Ethanol Fuel Treatment ~ No Longer a Believer 2024
A-Jay reply :
This may be the long way around, but please bear with me . . . .
I've been using a few different gas treatments since Ethanol fuel came out.
Most recently Sta-bil 360 marine.
It's been going into every tank of boat gas, riding & walk-behind mower gas, snow blower gas as well as an assortment of several small 2-cycle engine powered gear.
I even use it in my truck over the winter as that weather reduces my driving habits quite a bit for a couple of months at a time.
I was content to believe company claims that these 'fuel treatments & stabilizers' could & would PREVENT at least the majority of whatever damage the fuel itself would cause. I am happy to say, that while I do what I can to maintain this gear, I haven't had any of the problems often associated with 'the badness' that ethanol fuel is generally know for. However this may have simply been a matter of luck.
Fast forward to today and the video linked below - It's important to note that I do not maintain that all of what is shown in it is 100 % true or totally accurate.
Additionally the length of times that the 'test fuels' were stored is longer than what I'd generally ever do.
Either way - this does not paint a pretty picture at all.
What I get from it is, that given a choice (which I do have), I will no longer put ethanol base fuel in anything except my truck (which I turn in every three years anyway). And while I have read many an article regarding how the materials companies use in many of today's ethanol burning engines (large & small) are better equip to with stand much of the harm, I'd feel a whole lot better simply taking it completely out of play. Just seems that the risk out weighs whatever gain I thought I was getting - mainly saving a few bucks vs the price of REC Gas. Non-Ethanol fuel here is about $1 more a gal.
I'll get over it.
Still plan to continue to use fuel 'treatment' but whatever I decide on (yet TBD) it will not need to be something that is designed to 'treat and or stabilize' ethanol based fuel.
So there you go - there's a nice little howdy do for ya.
A-Jay
Scott F reply :
My boat motor is 25 years old and for the majority of its life, it used fuel with ethanol. It wasn’t until maybe 8 years ago that I started using Sta-bil but that was only during the winter when I just used it in the tank during storage. That motor with only minimal maintenance still runs great. My last truck I had for 16 years, used only regular gas that had 10% ethanol and never had any fuel related issues. I never used any fuel treatment ever.
Maybe, I’m just lucky too but if ethanol was that bad, I think we’d be seeing a lot more people having problems.
lo n slo reply :
i stopped using ethanol gas in everything except my vehicles about 7 years ago. my cousin still runs it in his 175 Johnson with the oversized fuel cell. i wouldn’t.
flatcreek reply :
I won’t ever use ethanol gas again in my outboard given a choice at the pump.i use non -ethanol and still add startron treatment.i’ve seen The damage it causes first hand and paid the repair bills to go with it.
GreenPig reply :
Been ethanol free for all my gas buring engines since 2005. I tried ethanol twice in my 2009 Chevrolet 6.2 403 hp FlexFuel and noticed a major reduction power and went from 14.5 to 12.9 mpg. I want all the power out of my engines that I paid for.
NHBull reply :
Andy, that video popped up on my feed last week and I too was surprised to see that my trusted additives do little to prevent rust. 2 years ago I found a station 30 minutes from me that that sold Non-E gas. This Summer I made weekly trips and topped off 7 gas cans. My small engines are doing far better and I sleep easier knowing it's in my Honda.
Johnbt reply :
I don't have reasonable access to non-ethanol gas. Reasonable = within 40 minutes of any of my usual routes. I'm 69 so I won't worry much about long term rust.
Ethanol gas should probably be used within a month or two to be safe and anything leftover sitting in cans dumped into a car or truck. If you use old ethanol gas there will probably be enough water in it to cause some rust. Or so my mower dealer says. I treat my non-auto gas with StarTron year round and then run the outboard and the push mower dry for the winter. The 50-inch Toro ztr and the 48" Deere X380 are run twice a month all winter; mostly to keep the ztr's hydros with all of their small tight parts from sitting too long in cold thick oil. It's been 5 years and so far so good.
The dealer is 3rd generation and that's what he suggested, including the StarTron. I used to use Stabil. Otherwise I'd drain everything and let them sit in the cold detached garage. It's 23 here now and the snow is still on the ground from yesterday morning. It'll be in the 60s next week and the grass will be growing again and I'll be mowing.
NHBull reply :
at a minimum, this answers the questions on whether you should store engines full or empty.
Bluebasser86 reply :
The QT by my house has Ethanol free pumps, makes it a non issue for me. I still add Stabil every fill up though.
Fishingmickey reply :
I've had a Lawn boy lawn mower for about 6 yrs now and I was always having problems with getting it to run consistently after about 4.5-5 yrs. I quit using ethanol added gas and tried the Tru-fuel they sell at Home Depot and Lowe's. It has been first pull starts ever since even after the mower has sat for a couple of months. But dang they are proud of it at $5 a quart. But it sure eliminated the headaches and since it is less then a quart every two weeks it's worth it to me.
