Problems with gas.......Anyone???

Just wondering if anyone was having problems with the 10% ethanol in gas? If so, What are you doing to minimize the problems it may be causing with performance?
Jim

what I heard was that the blend is not good at all for a gas engine...for starter's the ethanol eats up the gakets and engine seals...

com'on guys! 10% ethanol mix(gasohol) had been around for how long? 10 years? More like 20? In small concentrations is does not pose a problem, SLIGHT power loss, removes moisture from our fuel (cuz alcohol and water mix)....

Is this really new in your area????

The only affect I seem to encounter is the needle seat in my Eddy/Carter carbs. Eddy used to have something on their web site about it. Easy fix, and cheap too. I need to replace them every few years...

otherwise, it's not been a problem.

Yes the quality of pump gas has been a problem for years and isn't getting better. Fuel injected late models just handle it better than a carb.

I work at New England Dragway gas shack and the unleaded race fuel has ethenol in it. Has been for a number of years. Non of the racers have ever complained about it, and only a very few even noticed so don't really know if there is a "fix" for any probs. We run it in our race car and have not noticed much of a decrease in power, or rubber deterioration. Ethenol in unleaded (or white gas as we used to call it) has been around for maybe 20 or 30 years. Always has been a controversy to some, especially in the early years (70's gas crisis) because they tried to make the blend too heavy.

PS. Methanol (alcohol) does eat up rubber gaskets and rings.

New fuel to fix the crap comming out of the pump




Given facts :
1.0 horsepower (hp) = 550 foot-pounds per second = 2545 Btu per hour = 745.7 watts = 0.746 kW

Kerosene (No. 1 Fuel oil) 135,000 BTU per gallon

gasoline 92 octane 125,ooo Btu per gallon

ethanol 84,400 BTU per gallonGal.

gasohol
(10% ethanol, 90% gasoline) 120,900 Btu per Gal.


So: when we run todays std mix of summer Gasoline/Gasohol we get less Btus per gallon than plain Gas

125,000 Btu - 120,900 = 4100 less or 4100 / 2545 = 1.611 hp/gal

1 gallon = 128 Oz so we add 10% Kerosene (12.8 OZ.) to the present Gasohol mix to increase the Btu content say 10% of 135000 = 13,500 btus for the 13 oz addition.

the remaining 115 oz of Gasohol will produce 90% of its 120,900 btu, = .90 x 120,900 or 108,810 btus

therefore 13,500 + 108,810 = 122,310 mixed btu.

you can add more kero to get back to the old gasolinespower potential.

H.P. potential theory = 122,310 / 2545 = 48.04 H.P per gallon burned.

111 Oz of typical pump Gas

13 OZ #1 Kerosene

4 Oz Airomatic Hydrocarbon (Acetone or Xylene,or Tolune or Benzene) Octane and btu content exceeding gas,kero,alch even race gas- so its all a plus here to err on the more Ozs side.

A much more power producing mixture and also more stable in the tank. you need a few Oz. of Acetone or xylene to promote the mixing by lowering surface tension generally speaking. Plus the Kerosene has lubricating propeties.



and yes ive done the octane and heat of vaporization and dessity mix for 14;1 optimization.

damn, are you also a bartender? Pour me a double!

We've had ethanol in our gas around here for a number of years...Biggest problem I've encountered is with my John Deere tractors (1996 & 2001 model yrs). Used to get carbon deposits that would stick the valve in the guide - then start up after sitting and...DOINK! Push rod would fall over due to stuck valve.

Fresh gas - clean filters. Didn't matter 1 hour or 1 week between starts.

1st attempt to remedy: new head, and JD update with new cam gear (eliminate nylon gear) stronger valve springs. 1st time out after 15 hrs labor and $600 in parts...DOINK! Same thing. Put back together, double check lash...DOINK, DOINK, DOINK!

Final fix: Sea Foam in oil and gas. Skip one or the other...DOINK!

Never a believer in sea foam until this happened.

Gasohol came into being in the late 70's early 80's. Was a pain in the A$$. We had to clean an awful lot of carburators and replace a lot of fuel filters and have a lot of tanks flushed because the alcohol mix tended to loosen all the accumulated crud and corrosion in the fuel system. In warm weather in mechanical fuel pump carburated vehicles there was a tendency for carburator perculation.

I don't think the 10% ethenol is the problem, as noted earlier it's been in use here in Colorado for about 15 years. Most likely, it is the new botique formulations the EPA is pushing on us that vary by differnt areas of the country.

Most of these vaporize at lower temperatures which is not a big deal if you have a fuel injected car because the fuel is under 30+ PSI pressure, but with a carb, and only 5 psi pressure the older cars vaporlock and boil the fuel much easier.

Quote:

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...... unleaded (or white gas as we used to call it) has been around for maybe 20 or 30 years. .....

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Good Lord, someone as old as I am that remembers that. My Father used to buy 'white gas' for the Coleman camp stoves and lanterns back in the 60's.