any fuel experts here

[sikpnter]

I was watching the news and saw that alot of gas stations are switching to the ethanol gas, not sure what it is but the first thing that I thought about was my outboard and my oil/fuel pump. Anyone know if this will be an issue with our oms or vro?

 

[ezeke]

Re: any fuel experts here

Not I, but I read a study by people who seemed to be experts. The executive summary is discouraging. Ethanol study

 

[itstippy]

Re: any fuel experts here

There was a HUGE string on fuel a while back. Search under "ethanol" and be prepared to read a while. We had advice from petroleum chemists, outboard experts, roofers, and alchemists.<br />I am afraid for my outboards because they were built before anyone ever though of wasting perfectly good moonshine by burning it when petroleum was so plentiful for that purpose. Guys that know say they see deterioration of rubber components (hoses, orings, diaphrams) due to ethanol. Brand-new etecs don't use rubber made from tree sap. My 50 year old babies? At risk!

 

[Walker]

Re: any fuel experts here

Alcohol is a "drier" and will eventually dry out any rubber components in your fuel system. How long before you have problems? Who knows. <br />I'd install a good filter as close to the carbs as possible and be prepared to do the carbs with new kits every couple of years.<br />It shouldn't hurt the engine itself.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: any fuel experts here

First lets make sure we are talking about ethanol blended fuel that we in the midwest have been using for years and that other states are now just getting around to using. This is 85% regular gas and 15% ethanol. Ethanol is a great fuel system cleaner so very old engines and those that don't get used much will likely have some carb issues after running a few tanks. Varnish and other deposits will be loosened and will require carb rebuilds and filter replacements. In fact this may happen a couple of times in rapid succession. Once clean however, the engine will live happily on this blend. Older cars will likely experience the same issues. Carry an extra fuel filter with you. If your engine begins to act up, don't continue to run it as it is telling you its running lean and that can be a costly problem if not taken care of. Then there is E-85 which is just the opposite formula. Its 85% ethanol and 15% regular gas. My new Impala runs on it. We have over 200 stations that peddle E-85 in Minnesota and that fuel is 20 - 50 cents/gal cheaper than regular gas but you don't get quite as good of fuel mileage. Do not use E-85 in your outboard.

 

[sikpnter]

Re: any fuel experts here

sounds like fun!

 

[ezeke]

Re: any fuel experts here

I just happened to look back at this thread because of an article on GM in US News, So it is the first time that I saw the comment by Upinsmoke.<br /><br />I have to say that it is good that ethanol is 50 cents less than gasoline. A vehicle that runs 16 miles per gallon of gasoline will only run 12 miles on a gallon of ethanol. That is significant for boaters because of both limited fuel capacity and weight.<br /><br />I am not aware of any attempt by outboard manufacturers to retrofit for ethanol so its use is still a risky experiment at best.<br /><br />GM has modified its vehicles to run on ethanol. Chrysler and Ford have done some as well.<br /> Ethanol Article

 

[JB]

Re: any fuel experts here

Outboard non-repair topic.