Ethanol....

[Eagle Kammback]

I spent the last couple hours doing some minor work on my engine, well, I decided to replace my fuel filter while I had money, and my tools out, I ended up buying the wrong one, and can't return it, wasn't much, but when I took the old one off, I noticed it was rattling, the filter inside was loose, which isn't right for a steel fuel filter, well, when I wolked down to the parts store, I asked them for the right filter, took them a bit to find it, the owner of the place got the phone, and he knows me, I'm in there all the time, I picked up the filter and shook it saying "That ain't right, is it"
He thinks it is because of all the ethanol in the fuels around here, ate up the glue in the old filter that was holding it in place (was a cheap Spectre filter)
This ethanol can't be good for any classic cars, especially when used as a daily driver, and there are people around herw with older daily drivers than me, a 66 Ford truck, late 60s Valiant, and one guy up until this past year daily drove a 50s Studebaker pickup.
I know it is horrible for marine engines, which is why I'm hesitant at getting my boat sea worthy again, I don't want to spend all this money and effort replacing the floor, wiring, and other miscellaneous stuff, only to have the ethanol destroy it, and this is only at 10% ethanol, and they want to increase it to 15%???????

[Barry Donovan]

Re: Ethanol....

ethanol is ok if the setup can take it.
I drive a 1987 carbed... I found replacing pcv piping to titanium was only weirdness and keeping all carb venting from pcv..

ethanol is used in the process of extracting gasoline from thicker oil..and in bio fuels. For every part more they can add, there is even more gas .. I could assume the increase for that reason. It may be the fuel price drop occasionally..

Another drawback is the old diaghragm type fuel pumps.. need convert to electric for daily use. I was killing them randomly in maine since the 80s...colder environmentsdrive engines through a weird spell because of the chemistry.

[Thumpin455]

Re: Ethanol....

Yeah it is terrible for old cars, that is why my GTO runs so well on it with a drilled out Qjet and a stock fuel system. Of course though take the word of someone who doesnt run it, or someone who assumes it is the problem and just dont use it ever. Lots of misinformation out there about ethanol. If it was so corrosive and terrible then why would we drink it and keep it in aluminum cans?

[SpiderGearsMan]

Re: Ethanol....

methanol is so right on
ethanol is a corporate welfare boondoggle

[Thumpin455]

Re: Ethanol....

Yeah the forty cents a gallon it costs me to make ethanol is corporate welfare, and methanol REQUIRES all the fuel system upgrades to prevent it from eating anything that isnt stainless, along with a top end lube for the engine. Making methanol at home isnt fun and it creates toxic waste, making ethanol at home is simple and if you are smart you can make more food, electricity, and heat your home and shop at the same time.

But yeah, you are right, gasoline is awesome stuff, particularly if you enjoy all the carbon buildup that wears the engine much faster, and limits the compression, boost, and timing you can run. Gasoline is awesome for a weak suck engine. Enjoy the gas.

[SpiderGearsMan]

Re: Ethanol....

haha. not enough corn on three planets to fuel all of the junkers on the road

[dieselgeek]

Re: Ethanol....

Gotta side with Thumpin on this one.

EVeryone who doesn't run it, tells you it's horrid.

Everyone who does - doesn't notice a difference.

[TC]

Re: Ethanol....

haha. not enough corn on three planets to fuel all of the junkers on the road

Hemp??

[dieselgeek]

Re: Ethanol....

haha. not enough corn on three planets to fuel all of the junkers on the road

Hemp??

Seaweed is best at the moment. I worked on a prototype engine running e85 that was made from a 4x8 patch of seaweed, the geeks there claimed that one of these sheets produced more e85 than a thousand acres of corn in the same timeframe.

[TC]

Re: Ethanol....

haha. not enough corn on three planets to fuel all of the junkers on the road

Hemp??

Seaweed is best at the moment. I worked on a prototype engine running e85 that was made from a 4x8 patch of seaweed, the geeks there claimed that one of these sheets produced more e85 than a thousand acres of corn in the same timeframe.

Nice I'm converting my pool to saltwater and growing my own. ;) ;D

[IRONHEAD]

Re: Ethanol....

Gotta side with Thumpin on this one.

EVeryone who doesn't run it, tells you it's horrid.

Everyone who does - doesn't notice a difference.

I think. YOU need to talk to boat owners, with older boats, that , HAD to run the e10..
and just how many times they got towed back to the dock because .the e10 (only 10% ) cleaned out all the years of varnish off the tank walls and everything else..
clogging up the filter and ,cause'n a costly tow back to the shore...
in the boating world. alot of boats are old..
I know of 8, that had to pull the tank, the lines.. etc and replace it all.. or have it boil out the tank and lines...
I know, because I was beside the owners and dad.. when it died at sea. and was the one pulling the tanks...

[Thumpin455]

Re: Ethanol....

So it is ethanol's fault when gasoline leaves a bunch of crud in the fuel system?

Seaweed and algae are the big future, corn is capped for a reason. That reason is to get the next level going good. Cattails are pretty awesome for fuel production too, the only problem with them is they grow in swamps and the way they grow makes them interesting to harvest with machinery. 1000-10,000 gallons per acre with cattails, depending on what kinda waste water they are fed.

Im a bit different from DG, but still the same page. I dont want to use any gasoline, I prefer not having a bunch of carbon floating around inside my engine from gas wearing everything. It also opens up a few possibilities when you dont have gasoline in it.

You can say it is terrible all you want, but feel free to come up here and drive something running on it. You will be a believer.

[HoosierGTA]

Re: Ethanol....

Seriously if it were time to put 12 to ones in the motor I would switch to E 85 in the T-A . I'm a carb idiot right now so I would just have to buy carb already set up for it.