type of fuel

[ironpeddler]

My dealer told me not to buy fuel from regular gas stations because of the low ethanol content. Is there any truth in this?? Marina gas is obviously a lot more expensive and I am not even sure the little lakes around me will have fuel stations.

[chpthril]

What year is your boat? This will have some bearing on how much of an effect ethanol will have on your fuel system. Next, there seems to be some confusion or misunderstanding about ethanol. Ideally, you would want to fuel your boat with the lowest ethanol percentage possible, and in a perfect world, use fuel with no ethanol. In most parts of the country, you are going to find a blend thats up to 10% and in some parts, up to 15%. The pump should have a sticker stating the percentage. Down side is, the blending may be done at the distribution depot, and the fuels can often contain higher levels. There is also no guarantee that an on the water marina station is being supplied with ethanol free, pure gasoline.

[ironpeddler]

Yes, I understand that you want fuel with the lowest ethanol content and that most gas stations sell fuel with XX% of ethanol content. So where do people get their fuel from? Do they just use gas station fuel with ethanol in it?? Boat is model year 2013, 409 PCM engine.

[IDBoating]

Here in North Idaho, premium is not required to contain ethanol and most suppliers don't add it to their premium grade fuel. Regular has 10%, and midgrade is a 50-50 mix so it has 5%. We buy premium to insure that our Tige and its PCM engine, and our jetskis and their Rotax engines, only see 0% ethanol fuel. Costs about $0.20 more per gallon, well worth it IMHO to keep that rotten, stinking, water-loving ethanol out of our marine fuel systems.

Call around to some fuel distributors in your area (not the gas stations, they usually have no idea what's going on) and ask how they mix their ethanol. I've heard other areas are just the opposite of here... premium has the ethanol and regular does not. Learn what is going on in your area and make an informed decision!

[boardman74]

I always like to go with out if I can. Here all fuel is required to have ethanol. The exception is premium that is stickered for off road use only. Problem is not all stations carry it and the ones that do charge like $.70 more(than other premium) a gallon for it. Which I don't understand as it being deemed "off road use only" there is no highway tax on it. Which here is $.465 cents. So in my mind it should be $.46 cheaper than regular premium(station isn't paying the state the road tax on it), but instead its $.70 more. Must be a great profit maker. Sure isn't more because of less volume either in my area. 2 stations that have it near my lake cabin(lots of lakes in the area) drain their tanks of it every weekend as people don't want the ethanol.

I think the new engines with Cats and everything can run it without issue just like your car does. The problem in a boat is if your not using it a lot(like your car) and the stuff sits in your tank you can get phase separation is as little as 30-45 days. So if yuo are using your boat, no problem. If your not you are going to need an stabil type additive.

[TeamAllen]

There is an app for the iPhone called pure gas that supposedly finds gas stations without ethanol.