Is E10 petrol safe to use?

Farmer Roy · Aug 29, 2022

Exfarmer said:
Who would not recommend aspen? Getting gullible customers to pay 3-4 times the price of regular fuel is actually quite good for business, would you not agree?
Strange how these same manufacturers are happy to sell their same product in the states to use e10 without a qualm ?

never even heard of Aspen until I saw it on TFF. Had to Google it to find out what it is.
Have NEVER seen it ( or any other similar pre mixed 2 stroke fuel in drums ) in any hardware, small equipment, Stihl or Husqvarna shop . . .

years ago petrol stations would have a 200 l or so tank of pre mixed 2 stroke, for convenience, but they just mixed it themselves. Don’t even see that now, with such a variation of mix ratios I suppose

ollie989898 · Aug 29, 2022

Not all small engine equipment can run on aspen/alkylate fuels, check your user manual. There is no way I would run a quad on it. No fudging way. These things are not cheap and far from simple these days, too. A lot of you rely on them 365 days a year, too.

Just buy premium E5 fuel (many of them contain extra detergents and the like anyway) and know the stuff keeps better and is probably more of a help in your tank than vanilla E10. Quads etc work so hard I believe of all the machinery out there it makes complete sense to look after them.

Nithsdale · Aug 29, 2022

Running 1 car, 2 quads, a hedge trimmer, a strimmer, 2 lawn mowers and 7 chainsaws all on E10/E10 2-stroke...

Absolutely no problems with any of them.

Pistonbroke · Aug 29, 2022

One Yamaha kids quad here was running rough after being parked for a few months with fuel in it. Chucked a guesstimated splosh of redex in it and it cleared out and goes like new

milkloss · Aug 29, 2022

Run e10 in mowers and quad here. No problems so far.

not sure about small two strokes though. We have been running e5 but have been told a few facts that I haven't processed yet. E5 is a higher octane fuel and is less calorific by nature So whilst a high compression engine can reap the benefits due to better controlled ignition, a lower compression engine suffers from power loss. I have spoken to a tree boy who had a new husky destroy itself.... husky claim their saws run on high e petrol and the dealer wanted to see proof he was running husky 2 stroke oil before replacing the unit. It seems that saws need running slightly on the richer side to prevent problems But no one has explained why yet.

ollie989898 · Aug 29, 2022

milkloss said:
Run e10 in mowers and quad here. No problems so far.

not sure about small two strokes though. We have been running e5 but have been told a few facts that I haven't processed yet. E5 is a higher octane fuel and is less calorific by nature So whilst a high compression engine can reap the benefits due to better controlled ignition, a lower compression engine suffers from power loss. I have spoken to a tree boy who had a new husky destroy itself.... husky claim their saws run on high e petrol and the dealer wanted to see proof he was running husky 2 stroke oil before replacing the unit. It seems that saws need running slightly on the richer side to prevent problems But no one has explained why yet.

There is -strictly speaking- more energy in a litre of E5 than a litre of E10, as ethanol is not as energy dense as gasoline. In reality though the difference (5% so 50ml in 1L) is fudge all and would be swamped by the differences involved by adding the oil to a 2 stroke.

I do not believe there is going to be any real or noticeable difference between running E10 or E5 to a small engine with fixed cams/valves and no electronic fuel injection or management, but I do believe there is something in premium fuels when it comes to the additives they contain. I feel that for the basically zero extra expenditure over a year involved, it's a useful thing to do.

Roger Perry · Aug 30, 2022

Exfarmer said:
I believe virtually all US fuel is E10 as a minimum perhaps someone from over the pond can confirm

Been that way for years, no problem..........higher inclusions at some locations..............no problemo

nick... · Aug 30, 2022

I’m sure I’ve heard in last few weeks about E20 stickers on petrol fill caps so I’m sure that’s on the way.a friend of mine who repairs Italian motorbikes,mostly Ducati’s has shown me loads of pics of fuel systems that are pretty much destroyed by this fuel with plastic or rubber pipes swelled up and dissolving.i asked him how long was it ok to keep fuel in something and he said 3 months would be plenty.
nick...

Matt L · Aug 30, 2022

Run e10 in 4 chainsaws ranging from 30cc to 90cc. 2 hedge trimmers and a leaf blower. No problem at all. Problems seem to occur when people use cheap 2 stroke oil or leave the fuel in cans for too long.

Farmer Roy · Aug 30, 2022

Pistonbroke said:
One Yamaha kids quad here was running rough after being parked for a few months with fuel in it. Chucked a guesstimated splosh of redex in it and it cleared out and goes like new

best thing is to ALWAYS turn the fuel off when you park it ( have done this since a kid 40 + years ago after it being drummed into me back then by my father ) & if it sits for a long period of time, drain the carby & let some fuel run through it, before trying to start it.

still applies today, with anything that actually still has a fuel tap

it DOES make a difference

sjt01 · Aug 30, 2022

nick... said:
I’m sure I’ve heard in last few weeks about E20 stickers on petrol fill caps so I’m sure that’s on the way.a friend of mine who repairs Italian motorbikes,mostly Ducati’s has shown me loads of pics of fuel systems that are pretty much destroyed by this fuel with plastic or rubber pipes swelled up and dissolving.i asked him how long was it ok to keep fuel in something and he said 3 months would be plenty.
nick...

