Ethanol Fuels

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industructableskithrasher

Location
michigan
Recently talked with a Marine Tech and he advised me that the 10% ethanol fuels are separating while sitting for three days to three weeks. He said that the ethanol settles to the bottom, and will not remix with the other fuel elements. This ethanol is then picked up by the pick-up tube first and is first into the carb, and engine causing a lean condition and damage. For premix skis not as big a problem due to the oil injection. For oil mix in gas skis can be fatal. Anyone heard of this?

Chuck
 
Magyar68

Magyar68

Really!!!
Location
Lewisville
I use STA-BIL every tank just in case I can not burn thru it before it turns. I have heard 3 months, for sure it will begin to separate. and that it is more than 10%. The ethanol will eat the carbs if not properly Winterized for sure.
 
Roseand

Roseand

The Weaponizer
Site Supporter
Location
Wisconsin
I'd like to hear more about this issue.
@chadman154 , I just heard from a local rider that there's 91 non ethanol nearby me so that's all my freshly rebuilt motor is probably ever going to see, along with a mix of avgas or race gas here and there..4 to 1 premium pump gas to avgas just so I can go WOT with peace of mind w/ 35 cc domes.
Does that 91 non ethanol tend to be more true to it's octane rating than the typical 93 you see at other stations?
 
Roseand

Roseand

The Weaponizer
Site Supporter
Location
Wisconsin
Magyar68 said:
I use STA-BIL every tank just in case I can not burn thru it before it turns. I have heard 3 months, for sure it will begin to separate. and that it is more than 10%. The ethanol will eat the carbs if not properly Winterized for sure.
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Yep, smart thinking. Our fam. business does a ton of small engine repair, and we get in so many repairs due to ethanol ruining carb parts..
 
chadman154

chadman154

#Itsonlymoney !!!!!
Location
Dirty south
Roseand said:
I'd like to hear more about this issue.
@chadman154 , I just heard from a local rider that there's 91 non ethanol nearby me so that's all my freshly rebuilt motor is probably ever going to see, along with a mix of avgas or race gas here and there..4 to 1 premium pump gas to avgas just so I can go WOT with peace of mind w/ 35 cc domes.
Does that 91 non ethanol tend to be more true to it's octane rating than the typical 93 you see at other stations?
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The 91 is highest octane non ethanol. the 93 is the high octane ethanol fuel. The get the extra 2 octane from ethanol is my guess. We have a great spot for vp 113 oxygenated fuel in waldo. Its near my house. I error on the side of caution cause I like to run my toys hard.....
 
OCD Solutions

OCD Solutions

Original, Clean and Dependable Solutions
Location
Rentz, GA
I've heard this many times now but never once has it been an issue for me in either of our skis. Maybe I am tuned rich enough to get away with it, maybe my two to four hour drive to ride mixes it all back up? I dunno, all I know is that our skis sit for weeks if not months between rides. I run nothing but Shell premium grade ethanol blend mixed 32:1 with Quicksilver Premium plus semi synthetic oil.
 
T

txsuperjetfreak96

Location
amarillo ,tx
We have 91 octane fuel in tx panhandle that has 10% ethenol. I have yet to c 93 octane. Im gonna b running a pretty aggressive curve in my motor with the advent. Would like to know if I need to run 50/50 mix. Unknown compression atm

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk
 
xXx Octane xXx

xXx Octane xXx

X
Location
Minnesota
Ethanol cannot be transported by rail or transmitted through any pipeline because of its corrosiveness. It delaminates and breaks down plastics, rubbers, and composites. Ethanol also severely corrodes aluminum, brass, copper, steel and other metals commonly found in fuel systems.
Fortunately ethanol is finally starting to lose some of its footing in the United States, especially with the influx of domestic crude out of the Bakken.
 
AtomicPunk

AtomicPunk

Lifetime bans are AWESOME
Site Supporter
Location
Largo, Fl
Ethanol screwed the boat industry until consumers, manufacturers, dealers and mechanics all learned how to deal with it (additives). I have seen varying reports on how quickly is separates (into alcohol). I know a lot of lawn maintenance companies wont use the stuff. We may be OK because we premix (?) and ride more frequently...

I had a carb issue with my stock motor that I felt was a result of ethanol so I have been using non-ethanol fuel for a long time (I have a local station that sells it). I have used the "bad" stuff on occasion.
 
bird

bird

walking on water
Site Supporter
Location
La Crosse, WI on the BIG River
xXx Octane xXx said:
Ethanol cannot be transported by rail or transmitted through any pipeline because of its corrosiveness. It delaminates and breaks down plastics, rubbers, and composites. Ethanol also severely corrodes aluminum, brass, copper, steel and other metals commonly found in fuel systems.
Fortunately ethanol is finally starting to lose some of its footing in the United States, especially with the influx of domestic crude out of the Bakken.
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Ethanol is transported by Rail all the time. Not sure where you got that info from. Those big black tanker cars are usually Ethanol cars.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DOT-111_tank_car
When I worked at the Brewery there would be a few of them outside, and one was always inside being used for current production.

I will only run Ethanol if I'm out of state (Wisconsin) and I know I will burn through it all before I get home. On my trip to California in January, I filled all my tanks up and brought gas with for this very reason.
 
Fro Diesel

Fro Diesel

creative control
Location
Kzoo
Wisconsin is pretty awesome. I was up there for work and had an "ok hell yeah" moment at the pump. A ton of pumps there all have non eth91 for cheap. Wish it was like that everywhere.
 
I

industructableskithrasher

Location
michigan
btonns,

Thank you for this very comprehensive and informative response. I will use this information as I select fuels and treatments for my skis, and boats going forward. I have also used aviation fuel in my motocross bikes in the past. Is this a good and pure option for skis?

Thank you,

Chuck
 
btonns

btonns

Location
Cincinnati, OH
industructableskithrasher said:
btonns,

Thank you for this very comprehensive and informative response. I will use this information as I select fuels and treatments for my skis, and boats going forward. I have also used aviation fuel in my motocross bikes in the past. Is this a good and pure option for skis?

Thank you,

Chuck
Click to expand...

I am not very knowledgable on AV fuel, but I know that it is common for 800cc + engines to run race fuel especially over 180 psi. Anything under 175 psi should be fine on high octane, quality pump gas. I would suggest to talk to an engine builder about AV fuel such as Jet Works, Jet Maniac, PHP, XMetal, etc. Plus, you will learn what to do next to help improve your engine later on down the road.

Also, One of the most important thing with 2-strokes is to let them properly warm up before going WOT. I see far too many couch riders get their skis in the water and immediately floor it. I've warned the same people over and over, but they continue to do it.

I like to start my skis in the water, then put around for a few minutes before going more than 5-10 mph. Also, I check the pissers to make sure the engine is being properly cooled before taking off.
 
I

industructableskithrasher

Location
michigan
bbtonns,

Thanks for your reply. Also, great advise on the warm-up routine... The same is true for water-cooled motocross bikes. Mostly due to the rate of piston expansion VS cylinder wall during warm-up. going WOT too soon can cause a cold seizure.

Thanks again,

Chuck
 
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