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Headed out last night to do some fishing in my boat, got to the lake launched the boat and it would not start, this was the second time this years this has happened, shot starting fluid in the intake and she fired up but then ran out of gas. I pulled the fuel line and I'll be danged for the second time I had water in my gas tank, lots of it! The first time it happened I could not figure out where the water was coming from, its a 60 gal tank on a 90 hp merc. I drained the tank checked and rechecked everything again, filled the tank half full and it ran great, well the boat sat for a week, and it happened again, I park the boat in a secure area no water getting on or in the boat! So to have it happen again I was frustrated and baffled, I jumped on the net and did a bit of research and I think I found the problem, I am asking if any others with outboards have seen this issue.
Apperrantly with this new fuel with Ethenol, it is not good for boats with outboard motors, especially ones with large tanks, The reason apperantly is outboard motors require the tank to breath, When air gets to the Ethenol it causes condensation in the tank, and can produce upto 2 oz of water for each 16 oz of gas. Especially in a large tank with extra capacity to collect the condensation.
The first time this happened I pulled 4 gallons of water out of my tank, This time I have pulled out 2 gallons with just of skiff of gas at the top.
Have others dealt with this, what is the solution, It is getting harder and harder to find gas stations that sell ethenol free gas, do use addatives, if so what?
know I get to drain the tank again, drain the carbs, what a pain in the neck, Any help would be appreciated.
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A couple of things you can do.
Keep the tank full. Fill it on the way home from using it. If the fuel tank is full there is no room for air to get in and cause condensation. Same reason to keep it full during winter storage.
Use some Sta-bil for ethanol, I think Sea Foam has an ethanol formula too. Use them, even at $10 per tank full to treat it's better than the expence of going to a lake, getting the boat in the water and having problems.
I don't know how old your motor is, but many older motors will have more problems with ethanol. Problems like plastic and rubber lines degrading mostly. Watch for this.
You may also want to shorten the length of the pick-up tube in the tank. The water is heavier than the fuel and will sink to the bottom of the tank, raising the pick-up will help to keep it above any water in the tank.
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Personally, I use StarTron. I have had excellent results, as have lots of folks with StaBil. Let's just say both products are of equal quality and perform the same function. The next factor becomes cost. Why pay more for a product that performs the exact same function as one that costs much less, and I mean MUCH less.
Both come in an 8 oz bottle. Both cost about $8.00 per bottle or $1.00 per ounce. According to each manufacturers' web site: StarTron treats 16 gallons of ethanol blended fuel with 1 oz. for $1.00. Marine StaBil treats 2.5 gallons of ethanol blended fuel with 1 oz. for $1.00. StarTron, at 1 oz/16 gal will stabilize fuel for 2 years. StaBil at 2 oz./2.5 gal will stabilize fuel for 2 years. ACCORDING TO EACH MANUFACTURERS' SITE, StarTron will treat 6.4 times more fuel than Marine Stabil for the same price, and preserve the fuel twice as long. YOU decide.
This from StaBil's site:
Q: How much STA-BIL Fuel Stabilizer should I add to fuel?
A: One ounce (30mL) of STA-BIL Fuel Stabilizer for every 2 ½ gallons (9.5 L) of gasoline, gasoline/oil mixtures, or ethanol blends is the recommended dosage level.
Q: How long will STA-BIL Fuel Stabilizer keep fuel fresh?
A: For 12 months when mixed into fresh gasoline. Doubling the dosage will keep fuel fresh for up to 2 years.*
From StarTron's site:
Q: How much Star tron should I use in gasoline or diesel fuel?
A: With the Star tron Gasoline formula, add 1 fl. oz. for every 16 gallons of gas. In diesel application, add 1 fl. oz. of Star tron Diesel Additive for every 32 gallons of diesel fuel.
Star Tron® breaks down and safely disperses gum, sludge and varnish, and it outperforms conventional chemical-based gas stabilizers because in addition to slowing the aging of fuel (gasoline and diesel fuel can be stabilized for up to two years),
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Thanks for the advice, my motor is a 2006 merc, so its new, only maybe 50 hrs on the motor, Thanks for the info, Im new to outboards and have always run inboards. Thanks
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Where are you buying your gas ??? 2-4 gallons of water is way to much for breakdown in such a short time. Fuel stabilizer is a must these days, but you need to check where your fuel is coming from. Your dealer may have water in his underground tanks and you are paying $3.68 a gallon for water off his lot !!! Not cool !!
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Question, Should I go ahead and drain the tank and start over with stabilizer in the gas or can in just put stabilizer in it and get rid of the water.
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It's not the source of the gas. If it were, it would be present immediately. By leaving an air space in the tank, and too large of a vent, you create a solar still. Air gets in and heats up. When it cools down the moisture in the air condenses in to water. Keep the tank completely full.
I keep a cooler in the bed of my truck. I don't put any water or ice in it, but I have to drain almost a cup of water out of it every couple of days. It is condensation from the air.
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Pull a sample from the bottom of the tank. If there is a lot of water in it drain. If it's not too bad. The additive should dry it out. Seafoam is another you can use.
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I used to have the same problem with my snowmobile in the old days when I had to mix fuel. I ended up burning down one engine because I wasn't aware of the problem and in the winter it is worse for 2 cycles because the water will freeze and stop the flow of fuel and lubrication to one cylinder which can be really hard on an engine. Anyway I ended up figuring out that Chevron gas was the worst in Logan and if I added a bottle of isopropyl to my fuel it kept things working fine, well everywhere else except for Chevron that I was sure was selling part water with every gallon for some reason I still got some water even with isopropyl there. Anyway I haven't bought it for a long time but it used to only cost about a dollar a bottle. The isopropyl was a lot better than the heat product that was available at the same time period. Don't know if it's the same problem but the info is cheap. Good luck. J
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I have a internal tank and have been running this type of gas with no problems? I also use premium fuel all the time. I personally think it is where your getting your fuel.
No problems all summer even with the high humidity. My boat is not out in the sun though and is covered. Maybe you have a neighbor kid fueling you up with the garden hose  Kids will do crap like that.
fnf[cool]
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