find.

When someone tells you they didn't have trouble with old ethanol fuel ask how big an outboard. Small outboards (like dinghy's) are much more prone to fouling than larger outboards because they have much smaller carb jets.

I have tried all the treatments. None prevent fouling but do maybe delay it a little bit (a very little bit). The best trick is to empty the dinghy tank into your car once a month and buy fresh.

There are two other ideas. Some airports have UL94 fuel besides the 100LL leaded fuel. This has no lead and is 94 octane which is fine for outboards. You'll pay $5-$7 a gallon. Or you can buy "small engine gas" like this:https://www.walmart.com/ip/Vp-Small-...CABEgIqGfD_BwE

It's expensive but much cheaper and easier than overnight ultrasonic cleaning of a carb - or getting stuck with no dinghy outboard at all.