This stuff just came to Florida----10% ethanol gasoline. What is your experience with this stuff as far as shelf life in a vented tank. I have heard stories. And my research on the net is not promising. jim
30 days. The other issue is if you have moisture and other crud, as soon as you introduce E10 to that tank it may cause fuel problems until crud has worked its way through. It seems to bring out the worst in fuel systems when first introduced, after that no big deal from what I can tell. We had all sorts of blobs of stuff getting to the engine mounted fuel filters about 4 years ago when it was introduced. If you don't have a spin on type fuel filter I would suggest you get a Racor type.
I ran about 30 gallons of it with no problems. The idle may be a little lean. I keep my system pretty clean and I do have a spin on. I am going to try to find a 10 micron filter for it. I may cut open the filter and see what is in it. The engine filter was clean. 30 days is a pain. jim
One sort of good thing about it is that the ethanol can absorb moisture, so if you have some moisture build up, it's like running deicer/fuel dryer for free. I definitely noticed poor idling, stuttering, etc. for the first few tanks through mine this spring, even with using stabil over the winter. I think next year, I will be using stabil, and dumping the gas from the boat into the truck after the winter.
Based on what I read on the net, it looks like you should dump the gas in the fall and dry out the system. If it phase separates, it is bad news. Some still say fill the tank in the fall, but I have not done that for years. You just wind up with a load of stale fuel. Stabil apparently does not work with E10. jim
So is this the same stuff that we have had in MN for the last 15 or so years? The gas station pumps say contains up to 10% ethanol.
I don't know. The pumps say the same thing. A friend had some go bad in three weeks sitting out in the Florida sun. In the past I have not prepped the boat for lay-up in FL. I just ran it ever 2-3 months, and never had a problem. I don't think that will work now. From what I have read, the ethanol absorbs water. When it reaches the limit of water content the gas and alcohol/water separate and Stabil will not stop that. They are saying that the shelf life in a sealed car tank is only 60-90 days after the ethanol is added which is apparently done at delivery to the stations. What is your experience? jim
We never fill our tanks in fall any more. You can't risk running that crap through the new injected engines. I want at least 50% new fuel in the tank for the first time out in spring.
This is a response from Chevron, Chevron only uses ethanol in its oxygenated gasoline. Ethanol is ethyl alcohol or grain alcohol, mainly produced in the Midwestern United States from corn stock. It can be used as a bio-fuel alternative to gasoline – known as E85 for its 85 percent ethanol to 15 percent gasoline mixture – in “flex fuel” engines, but it’s primary use in the U.S. is as an oxygenate. As an oxygenate, its mixture is 10 percent or less ethanol in finished gasoline. Chevron gasoline can be stored for a year without deterioration when the storage conditions are good -- a tightly closed container, moderate temperatures, and out of direct sunlight. Chevron recommends that gasoline not be stored unnecessarily. A supply that won't be needed for several months should be used and replenished when the need reoccurs. Daniel
That makes not a big problem in cars. Boats have vented tanks and we have high humidity and high heat down here. jim
