E-10 ethanol questions regarding boating. SW Florida?

1. In counties where oxygenated gasoline is required and MTBE has been outlawed, all retailers sell E-10 -- there's no legal alternative.

2. Still better to buy gas on the street, due to better pricing and less likelihood of watery fuel.

If your boat has fiberglass tanks, replace them before your first load of E-10 -- the ethanol will dissolve the fiberglass resin (epoxy or polyester) and deliver it into your engine where it will cause the rings to stick to the cylinder walls. Metal and modern plastic (polyethylene)

tanks are immune.

If you have any varnish/sludge build-up in your tanks, the ethanol will clean 'em out & deliver it into your engine. Performance will suffer, fuel filters will clog, carbs might require rebuilding, no permanent damage.

If you haven't rebuilt carburetors and fuel pumps since the 1970's, this would be a good time -- some older rubber components wouldn't stand up very well to alcohol. Most anything made from the eighties forward won't be affected.

E-10 is capable of holding a higher concentration of water in suspension than straight gasoline. Water dissolved in fuel is no problem -- it's when there's more water than the gas can dissolve, that you have the problem of water in the fuel. The ability of fuel to absorb water varies with temperature.

Water in a tank with straight gasoline sinks to the bottom of the tank, and only a miniscule amount mixes with the fuel.

Water in a tank with E-10 mixes with the fuel when the temperature rises; when the temp drops again, it separates into a layer of alcohol and water under a layer of seriously octane-deficient gasoline.

The alcohol layer might be enough to start the engine; if it's a pre-mix motor, it'll be running with no oil, since all the oil is in the gasoline layer.

Still, it's only a problem if water infiltrates from outside (rain, leak, spray coming over the side, etc.), and then mostly if you try to store the E-10 for a long time.

If stations receiving their first load of E-10 don't prepare by cleaning out the tanks, you can end up getting bad gas (with excess water, and dissolved gunk from dirty underground tanks).

3. Gasoline drying products are mostly methanol, which is like ethanol only worse.

4. Drain the remaining gasoline before your first load of E-10, and try to avoid mixing E-10 with non-ethanol blended fuels (not really a problem if you're going to burn it all same day.) Minimize the risk of getting water in the tank.

I can't answer part one. E-10 should cause no problems, there is not enough ethanol. Dry gas will not help, dry gas is just pure ethanol. It should cause no problems, watch out though if it starts increasing in percentage.

BE VERY CAREFUL WITH ETHANOL AND OUTBOARDS, I WAS AT A EVINRUDE JOHNSON DEALER AND THEY OFFER A TEST KIT THEY HAVE FOUND 38% ETHANOL THAT WILL SMOKE A OUTBOARD FIND A TEST KIT TEST BEFORE YOU PUT IT IN YOUR TANK.

THERE ARE ALOT OF LAWSUITS GOING ON AS A RESULT OF DAMAGE TO NEW OUTBOARDS MOSTLY 4 STROKES

the BOATINDOCTOR

jtexas is right on the money with his answer. E10 is not really a suitable fuel for the marine industry but sadly is what we are having to live with.

Read this.

http://www.mercurymarine.com/serviceandwarranty/ou...