Ethanol free gas?

[Grumpycat]

Ethanol ruins rubber components, that's why all small engines (weed eaters, chainsaws and the such quit after a year ) the reason is, it makes the diaphragms hard and they wont pump fuel anymore making them hard to start or not start at all. I buy cheap or get free non running or hard to start tools like these then run to the local parts supplier to get a handful of diaphragms, repair them and sell as a hobby. I use ethanol free gas in mine, since you cant find it at most stations I buy the cans of premix at the hardware stores or mower dealers. I run regular pump gas in my 4 cycles with no issues using nitryl or pvc vinyl hoses for fuel lines.

Small engine makers have known for 15 years or more that they had to design for ethanol. Only poorly selected components have any issue with ethanol.

Small engines have a big problem with water. Simple gas tanks with easy vent, no sealed tank with charcoal canister as found on automobiles and trucks. Pure gasoline will hold less than 0.1% water but E10 will hold a lot. This water in solution is nasty to diecast zinc and brass. And to rubber products that are not formulated to be water safe.

And finally, it took longer than it should have for premix oil to be ethanol-compatible. If your premix is not rated for ethanol then there is a large chance the ethanol will decompose the oil. Use it quick and you'll be OK, but a week or month for now is anyone's guess.

Ethanol-free is very hard to find around here. Easier to find at marinas and gas stations serving the boating community. But commonly $1.00/gallon extra.

I hate that ethanol is forced on us by government. If it is all that great then let the free market decide. I don't believe ethanol is doing any good, that it consumes more resources than it saves. The Almighty Dollar is the only honest metric of resource consumption. No man will willingly work for less than his worth or sell his resources for less than he can get elsewhere. So if ethanol was consuming less resources than gasoline then ethanol would cost less than gasoline and the world would demand more ethanol. But when government has to force the issue in ethanol's favor, then it is not anything but government pork for favored parties.

 

[k0ua]

I have always wondered why in some states non ethanol as is widely available (like here in Missouri) At almost any station you stop at has it at least in Southwest Missouri and not available at all or very rare in some states.

 

[wheelbuilder]

I have always wondered why in some states non ethanol as is widely available (like here in Missouri) At almost any station you stop at has it at least in Southwest Missouri and not available at all or very rare in some states.

I believe it has to do with certain air quality measurements the govt does. Here in NY, some counties mandate it, but in others it seems to be optional. My understanding is that the ethanol helps prevent smog. I'm not a fan of ethanol. I don't see why a computer controlled car can't be made to run more cleanly. I don't like the ethanol gas mix in my small engines, I try to get the ethanol free when possible.

 

[Grumpycat]

I believe it has to do with certain air quality measurements the govt does. Here in NY, some counties mandate it, but in others it seems to be optional. My understanding is that the ethanol helps prevent smog. I'm not a fan of ethanol. I don't see why a computer controlled car can't be made to run more cleanly. I don't like the ethanol gas mix in my small engines, I try to get the ethanol free when possible.

The origins of the RFS (Reformulated Fuel Standard) date to the first half of the 1980's when O2 sensors first appeared. Early fuel management systems blindly obeyed the O2 sensor. The EPA knew they could get those engines to burn cleaner than clean with a richer mixture but the chemistry of the O2 sensor did not allow for anything but detection of the so-called ideal stoichiometric ratio. Unable to demand the O2 sensor be changed the EPA changed the gasoline with the addition of oxygen. If the O2 sensor sees more O2 then the ECU assumes there was too much air and not enough fuel.

Ethanol is a gasoline oxygenator.

By the 1990's automakers had figured out that with onboard computers they didn't have to blindly obey the O2 sensor and could just use it for occasional reference. Then set the mixture somewhere else verified to be under EPA emission limits. You have heard of "mapping the ECU"? This is when automobiles quit being nearly so sensitive to regional gasoline. And when V6's and V8's started getting 30 MPG on the highway. The EPA was none too happy automakers had circumvented the EPA's heavy hand but could do nothing about it because the vehicles still met the published emission standards (unlike the modern VW situation).

Never one to surrender territory once gained the EPA still cites the early 1980's studies to justify the RFS program.

 

[buickanddeere]

100LL is ethanol free. Can't have airplanes falling out of the sky due to fuel system related failures .

 

[3930dave]

100LL is ethanol free. Can't have airplanes falling out of the sky due to fuel system related failures .

Even it may not be around that much longer. From wikipedia:

"By May 2012, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA Unleaded Avgas Transition rulemaking committee) had put together a plan in conjunction with industry to replace leaded avgas with an unleaded alternative within 11 years. Given the progress already made on 100SF and G100UL, the replacement time might be shorter than that 2023 estimate."

Tho', I'd expect they'll keep the E contamination out of the new formulations too....

Rgds, D.

 

[Jstpssng]

100LL is ethanol free. Can't have airplanes falling out of the sky due to fuel system related failures .

Fortunately I can get ethanol free here without the lead. It's becoming more and more common for independent stations to have it. After a comment earlier in this thread though, I do plan to be more careful and only buy from places with dedicated pumps.