In Malawi 35 years ago we were all on E20, and with the accuracy of blending I am sure it was sometimes E25 or more. Rubber carb parts would suffer, otherwise no issues.
They were making it from the cane molasses, as being a landlocked country petrol was very expensive to import, and the export value of the molasses was very low.
From the distillery we got Malawi Gin (excellent), Malawi Brandy (OKish), Malawi whiskey (dire), and the byproducts were fed to chickens and fish, then heads, guts of them fed to crocodiles, giving chicken, fish and crocodile meat and crocodile skin handbags.

Pistonbroke · Aug 30, 2022

Farmer Roy said:
best thing is to ALWAYS turn the fuel off when you park it ( have done this since a kid 40 + years ago after it being drummed into me back then by my father ) & if it sits for a long period of time, drain the carby & let some fuel run through it, before trying to start it.

still applies today, with anything that actually still has a fuel tap

it DOES make a difference

12 year old daughter thinking about other things

Wisconsonian · Aug 30, 2022

E10 or E15 is the most common gasoline here since the 90's, it will melt rubber parts that weren't made for it, like lawnmower fuel hoses, or the rubber diaphragm of a 50's fuel pump I replaced recently. You'd have to have a car from the 80's to have any problem with E10. I can't imagine a quad since 2000, or a lawnmower since 2010 would have any problem either.

We do have ethanol free gas available for almost $1 more per gallon, that I like to use for chainsaws or other two cycle, but E10 will work as long as it's fresh. E85 is available in most towns also, for flex fuel, or custom blending, or people who will run it in anything if it's cheap enough.

Farmer Roy · Aug 30, 2022

Wisconsonian said:
E10 or E15 is the most common gasoline here since the 90's, it will melt rubber parts that weren't made for it, like lawnmower fuel hoses, or the rubber diaphragm of a 50's fuel pump I replaced recently. You'd have to have a car from the 80's to have any problem with E10. I can't imagine a quad since 2000, or a lawnmower since 2010 would have any problem either.

We do have ethanol free gas available for almost $1 more per gallon, that I like to use for chainsaws or other two cycle, but E10 will work as long as it's fresh. E85 is available in most towns also, for flex fuel, or custom blending, or people who will run it in anything if it's cheap enough.

I think some people just don’t like change

or like to have something to complain about . . .

If only we could return to 1955 life would be perfect

Exfarmer · Aug 30, 2022

Farmer Roy said:
I think some people just don’t like change

or like to have something to complain about . . .

If only we could return to 1955 life would be perfect

Roy, when I was a young man, some companies started importing Russian diesel, there was hell to pay for a couple of years, with anecdotal accounts of engine failure due to the high sulphur content filling the newspapers of the day. Large quantities of upper cylinder lubricant additives were sold to counter the effect of the highly corrosive di and trioxides produced by the burning of this filthy fuel.
Fast forward 40 years and outrage when EU rules for clean air forced the removal of this lubricious sulphur from fuels, wrecking engines across the continent according to outraged voices across the press and now social media. But hey hoe a range of upper cylinder lubricants are available to solve the problem. Oh and don’t forget your tank additive to kill those nasty bacteria which will be munching away at your fuel

TripleSix · Aug 30, 2022

Farmer Roy said:
best thing is to ALWAYS turn the fuel off when you park it ( have done this since a kid 40 + years ago after it being drummed into me back then by my father ) & if it sits for a long period of time, drain the carby & let some fuel run through it, before trying to start it.

still applies today, with anything that actually still has a fuel tap

it DOES make a difference

I like to shut down generators that aren't going to be used for a while by turning off the fuel tap and letting it run out of fuel

Flatlander · Aug 31, 2022

TripleSix said:
I like to shut down generators that aren't going to be used for a while by turning off the fuel tap and letting it run out of fuel

Lots of small engines here won’t get run for 8 months a year. I always throw some fuel stabilizer in and run them fir ten minutes and they are fine after that. Found that with the extreme cold the farm/ dyed petrol we buy doesn’t do so well in the cold. I run an auger most week days over winter loading grain but had to change the air intake to suck heat off of the exhaust or it wouldn’t run after a couple of minute as it would flood itself with fuel.

snarling bee · Aug 31, 2022

I think its all about how old the machine is and how often you use it.

I am going to use GTL fuel late autumn so that all the ag plant that rests over winter will hopefully not get fuel problems next spring/summer. Its a few p more for piece of mind.
A dose of Redex in over winter petrol engines will help.

ollie989898 · Aug 31, 2022

snarling bee said:
I think its all about how old the machine is and how often you use it.

I am going to use GTL fuel late autumn so that all the ag plant that rests over winter will hopefully not get fuel problems next spring/summer. Its a few p more for piece of mind.
A dose of Redex in over winter petrol engines will help.

For those who cannot source GTL diesel HVO may be a viable alternative, keeps far better than normal diesel. Just check with engine manufacturers that it is a suitable drop in replacement.

Robt · Sep 1, 2022

slim shiny said:
My petrol hedge cutter won’t run on e10 unless on full choke, e5 no problem.

my strimmer is the same. Spent hours tryin to figure it out before i swapped to E5.....

Is E10 petrol safe to use?

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