Ethenol vs carburetors

[hammbone]

I have a 2007 Royal Star Venture that has 34,000 miles and a shot fuel pump. The service manager told me that without exception, all bikes with out fuel injection will have fuel problems due to the ethanol in modern day gas. If your bike sets for awhile, the gas and ethanol tends to separate and this is when the damage starts. To prevent damage if your bike is going to set for the winter, you need to run your bike till it runs out of gas, thereby getting the ethanol gas out of the hoses and carburetors. DOES ANYONE ELSE HAVE AN INPUT ON THIS PROBLEM?

[Big Lou]

I got a 94 ford out of a field , had been sitting 4 months,, 2, 1/2 tanks of gas ,, gas was no good after 4 months , had too run 5 gallons of premium and 2 bottles of cleaner at the same time , fuel injected ,, ran terrible

 

after 5 gallons of gas with cleaner it would finally idle

 

I HAVE 2 HOLLEY 750 DOUBLE PUMPERS AND I HAVE TO REBUILD EVERY TIME I WANT TO USE THEM

 

IF AT ALL POSSIBLE STAY AWAY FROM ETHANOL

if you run it out of gas , I believe it will varnish quicker, due to air humidity,,change of temp

the gas in alabama wont even evaporate sitting in a bucket

if you do have to let it set SEAFOAM ,,AND FILL TANK OR IT WIIL RUST!!!!!!!!

 

I CAN GUARENTEE RUSTY TANK AFTER 2 WEEKS

[ACE50]

Leave your tank full or it will rust. Just add a ethanol treatment to it. Carbs will evaporate out within a few weeks. If more than a year setting, drain tank and put new gas in before you start it up.

[Dave]

I feel your pain it has caused so many headaches due to oxy fuel (ethanol) this season I pulled the bike out fired it up went for short ride came back shut it off and the fuel just started pouring out of the vent tubes for the carbs. It was also filling up my crankcase. pulled carbs off and the rubber tips on float valves were bad. overhaul time. I have the same problem every year with my vmax snowmobile as well but here it forms boogers in my fuel pump and this first time this happen I took the carbs off to clean them and they were ok. put it back together same problem ran bad. I run the sleds dry when I put them away for the summer. but you never get it all out now I blow out the fuel lines. problem solved. it will also damage fuel pressure regs on the older fuel inj cars as well. shelf life is only 4-5 weeks depending on ambient air temp. look for non oxy gas stations. we have them in Minnesota but becoming few and far between the cost is more but well worth it.

[usedcyclesales]

I"ve got an Idea here this is how I clean carbs. But for over the winter it makes sense.

1: Close petcock and run bike until empty

2: Remove fuel line from petcock and insert a small funnel

3: Fill funnel with Techron, Sea Foam or whatever your preference is

4: Turn bike on and off BUT DO NOT START!! You might have to do this 2-3 times until it will not suck any more in.

5 : Reconnect fuel line.

 

Now your carbs are full of sea-foam or techron and cannot get gummed up from ethanol or whatever it is in gas that causes the varnish. I've done this on several bikes to clean the carbs and it just might work for over the winter months. I'm in Florida and ride year round so not an issue here. I do know that all the Marinas here carry non ethanol gas. But not so much for the varnish reason as for the fact that ethanol attracts moisture and for older outboard motors it just plain messes them up:confused24:

[Mike G in SC]

Hambone,

A sideline, you have 4 stations in Alexander City that have NO-Ethanol gas, all levels of octane. Also one in Sylacauga. See the link below for www.pure-gas.org for Alabama .

 

http://pure-gas.org/index.jsp?stateprov=AL

 

With that many stations, probably decent turnover on the tanks.

So, can make ethanol a moot point.

[Hotrod]

I tried usedcyclesales techron soak on my friends boat motor and like him, I am now a believer.Only 1 of the 3 carbs was feeding the engine.Drained the bowls and filled with Techron and let sit for 2 days.Drained out Techron and reattached the fuel line and headed for the lake.He said it ran as good as when he bought it new.Came right up on plane and red lined in just a few seconds.I will be adding a little about once a month to the bike and if I have problems I will do the same to it.He had already spent $600 dollars having them cleaned by a boat repair shop last year.We fixed it for less than $10.He was happy.Stay away from ethanol if at all possible, especially if it sits for awhile.The boat dealer told him that draining the carbs was the worst thing you could do and would make problems start sooner due to it leaving a residue on all the parts that the fuel had touched inside the carbs. Use the Startron Ethanol Treatment if you have to run the ethanol fuel.

Edited June 7, 2013 by Hotrod

[Big Lou]

The pure stations have now here in goodwater , alexander city, and sylacauga carry ethanol in the gas ,, they are in the process of remarking tanks and taking down signs,

 

 

says pure ,it ain't

 

down at lake martin it is