Ethanol Free Gas

[jyoutz]

I'm jealous that ethanol free gas is available near many of you. In CT, it is only available as racing fuel at 94 and 110 octane in 1 and 5 gallon cans for $22 a gallon or $100 for 5 gallons. Stewart's gas stations in NY sell it at the pump for a dollar more than regular gas, but the closest one is a little over an hour away.

Have you checked local small airports? Most have E0 100 octane at the pumps.

 

[ultrarunner]

Need a tail number to purchase at airport…

I suppose a person could make up something if so inclined but just getting onto airport property where the pumps are takes some doing if you don’t work there or have a plane…

 

[jyoutz]

Need a tail number to purchase at airport…

I suppose a person could make up something if so inclined but just getting onto airport property where the pumps are takes some doing if you don’t work there or have a plane…

I guess they have different policies at different small airports. I go to our local small airport, pull up to the pump, and fill the can. Credit card self service pumps.

 

[ultrarunner]

The nearest airports are like fenced camps...

Could be the 3 within viewing range are International Airports?

I'm on the frontage road of Oakland International 4 or 5 times weekly...

But even the 2 regional airports Hayward and Concord are totally secured by fence and controlled access...

 

[jyoutz]

The nearest airports are like fenced camps...

Could be the 3 within viewing range are International Airports?

I'm on the frontage road of Oakland International 4 or 5 times weekly...

But even the 2 regional airports Hayward and Concord are totally secured by fence and controlled access...

Well I guess things are different in California. At least the Bay Area. You just will have to run ethanol gas and run the equipment dry before you store it for the season. That works also.

 

[ultrarunner]

Right now I have several small engine carbs that are bad... 3 given to me because fuel problems and one is my low hour Honda Generator in the Service Van that went 10 months fueled and at the ready but turned out not ready...

My brother picked up a like new Craftsman ride on mower at an estate sale for 75 dollars...

It sat a couple of years due to the death of the owner... Carb was corroded inside... a new $35 carb from the internet and cured...

I use stable and so far items treated have been ok...

 

[jyoutz]

Right now I have several small engine carbs that are bad... 3 given to me because fuel problems and one is my low hour Honda Generator in the Service Van that went 10 months fueled and at the ready but turned out not ready...

My brother picked up a like new Craftsman ride on mower at an estate sale for 75 dollars...

It sat a couple of years due to the death of the owner... Carb was corroded inside... a new $35 carb from the internet and cured...

I use stable and so far items treated have been ok...

You can run the tank dry before long term storage and that works too.

 

[MattB4]

You can run the tank dry before long term storage and that works too.

You just brought up a peeve of mine. Practically none of these small engine fuel tanks have an easy method of draining them. I make a practice of draining the old gas from my generator once a year and replace with new (E0). It is a pain since the only way to do it is from the carb supply line after the fuel shutoff and it is both at a hard place to get to and it is slow as heck.

 

[Oaktree]

You just brought up a peeve of mine. Practically none of these small engine fuel tanks have an easy method of draining them. I make a practice of draining the old gas from my generator once a year and replace with new (E0). It is a pain since the only way to do it is from the carb supply line after the fuel shutoff and it is both at a hard place to get to and it is slow as heck.

About 50/50 on small engine equipment I own.

 

[jyoutz]

You just brought up a peeve of mine. Practically none of these small engine fuel tanks have an easy method of draining them. I make a practice of draining the old gas from my generator once a year and replace with new (E0). It is a pain since the only way to do it is from the carb supply line after the fuel shutoff and it is both at a hard place to get to and it is slow as heck.

Agree. I have tried to use the equipment until nearly empty, then let the motor run dry. I guess an inline drain could be installed with a little ingenuity.

 

[mrmikey]

Practically none of these small engine fuel tanks have an easy method of draining them.

My old Coleman 5K generator was like that. I put a 'T' in the fuel line after the main petcock, one went to the original place, the carb. The other went to a 1/4" ball valve that had a 3' piece of fuel line on the other end of it. The valve was shut other than when I wanted to drain the tank at which time I'd open the main petcock, open the 1/4" ball valve and place the end of the extra fuel line into a 5 gal fuel can to drain it.
I'd dump the fuel into my truck, run the generator dry to make sure the old fuel was gone and refill the generator with fresh stabilized fuel ready for the next year of storage unless it was needed. That was until I couldn't get proper gas around here and all that was available was crap gas. From then on, I'd store the generator dry with no fuel. Eventually I gave it to my daughter and bought a tri-fuel that runs on propane so no worries running crap gas.

 

[kf4uda]

I run E0 in every small engine that I have and my one gas tractor. Like Eddie I tried E0 in my truck for a while. I got better mileage but not enough to justify the cost. I am fortune to have an account with a local fuel supplier. They have road and farm diesel as well as E10 and E0 fuel pumps. They gave me an electronic key and code. I get billed for my fuel once a month. That may be a source that some of you could look for in your area.

 

[not2old]

I have a generator that I've had to take apart to clean the carb after only a few years and don't want to go through that nightmare again so I've been pumping out the fuel every six months and putting in fresh. I've thought about draining it completely but that's not easy either. If you drain all the gas out will it cause other problems? I've had problems with my dirt bikes keeping the fuel petcock closed too long and when the gaskets dried out it leaked. Does anyone know if it is OK to run E-0 91 octane in a Briggs generator? I'm aware that Honda does not recommend premium fuel in their small engines.

 

[ultrarunner]

Amazing how these extra steps and buying carbs just wasn’t a thing before ethanol…

 

[two_bit_score]

I'm jealous that ethanol free gas is available near many of you. In CT, it is only available as racing fuel at 94 and 110 octane in 1 and 5 gallon cans for $22 a gallon or $100 for 5 gallons. Stewart's gas stations in NY sell it at the pump for a dollar more than regular gas, but the closest one is a little over an hour away.

You aren’t alone. Until Home - Buc-ees started carrying E0 it was hard for me to find it too.

 

[MattB4]

... If you drain all the gas out will it cause other problems? ...

You can end up with a rusty gas tank. I do not drain any of my small engines that have metal tanks. I fill them up with fuel for storage.

 

[deserteagle71]

I'm aware that Honda does not recommend premium fuel in their small engines.

Not just small engines. The manual for my Can-am Defender 1000cc side by side has the same recommendation. And reading in the Can-am forums, those owners who tried premium fuel thinking they'd get better performance found that all they got was a very difficult to start side by side.

 

[dodge man]

I have a generator that is also hard to drain. When I use it I make sure I don’t put any extra fuel in it and I run it dry. I can take the fuel line off to drain it but that always seems messy and messy with gas also seems dangerous.

 

[ruffdog]

Amazing how these extra steps and buying carbs just wasn’t a thing before ethanol…

I remember doing plenty of carb rebuilds/cleaning back in the 70s too.

 

[ultrarunner]

I remember doing plenty of carb rebuilds/cleaning back in the 70s too.

I did worn out rebuilds with oversize throttle shafts and such but can’t recall ever having corrosion problems…