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DEL.ICIO.USEthanol, boats an interesting mix
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
With E-10 gasoline (10 percent ethanol) available virtually everywhere in metro Atlanta, most boat owners are filling up their tanks with the blended fuel.
That’ll be especially true next weekend. The July 4 weekend will be one of the busiest of the season on area lakes.
E-10 is either good or bad for boat engines, depending on who you ask, but it’s clear that word is getting out on what to do to prevent problems (such as clogged fuel lines, problems with older boats with fiberglass fuel tanks).
That doesn’t mean the problems have disappeared.
No matter how you feel about the subject, E-10 is here to stay.
What’s your story on E-10?
Comments
By DriveFlexFuel
June 26, 2008 12:01 PM | Link to this
Something else boaters and drivers alike might like to know. There are conversion kits available to allow the use of E85 fuel in almost any fuel injected gas engine. More information is available at http://www.driveflexfuel.com The only issues with fiberglass tanks are on very old models. The manufacturers have been using synthetic resins for many years now and have no ill effects from ethanol.
By Gene
June 28, 2008 9:41 AM | Link to this
I can’t speak to ethanol in boats, but in my car, it reduces gas mileage by about 10%. It is perhaps one of the dumbest endeavors of our lobby-controlled government. It takes over a gallon equivalent of fossil fuel to produce a gallon of ethanol. It has driven up the cost of grain and reduced the supply to cause a world-wide shortage. As usual, the oil companies and big farm corporations are benefitting while the public is being gouged at the gas pump and the grocery store. It is no solution to anything—just another scam. I use an electric motor and oars, anyway.
By Green
June 29, 2008 1:42 AM | Link to this
Gasoline containing 25% of ethanol has been used for years in both cars and boats in Brazil where it is the standard fuel for spark ignition engines. Simple and low cost modifications might be needed if the engine and the fuel system have not been designed for the fuel.
By alex crawford
June 29, 2008 5:06 PM | Link to this
How is one to know if ethanol is unsafe for a particular brand of boat motor. EX: Yamaha outboard