Fuel Supplies - Lifespan

An important one this:
How long does fuel last without any preservative or additive.

Sealed and Unsealed.

How long does fuel last with a preservative or additive.

Sealed and Unsealed.

I've heard 30 days sealed and then it 'goes bad' I reckon though that fuel can still be used after it's gone off but it just won't be as efficient.

Any ideas, experience or theories on this.

I must Specify Gasoline and "unleaded" consumer grade here only...

I can attest that NEW FUEL does NOT store as long it did a year ago.

I have been storing and rotating fuels for almost 10 years, and over 75 gallons at a time, up to 225 depending on the State of the World at the moment.

Before they started adding ETHANOL to the fuel, you could honestly get 6 to 8 months out of Super Unleaded with no stabilizer. It would work fine, didnt smell OLD, but would sometimes suck in water from the outside air, and drops would form in the bottom of the tanks. No Problem, dont pump fuel off the bottom when transferring.

When we went to the ethanol.... everything changed drastically... The fuel will not keep more than 3 months without losing its power and starting to smell OLD. This is without stabilizer. Thats 90 DAYS folks....

When using stabilizer with the NEW ethanol blends... I understand that STA- BIL does NOT work... something about the blend that is incompatible.

The Briggs and Stratton Stabilizer ( green tubes ) is what WORKS now, but not for more than 6 months tops. Sea Foam is supposed to be good for the new fuel as well. NOT STA-BIL... ( wanna buy about 10 "new" bottles of it that I stored a long time ago?)

I'm getting my data from personal experiences, repairs that were necessary after switching to ethanol, and from interviewing long time small engine mechanics who SEE the internal results of different fuels, and the effects of old bad gas on a daily basis, with Warranties involved in the repairs...

They actually recommend SHELL Super Unleaded or MOBILE only 93 octane and up. Various reasons... additives mainly.. but 93 octane definately.


I personally think that its all a scam to get us buying MORE fuel, because the Ethanol actually gives you LESS mpg than the old blend... therefore we are all buying more...to get the same distance... kinda bass akwards "Green Thinking" if you ask me... and I think you did...


Also I had several engine fuel issues with a 1994 Honda Passport about 2 months after we started adding ethanol... major repairs.. O2 sensors, computer, TPS, emission controls, idle soenoid, fast idle solenoid, dropping the tank, new fuel pump, etc....

At first it was running so bad I though my clutch had exploded, and was chugging and hesitating and had no power... would creep along fine at idle, but no acceleration.. then it would act ok again for a day, and do it all over again...

Took me over 6 moths to get that truck fixed, and 1000's of dollars and a lot of headache. Ended up being the Emission Control systems, and they were NOT friggin cheap components.... thank you EPA.. MAP, MAF etc...


Also... now we cant store fuel for more than 6 months... sounds like CONTROL to me.

I recommend switching to Diesel for everything... lets use Algae Oil, or convert to alcohol for all our GAS cars.. more power anyway, and you can distill it yourself legally. Just have to poison it so no one drinks it...according to the FEDS. Using Gasoline 2 gallons per 1000.

Blitzkreigen

reply to post by Blitzkreigen


don't you think they tried to kill all older cars so people will have to buy new ones? or go bust of course....

as for control, i think 3 years suck, let alone months

i don't get it, is there any way to get white gas and additives seperately? what about using Jet-A in diesel engines, military fuel should last a while, no?

provided that works at all, of course.

Originally posted by Long Lance
reply to post by Blitzkreigen

 

don't you think they tried to kill all older cars so people will have to buy new ones? or go bust of course....

as for control, i think 3 years suck, let alone months

i don't get it, is there any way to get white gas and additives seperately? what about using Jet-A in diesel engines, military fuel should last a while, no?

provided that works at all, of course.

Well YES frankly I DO think that they are trying to kill all the older cars.

Especially in TEXAS...

They are sending letters out to everyone with a 1994 or earlier car offering $3000.00 , YES.. thats right folks, Three Thousand Dollars, From the STATE to trade in your old car for a new one.

This is from the STATE. You take your old car to a dealership, and trade it in on a NEW CAR. They IMMEDIATELY figure in 3 GRAND OFF the Price of the New Car, subsudized by the STATE IMMEDIATELY.

This is all within the last 4 months.

I dont know where to buy Military Fuel, or Jet A. Perhaps Race Car Drivers Know, and also mix their own Fuels.
"Super Fuels" comes to mind... retail 'Racing Gas' station ... like 110 Octane and up... dont know if they still exist. Saw Guys with 5 gallon white jugs there all the time years ago...PURPLE FUEL....

