Old Gas...

Old Gas…

By Tim Ard, Forest Applications Training, Inc.

Questions keep coming up on fuel related issues by email and during training presentations. The issues involving gasoline and gasoline with ethanol are on everyone’s topic list and most have experienced some form of negative from it.

Shops are full of equipment that have been stored several months with ethanol fuel in the tank or operators are pouring in fuel from their gas can not thinking about how “dead” the old fuel is and how much moisture has collected while sitting around.

With 10% or more ethanol fuel being the norm now at the station pump, it is affecting us more this year than ever. In years past the stations were here and there with ethanol fuel, now just about every station is selling only ethanol-enriched fuel. Luckily the 15% and more ratios are not in place yet or we would really be feeling the effects.

I’ve mentioned before how ethanol fuels, of more than about 12%, will not adjust in your small equipment, especially two-cycle chainsaws and trimmers. It collects moisture that works to separate the oil in your mixture and when it sits around, erodes fuel lines, aluminum/magnesium parts in your carburetor and engine crankcase. It also causes the combustion process to detonate when it looses volatility, pounding on your internal engine parts of piston, rod and bearings and it leans out the carburetor adjustments. Even in its in-between stages it causes over speeding concerns too that can end in seizure of your piston and cylinder.

You need to seek fuel without ethanol. If not, use some type of stabilizer or enzyme formula that will help to deal with some of these problems. Be careful however, that you read directions carefully and mix everything as it’s meant to be or you can create other problems. I feel one of the greatest and easiest ways to deal with the two-cycle fuel issue is to use a premixed fuel such as TruSouth Oil’s 50Fuel or TruFuel products.

I have a saw that was used during our train the trainer workshop the middle of last April (2010). I put the saw up in the shop with a tank half full of 50Fuel. I took it to Florida to use at the Amsler’s Saw Safety Day. I was a little concerned that it wouldn’t start so I made sure I loaded a working backup. I was a little skeptical to say the least.

I decided for my confidence to put 50Fuel on the spot, to start the saw for the first time at the demo in Brooksville in front of the crowd. I remind you this saw has been sitting with 50Fuel in the tank for over 8 months without ever being started.

I pulled the rope on the saw three times. It started and ran like it has always! TruSouth Oil’s 50Fuel is an awesome product! I highly recommend you use it as many companies and individual saw operators are today. You will find you can afford it!

Good Sawing!