Ethanol Trouble

[Phil Lilley]

As a professional fly fishing guide, I spend a lot of time on the river. During the past year, most of that time has been in my river boat, due to our seemingly never ending high water conditions. When on the river, it is vital that my engine is operating at the peak of performance, particularly in high water. Recently I have encountered some problems with my outboard motor.

It would start fine, but when I put it in gear and revved it up, it balked and sputtered. It would eventually get under way but not at maximum output. I had a dilemma. I was in the first day of a two day guide trip. I only have one boat and motor and it was not operating at one hundred percent. I needed to put the motor in the shop but I needed to finish my trip. I somehow managed to finish the day. Luckily the trout were cooperating and we had a good day fishing. That night, at the lodge, I discussed my motor woes with my colleagues. I heard a few opinions but the consensus there seemed to be spark plugs. I pulled the plugs and they looked okay.

The next day I returned to the river to finish the trip and my motor really started acting up. I limped back to the ramp and borrowed a motor from Gary Flippin at Rim Shoals Trout Dock. I was able to finish the day. Once again we were able to boat plenty of fish but I was a nervous wreck from hassling with the engine.

The next day I was at Bearskin Marine as soon as it opened. I explained to Floyd what was happening and he went to work. I picked up the motor the next day. Floyd said the motor looked pretty good and the spark plugs showed little wear. We discussed the engine problem and he suggested that the problem could be the fuel that I was using.

A number of our local gas stations had begun carrying gasoline that contained approximately ten percent ethanol. Ethanol has several qualities that make it a poor fuel for outboard motors. It attracts water. Since outboard motors do not have sealed fuel systems they can take on water if ethanol is used. Water and gasoline don’t mix. The water settles to the bottom of the tank where it enters the intake tube and goes into the motor. You can imagine the results.

Ethanol is also a powerful solvent. As we walked through Floyd’s shop, he showed me several fuel lines that had been put out of commission by the use of ethanol. One fuel line was inoperable because the ethanol had dissolved the glue connecting the intake tube to the line itself. This allowed air in the fuel line which severely hampered operation. Another intake tube had stretched and when the owner had pushed it into the fuel tank bending the now too long tube and crimping it in the process. This cut off the fuel supply to the engine.

I had been trying to use pure gas but often for convenience sake I would fill up at my local gas station that carries fuel with ten percent ethanol. On at least one occasion, I had stopped at one of the area stations that advertises that they carry pure gas only to find out that they had been delivered fuel that contained ethanol. I was short on time and I filled up any way. It was a bad idea.

I put my motor back on my boat and filled my gas tank with fresh pure gasoline. I took it to the river and launched. My motor was running better but it was still not up to par. I was concerned. Once again I discussed the problem with my colleagues. Gary Flipin suggested using high octane gasoline. Gary maintains several rental boats and he said that he had experienced the same problem and had switched to high octane (93) pure gasoline and the problem had gone away.

The next time that I filled my tank I bought high octane pure gasoline. The improvement was instantaneous. My engine is now running at peak performance and I am much more confident in its general operation.

I have since learned that there are additives (made by Stabil) that you can add to fuels containing ethanol that will overcome its problems and help the engine run properly. They are available locally and cost about twenty dollars for enough additive to treat three hundred and twenty gallons. I have not tried any of them. I will take a more conservative approach and will try to only run pure high octane gasoline in my motor from now on. I think that I will also buy a bottle of the additive to use if I get stuck with some ethanol fuel.

If you are experiencing any problems with your outboard motor check the fuel that you are using. A change to better fuel may cure your problems.

John Berry

(870) 435-2169

berrybrothers@infodash.com

www.berrybrothersguides.com

[patfish]

John, are you referring to a 2 or 4 stroke outboard?

My buddy's old 9 horse Merc has been acting up - almost precisely what you have described.

[Dutch]

I don't know where one can buy gasoline with no ethanol. Every station I have tried has it in all grades.

Installing a water seperating fuel filter will go a long way to keep your stuff working properly. Be sure to change it often if you fish a lot.

[dave potts]

John,

Don't count on that 93 octane gas to solve your problems. Most gas sold in Missouri contains 10% ethanol, even the high octane stuff. I don't believe any "additive" will negate the negative effect of ethanol on motors. Alcohol is very hygroscopic and is also a powerful solvent that will eventually dissolve rubber fittings and motor seals.

I contacted my state represenative here in Mo to try to rescind the mandatory 10% ethanol but got no response. Wasn't surprised as he was a strong supporter of the bill and is also a corn farmer.

A couple of weeks ago my weed eater suddendly stopped running. The fuel line had been "dissolved in two". Took it to a local small engine repair shop and the owner said his business has been booming since ethanol gas came on the market.

Boaters need to get a grass roots camapign going to get rid of mandatory alcohol. I have two outboards, a 15 horse on my Jon boat and a 115 on my bass boat. Eventually I will end up with $10,000 worth of junk.

Dave

[dave potts]

One more note. Most marinas in Mo have a waiver and sell gas without ethanol. Have to be careful though as I have heard that some claim it is alcohol free but really isn't as the non alcohol is more costly.

Dave

[Bman]

I have a 2 year old 90 hp Yamaha 2 stroke. I run 87 octane gas with ethanol, from what ever gas station that is close. I ALWAYS add Stabil, and ring free every time I fill up.

I have never had any problems.

[dave potts]

What's ring free?

Dave

[Bman]

Ring free is a Yamaha product, gas additive, cleans the combustion chamber.

Ring Free Fuel Additive :

Yamalube RingFree Fuel Additive helps prevent ring sticking, varnish and carbon build up in your engine. This fuel additive employs the highest grade of engine cleaning technology to keep your engine running smoother and stronger. Recommended for use as a constant treatment, or as a “Shock Treatment.” For two and four stroke engines.

[Rolan Duffield]

John:

during my last trip to Taney I had that same problem. Engine would run fairly good at low speeds though when I tried to open it up it would stall out and not respond. Finally called my dealer and took the boat to them. The plugs, cylinders and electronics checked out fine.

They isolated the problem to one cylinder. Finally decided to pull a carburetor and found a lot of sediment in it. Had to clean both carburetors and that corrected the problems.

I had them install a water separating filter on the incoming gas line. This also filters the gas to 10 microns. I hope this cures future problems of this type.

I have always used fuel stabilizers and Yahama's ring free. That still did not prevent the problem.

I understand that many of the older motors will have problems with rubber seals and components that are affected by the ethanol.

We just don't know if we're getting good gas. A recent article in the local paper indicated that some supplietrs might be adding more than 10% ethanol to the gas.

Rolan

[bclift65706]

I have a 2004 merc I havent had any problems yet I dont let the gas stay in the tank over a week before I drain it out of the boat and put it in the truck. I was out cleaning my boat after sitting a little over 2 weeks and for some reason took the gas cap off and the gas dident even smell like gas it had the smell of gas that had been sitting around for a year so I just started draining it if I was not going on a fishing trip for a while.