empty gas tank for winter

[mikes]

although there are varying opinions on full vs empty, I tried to siphon gas from my 2001 v and something blocked the hose from entering the tank.

anyone know of a way to empty the tank?

[chpthril]

Mine always seems to go dry every time we are out on the water. i think its a defect that Tige needs to recall and fix!

LOL, J/K! Add some quality stabilizer that is intended for ethanol, tow it around the block to mix it up, then run the engine for 5-10 minutes. Slowing the degradation of the fuel, IMO, is more important than whether the tank is full or empty

[houstonshark]

I guess my only concern with emptying the tank for the winter is that you can't get it completely empty so you'll still have some condensation right?

[wired1236]

They are hard to get a hose in because the tank's fill port is pretty thick and where it goes inside the fill hose, it creats a lip. So when you try to stick a siphon hose in there, it gets stuck on that lip. If I have to empty my tank, I just remove the fill hose from the tank and then stuck the siphon hose in that way.

Some say to fill for that reason but IMO if left inside, no worries. I don't fill or empty anymore. Like chpthril says, it's more important to run the engine for 10min or so to get the stabil fuel through your filter and intake system than worry about condensation, (unless you are leaving it outside for the winter then if it were me, I would fill the tank, not empty it.)

[TonyTheTige]

Before winterization last year, I had the opportunity to meet and talk with 2 Mercury / Mercruiser reps. Both of them were super knowledgeable. They very strongly recommended adding stabil, etc. to a FULL gas tank. They said condensation and water in the fuel is very damaging to the engine and that fuel stabilizing products are more effective than people give them credit for. Mercury / Mercruiser has a stabilizer product, but they didn't even push. Basically said that any of the major brands would get the job done.

[IDBoating]

Another vote for a full tank over winter. My process for fuel system prep:

* Run the tank almost empty the last time on the water.

* Drive to a gas station that has ethanol free fuel.

* Add sufficient StaBil to the nearly empty tank BEFORE filling it (this helps insure a good mix as the new fuel flows into the tank).

* Fill the tank with ethanol free fuel.

* Back at home, replace all fuel filters (on my PCM engine, this is the inline filter and the FCC internal filter). This not only replaces the filters (which you are supposed to do at least every 12 months) but also insures that the StaBil mix makes it through the entire fuel system (since starting the engine afterwards means the fuel pumps will have to refill the filters).

Now start the engine and let it warm up to normal operating temperature so you can change the oil and filter. Once the new oil and filter are in place, start the engine again so you can confirm proper oil level. Once you have the proper new oil level, you will have run the engine enough after filling the fuel tank that the entire fuel system will have fresh fuel and StaBil. The fuel system (and the oil and filter) are now done.

[Duncan]

* Drive to a gas station that has ethanol free fuel.

Hah. If you can find one in your region. Midwest? Nada.

[IDBoating]

Hah. If you can find one in your region. Midwest? Nada.

Try calling the various distributors. That's what I did. Just because there are stickers on the pumps doesn't mean all of the blends have ethanol. The pumps at our local Cenex station have "10% Ethanol" stickers all over them, but it turns out the premium doesn't have ethanol at all - only the regular. Midgrade is mixed in the pump 50/50 so it has 5% ethanol. There's nothing on the pump to tell you this, and the people inside are clueless on the topic.

Call the local distribution centers. It might take a few calls but it may be available.

[Ruger761]

Interesting you would have that much trouble finding regualar gas. Around here especially the closer you get to the lakes the easier it is to find. Sometime you have to go more with the mom and pop gas stations vs the big name brand ones though.

[konajay]

They're plentiful around here as well, although you'll pay about .75 cents more per gallon than an ethanol blend.

[IDBoating]

The grades are separated by 10 cents around here, so non-ethanol premium is 20 cents more than ethanol regular. At ~$4 per gallon that's 5% extra to keep ethanol out of my engine and fuel system, well worth it IMHO.

[mikes]

thanks

thanks to all, some great feedback, makes me feel better about leaving fuel in tank with proper additives and run through the engine

[houstonshark]

I use Stabil in every tank, per my dealer.

[talltigeguy]

It has not been mentioned yet, but I think the old wive's tale of emptying the gas tank comes from the days of metal gas tanks. Because of its properties, condensation is pretty common in metal tanks. With the plastic tanks that are in most new boats, it then becomes a non-issue. With a metal tank, it is best to have the tank full of gas so that water from the air in the tank is much less to condense.

My 2002 Tige and I think my 2005 both had metal tanks. I am not sure when Tige switched...does anyone know?

[chpthril]

It has not been mentioned yet, but I think the old wive's tale of emptying the gas tank comes from the days of metal gas tanks. Because of its properties, condensation is pretty common in metal tanks. With the plastic tanks that are in most new boats, it then becomes a non-issue. With a metal tank, it is best to have the tank full of gas so that water from the air in the tank is much less to condense.

My 2002 Tige and I think my 2005 both had metal tanks. I am not sure when Tige switched...does anyone know?

I think in 07.

The current issue with leaving a tank full is that ethanol blends absorb water at a higher rate. Some worry about this and want to leave the tank empty. Cold winter air is typically very dry, even in areas that have warm humid summers. With the dry cold air, theres little condensation to be absorbed