Ethenol??

[HookMaster]

Had a boat mechanic say that the addition of ethenol in the gas will eventually cause older 2 stroke outboards to fail, etc. etc. I am in need of putting power on my 19' restoration. Do I need to consider an $8,000 - $10,000 new 4 stroke to avoid wasting my money on a 2 stroke that will not perform??

Looking for answers on the ethenol issue.......

Thanks,

Don

 

[jimmbo]

Re: Ethenol??

It chemically leans the air/fuel mixture.

 

[dingbat]

Re: Ethenol??

Take care of your fuel supply and you will no have any problems running it in a 2 stroke.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Ethenol??

If you start with a clean fuel system, use currently available fuel system components (hoses, fittings, gaskets and seals) your old engine will live normally. If you start with a dirty system, E10 will clean out the gunk and clog the filter and carb jets. Rebuild the carbs, change filters, and go boating. The engine itself doesn't know the difference. This comes from someone who has used E10 since 1997 (me).

 

[HookMaster]

Re: Ethenol??

Good news! I thought all the hype was a little exaggerated......... Clean to start makes sense and since all the feul system will be new etc. According to your input, I should be able to 2 stroke it if I find a good motor.......

Thanks,

Don H.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Ethenol??

There are some issues with moisture and since you are apparently in Virginia Beach, humidity may result in the E10 collecting moisture. Use a fuel condition like SeaFoam in every tank. If you have a fiberglass tank (not plastic) you should consider changing it as E10 does affect these tanks.

 

[reeldutch]

Re: Ethenol??

ethanol is alcohol and will abrorb water.
if you fill up your tank and you dont use this gas for 4 to 6 weeks the absorbed water wil seperate in the fuel and sit in the bottum of your tank. where your pick up tube is.
the ethanol floats on top of that and will start oxidizing your aluminum tank. even fiberglas is not safe for ethanol.
this doesnt only happen in your tank but also in your carburator.
Water and debris will make a mess of your fuel system.
even if it is a brand new 4 stroke or brand new 2 stroke E-tec.
or a old 33hp ski twin. its all the same fuel.10% Ethanol.
to stall this breaking down off gas (make the shelf live longer)
you can add fuel stabilizer.
it will slow down this proces but it doesnt stop it.

best thing you can do is always use fresh gas. putting the boat away for the winter make shure the fuel tank is empty.
get a 6 gallon remote tank and have a 50:1 mix with fuel stabilizer in it to winterize your boat.
i would run the carbs dry although some people disagree.

reeldutch

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Ethenol??

I'm growing as tired of this issue as most folks are about oil issues. Treat the darned stuff and if there is a problem down the road, fix it and move on. Times change -- change with it or go crazy worrying about it.

 

[xtraham]

Re: Ethenol??

silvertip is 100% correct, I used to run straight metenol in race cars and karts, it reeks havoc on steel and aluminum, if it sits, no problems with rubber at all other than a light chaulky powder, just treat the fuel run the carbs dry before storage

 

[rickdb1boat]

Re: Ethenol??

But I would suggest running a fuel/water separator nonetheless....Good practice, ethenol or not...

 

[ziemann]

Re: Ethenol??

Keep in mind that many of us in the upper midwest have been using ethanol for around a decade.... Its not a big deal.

Might I suggest browsing the 85398034508 other ethanol threads that have come and gone over the past several years???

 

[rodbolt]

Re: Ethenol??

we are seeing ethanol blends here typically go nasty in about 3 months even with stabil.
the gas starts becoming cloudy and a lot of particulate matter in the fuel system parts.
its not much of an issue with tiny mites and 6 gallon tanks. but when you have 100+ gallons and EFI and moor the boat in the pond its a big issue.
not much we can do about it other than tell the customer to change the water seperator often,treat the fuel with stabil and run the thing.
the boats with 300+gal capacities I dont know what we are going to do with. we will cross that bridge soon I guess.

 

[xtraham]

Re: Ethenol??

http://www.cortecvci.com/Publications/PDS/705.pdf

 

[dingbat]

Re: Ethenol??

Most the problems I've seen comes from mixing ethanol and "real " gas back and forth. Your best bet is to use one and one type of fuel and stick with it. This of course can take dilagence in areas such as mine where one county requires the use of ethanol enhanced fuels the next county over does not.

