E85 'petrol'

[CHJ]

A friend has just pointed me to the reason his local garage/filling station is being disrupted.

Lock's Garage

4 May at 03:54 · .

IMPORTANT NOTICE!! To all our customers, for the last few years petrol has contained ethanol bio fuel. Ethanol attacks the glue that joins our underground petrol pipes together and can also corrode our underground petrol storage tanks. To pre-empt this we are lining our underground petrol tanks with one inch fibre glass and also replacing our underground petrol lines with ethanol resistant plastic pipes. Work starts on 5th May and will last appproximately 3-4 weeks (depending on the weather) and will cause disruption on the forecourt. Thank you for your patience and understanding whilst this work is being carried out. Kindest regards, all at Lock's.

Wonder how many other metaphorical worms are starting to creep out of the woodwork.

Older 'vintage' engines for instance ?

 

[RossJarvis]

Wonder how many other metaphorical worms are starting to creep out of the woodwork.

Older 'vintage' engines for instance ?

Apparently it's having a noticeable effect on motorcycles with fibreglass tanks, so I dare say a lot of older vehicles are going to have problems. I've read that the ethanol absorbs water and that there is an increase in corrosion due to this. Don't know if the ethanol and water are one or two potential problems.

 

[acewoodturner]

Plays havoc with 2 stroke machines such as chainsaws. Eats stuff like the fuel lines and also has a detrimental effect on carbs

 

[blackrodd]

Plays havoc with 2 stroke machines such as chainsaws. Eats stuff like the fuel lines and also has a detrimental effect on carbs

+1 for the above,. A friend of mine supplies and fixes lawn mowers, chainsaws, and he says the same, be sure to drain all petrol from the machine run the fuel from the carb etc, over winter as the ethanol eats alloy and rubber.
Regards Rodders

 

[Beau]

Yep it's a pain if stale fuel is left in 2 stroke machines for any length of time. There is an expensive alternative called Aspen which will last years but it is twice the price of petrol. Think there is another one called Moto mix but not tried this. Run our hedge cutter on the Aspen as it uses very small amounts of fuel and gets left on the shelf for months on end.

Ross I think the water and the ethanol are interlinked. My understanding is ethanol attracts water then after time the water separates from the fuel doing the damage. Aparently scored cylinders is becoming common problem. Fresh fuel in modern machines should be fine but I know many who would ditch mixed fuel that's sat about more than six weeks

 

[paulm]

After having a chainsaw with fuel line and seals problems I switched to using Aspen fuel in those and hedge cutters, strimmers, blowers etc as I don't use vast quantities.

The price difference is eye watering though, the Aspen round here sells for something around £19 for a gallon or 5 litre container ! Fortunately I don't normally need more than a couple of them in a season unless doing a lot of chainsaw work.

The ride on and small mower get through a lot more 4 stroke fuel so they have to take their chances with normal unleaded, and thankfully no known problems yet a few years down the line, fingers crossed it stays that way !

Cheers, Paul

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Wonder how many other metaphorical worms are starting to creep out of the woodwork.

Older 'vintage' engines for instance ?

Apparently it's having a noticeable effect on motorcycles with fibreglass tanks, so I dare say a lot of older vehicles are going to have problems. I've read that the ethanol absorbs water and that there is an increase in corrosion due to this. Don't know if the ethanol and water are one or two potential problems.

And yet they're lining the tanks of the garage with glass fibre? :?

 

[blackrodd]

Wonder how many other metaphorical worms are starting to creep out of the woodwork.

Older 'vintage' engines for instance ?

Apparently it's having a noticeable effect on motorcycles with fibreglass tanks, so I dare say a lot of older vehicles are going to have problems. I've read that the ethanol absorbs water and that there is an increase in corrosion due to this. Don't know if the ethanol and water are one or two potential problems.

And yet they're lining the tanks of the garage with glass fibre? :?

Must be a different type of material as in GRP nowadays,
Found this about fuel storage tanks from the 60s era to nowadays, Here's a link, if you're interested, --
http://www.greentank.co.nz/upload/libra ... bReady.pdf
Regards Rodders

 

[whiskywill]

There are different types of resin available with different properties. For example, I work in water treatment and we use two types. Polyester GRP for normal water tanks and Vinylester GRP for anything coming into contact with acid. I am sure that there are other probably even more resistant resins.