I just ran across an unopened bottle of Bardahl I bought in about 1985 or ‘86. If it looks like oil and smells like oil and tastes like oil I am going to use it in something, for sure.
Does two cycle oil go bad?
- Thread starter NYH1
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If it was stored in sealed containers it should be just fine. I would pour some in a clear glass and get a good visual of what it looks like just to be sure. But I don't think it can go bad. I'm sure oil sits in warehouses for a long time before it's distributed to a retailer. If it looks the same as new oil looks, I'd use it.
holeycow!
Several years ago I learned stuff about 2/cycle oil from someone that actually knew about it. Up till then I THOUGHT I knew about it. This guy explained to me that the a 2/ cycle oil I use is supposed to be burned up with the gas. The OLD story was It didn't burn. Supposedly, the fuel burned leaving oil in the saw.
So I watched a demonstration.
Three types of oil were torched using a propane torch.
A teaspoon of each of type of oil subjected to the flame. Then the containers we're cooled and checked for residue.
The motor oil caught fire but didn't burn fast. It went out leaving some slick residue.
One type of 2/cycle oil was very old had turned black and just a tad difficult to burn but it did burn up clean.
The stuff I use caught afire easily and burned completely out. There was no residue visible. .
In other words nothing to foul a plug. None of the oil was mixed. Came straight out of the bottles.
I learned that the way mixed fuel works is it first goes into the crank case then into the cylinder and lubes before being burned. Strange how many illusions there are in the world. Oil, Politics, and Religion to name a few, but science can prove oil if we can admit we we're wrong. If you have doubts about the oil it's easy to feel and see if it's slick and grit free. Then Without adding anything to it pour a bit on metal be safe and torch it. If it meets that test then mix a half teaspoon with gas in a clear container and see if it mixed well. Let that sit a week and if it didn't separate you should be good to go. Have a great day.
champion221elite
ArboristSite Operative
A few years back, a co-worker gave me some metal cans of Quicksilver 2 cycle marine oil. These were the white cans that were probably made back in the late 1960's or early 70's. I used them up in my old Simplicity single stage snowthrower. Last year I moved to a 12 acre piece of property with an old barn out back. I found a few metal cans of Union Carbide synthetic 2 cycle snowmobile oil. I dumped it into the oil injector tank on my 1997 Indy 500 snowmobile and have been running it all Winter. I think as long as the cans/ bottles are sealed, they should last for a long time and still be good. The different cans of oil I have burned were at least 40 years old and they did their job as required.
Bardahl is what I used in all my stuff, still have both chainsaws and both still run. One was a homelite 150 auto, my first saw then I bought a poulan 3400 that I cut all my firewood for 12 years. Wish I knew if it was better than all the other oils at the time, early 80s
JoshNY
ArboristSite Operative
I am an Amsoil dealer. Several years back, Amsoil released a bulletin about shelf life and storage.
The gist of it is, their oil has a shelf life of 5 years although most products last longer.
Keep out of direct sunlight, and temps of 35-85f are best.
It is also good to give the oil a shake if it had been sitting a long time to mix up any additives that may have settled.
By the way, I run Amsoil Saber 50:1 in all my 2 stroke equipment!
Sent from my SM-S727VL using Tapatalk
The gist of it is, their oil has a shelf life of 5 years although most products last longer.
Keep out of direct sunlight, and temps of 35-85f are best.
It is also good to give the oil a shake if it had been sitting a long time to mix up any additives that may have settled.
By the way, I run Amsoil Saber 50:1 in all my 2 stroke equipment!
Sent from my SM-S727VL using Tapatalk
dswensen
ArboristSite Guru
Things to consider.
The piston and even the hard chrome/nikasil cylinder surfaces are porous. Some oil molecules are absorbed.
The oil does get burned during combustion, but even an 2500rpm it's being replaced more than 40 times a second.
Unless you're running the tank dry, your saw is gulping in fresh mix at least 10 more times between you hitting the kill switch and dead stop.
The piston and even the hard chrome/nikasil cylinder surfaces are porous. Some oil molecules are absorbed.
The oil does get burned during combustion, but even an 2500rpm it's being replaced more than 40 times a second.
Unless you're running the tank dry, your saw is gulping in fresh mix at least 10 more times between you hitting the kill switch and dead stop.
Don't forget the rings have gaps that oil can stay in them for a long time.
