Pretty sure all grades have 10%.
At my station the highest grade is labeled non oxy for boats, off road etc. thatâs all I ever use for small engines plus I always add a stabilizer. Never had a fuel problem this way.
How come nobody ever told me that after 40 plus years??
Use only higher grade fuels in smaller engines.
Could have save me and my dad years of aggravation hemming and hawing and c u s s i n g when we tried to start the lawn mower ten times, fifteen timesâŠ!
Then later on I had to replace a perfectly fine leaf blower my dad left behind, it was four years old, that even the small engine shop I previously referred to couldnât get to run again for more than a few weeks at a time.
Lower octane fuel is easier to ignite, allows for easier starting. Years ago, vehicle manufactures advised not to use high octane fuel in low compression engines as this could cause starting issues during cold weather.
Dirty carburetors wonât easily self-prime.
Lighter fuel compounds evaporate from gasoline over time, old fuel becomes thick and difficult to atomize. This also causes difficult starting.
I remove the air cleaner, add 1/2 ounce of fuel to the throat of the carburetor, install air cleaner, start engine and use up the old fuel while mowing.
I donât buy special gasoline for my mower, I got it for free 10 years ago and it is stored outside. I am not a role model for lawn mower care.
I guess some of us are so lucky. All my winter and summer machines were garaged. Air filters changed where applicable, replaced the spark plug every year, still stalled or ran rough.
Depends on your definition of âhigher gradesâ.
Higher Octane: No
TopTier: For me, Yes
Non-ethanol: For me yes
Though my mower and generator claim to be ethanol compatible, they get non-ethanol though they donât need 90 octane.
My car allows 87 but recommends 93 octane, so that is what I gets, truck recommends 87, so that is what it gets. The truck is flex-fuel and I can get a readout of the percent ethanol in the fuel system, the car, does not show that. So far, stations in my area only sell âmay contain up to 10% ethanolâ and many offer non-ethanol. Highest octane is 93.
Now, how many of these posts will be flagged for being off topic?
I have always used the cheapest gas I could find locally to run in my lawnmowers, never had an issue unless I let them sit unused for a couple of yearsâŠ
Most people around here that I know of just use the oldest crapy gas, sometimes bad gas out of newer cars, in their mowers⊠lol
My fun car only get the best due to the higher compression for an all iron engine⊠rarely does it get E0 cause it is rare around here and mostly only 90 octane⊠E10 is our standard gas, havenât seen E15 yetâŠ
Maybe because everyoneâs experience is different and I disagree with that advice?
I use regular unleaded in my lawnmower, pressure washer, etc. I never drain the fuel system or add stabilizer or change spark plugs.
When I mowed for the first time this spring I topped up the mower from the gas can that has been sitting in the shed since last fall, pulled the cord 3 times and it started. The edger took 4 pulls, but then itâs 15 years old with the original carb and spark plug. The leaf blower took 12-15 pulls but thatâs not unusual for a 2-cycle thatâs been sitting all winter.
+1
I agree. Iâve owned small engines that specifically said NOT to use a higher octane fuel. Iâve always used regular (low octane) fuel for small engines
No, it is exactly the same⊠10% or less.
My wifeâs Audi is a flex-fuel car and has an ethanol sensor built into it. The car requires premium fuel. Every time I have checked for ethanol content of the fuel in the car it reads 9%.
Ethanol is an octane enhancer so that means the fuel blends can have less of the more expensive octane boosters. That goes for 87, 91 and 93 octane fuels. E85 has SO much ethanol, its octane is roughly 98 but it is difficult to measure with ethanol.
Adding some E85 to premium gas will raise its octane rating and lower its mpgs.
I used E10 in all my yard equipment when I lived in Ohio as ethanol free was not readily available. When they were stored, they got a full tank of E10 with Sta-Bil mixed in. No fuel issues.
Well, it was the small engine shop that advised me as such.
So my experiences with my equipment werenât unique.
The shop said âhigher octanes contained less additivesâ that might be gumming up the insides of my equipment, causing my starting and stalling issues.
I find this conversation quite useful, since the presence, to varying degrees, of ethanol, or its absence altogether, does affect engine performance, as well as ease of starting.
I did the same thing with the Sta-Bil, at the end of season.
I wish that were the case, in my case..! Like I said to another poster, Iâm a big believer in pure luck when it comes to small engines, or in frequency of computer problems at home, etc.
Thatâs exactly wrong. High octanes contain the same amount of ethanol, and equal or more additives for cleaning and octane increase.
Well I guess that narrows it down: plain bad luck.
To add to my post, my small engines do not need the 90 octane, but my preference is no ethanol in them.
I thought you said you had trouble with your lawn equipment engines? I was stating that my stuff starts quite normally after sitting all winter and using las yearâs gas.
But then again everyone has different experiences and advice. Not too long ago I was told that I could avoid serious plumbing troubles by not putting coffee grounds down the garbage disposal.
Iâm not sure luck is the relative factor. If you buy an engine you want a cast iron sleeve, filtered lube system, and a drain plug so you can change oil. Over the past ten years these have been disappearing so only a few on the market have these. Then add the non serviceable hydro trans. And you have junk good for just a few years.