2 cycle gas mix shelf life

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Mr Good Wood

ArboristSite Member
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Location
Toledo, Ohio
Ok the dealer says use within 30 day but others say a 6 months. I use 89 with the stihl full synthetic which has stabilizers in it. how long would you give it on the shelf before you wouldn't use it? i am at the 6 mo mark with it now. thoughts?

usually i use it up in anywhere from a week to 2 months. do to having snow up the a** all winter got slowed down and way behind.
 
If it's an ethanol blend gasoline I wouldn't trust it beyond 30 days... especially coming out'a winter.
If it's a non-ethanol blend gasoline, and the container was/is 90% full or better I might try it at 4 months or so.
At 6 months I'd dump it in my wife's mini-van in a heartbeat and start fresh...
Six months, for a small quantity of gasoline, is a long, long, long friggin' time...
*
 
Ethanol contaminated, it is too old, burn a trash fire with it, non ethanol, smell it, look at it, does it still have some kick?

I use 93 octane non ethanol and did an experiment (using echo oil), one year sitting in a cheap saw, it was still good. I just wanted to know. I am NOT recommending that, just sayin it lasted that long for me.
 
yea i am going to dump it. it really sucks that I can't find ethanol free gas either, well within a reasonable distance.
 
Stabilizer, tightly sealed container, cool/cold storage location- works for me for 6+ mos. a/r. 93 octane is way overkill. Most mfgs spec 87 or better; only one I've seen recommending higher is RedMax at 89 octane. More is not necessarily better.
 
I think aviation fuel is ethanol free. I have seen guys getting it in cans at small airports.

I do buy premium gas for my saws, One summer I had problems with the gas boiling on 87 octane.
the saw still ran but I didn't like it.
I heard that the premium gas has less ethanol in it so I use it.
I don't saw every day and will use 2.5 gal in a couple of months in my trimmer. blower and saws.
If I am milling I will go thru a can fairly quickly.
I mainly want something that will age well. I have been using stabilizer too but wonder if I need it with stihl synthetic. I am down to the last can of a 6 pack and don't like it as it gives me a headache.
thinking of switching back to the regular or something else synthetic.
Chad
 
Ok the dealer says use within 30 day but others say a 6 months. I use 89 with the stihl full synthetic which has stabilizers in it. how long would you give it on the shelf before you wouldn't use it? i am at the 6 mo mark with it now. thoughts?

usually i use it up in anywhere from a week to 2 months. do to having snow up the a** all winter got slowed down and way behind.
I use Stilh can fuel in my saws Stilh said it is good for 2 years just shake it up If you use off brand gas use 94 and your saw will start every time no matter the time limit. I use 94 in all my lawn mowers chain saw weed eater tree trimmer try it it works
 
I use 91 octane, ethanol free fuel with dino 2 cycle mixing oil bought in quart bottles mixed at a 40:1 ratio. I generally don't have it last longer than 3 months but never worry about it. Saws start right up & haven't noticed any decrease in power. (All my saws are stock except for one muffler modified 338xpt.)
 
Most mfgs spec 87 or better; only one I've seen recommending higher is RedMax at 89 octane. More is not necessarily better.

Agreed that more ain't necessarily better...
But the manual that came with my 20+ year old Stihl 026 specifically states 89 octane or better... and also specifies "regular" grade (or, non-ethanol blended??). I can honestly say it flat don't run right on any 87 octane gasoline, and can be hit or miss with 89 pump gas... but using 91 octane (non-ethanol) it never misses a beat. Some few years ago I could buy 93 octane locally, I believe the thing actually runs better after I switched to the 91...
*
 
I use 89 non ethanol with stihl ultra. I just finished up a gallon I picked up last October so about 6 months. Saw ran fine but the fuel mix was stored in the cold shed all winter in a good gas can. I also drain the fuel from my saws and run them dry for storage if they wont be run in the next week or two. My saw starts right up following that procedure and it works for me. YMMV
 
I have had more problems with dried out diaphragms from running engines dry than leaving fuel in them. I haven't run one dry for storage in over 40 years & haven't had a problem. I will drain the old fuel & start with fresh if older than 6 months.
 
yea i am going to dump it. it really sucks that I can't find ethanol free gas either, well within a reasonable distance.

Just in case you didn't know about this site: http://pure-gas.org/index.jsp?stateprov=OH Unfortunately, I didn't see any in Toledo.

Fortunately, the 2nd closest gas station to me sells all non-ethanol-free gas. I now use no-ethanol high test in all my gas engines.

Good luck!
 
I have had more problems with dried out diaphragms from running engines dry than leaving fuel in them. I haven't run one dry for storage in over 40 years & haven't had a problem. I will drain the old fuel & start with fresh if older than 6 months.

Whatever works for you. I am just following the instructions out of the stihl user manual and will continue to do so.
 
Many things effect ethacrap fuel. Mainly environmental conditions. 91 octane can degrade down to 86 octane in as short as 21 days. Temp, humidity container , exposure conditions effect this rate. Both stihl, husky have many well documented articles about exactly this. As well as several other big name small engine manufacturers. I think a month is pretty safe, but you never know. I treat all my gas with an ethanol treat or use race gas or fuel from a Marina without ethacrap. I also never store fuel in the equipment, run it dry ensures no problems. If you care about your equipment , just take the precautions. Metal containers sealed very well, or fresh only, mix as you use. Ask any repair facility, fuel related repairs top the list the last three seasons.
 
I have had more problems with dried out diaphragms from running engines dry than leaving fuel in them. I haven't run one dry for storage in over 40 years & haven't had a problem. I will drain the old fuel & start with fresh if older than 6 months.

That's my story also..but not quite 40 years. I've also stretched that 6 months to 8-9 in my snow thrower and pressure with no I'll affects. I've never ran anything dry for storage purposes or added stabilizer. All my saws get a little run time every couple months and perform as they should. I've also avoided the dreaded ethanol .
 
We have non-eth premium available, so I pump a gallon of it into one of the rigs to flush the ethanol junk out of the hose, then mix the pre-mix fuel. I use Stihl Ultra and keep the lid on the fuel jug when not in use. After six months, the saws run fine, plug check looks good. I'm not too worried about it.
 
No more than 30 days on ethanol gas E5-E10. Ethanol free 90 days and no more than that and higher octane doesn't make it any more shelf stable than regular gas.
 
yea i am going to dump it. it really sucks that I can't find ethanol free gas either, well within a reasonable distance.

The only place I know of is at the Lost Peninsula Marina, up on Edgewater Dr. (across from Webers). However, they are only open 6 months out of the year... They are just over the line into Michigan(by 100' or so).
 
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