It's all about application, Keith. Alcohol dragsters were designed to run on the stuff. Modern fuel-injected engines were too (in particular, their fuel systems were, out of necessity, thanks to government mandates - but still). I still use pump gas consisting of 10% ethanol in all my fuel-injected, daily- or semi-daily driven cars all the time, with no ill effects.
But the problems caused by ethanol in older, or carbureted engines is extensively documented. Simple devices like lawn mowers are less affected; they have very simple fuel systems, and far fewer parts susceptible to fouling. One of the biggest problems is the hydrophilic nature of ethanol. Put very succinctly, it kills the shelf life of gasoline. In the "good old days," one could expect gasoline sitting in a tank to last a year or more. In stark contrast, the 10% ethanol gasoline we get from our pumps today can gum up a constant-velocity carburetor's pilot jet in a matter of DAYS. No kidding. I have personally had freshly rebuilt carbs foul up after only two weeks with gasohol in them. And I know many, many others who have also. It's a problem so well known by the industry that it's the subject of daily yarns, and has been the proverbial shot-in-the-arm to the vintage bike industry. My local bike shop buddy says it's the sole reason he's still in business - the constant need to rebuild carburetors gummed up by ethanol. Your success story is perfectly reasonable to me, and is as should be expected. As you say, your mowers are used "all of the time." The problem with ethanol - provided a fuel system that tolerates it - is that when it absorbs moisture, it goes bad. And since moisture is a quantity which is abundant in our local air, around here, it goes bad VERY quickly. Fuel-injected engines tolerate this problem better by design; the fuel is delivered at high pressure, which assists in clearing gunk. Carburetors rely on atmospheric pressure to push the juice into the airstream, which is just no match for the goo in the tiny orifices of pilot jets. If I were still a young pup of 18 as I was when I started riding, I'd likely run pump gas - ethanol and all - in my bike today. Because I'd run through the gas quickly, before it had a chance to gum up the works. But I'm a weekend warrior at best now, with multiple carbureted toys, twisting a throttle on weekends if I have the time and the weather isn't too oppressive. And because I don't own my own bike shop, or the funds to support one, ethanol-free is the only way to go. For me. :) 73, KF5YHP Sent from my iPhone > On Sep 18, 2017, at 9:13 PM, Keith Dutson via BVARC <[email protected]> wrote: > > What is wrong with alcohol in gas? Everybody says it is bad. Why? What > proof? > > I have eight pieces of equipment using four-cycle gasoline engines. Three > are mowers used all of the time to keep the grass cut on most of the 16 acres > here. Pump gas is used in all of these engines. The oldest mower is a John > Deere 265 lawn tractor. I think it is a 1992 model. It still runs great > after purchase from Brookside Equipment, with no worry for alcohol in the > gas. I use fuel preservative in seldom-used equipment such as generators and > pressure washers. All of these have a fuel switch that is shut off at end of > use, to let the gas in the carburetor run dry. Leaving gas in a carburetor, > allowing it to evaporate, leaves gasoline residue (lacquer) to build up over > time and clog the carb and ruin gaskets. One of my newer generators (Generac > 7000 Electric Start) has no fuel shut-off valve. That one gets a double-dose > of fuel preservative, hoping it will do better in the carburetor. Generac > assures me it will last a long time if run every month or two. > > Has anyone heard of alcohol race engines? Wonder why it is sometimes > preferred to gasoline. Again, what is bad about alcohol? > > 73, Keith NM5G > > From: BVARC [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Robert Polinski via > BVARC > Sent: Monday, September 18, 2017 6:03 PM > To: 'BRAZOS VALLEY AMATEUR RADIO CLUB' <[email protected]> > Cc: Robert Polinski <[email protected]> > Subject: Re: [BVARC] Generator gas stabilizers > > I am amazed at the extremes Hams will go to save a nickle! You can get a can > of Trifuel or VP at Home Depot , Northern Tool or NAPA. Run the gas out of > it and pour in the Trifuel. Run the engine for 5 min to be sure all the gas > is out. Unit already for storage. If you need to run it for several hrs, just > use regular gas an repeat the steps when returning it to storage. Driving 50 > miles to get gas is nuts. I know how it get the ethanol out of the gas, but 1 > accidental spark there goes the savings, your house, garage and maybe your > life. All to save $10.00. Trifuel or it’s equivalent has no ethanol, MBTE or > other compounds . I am not aware of the content of the fuel from the other > outlets. I Assume it is a form of white gas with some octane booster. By > the way, I have pressure washer and a generator that I only use once or twice > a year, this is how I store them, they never fail to start. One additional > note, Trifuel and the like are high in volatiles and will evaporate out of > the fuel tank. Make sure you shut the air breather on your fuel tank (if it > has one) or use a rubber gasket on the fuel lid, otherwise you may not have > fuel in the tank in a year, but you will not have any Gum or varnish. Robert > KD5YVQ > > > > > > From: BVARC [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of George Cofran via > BVARC > Sent: Monday, September 18, 2017 5:28 PM > To: BRAZOS VALLEY AMATEUR RADIO CLUB <[email protected]> > Cc: George Cofran <[email protected]> > Subject: Re: [BVARC] Generator gas stabilizers > > Curious to see how you do this. Thanks much. > > > Best Regards, > > George L. Cofran, KD5LXW > > 9242 RR 1320, Johnson City, TX 78636 > Cell: 281-300-7177, Email: [email protected] > President, Cofran & Associates, Inc: www.Cofran.com . . Consulting & > Technology Help, IT Support, Web Sites & Small Business Coaching > > Editor-In-Chief, Hill Country Portal, www.hillcountryportal.com . . The > "go-to" site for Texas Hill Country information on businesses, non-profits, > attractions, area information & what's happening. > Check us out on: Facebook > > > > -- > Mail created using EssentialPIM Free - www.essentialpim.com > > > On 9/18/2017 at 3:14:29 PM, Ravi Patrick Ratnala via BVARC <[email protected]> > wrote: > I remove the ethanol myself from the gasoline I use in my generators, > motorcycles, etc (i.e., anything with a carburetor). My method tends to > start a controversy every time I mention it, so email me privately if you're > interested. For what it's worth, it's based on science, and it's worked > beautifully for me for a few years now. Of course, no warranties or > guarantees, express or implied. > > 73, > KF5YHP > > Sent from my iPhone > > > On Sep 18, 2017, at 2:55 PM, Jim via BVARC <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > Gentlemen, > > I know I could be opening a can of worms, however, a few weeks ago there > > was a thread about generator fuel additives, stabilizers and most > > importantly gas without ethanol additives. Can I get someone to refresh me > > as to where to get this type of gas locally please. > > Thank you, > > Jim Stimson > > NR5ED > > > > Sent from my incredible communication device > > _______________________________________________ > > BVARC mailing list > > [email protected] > > http://mail.bvarc.org/mailman/listinfo/bvarc_bvarc.org > > Message delivered to [email protected] > > _______________________________________________ > BVARC mailing list > [email protected] > http://mail.bvarc.org/mailman/listinfo/bvarc_bvarc.org > Message delivered to [email protected] > > > _______________________________________________ > BVARC mailing list > [email protected] > http://mail.bvarc.org/mailman/listinfo/bvarc_bvarc.org > Message delivered to [email protected]
_______________________________________________ BVARC mailing list [email protected] http://mail.bvarc.org/mailman/listinfo/bvarc_bvarc.org Message delivered to [email protected]
