Ethanol free vs premium containing no ethanol?

[apb]

Can someone enlighten me on this ethanol thing. I have been making special trips for the fuel that advertises no ethanol. When I look at the other gas stations and there premium gas "contains no ethanol". Should I just use my hometown station that sells premium or do I need to travel and buy the gas that is ethanol free?

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[Chas0218]

If the pump says no ethanol then you're good whether it is 93 no ethanol or 91 no ethanol neither have it.  I run regular 87 octane with ethanol in my 1988 Johnson 150 for over 4 years now without any issues.  At every fill up I also use the Sta-bil marine that has the ethanol treatment in it. I do the same for my little kicker but my kicker after 2 seasons needs a carb rebuild.  I think this is more because of running at lower rpm for a long duration (8-10 hours).  

 

A little food for thought, my father-in-law has been running 87 octane with ethanol for over 9 years now in his 1985 honda 10hp kicker and 3 years in his 225 honda (only had the boat 3 years) and never had to do a thing to either and he doesn't run any ethanol additive.

Edited January 7, 2015 by Chas0218

[TileMan Dan]

Ethanol free gas is better for all engines!!! Better to avoid it if you can.

[pvelyk]

Ethanol is bad, its corrosive on rubber found in most engines hoses and gaskets.  Most manufactures switched materials recently that better handle that effect but there is a lot of equipment out there that still have the older materials. Ethanol also really attracts water and once it gets enough in the fuel the gas, ethanol and water separate causing the gas to get really thick and gum up carbs and injectors.  Even if you use the gas up quick once you buy it you still have no idea how much water it gained from storage tanks at refineries, transport trucks and gas station tanks.   Forget it if you let it sit for awhile.  That is why most people see problems quick with small engines like lawn mowers because that 5 gallon tank you have takes a while to use up with smaller engines.  Avoid it if you can.  As far as premium vs regular without ethanol I would follow your engines manufacturers recommendation on which is best to use on your equipment. 

[apb]

Back to the original question, who else agrees with Chas0218? If the premium pump says does not contain ethanol is this stuff ok or do I need to go to the "ethanol free" gas stations?

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[Tim Bromund]

Well, if the pump is labeled "does not contain ethanol" , then I would believe that means ethanol free and you would be fine. 

 

More and more gas stations are starting to add 1, non ethanol premium pump to their offerings, most often it is 91 octane from what I have seen.

 

Tim

[Sk8man]

Sounds like just a difference in phrasing to me. I use the 91 octane non ethanol gas but still use the triple strength marine stabilizer in it and keep my tank full (60 gal.) throughout the season and into storage to lessen the chance of condensation build up. A buddy who is a cracker jack auto mechanic says the stabilizer is BS but being the superstitious guy that I am I continue to use it .

[rolmops]

I have run regular 87 octane with ethanol on all my outboards for the last 15 years without ever having a problem. Just make sure that your fuel hoses are ethanol resistant (They all are since 2000) and that your tank is clean of dirt because ethanol will loosen dirt in your tank and send it to the carbs. Always top off your tank after using the boat and at the end of the season. Make sure to properly winterize.

There is a problem with large tanks that are left half empty over time because of condensation in the tank,but the same problem exists with regular gasoline.

I use 87 octane non ethanol gas in my 1984 mercruiser because that engine was built with regular gas in mind.

What really irks me is that the only people who are pro ethanol are the corn farmers and their o so powerful lobby in Washington. Both the democrats and the republicans have tried to stop this heavily subsidized boondoggle. Ethanol is way more expensive than gasoline and yet the farmers lobby shoves it down our throats. It drives up the food prices.

The time has come to stop the ethanol subsidies and use corn what it was intended for namely sour mash whisky!

[Tim Bromund]

Not to mention that the huge increase in phosphate loading due to the fertilizers used by farmers growing corn for ethanol is largely responsible for the algae blooms and ever increasing dead zone in Lake Erie every year.

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[Silver Fox]

I just heard Brockport Kwik fill now has non ethenal.

[ray koziatek]

that was funny tim ...alge bloom this year was a political hoax..been happening every year for the past 40 years I know of..a friend of mine has a condo near toronto and gave me the whole scoop..guess what Toronto got a free extended intake extension didnt cost the local taxpayers 1 cent...but they needed it for over 10 years to comply to meet water standards...i could go on but this says it in a nutshell..oh you and i paid for it..federal funds.................

[W.W.IV.]

Does anyone know how manny cars and trucks out there still need 93 octain to make them run well, say from 1990 to now?  I don't think the stations sell enough 93 to make it worth haveing.

Can the stations get away with sliping us 87 or 91 non E at 93 prices?

 

Wow, I just look up and I see I'm way off topic, sorry.

 

Back to the topic, I run 87E in my 1989 out board with a stablizer, so far so good.

[baitrigger]

Wwiv. You should be more concerned with the pump. You know your only getting .08754 gallons when the read out says 1.

[jimski2]

My motor home went from 7mpg to 6mpg when the ethanol scam started. One gallon of alcohol equals .6 gallons of straight gasoline energy content. Now that is where the ripoff is at.

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[Tim Bromund]

that was funny tim ...alge bloom this year was a political hoax..been happening every year for the past 40 years I know of..a friend of mine has a condo near toronto and gave me the whole scoop..guess what Toronto got a free extended intake extension didnt cost the local taxpayers 1 cent...but they needed it for over 10 years to comply to meet water standards...i could go on but this says it in a nutshell..oh you and i paid for it..federal funds.................

Not to the extent it has the past several years Ray.

