Ethanol damage up close!

[resq302]

Ok, so this isn't pics taken from a big ol engine such as a small block or big block but if this kind of damage can happen to a small engine such as your lawn mower, you'd better believe it can and will happen to our cars!

http://blog.jackssmallengines.com/2013/08/see-ethanol-damage-up-close/?utm_source=Jacks+Small+Engines+Newsletter&utm_campaign=dfa6d45e4a-August_2013_Newsletter_Ethanol_Up_Close8_13_2013&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_b9c41b695b-dfa6d45e4a-38200889

[Ghoste]

All in the name of the green vote.

[GPULLER]

I'm not drinking the Kool-aid.

[myk]

All in the name of the green vote.

The irony being that corn/ethanol isn't the most enviromentally friendly bio-fuel, either.  Is this really happening?  I thought E15 was on hold, or something?

[Brads70]

Yep I see it everyday. I repair small engines for a living. Great stuff keeps me employed! I've gone through 3 spools of fuel line this season already too! It sure eats up rubber quick! Here in Canada Shell premium fuel has NO ethanol and I advise all my customers to use it.  This season I have found lots of newer Kohler push mowers
(1-2 years old) with the engines blown . I think the carbs are set up quite lean and when using ethanol it runs too lean and they "hatch" At that point I usually tell them to go shop for a new mower unless its a self propelled as it's usually not worth the cost of a new engine.

[JB400]

Premium only for me bought at stores that carry it.  They either need to make carbs adjustable or use fuel without alcohol.

Nothing I have will run on it, and mower is only a couple years old now.

[1BAD68]

I'm not buying it.
I've been working on small engines since I was a kid and have seen the same thing way back then.
Also if the engines are fired up every year at least a few times, they won't look like that.
Those pictures look like the common tiller or snow thrower engine that may not get used in a couple maybe a few years at a time.

I'm not saying that ethanol is good for engines, I'm just saying that those pictures are extreme and not the norm.

[c00nhunterjoe]

All I can get is ethanol fuels... 10% I beleive. I have had my carbs and intake off for inspection and found no such issues with any of my equipment up to and including my car. I cry bs. Stuff corrodes when it sits.

[Cooter]

Fuel begins to go bad after only one month now. Usef to sit for months before turning. One good thing bout alcohol is when it sits most times it evaporates.

[GPULLER]

All I can get is ethanol fuels... 10% I beleive. I have had my carbs and intake off for inspection and found no such issues with any of my equipment up to and including my car. I cry bs. Stuff corrodes when it sits.

I'm not buying it.
I've been working on small engines since I was a kid and have seen the same thing way back then.
Also if the engines are fired up every year at least a few times, they won't look like that.
Those pictures look like the common tiller or snow thrower engine that may not get used in a couple maybe a few years at a time.

I'm not saying that ethanol is good for engines, I'm just saying that those pictures are extreme and not the norm.

Thank you fella's, thought I was the only one who thinks all this "ethanol is bad" is a load of crap! ha ha ha
All I can get in my area is E10, it goes in everything, lawn mowers, weed eater, snowmobiles, old tractors, combine, old cars.  In the fall everything gets put in the shed and not looked at until spring.
Had my lawn mower for 13 years with zero fuel related problems.  Just this summer I took my 18year old $69 Weedeater trimmer out and 2 pulls it was running.

[resq302]

I can attest to this that since they have been "refining" the gasoline, my charger in the past years has been running hotter than what it had been say back in 2005.  I also know that when I let my charger sit for over 3 days with todays gas, I had a hell of a time getting it started as if the carb was completely dry.  Since I have been using Star-tron's Star Brite Fuel System treatment which removes the ethanol, I have not had any problem staring my charger after it has sat for up to a month now!

Also, I have had issues with my Snapper push mower with it sitting for a while.  I typically run the fuel out at the end of every year so as not to worry about this kind of thing.  However, I recently had to rebuild the carb and had all kinds of sludge in there.  With the maintenance that I do for my vehicles and other power equipment, I should not have had these conditions!  Heck, I even went as far to as install an in line fuel filter on my push mower which never had one initially and I still got that sludge in the carb.

[JB400]

I'm wondering if all this sludge and what not is actually from the ethanol based fuel, or from the additives that we use to get it to burn in our stuff.

[resq302]

Hard to say.  I will say that the only stuff I have put into my small engine mowers was stabil up until last year when I started running the Star Tron stuff.  And I only add that to the gas at the end of the year.  During the year Im typically using the equipment at least once a week for mowing and weed whacking so no need to keep the stabilizer in there.