Fuel Stabilizer

[Jerry B.]

Is it recommended to use a fuel stabilizer in the MH fuel tank during storage? Mine won't be on the road approx. 90 days. Thanks and stay safe.

[Oneilkeys]

Yes. Gasoline can gum up if left in the tank and evaporate in lines, leaving a residue. In addition, the carborator in your generator can also gum up if there is fuel left in it and it evaporates. I use a product called Seafoam which is a fuel stabilizer and cleaner. The cleaner more for the generator than the engine. It also keeps the fuel from evaporating and makes the generator easier to start.

[petew]

As Onelikeys said the generator carburetor is the weak link with its tiny passages.
Ethanol as it evaporates will leave junk behind that will clog those little passages.
Seafoam is great stuff and others that work well are Sta-Bil 360 and Star Tron which is used heavily in the marine industry.

[JamieGeek]

Originally Posted by Jerry B.

Is it recommended to use a fuel stabilizer in the MH fuel tank during storage? Mine won't be on the road approx. 90 days. Thanks and stay safe.

Not on the road, but will you be around? Starting it and running it until everything gets good and warm (up to operating temp) once every 30 days or so can help as well.

Don't forget about the batteries: either keep them on a minder or disconnect them.

[blw2]

I do it, every tank if I'm close to home
and on the last tank of the trip and the top-off at home when I get there, for longer trips.
I also make a point to run the generator a while on the treated gas after a long trip.
I usually don't know if it'll be a month or more till I go again.... so I try not to take chances.

Thanks by the way, this reminds me I need to get a new bottle. Pretty sure I used the last of it....

[SuperD]

Absolutely use stabilizer if your unit will be parked any length of time. When you run the generator it needs to have a load on it build up some heat, moisture will kill a generator quick, loading it gets moisture out of the coils.

[Jerry B.]

Thanks guys. Appreciate all the info. With the SeaFoam do you just follow the container instructions for how much to use or is there a "magic mix"?

[halfprice]

I use Sta-bil and follow their directions 1 oz for 2 1/2 gal if gas. 16 oz bottle fir my 8o gal tank

I add it after each trip because i nniw it will sit a while

I also run my gen every month for 2 hours with the ac on. Im lucky that i can park my mh in my driveway

Jerry

[Oneilkeys]

Originally Posted by Jerry B.

Thanks guys. Appreciate all the info. With the SeaFoam do you just follow the container instructions for how much to use or is there a "magic mix"?

Just follow the instructions. I use two cans in my 55 gallon tank if I am going to leave it for a long time. We are gone for two or three months at a time, so sometimes it doesn't get started while we are gone. Not cheap stuff, but a lot cheaper than having to deal with a tank of bad gas or non functioning generator. In my first RV I did not use Seafoam and had problems wth my generator stalling. My mechanic told me he could take apart and clean it or I could run Seafoam thru it. I opted for the Seafoam and after forcing Seafoam thru it, it ran fine for the rest of the time I owned the RV. I gave been religious about it ever since and have never had a problem again.

[blw2]

I have only used seafoam once
mostly use sta-bil
I follow the label for either
The marine version uses less per gallon

One thing I'll add, I wish there was a way to add it only to the gas going to the genny. I feel like bad gas isn't nearly as critical of a problem going to the big engine as it probably is for the little carb.....considering it'll only sit a few months at the most in my case.... oh well, treat 55 gallons it is!

[KNMIB]

Is there a difference in Sta-Bil and Seafoam?

[blw2]

two different products.
I haven't done much research on it, but I think Seafoam is marketed more as a multipurpose cleaner and stabilzer and snake oil....

There are other stabilizers on the market too.

[SuperD]

Yes, Sta-Bil and Seafoam are different. Seafoam was developed primarily for marine engines to deal with water in fuel, works great. Sta-Bil is a fuel stabilizer designed to prevent gum and varnish build up. If you read reports on fuel stabilization Seafoam is not even listed, Sta-Bil is usually in the top 1-3.

E-10 and E-15 fuels use alcohol as an oxygenator, so if you buy a stabilizer with alcohol you're just adding more of what your fuel already has. Read the labels before you buy. Sta-Bil does not contain alcohol.

[Travelin' Texans]

Originally Posted by SuperD

Yes, Sta-Bil and Seafoam are different. Seafoam was developed primarily for marine engines to deal with water in fuel, works great. Sta-Bil is a fuel stabilizer designed to prevent gum and varnish build up. If you read reports on fuel stabilization Seafoam is not even listed, Sta-Bil is usually in the top 1-3.

E-10 and E-15 fuels use alcohol as an oxygenator, so if you buy a stabilizer with alcohol you're just adding more of what your fuel already has. Read the labels before you buy. Sta-Bil does not contain alcohol.

Two different types of alcohols, in the fuel is ethanol made usually from corn & evaporates to a sugary type gunk, the alcohol in in stabilizers is methanol a petroleum product used the absorb/disperse moisture.

[SuperD]

Traveling, Methanol is much more corrosive than ethanol and since it's soluble, breaks down in the presence of water. Ethanol will combine with water to form a homogeneous liquid that can pass thru the fuel system.

Sorry to disagree but ethanol will not revert to sugar when it evaporates, it would require a chemical reaction with the addition of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms in a different molecular form.

Bottom line, alcohol in any form will not stabilize gasoline.

[Oneilkeys]

Sta-Bil is a great product for stabilizing gas for a long period of time. I used to use it in my outboard engine gas which got left in my portable tank for six months or more. SeaFoam is not only a stabilizer, ant-gel and moisture controller, it also cleans injectors, carb jets and other deposits. If you don't have a generator, then Sta-Bil is a great choice. After using both in small marine engines and generators over the last 25 years, I have found SeaFoam to be superior in those applications.

[Oneilkeys]

Originally Posted by blw2

I have only used seafoam once
mostly use sta-bil
I follow the label for either
The marine version uses less per gallon

One thing I'll add, I wish there was a way to add it only to the gas going to the genny. I feel like bad gas isn't nearly as critical of a problem going to the big engine as it probably is for the little carb.....considering it'll only sit a few months at the most in my case.... oh well, treat 55 gallons it is!

One thing I have done, if I don't plan to leave the RV for too long a period, is to run the tank down to below a half and then add one can of SeaFoam. After I have run the generator for a few hours, I will fill the tank before I leave.