 

[TheChad]

Re: Ethenol??

ethanol is alcohol and will abrorb water.
if you fill up your tank and you dont use this gas for 4 to 6 weeks the absorbed water wil seperate in the fuel and sit in the bottum of your tank. where your pick up tube is.
the ethanol floats on top of that and will start oxidizing your aluminum tank. even fiberglas is not safe for ethanol.
this doesnt only happen in your tank but also in your carburator.
Water and debris will make a mess of your fuel system.
even if it is a brand new 4 stroke or brand new 2 stroke E-tec.
or a old 33hp ski twin. its all the same fuel.10% Ethanol.
to stall this breaking down off gas (make the shelf live longer)
you can add fuel stabilizer.
it will slow down this proces but it doesnt stop it.

best thing you can do is always use fresh gas. putting the boat away for the winter make shure the fuel tank is empty.
get a 6 gallon remote tank and have a 50:1 mix with fuel stabilizer in it to winterize your boat.
i would run the carbs dry although some people disagree.

reeldutch

Every dealer I have talked to, as well as many things I have read, all say to keep the tanks FULL and to add fuel stablizer , keeping the tank FULL stops water from getting into, and building up in the tank....

-TheChad

 

[reeldutch]

Re: Ethenol??

it was always the best way to do to keep your tanks full.
70"s and 80's . but the quality of fuel you get today compared with that old fuel is crapp.

fill up your fuel tank with gas containing 10% ethanol and add the recomendet fuel stabilizer.
mix it the propper way and take a quart and put it in a glass bowl. next spring you take a look at that glass bowl and see what happened with your fuel.
thats wats in your tank.

sorry to say it but the fuel these days is crapp.
and they even want to add more Ethanol up to 40% i heard.

if your mechanic tells you to keep your tanks full i would suggest follow his advise.

ask also the mechanics what the most common fuel problem
is these days.

fuel changes so we have to change the way of storing.
thats all.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Ethenol??

Reeldutch -- I just put over 500 miles on my car running on E-85 (85% ethanol and 15% regular fuel) so 40% ethanol is also a bit of misinformation although one can mix E-10 and E-85 to get a 40% figure buy why would you want to. Other than a decrease in mileage the car didn't give a hoot and actually performed better as the computer can advance the timing to take advantage of the higher 105 octane rating. I've used E-10 since 1997, my boat is stored with anything from nearly empty to nearly full and it simply causes no storage problems. It is handled in exactly the same manner as pre-ethanol fuel. You folks on the coasts obviously have some issues. Those of us in the hinterland simply do not so lets please stop making these "generalizations". As I said, times change and we need to change with them. You folks obviously need to change filters and alter your storage routine. Sorry you have to do that but lets at least tell the whole story and not worry people. By the way, Brazilian outboards and cars have been running on ethanol for some time. They don't seem to have a problem either.

 

[reeldutch]

Re: Ethenol??

im not talking cars.
and i didnt say that ethanol is bad for your engine.
im only saying that ethanol is an alcohol wich will absorb h2O from the air.
after a while the moisture will seperate from the fuel and also the ethanol will. do the test youl be amazed.

if you use fuel regularly like in your car you will never have a problem. it doesnt get a chanse to absorb moisture.
if you let your fuel sit in your tank for 3 months or longer you will have problems with this fuel.
the more Ethanol the faster this problem gets.
fuel stabilizer will slow it down.

my guess they dont have problems in brazil is because they dont neet to winterize.

im not trying to worry people i just want people to avoid problems in the spring with there fuel. and know the whole story.
now people think that a brand new 4 stroke is not effectet.
people need to know whats in there fuel and that the fuel today with 10% ethanol has defently a shelf live.
Im talking to plenty of marina owners and chief engeneers, and they all say the same that the biggest problem for the boating industry is the crappie fuel.
and in the future the fuel will get worse and worse.
the motors are great modern marvels the technology is improving every year.
but the thing that we dont have control over is the fuel we get.
may be ignorance is bliss and we all should just fill up our tanks and dont worry about the spring???

people should do what they think is best im only sharing my opinion and knowledge.

reeldutch

 

[reeldutch]

Re: Ethenol??

this as from yamaha

http://www.maverickboats.com/perfbull/O2006-009.pdf#search="ethanol in outboards"