shelf life of regular petrol / gas

[crinkles]

I bought about 30L of regular unleaded (RON91) tonight for use in my lawnmower etc. or any emergencies.

what's the shelf life like if I use a plastic container with an average seal? the main pour spout seals pretty well with a rubber gasket but the vent cap is just two plastic threads interlocking...

I'm thinking no more than 3 months but should be at least 1 month... when i cycle it i'll add it to my car fuel tank to burn.

(Did a search but nothing came up)

Thanks

 

[Pablo]

3 months are OK. 6 months in a dry environment.

How much alcohol in your fuel? Alcohol is hygroscopic.....and that seems to be the more immediate problem vs. gelation and drop out which is a 9+ month phenomena.

 

[Steelhead]

just buy a bottle of StaBil at the beginning of the season and add to gas.
good for the carb and the engine
solves the gas age memory problem
any forgotten gas left over winter in engine tank carb is always treated.

saves lots of carb cleanings.
cheap at 10 times the price

 

[crinkles]

Pablo it was marked as regular unleaded so I don't think it would have any ethanol in it. I think here it has to be marked as containing ethanol. BUt don't quote me on that...

humid here, but not too cold or hot so 3 months would be the go. won't go with additives on only 3 months. I can always reduce it to 1 or 2 months if the first round gives me some trouble running it after storage...

cheers mate

 

[Eddie]

+1 use StaBil. Keeps gas good in my 2 gallon tank all winter or about 4-5 months.

 

[Cutehumor]

I got a half a tank, about 6 gallons still in my sunfire. it's almost two months old, ethanol blended gas. I'm in trouble?

 

[Pablo]

A couple months....probably OK...fire that bugger up!

 

[SD26]

I don't believe that gasoline is manufactured to be stored much longer than 28 days. Stabil does help for longer storage.

 

[INDYMAC]

I think I read on the Stabil label that gasoline starts to decompose within 60 days. Stabil claims that their product will keep this from happening for up to 12 months. I put it in my 5 gallon plastic jug and don't worry about my lawnmower, trimmer and edger, even while stored through the winter. No problem with starting again in the spring either.

 

[Drew2000]

FWIW. any leftover gasoline that I have for my mowers etc. at the end of the season, I just dump into the car. I do the same with the stabilized gas in my motorcycles in the spring, dump it in the car tank, and start fresh. No worries w/sabilized gas 6-7 months old.

Drew

From Sunoco (all Sunoco gas is E10)
http://www.gosunoco.com/gas-facts-and-tips.aspx

///
WHAT ARE SOME GOOD TIPS FOR HANDLING GASOLINE?

Most gasolines will last several months in a sealed, clean container – including your vehicle’s fuel tank.

If you think the gasoline will be sitting unused for more than a few months, add stabilizer to the fuel as soon as you buy it.

If storing fuel in a gas can, keep the container in a dry place away from direct sunlight. It’s also best not to expose the container to temperature extremes.

Minimize the amount of gasoline you store for more than a few months. Fresh gasoline is still the best gasoline.

Other than adding fuel stabilizer as needed, refrain from adding other chemicals and additives to your fuel. Most engine manufacturers do not advise adding anything other than gasoline to a gas tank.
///

 

[Panther]

I’m curious about long term fuel storage.

Does anyone have any experience with these PRI-G or PRI-D ( http://theepicenter.com/tow021799.html ) fuel stabilizer products? They make some wild claims, like making 15 year old gasoline return to “in-spec” condition. I’d almost have to see it run in a standard engine myself to believe it.

I’m also wondering what do the guys do who maintain large backup generators as far as fuel stability? I’d think a big generator would need lots of fuel storage, but monthly test & maintenance runs of a few hours would not use-up that stored fuel very quickly, so I’d think they would have storage issues.