STA-BIL in Every Tank or Just During Storage?

[JEEPRUSTY]

Stabil mot work? brekdown in cold temps?
It gets below 30 c here in the dead of winter on nice days
no discolouration
no failure to start first push of the starter button

What are the passing off as gas out there?

 

[Fjbj40]

I just noticed the other day while filling up that the regular and mid-grade has up to 10% ethanol. The supreme however does not have that notice on the selector. So I am assuming that the supreme is ethanol free?

Supreme is all I run in my 1085, I add sta-bil for the sleep period. No problems yet.

This year I started draining the carbs on my Honda outboard due to the fact that I rebuilt them this summer and I burn only regular unleaded in it.

I am not looking forward to the higher ethanol based fuels when they finally arrive here, from things I have read so far.

Does all supreme unleaded not have ethanol in it or is that here and eventually it will?

 

[bccap]

I don't know about Nova Scotia but here just Chevron supreme is ethanol free and says that on the pump. One indicator is there will be a separate hose not just a choice of grade through the same hose. At least that's the way it is here.....

 

[Guest]

No pure gas here. All grades are 10% ethanol. Did have one station that was ethanol free but its long gone. I use the Lucas Ethanol treatment since I rebuilt my carbs. Not one problem in 2 1/2 years. I use 2-3 ounces when I fill up after a ride. Usually during a ride I don't use it.

 

[JJ]

No pure gas here. All grades are 10% ethanol. Did have one station that was ethanol free but its long gone. I use the Lucas Ethanol treatment since I rebuilt my carbs. Not one problem in 2 1/2 years. I use 2-3 ounces when I fill up after a ride. Usually during a ride I don't use it.

Ummmm.... If you add 2-3 ounces after a ride, aren't you "using it" on the next ride?

 

[TxGSrider]

I've got an atv that uses a Keihin FCR carb that if you let it set for more than a 3 or 4 weeks with our ethanol in it will "weld" the float needle in place. It uses a brass holder and a Viton tipped aluminum float needle and something about the ethanol corrodes the two together and requires pliers to pull it out and usually destroys the valve. Ive been through 3 in 3 years. At first I thought it was a fluke, then the second time I learned my lesson, and now I use Stabil in it whenever I put gas in so I don't forget later. Havent had any problems since then.

 

[Fjbj40]

So it sounds like ethanol is really bad for carbs then?

what about the FI bikes, are they like the new cars and have the claim of flex fuel?

 

[JTGS850GL]

Depending on the specific FI bike it can be as bad or worse then with carbs. The problem is moisture. The Ethanol will allow moisture to combine with the gas and transport that water to components down stream. Some fuel pumps and some injectors are susceptible to water intrusion and damage. Other systems not so much.

I have a couple 1990's 300ZX Twin Turbo's at the house. The earlier model injectors were notorious for being damaged by ethanol. At 500 bucks a set it was getting pretty tiring and expensive to replace them every year or two.

 

[trippivot]

it's not about me NESSIM - it's about knuckleheads that doctor up their gasoline

it's not about me NESSIM - it's about knuckleheads that doctor up their gasoline

So it sounds like ethanol is really bad for carbs then?

what about the FI bikes, are they like the new cars and have the claim of flex fuel?

Made my own injector cleaner fixture before they were commercially available.

Interesting thing about FI bikes -- the gas evaporates and leaves behind the resin just like carb bikes. However a FI bike has a fuel pump and the injector will drip fluid gas instead of spray a fine mist. carb bikes will not run with a plugged pilot and a FI bike will run -- unless the pump gets stuck - very common issue.

look down the intake of a FI bike and if you see a black tar like goop on the tulip of the intake valve you have a problem and probably don't know it. Now if you find you have that build up, I am very sure the guys that doctor their gas can tell you what to put into your gasoline to remedy that problem too.

yes most pump gas is hydroscopic and water contaminated gas will cause running problems but in this post we are dealing with some poor guy that has to be reminded how to avoid a simple - preventable problem.

ethanol is not bad it just evaporates over time. once you understand the physics and typical deterioration - you can make a strategy that works for you to prevent typical problems .

some guys choose to take it to the shop and let a guy like me solve it. or even better do it themselves.

