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ethanol

5K views 44 replies 19 participants last post by  grewen 
#1 ·
look what is happening in my gas filter!! it's raining!! I have never seen this before, I can only guess to what happens to a half full gas tank. this was a new filter in the fall and I have only used the tractor a few times to go out and turn a few donuts in the driveway. i'm glad I run the carb dry each time I use it Auto part
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#2 ·
You should drill a couple holes in the plastic case to let the moisture out. :p

Would the filter look like that even if non-ethanol fuel was used? Either way, sounds like you take precautions.
 
#4 ·
That's from condensation inside your tank. It has nothing to do with the type of gas you use or running your carb dry or not. It's from temperature variations causing the moisture in the air to condense on the cooler walls of the tank at night.
You should empty out the tank (use the reserve if for a motorcycle to get out the bottom of the tank) and see if there's water in it. And you can avoid that by storing it with the tank full, to minimize the air space inside the tank, minimizing condensation.
 
#5 ·
And regular use of StaBil or SeaFoam which will allow the water to "mix" with the gas and pass on through.
Those water droplets will disappear.
Storing the bike with a full tank is the same thing pilots do as soon as they land...top off the tank.
No moisture can form in a full tank.
 
#7 ·
Is the tank plastic or stock?
 
#8 ·
The new gasoline brakes down and separates looks like vinaigrette salad dressing before you shack it.
 
#10 ·
Alcohol absorbs moisture from the air! Ethanol is corn alcohol! The fuel system of our TWs is a vented system which allows an open door to the outside moisture in the air. You could fill the tank with exactly 128 ounces/ 1 exact gallon of E-10 fuel and in the right conditions over a long period of storage you could measure again and find you now have 130 ounces in the tank.

GaryL
 
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#11 ·
Water fouled gasoline may be filtered through natural chamois. Works amazingly well.
Copied from The Chamois Website:

Fuel Filtration



Genuine Leather Chamois Cloths have been used to filter fuel since the introduction of the automobile. A chamois often came with the car so that the poor quality fuels available in more rural areas could be filtered easily. A dry chamois soaked with clean gasoline, will allow fuel to pass through its surface fibers, but not water.

Specific Chamois Applications

Even today chamois leather is used to filter fuel that has been stored in drums, which often allow water in, or from any other doubtful storage source. Chamois leather is also used as a fuel filter by boater and aircraft owners/operators when refueling in any remote area when fuel quality is an issue.

 
#12 ·
While slow, messy and stinky the chamois filtration can be a godsend in the bush for salvaging old fuel depots. It has been many a year but I recall it took maybe an hour to filter about 10 gallons with a natural chamois and a medium sized funnel. No Smoking!
 
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#13 ·
Startron has done a good job killing the "hygroscopic" properties of ethanol, for me. Ethanol will actually suck moisture out of the air once it "collects" all of it from the gas. Condensation like you see in your visible filter is the start of bad problems. The Staibil for ethanol and Seafoam do NOT seem to remove this type of problem, for me. I use Seafoam primarily for carb cleaning as opposed to long term storage. I never use Staibil, anymore.
 
#16 · (Edited)
look what is happening in my gas filter!! it's raining!! I have never seen this before, I can only guess to what happens to a half full gas tank. this was a new filter in the fall and I have only used the tractor a few times to go out and turn a few donuts in the driveway. i'm glad I run the carb dry each time I use it View attachment 26404 View attachment 26405
update. yesterday I put some lucas ethanol treatment in the tank and shook it up and then went for a 1/2 hour ride. I then put the tractor away in the garage. today the filter seems to have about the same amount of moisture in it. I take this little experiment as a failure. I will try the startron next, if I can find some. on our working tractors I installed a bigger filter with a settling bowl under the filter so maybe I can catch some of the moisture and empty it before it gets to the carb. I can hardly wait for e15 to show up, and then I heard some talk of e20. we might as well go back to running steam engines
 
#24 ·
Glad you tried, with success the non-ethanol fuel. I'm in the same process of doing the same thing. Non-ethanol fuel is more readily available lately her in Wichita, so it's not going to be as big an issue. Also want to see a pic of the TRACTOR. LOL
 