I personally want a 1972 or earlier Ford, Chevy or Jeep with POINTS and STANDARD ignition... No Computer, No Smog crap... Just gimmee a match book and a screwdriver and I'll keep that sucker running.
Set the timing by ear, and adjust the points with a business card...

I Miss My '66 International D-100 PU and My 1970's Scout.

Go Diesel in everything...make it yourself. Alcohol is the only other option to make it yourself, and that cant be more than 85 % alcohol.

Nuff Said... we are Slaves Kept in the Dark! Intentionally !

Need more evidence? I dont.

Blitzkreigen


[edit on 18-7-2008 by Blitzkreigen]

Note: Newer cars have computer chips and will be easier to shut down with EMP. No more spike strips, etc.

at my work place we store quite abit of fuel...this is what i know.

- petrol lasts for 3 months when stored correctly.
- lasts for another 3 if you add stabilizers.
- if two stroke oil is added it lasts for around 4 months.

even after all these times petrol still works but after 8 months the taint and moisture content becomes more aparant...but all depends on what you are going to use it for.

Blitzkreigen stated that sta-bil dont work any more....that is true...but i found that the briggs and straton is a bit iffy...so we use putoline stabilizer.

Good thread Watchrider.

This is my take on it...... a preface: Back in the day, I managed groundwater/contaminated soil cleanups. This was primarily on the west coast, and we often had to import microbes to eat the hydrocarbons. In that relatively cool climate, we had to keep soils areated via tubes and frequent turning, cover with black plastic to keep the heat up, and it was partially successful. I think it's largely a function of heat. Here, where we live in the always warm Caribbean, these microbes exist as an ambient nature, and fuel left in a sealed container for 3 months will be usable, but already compromised. I don't agree that Sta-Bil doesn't work. I conducted some fuel storage experiments last year, and at least for our experience here, came up with the following conclusions:

Fuel most likely to go bad in less than three months -- that which is in a container that is not full....... that is, has some air to interact with the fuel and microbes.

Full containers that are sealed will last here about six months without any measurable problem insofar as being burned in an auto.

1/2 full containers with Sta-Bil will last about 3 months longer -- about 9 months.

Full containers with Sta-Bill will last at least a year, and here's the interesting part (at least to me)....... of the four one-gallon containers I did this with, three of them lasted nearly 1 1/2 years; one of them barely made it to a year. I test specific gravity, and that shows a little change. My primary method of checking the gasoline is to run it in a [less valuable] weed whacker. I consider a container of gasoline to be "off" if it causes the machine to either run poorly or not run at all. Between testing of different types, I'd flush them out with fresh clean gasoline.

Now, a potential quirk in this study was using the weedwhacker, as it requires oil mixed in with the gas, so that is a possible variable that is unaccounted for.

I currently store gasoline in a 55-gallon steel container, and we rotate it all out at least every three months. Buddy of mine in Florida who is an HVAC engineer told me of a better product than Sta-Bil, but can't remember the name of it........ will find out and get back to you.

We have a 1979 Dihatsu Rocky. It will not pass inspection, but we keep it in running order. It's 4WD, and the air intake is high on the engine. It always starts easily, and we keep it for a hurricane vehicle -- something somewhat sacrificial to park near the cave. It won't pass inspection because I can no longer buy headlights that fit it that are dipped left. Phooey.

Originally posted by Blitzkreigen

Well YES frankly I DO think that they are trying to kill all the older cars.



I dont know where to buy Military Fuel, or Jet A. Perhaps Race Car Drivers Know, and also mix their own Fuels.
"Super Fuels" comes to mind... retail 'Racing Gas' station ... like 110 Octane and up... dont know if they still exist. Saw Guys with 5 gallon white jugs there all the time years ago...PURPLE FUEL....

i doubt that racing teams will factor in longetivity. high octane fuels all contain a serious does of additives, which may or may not delay fuel deterioration. militaries otoh, will of course have ways to keep fuel usable for a while. i have no idea whether their preferred method is using decent fuel or simply adding stabilisers and filtering in regular intervals. Jet-A is military kerosene, btw, so it should work in diesel engines.

i doubt it's available anywhere, though and it should be noted that, f-ex. humvee engines will probably less picky when it comes to fuel quality.



[edit on 2008.7.20 by Long Lance]