[jekyll]

I used 89 ethanol for a couple of seasons when the Marinas stopped carrying ethanol free. I used treatment with most every gallon. My boat died on the lake this summer and I was towed 7 miles back to dock. The entire fuel system from tank outlets to the carb required replacement (including carb rebuild). All lines, pump and seals were eaten up by the alcohol. 97 Penn Yan 28 footer with a 350. Perhaps my fuel system is as alcohol friendly as mine now but, once bitten, twice shy!

[PeltHunter]

Does anyone know how manny cars and trucks out there still need 93 octain to make them run well, say from 1990 to now?  I don't think the stations sell enough 93 to make it worth haveing.

Can the stations get away with sliping us 87 or 91 non E at 93 prices?

 

Wow, I just look up and I see I'm way off topic, sorry.

 

Back to the topic, I run 87E in my 1989 out board with a stablizer, so far so good.

 

Any turbo'd vehicle should be run on 93, anything "performance" hell I run my 89 IROC on 93 and I wouldn't consider that to be any type of performer its just better for stuff like that. I run all my small engine stuff on 93 or 91 (snowmobiles, dirt bikes, boats etc) and anything that's going to sit more than its going to be used imo should use top octane and ethanol free gas. 

[skipper19]

http://www.treehugger.com/cars/diy-trash-powered-gasification-car-video.html

Problem solved

[BP Swing]

Theres a smartphone app called pure gas showing nearby stations with the ethonol free. Any outboard mechanic will tell you ethanol is bad news. Avoid like plague.

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[rolmops]

Back to the original question, who else agrees with Chas0218? If the premium pump says does not contain ethanol is this stuff ok or do I need to go to the "ethanol free" gas stations?

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I fully agree with chas0218. Unless you have a very large fuel tank where fuel is stored for long periods of time ,ethanol fuel is just fine. As for the rubber getting eaten up by ethanol.Since the year 2000 all fuel hoses automotive and marine are ethanol/alcohol resistant and do not fall apart because of ethanol. Ethanol will loosen up dirt in your fuel tank. If you have replaced your hoses within the last ten years(as you should) and replace your fuel filter and water separator yearly,you should not have any trouble with ethanol laced fuel.

Oh,by the way.The ethanol is not added to the fuel at the refineries,it is mixed in at the distribution centers so it does not sit in tanks for god knows how long. On the other hand,you should never buy gas from a marina that gets its fuel once a year and has it sit in half full  tanks for the entire winter, like in a certain marina on Skeneateles Lake.

Edited March 11, 2015 by rolmops

[Xxx]

Two things I witnessed with my own 2 eyes, first if you have a fiberglass fuel cell you might not want to use the corn juice in it. This winter a friend of ours called and asked if we could come over and help him asap, so my uncles and I raced to his house and out into his garage and when we got in there I was floored, the gas was pouring out of his boat hull plug area and to make things worse is he has a coal burner in there that heats his domestic hot water, now back to the problem, we sent David to get oil dry for the floor as we put buckets under the boat to catch the fuel. He said he filled the tank 60 gallons to prevent condensation, so we pulled the piece of floor up over the fuel cell to see the boat has a fiberglass tank and it looked like it just melted, after opening the floor up enough to get the cell out it was like soft gluey blob of $hit, the alcohol in the fuel caused the fiberglass to deteriorate, used alcohol to clean up after a fiberglass project right? So Butch made him a metal fuel cell as we couldn't find a metal replacement!!

My father-in-law always had a 500 gallon gas tank under ground as his smaller dump trucks were gas powered, a few years ago his lawn tractor quit after a short while mowing so we determined the fuel had water in it so we drained it out and we got another 5 gallons out of his pump only to find out that's what we got again water, so we pumped another 5 gallons and the same thing, now we stick the tank and the stick reads there is a 100 gallons in there yet but it's worthless all water, so he called his fuel supplier and he came up a few days later and pumped it out. He said you can't hold this fuel for more than 3 months or it starts to separate, the alcohol from the gas, so he has to order less and use it up or just use the street pumps and since he doesn't have anymore smaller dumps he just uses the street pumps. So that's my experiences with the corn juice. In my boat I use the 89 octane corn juice and the additives and knock on wood I haven't had any issues.

Edited March 11, 2015 by pap

[lineman49]

I always used 87 octane in my "94" & "95" Yamaha o/b 9.9 & 225 hp. with no problems at all. Two yrs. ago I started using 89 octane & they do run smoother & respond a bit faster. I do use 4oz. of K-1oo every other tank full.

[dukhnter8]

I was told by a previous small engine/boat mechanic and a few different chainsaw places to use 92 or so octane in all small engines. I have had no issues with my motors, except I bought a new Aries snowblower this year and was using 87 in it as that was what I was told by the shop I bought it from (small dealer not the big box store). Well one day snowblowing the engine started racing and dying under load. All signs pointed to bad gas and/or carb issues. Was thinking I am screwed as it was mid Feb when it happened. I drained the tank added some high octane and most of a bottle of Seafoam, ran it for a few minutes, shut it off then let it sit for an hour or two and ran it. It ran fine after that but since then I have only run 92-93 octane in it without issues.

[Roughrider IV]

I've got 2 rigs that are pre 1994, not gonna chance pulling old hose material, gas tank dirt and extra water into an outboard costing thousands of bucks when I have another option, Break Out Another Thousand is bad enough! I've got water seperators and treated non ethanol for my rigs.

[jimski2]

I abandoned my boat tank when I found the gas fill hose had hardened from age and leaked gasoline in the bilge. I have three six gallon portable tanks that I fill at the local stations that have fresh gasoline at a better price. These cans have a sealing vent so no daily expansion introduces humidity into the tank at night. You easily can inspect the tank by removing the cap and seeing if water or sediment is present. Cleaning is easy with a rag on a coat hanger.

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