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#26 · (Edited)
Land vehicle Vehicle Motor vehicle Tractor Car


here's a pic of the tractor i'm experimenting with. this one is a 14 hp. these tractors are ones that people are taking to the dump. I rescue them and make fun things with them. this is the fastest, it will almost through me out if I hold the throttle open too long. I have rebuild 7 so far and the ones I can't get running I take the front axel off and make a trailer. so far I have 4 trailers, and hook them all up to make a tractor trailer train for the grandkids
 
#27 ·
Awesome tractor. I'm thinking of buying a 400 series Case garden tractor from Jeffrolives, or craigslist as he has sent me a couple links for tractors for sale. I would rather buy from him as I think he has taken great care in re-building his machinery, and maintaining it. Sorry for the hi=jack.
 
#28 ·
Jeffrolives is also a very nice guy...just sayin :D
 
#32 ·
How do they compare to the John Deere 318 or something like it? I know Jeffrolives is not a JD fan. and neither am i, but I wonder about finding parts in the future. I like to do the different route. It's often a better route.
 
#35 · (Edited)
I don't know. I only deal in junk....I mean rescues. our working tractors are 2- craftsman and a new Holland diesel. as far as parts, I get just about everything online. I personally won't do the jd thing because they are too expensive for me and there is no dealer here
 
#33 ·
You guys are way off on the ethanol/alcohol absorbing water vapor from the air thing. If you had 100% pure ethanol and left it exposed to the air it would drop to 95% ethanol and stop there. It doesn't keep absorbing water vapor from the atmosphere. While there may be a tiny amount of water dissolved in the fuel related to the alcohol itself, that is a very minor amount. Like I said, the water in the tank is from condensation from the atmosphere, it has nothing to do with what type of fuel is in the tank, and will even happen in a totally empty tank. Ever see the water that forms on the outside of a glass of cold beer or any other drink with ice in it? It's condensation of the water vapor in the atmosphere on the cold surface. Keep your tanks full and you don't get this, no matter what kind of fuel is inside the tank.
 
#34 ·
my tanks are all ways topped off after use. this tank has been full to the top since I changed the filter in nov. it is a plastic tank and it has been in the garage at a constant temp of 6-8 degree c. so where did the moisture come from? and why do I have no moisture with the non-ethanol in the tank now?
 
#36 ·
I have an old(late eighties) John Deere 160 mower. It has never done a very good job cutting grass, so I've been off jd for a while. Right now I mow with a craftsman 20 hp two blade rider, and it cuts pretty well. I'm thinking I could get rid of all my other riders, my roto tiller, and my snow shovels. We don't get that much snow here normally, but with global warming,lol we might get a lot more. I have a neighbor who is brilliant, says parts availability would sway him toward the jd. I think I like the Case.
 
#40 ·
Just take a <> ounce of ethanol gas E10, put in a small jar <>2in in dia. leave the lid off and let the contents evaporate.

You will see water begin to form in the bottom and as the contents finishes evaporating there will be a syrup left... Hooray for the EPA!

Jim
 
#42 ·
Typical from the NY Times! A quick mention about what ethanol is not, Cheaper or Cleaner, but no mention of the other ills about the substance and not a word from the many manufacturers who are staunchly against using it in their machinery. The hypocrisy from the Iowa farmers benefiting most from the ethanol subsidies is easily understandable given the basic facts, 99% of all farm machinery runs on diesel fuel and there is no mandate that ethanol be added to diesel fuel so it does not destroy their tractors.

Ted Cruz is outwardly against any and all government subsidies so he claims and Donald Trump is 100% behind the ethanol subsidy. Go figure, we have politicians saying what ever they think we need to hear to garner our votes. How utterly surprising.

I'm not sure how many TW owners we have here from Iowa but if they could be at all honest they would likely tell us they use Non ethanol fuels in all their small engines if they can find it.

GaryL
 
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#44 ·
Don't poke the bee hive. lol Jeffrolives,,,,,are you a user of non ethanol in your garden tractors and TW??? I am beginning to buy only non ethanol for my small engines. Maybe someone will figure out how to make something else out of corn.....tamales....tortillas......maybe you can get high smoking it????lol I love sweet corn......almost as much as my 87 TW.
 
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