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Gas or No Gas?

1K views 7 replies 5 participants last post by  double trouble 
#1 ·
Fellow Boaters: I was in the U.P. last week and a boat dealer told me that I need to run all gas out of my 90hp. Johnson and 15hp Merc. and completely drain my built-in gas tank on my 18' walleye boat every fall, because even with stabil or seafoam the gas will turn bad by spring, what do you all do? Thanks
 
#2 ·
I have been working on motors almost 40 years. The most trouble i have is when I try to run the gas out of the carbs on an oil injected 2 stroke motor. Do you plug the oil line and let it run dry. Heck no!
I just make sure that the gas is treated and keep the carbs full.
If yours is mixed in the tank then sure you can run the gas out and fog the carburetors as well as the entire motor. That is the most important step. As far as the fuel sitting , yes it does go stale , but with oil in it , the fuel does not break down as much. Many 2 stroke oils have stabilizer in them. Stabil is loved by some and vilified by others. I only use it in mowers and blowers. I do use PRI-g , which he probably does not even know exists. It has anti-microbial agents which keep the fuel fresh and can restore old gas.
One time my boat sat 3 years and had some 4 year old fuel in it. It did take some running and it did stall before we got it on plane because the carburetor jets probably were plugged up , but it ran fine afterwards. You have to add some fresh fuel with PRI-G every year and I did put 5 gallons in mine before I ran it.
I do not see a need to drain gas tanks , but do not leave them low either.That will condense moisture in the tank .Keep them over half full if its just for one season.
Now if you have portable tanks its best just to burn the fuel up.
I guess it just depends on your situation. Too many mechanics have a one size fits all mentality. Gasoline starts to break down at a minimum 90 days ,but realistically it can burn efficiently for at least 5 years if treated.
 
#3 ·
Double-Trouble, yes the 90hp is oil injected and the 15hp merc is a 4 stroke, they both use the same main tank. Is Pri-g used in place of stabil or seafoam? I am going to NY this week with an empty tank and will be using premium gas without ethonol, will this help the 90 hp start better? Just installed a three way gas valve in gasline to switch from the kicker to main motor, will this help direct more gas to the 90hp when starting? Thanks
 
#4 ·
High octane and no ethanol probably will not help a motor start better , but it will get a little better fuel economy.I do not recommend high octane fuels , but that is my old wives belief of mine that the motor gets used to running on it and may knock if it doesn't get high octane. Goes back to my race car days.
. The new gas line may help only because old lines break down and get soft. That is a large cause of engine problems. Fuel starvation by old gas lines that were not designed for E-10.
Here is a link to PRI-G. It will keep fuel fresh up to 3 years. Its a little pricy but beats draining tanks. I use it in many motors. A bottle treats hundreds of gallons. It does replace stabil.

http://www.priproducts.com/consumer_products.cfm
 
#6 ·
Leaving float bowls empty leads to condensation. Condensation leads to corrosion. If the bowls are left full of treated fuel, then nothing can corrode.
 
#7 ·
And i bet he knew you couldn't do this yourself so for a small fee you could bring back to his dealership and they would do it for you. I may be just the lucky one but i have a 2001 60hp merc the only thing i do is add stabil to the tank at the end of the season and some sea foam at the first of yr and i've never had a problem
 
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