 

[GS1000S]

I've been using Star tron in every tank on the bikes I don't ride regularly. I try and keep non-ethanol fuel in my old GS bikes year round also. I add a little more in the winter for storage and as winter nears I switch over my late model bikes to non-ethanol fuel with stabilizer. I don't like cleaning carbs.

 

[tom203]

"ethanol is not bad it just evaporates over time. once you understand the physics and typical deterioration - "

ethanol is a useless gimmick foisted on the fuel market to benefit the corn lobby/agribusiness guys who care little about the enviroment and even less about the woe it causes.
Stabil works fine for me and my gasoline powered gizmos, some of which sit idle for six months or more.

 

[salty_monk]

Ed - Could have given you some of mine... the same problem trying to use a bottle!

 

[tkent02]

Fuel left in the float bowl isn't the problem. Drain it if you wish, I used to drain it before letting a bike sit, but it evaporates leaving almost nothing behind. Just like you have to prime the bowls for a quick start after the bike sits a few days, the fuel in the bowls is quickly gone. Just leaves behind a tiny layer of goo, no problem for any jets, it's not enough. Next time you ride it this tiny bit of goo will wash away, the bike will run fine. The problem is a slowly dribbling petcock which replaces the evaporated fuel with more fuel which also evaporates, leaving more and more of this goo, the bowls are always evaporating and always being refilled, soon there's enough goo in there to clog everything.

Fuel stabilizers do not prevent this evaporation, nor do they stop fuel from leaking through a leaky petcock to refill the float bowls. They do help the fuel last longer in the tank, which is an entirely different process and which still takes a long time, although not as long as it used to take. The length of time depends on your climate, the composition of the fuel and how air tight the gas tank is. If you are leaving the bike sit idle long enough for the fuel to to actually go bad in the tank you have a different problem, you shouldn't own a bike because you never ride.

Since I have one GS 750 with a slowly leaking petcock which sits for months at a time, I started disconnecting the carburetor fuel line from the petcock, putting a longer hose on the petcock and looping it up over the handlebars. This way no fuel can leak out onto the ground, it's uphill to get out. Also no fuel can get into the carburetors to refill them. Since I started doing this I have had no trouble with clogging carbs. I know the petcock seeps a little, as this hose always has a bit of fuel in it after it sits. If it was connected to the carburetors they would be all clogged up every time it sits a month or two.

As is I just hook up the AGM battery, (which stays fully charged for months without any charging or tending because it's an AGM battery) connect the fuel line and it fires right up every time.

 

[salty_monk]

I beg to differ... here in the hot summer it can cause a problem.

My KLR would barely run after 6 weeks sitting this summer. I had to get it idling then work the throttle very cautiously over a period of about 10 mins until it would run right. Presumably this was the jets flushing through or something. I didn't have Stabil in the fuel as I wasn't intending to leave it that long....

I know the petcock wasn't leaking into the bowl because the tank wasn't on it (I had to replace a T stat & figured I'd check valves and do some other clean-up whilst I was there & then got busy!)

 

[JEEPRUSTY]

so is the stabil getting gelationous buildup in the passageways? I can see that happening in heat but not in sever cold.

 

[Guest]

Ummmm.... If you add 2-3 ounces after a ride, aren't you "using it" on the next ride?

What I should have said, I won't add any during any fill ups on a day ride or what ever. And usually after a day ride top off, I tend to use the bike once or twice a week, so the treatment gets moved around in the carbs.

 

[bwringer]

The best solution by far is to ride more.

Take the poor things out to play more often and they won't care what sort of swill is in the tank.

Sta-Bil is for lawn mowers.

 

[tom203]

wait till your 6 carb outboard sits idle for 8 months with unstabiled fuel- real fun at startup (if it starts).

 

[JEEPRUSTY]

fuel additives work.
Anyone saying otherwise has experiences far outside of the operating parameters noted on the product label.

 

[Nessism]

Pulled out the 1000S for a cruise this weekend. Last time I rode it necessitated this thread. So basically, it's been 3 months, with STA-BIL in the tank, and the carbs still gunked up. What a pain! Fortunately, it started to run better after half dozen miles or so and after that I took it out on the highway for a good blast. Running proper now but geeze, this gasoline substitute they try to pass off on us these days straight up sucks.