FM
TnRiver46 reply :
There’s pure gas available all around my house thank goodness.
Log Catcher reply :
I don't know of any stations around here that sell E-free gas so I am stuck with E-10 gas. I have used fuel stabilizers and E treatments for many years in my equipment. My Cub Cadet riding mower was built in 1989 and my push mower is probably 15 years old and both of them still start and run good with out any problems or major repairs. I do run all the gas out of them for winter storage. I wonder if a lot of the problems shown in the video were from gas just sitting. If it is being used I don't think it would be that bad.
Tennessee Boy reply :
Most states have ethanol free gas, you just have to look for it. This site can help.
http://www.pure-gas.org
tander reply :
I honestly believe my boat runs better and cranks better with non ethanol gas. I now use it in everything except my truck. I still add StarTron additive. I have no trouble getting non ethanil gas, about 5 station within 5 miles of my house.
JS Patterson reply :
I have always avoided ethanol in small engines and outboards. I think ethanol is tougher on the engine because of heat produced. In theory, ethanol should burn cooler than gas but if the air/fuel ratio of the engine is set up for pure gasoline the ethanol fuel burns “leaner” and increases engine temp. Adjustments could be made in oxygen intake to allow for the mix.
Fishing Rhino reply :
I have a lawn edger with a Briggs & Stratton engine. I had never added any type of fuel treatment until...………...
In the spring, my edger would not start, no matter what I did. I changed the spark plug, and still nothing. I finally dumped all the old fuel out of the machine and topped it off with fresh fuel. It started right up.
From that point on I added Stabil to the fuel for the yard power tools. The edger has started up every time in the spring, using the fuel that was left in the tank from the prior year.
Any fuel that goes in the boat, the lawn mowers, the chain saw, the grass trimmer, the combo lawn mower/snow blower, and the generator get fuel that is treated with Stabil Marine. Never had a problem. Never changed a spark plug in any of the equipment.
It works for me.
crypt reply :
ethanol free with StarTron is what I use.
WRB reply :
California all gasoline sold can have either E10 or E15 without anyway of knowing as the pumps are labeled "may have", it's a crap shoot.
Vehicles we run through a tank a gasoline quickly, boats and generators or small 2 cycle engines the fuel does sit in storage too long!
Good video, not good to see the results!
Tom
Russ E reply :
My last boat had a 50hp 2 stoke mercury that sat with ethanol blend in the carbs for a year, before I bought it.
When we tried to start the motor, gas ran out the exhaust. The carbs had to be rebuilt before the motor would run.
I have never used ethanol blend gas in my current outboard, since it was new 3 years ago.
My outboard has never sat over a month without running. I add stabil in the winter, because a tank lasts longer than the rest of the year.
Fortunately most casey's stores,around here, have a non-ethanol pump. It does cost quite a bit more, but the peace of mind is worth it.
A tank does not last long in my truck, so it usually gets ethanol blend.
the few times I ran pure gas in m truck it got better gas mileage and had noticeably more power when towing the boat.
Sam reply :
The closest place to purchase non-ethanol gas is about 25 miles to the west of where I live in Richmond, at the intersection of Routes 60 and 522 in Powhatan County.
It maybe worth a trip in the future to fill up my gas cans for my riding and push mowers.
I may even consider, once again, to tow the boat to the place to get it filled with non-ethanol gas.
Thanks for sharing and presenting the facts about putting ethanol gas in our machines. Appreciate the input.
RHuff reply :
I run ethanol free gas and seafoam in my boat. It starts, idles, and runs better than it did when I ran unleaded in it..
th365thli reply :
Wait.....before everyone starts dismissing all ethanol treatment, the video DID IN FACT PROVIDE conclusive evidence that for E10 gasoline it drastically REDUCED corrosion. it didn't completely prevent corrosion, but then again we're not storing our motors for 9+ months ( (At least I hope not) like the guy in the video did with his samples. It was only with the E85 gas that we saw no effects of fuel treatment. But if you're running E85 gas in your motor you deserve what you get.
I would like to see a video testing different brands of ethanol treatment. If ethanol treatment truly didn't work we would see evidence of that, but there's overwhelming (albeit circumstantial) evidence that ethanol treatment does help. In fact, this video proves it. Look at the E10 example again. So for folks here using ethanol treatment for winter storage, I think you're fine.
In other words, carry on 
QUAKEnSHAKE reply :
No issues ever using 10% ethanol in any engine I owned/own. 20yo gas trimmer still buzzing along 15yo Pilot going strong 10yo snow blower first pull start.
