The Hodaka Club Forum

I was looking for an old post that someone had posted about adding water to the fuel and the ethenol would settle out with the water. Does anyone remember the steps to do this and the amount of water to add? How do you pour off the gas after and not get the water ethenol mix to come out with the fuel?
Terry

Go to : puregas.org and find ethanol free gas in your area. There are none in Mass, but in most areas of Mass the border is just a short drive away...

The website with a dash is better: http://pure-gas.org/

Not any in Texas or at least close to me.

Anyone you avgas in thier bikes. I have heard of guys using it but I have never tried it. My old Suzuki trail bike does not like the c12 vp fuel for some reason. Funny the ace 90 and my old Bultaco don't have an issue with c12. I noticed the compression ratio on the Suzuki is 6.7 to 1 and the ace is like 9 to 1. My wife once poured some c12 in the lawn mower and it would barely run, I figured it was because it is such a low compression engine. C12 is like 11 bucks a gallon now so I am looking for another solution. Removing the ethenol from todays gas seems like a solution or avgas. Todays gas just does not store very well and my bikes sit for long periods without riding. Amsoil has a new product called quickshot that is to help stop the ethenol problems.

I can't take credit for this link because it was posted before. http://klemmvintage.com/gasolines.htm

I found it to be VERY informative concerning ethanol-laced gasoline, the myths of what "octane" is, and other types of fuel. It was this article that helped me understand Octane and when I need a higher octane and when I don't.

As far as finding E0 gasoline, you should be able to find it at any petroleum distributor. We have a Thomas Petroleum locally and they have just about any type fuel you'd need, from the pump. Check with the places you might purchase Kerosene, propane, or even off-road diesel.

Here in Dallas Texas not much luck with 0 ethenol fuels. I have been buying c12 vp race fuel but man it is high. I found a local airport selling avgas and I may try that. I could not believe my lawn mower and my ts185 can't stand the 108 octane. The little ace 90 seems to love it and I can let it sit for 2 months and a couple of kicks bring it to life. Try that with pump gas and be ready to pull the carb for cleaning.

Look harder. I found - especially in the OK/TX/etc areas - that ethanol free gas was becoming quite common. It was hard to get in OR, but that is changing. Ethanol is death on small engines - eats carbs, fuel lines, etc. Rural areas are beginning to demand it as the ethanol is damaging the many smaller motors that farmers & ranchers use, so it is showing up in smaller cities. In urban areas - as noted above - usually available from sources which sell kerosene, solvents, etc.

I've used nothing but "clear" gas - with Stabil - for years, and my motors sit for months & start/run well.
Bob

Ethanol for better or WORSE is here to stay I can find ethanol free gas here in VT pretty easily, but for those that cannot find it their are some products available to stabilize the fuel Stabil and Amsoil are two . The major issues I e found with ethanol are 1 that ethanol attracts moisture from the environment and 2 that it has detrimental effects on rubber and plastic components that were not designed for use with these fuels. It's never a good idea to store gas in your bike's tank or any other vehicle for an e xtended period of time. Ethanol fuels sludge up even faster so only ad enough fuel to your tank that you feel you will use in 2 weeks and when storing your bike drain the tank and run the carb dry for storage. Keep your gas cans in good condition with tight fitting caps and again don't try to store the gas for long. If you e had problems with carbs being gummed up and passages clogged I would recommend buying a complete rebuild kit for it and when shopping look for a kit that states that components are ethanol compatible also flush the tank and reply n the system with new ethanol approved lines and filters. If you follow these guidelines ethanol won't be an issue for you or your Hodaka treasures.

I use Sunoco 93 octane fuel with a booster + a product that is suppose to negate the affects of ethenol. I use it in my street bike as well. A 1982 XJ550 Yamaha with 8.5:1 compression ratio. I buy it 5 gallons at a time and mix in the additives at the pump. Works well for me.

Rick Mott

So . . . no one is actually addressing the question implied in the subject line - "removing ethanol from fuel". What about it? Is there any practical way to remove the ethanol from E-10 or E-15 blends?

Ed

Ed.....I don't know if you can remove the ethanol or not but if you could it is 10% of the gas blend and would lower the Vapor pressure and octane about 1 to 1.3 points. It just totally changes the blend that was designed with the ethanol as a VP and octane kick. The gas that is shipped on a pipe line doesn't have the ethanol in it at the time of shipping, it is put in at the terminal. This is were I believe a lot of the none ethanol gas is coming from is a pipe line terminal before the ethanol is put in. That being said I would bet the gas blend was made at the refinery for the 10% ethanol to be put in at the terminal. So again you are getting a lower VP and octane from how the gas blend was designed. I work as the DCS on a MSCC unit at a refinery and move up part time to make gas blends for our dock and to be shipped on the PL. This doesn't make me a expert on the subject that is left to the engineers. But for my self I buy VP fuel for all my yard equipment and my vintage bikes that sit a lot.

It can be done, it's not an easy feat, and probably not for the home mechanic . Someone told me once they had a way to do it, but very time consuming and not 100% reliable. If I can remember the person, I'll look into it.

When I posted the question I had already started an experiment (see photos) . . . then I did an internet search on ethanol removal, and found out that I was on the right track. Unfortunately, I don't have the chemical listed to "dry" the ethanol free gasoline. Certainly there is concern about also removing additional additives in the gasoline (MTBE is very water soluble) and changing the characteristics of the gas . . . but . . . is this a way to result in "pure" gasoline when no other source is readily available? Obviously, it is time consuming and a proper method for draining the water out the bottom of the container is needed . . . and a way to "dry" the gasoline (a second settling period after draining the water?)

DOH! Missed the 1st photo.


Question: What is VP fuel?

Ed

Ed VP is a race fuel. You saw it here in the blue metal containers downstairs in the basement.
Paul

40-years ago, when I was much younger, I began learning about motorcycles by hanging out at my neighbor's shop. He was a high school biology teacher.
He would add just a little alcohol to his fuel to absorb any water that might have gotten into his bike's tank.
Now we are looking at adding water to remove the alcohol.
I just love the irony.
Peter

They used to sell something called "Dry Gas" It was to remove the water from the gas. It was Methanol, not Ethanol.
Atlantic Richfield (ARCO) was adding Methanol to gas in the 1970s or 80s. I don't remember exactly, but in any case, it caused a lot of problems and they got sued. Ethanol was suppose to have less side effects. But we all know different now.

Rick

The first time I encountered Ethanol was when all the rubber seals on my 87 Jeep's fuel injectors failed simultaneously. That was $400 worth of new injectors.
The last time was this summer when I made the mistake of using Ethanol on my 50-year old Homelite C9 chainsaw and the rubberized carb diaphragms failed.
And those problems aren't even related to what Ethanol causes in vehicles that aren't used much.

Now it's Pure Gas only in everything except our 4-wheeled daily drivers that can handle it.