The Concern About Ethanol Blended Fuels

[Eck]

I am a member on a lawn Mower forum.

The below article is not related to motorcycles, but the article does not eliminate same effects on motorcycles or 4 wheelers, or any other gas powered machine when using ethanol fuel.

I just thought this may be some great information to help those of you who have problems starting gas powered equipment..

 

 

Lawn Care News:

 

On Lawn Mower Forum, we hear regularly about engines that won't start or are having trouble starting. Many lawn equipment professionals are attributing such startup issues to the use of ethanol-blended fuels in small engine equipment. So we thought we'd dig in and find out more about ethanol so we can make the best decision when it comes to what kind of fuel we use in our equipment.

 

What is Ethanol? Ethanol is pure alcohol, but is typically blended with gasoline at a 10% rate or sometimes up to 15%. If you go for an ethanol-blended fuel, anything above 10% is not recommended for small engines.

 

Ethanol-free gas is available if you'd like to be on the safe side or you can choose to add a fuel stabilizer to your fuel. If you plan to let your equipment sit for a while between uses, a stabilizer is encouraged. Without a stabilizer, ethanol can cause your fuel to "go bad" in 30-60 days by drawing excess water into the fuel. This may begin to cause startup problems and damage to your engine parts. Another option is to go electric or battery-powered with your mower or power tools to avoid the concern altogether. Click here to get more information about electric and battery powered equipment.

 

We hope this information about the potentially harmful effects of ethanol will help you make wiser fuel choices this year with your equipment. To learn how to test your fuel to see what your current ethanol blend is: click here. To read stories about how members believe ethanol damaged their equipment: click here.

 

Well, take care! We hope you enjoy the summer weather. And we hope your mower is happy and your lawn is green. If they're not, then I guess you have some work to do, and a visit with us in the forums is probably overdue! Hope to see you soon.

[cagie]

Here's a little bit from the MRF concerning E15 proposals:

 

http://www.mrf.org/2014/news_release/14NR15.htm

[CaptainJoe]

My Stihl dealer has been telling me or years NOT TO USE ETHANOL fuel in my chainaws, weedeaters, blowers etc. As he sees the end result of using that crap, I tend to listen to him.