OnthePotomac reply :
For 18 years I have stored my 21 gallon tank full to the brim and since E10 was available, to prevent condensation with no fuel additive and the Yammie 60 starts right up after a cold 4 month snooze. No exposed surface for air.....no condensation and no water in the gas. I did use Stabil in the beginning for running and not storing, then I read the MSDS and saw it is mostly deodorized kerosene, so I stopped. I do use Yamaha Ring Free (.5oz per 5 gallon), which is really just super oil. My Ranger has a multifuel engine, so it likes E10. The Volvo purrs on it also.
riverbasser reply :
Interesting. Been a firm 360 marine user and have not had any issues with my 22 yr old Mariner using ethanol fuel.
Makes you think though. Could help that I fish year round and boat doesnt sit for longer than a month at a time
MickD reply :
I only buy fuel from what I think are high volume stations thinking that they will be less likely to have water in the fuel than a little mom and pop store. I think if you can avoid the water you'll be avoiding the problems.
slonezp reply :
I have to put fuel with ethanol in my boat. No other option. I have a plastic tank and ethanol rated fuel lines. While I agree 100% that ethanol treated fuel is bad for an outboard, the experiment in the video is biased. No one stores their equipment for 9 months, and if they do, they should rethink their priorities. Secondly, the treated fuel is being stored in my tank during a "winterization" There will be little fuel, or none at all, soaking the injectors/carbs etc. The fuel will be in the tank and possibly the lines before the injectors/carbs. All plastic/or whatever it's made of...and treated for ethanol.
If you all can get ethanol free gas, more power to you. I can't.
gimruis reply :
Ethanol free gasoline is available near my residence. It costs more but as long as it’s available, I’m going to use it in my outboard, lawn mower, and snow blower. The truck can have some ethanol as that engine gets used regularly all year long.
boostr reply :
Non Ethanol snobs up in here...
Russ E reply :
On 11/20/2019 at 12:03 AM, boostr said:Non Ethanol snobs up in here...
I am not trying to start an argument, but the benefits of ethanol are not all they appear.
I grew up in eastern Iowa, Corn and alcohol production dominates the area I lived in.
The Iowa river was 4 miles from my house. It is one of the most polluted rivers in the state from farm runoff.
It is still debatable whether the the amount of fossil fuel it takes to produce the corn and alcohol is less than what the alcohol can produce.
I hope we can find a viable alternate fuel. Personally I don't think we are there yet.
here is one study from Cornell on the subject.
According to Cornell University professor of agriculture David Pimentel, producing ethanol actually creates a net energy loss. According to his calculations, producing corn and processing it into 1 gallon (3.7 liters) of ethanol requires 131,000 BTUs of energy; but 1 gallon of ethanol contains only 77,000 BTUs [source: Health and Energy]. And since farmers are using fossil-fuel-powered equipment to plant, maintain and harvest the corn and are using fossil-fuel-powered machinery to process that corn into ethanol and then, in almost all cases, to ship the product to collection points via fuel-powered transport, the ethanol industry is actually burning large amounts of gasoline to produce this alternative fuel. That ethanol could end up containing less energy than the gasoline consumed to produce it.
boostr reply :
On 11/20/2019 at 12:32 AM, Russ E said:I am not trying to start an argument, but the benefits of ethanol are not all they appear.
I grew up in eastern Iowa, Corn and alcohol production dominates the area I lived in.
The Iowa river was 4 miles from my house. It is one of the most polluted rivers in the state from farm runoff.
It is still debatable whether the the amount of fossil fuel it takes to produce the corn and alcohol is less than what the alcohol can produce.
I hope we can find a viable alternate fuel. Personally I don't think we are there yet.
here is one study from Cornell on the subject.
According to Cornell University professor of agriculture David Pimentel, producing ethanol actually creates a net energy loss. According to his calculations, producing corn and processing it into 1 gallon (3.7 liters) of ethanol requires 131,000 BTUs of energy; but 1 gallon of ethanol contains only 77,000 BTUs [source: Health and Energy]. And since farmers are using fossil-fuel-powered equipment to plant, maintain and harvest the corn and are using fossil-fuel-powered machinery to process that corn into ethanol and then, in almost all cases, to ship the product to collection points via fuel-powered transport, the ethanol industry is actually burning large amounts of gasoline to produce this alternative fuel. That ethanol could end up containing less energy than the gasoline consumed to produce it.
That was sarcasm. I know Ethanol isn't great. I'm in the same boat as @slonezp. If I had a local gas station that sold non ethanol gas I would use it, but I don't.
TnRiver46 reply :
People in East Tennessee been making their own ethanol from corn for a long time.......... “corn won’t grow at all on rocky top, dirt’s too rocky by far. That’s why all the folks on rocky top get their corn from a jar”
VolFan reply :
Once I knew a girl on Rocky Top...
Bird reply :
I did not read through the above posts except the OP.
As a small engine repair tech " now retired " never use corn fuel in 2cycl engines that sit for lengthy periods.
Ethanol invites moisture and will destroy carburetors with pitting while engine's sit for duration.
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