Poulan ethanol issue

[MNBobcat]

Nice to see intelligent discussion on the topic.  I was reading on facebook "the original no bs chainsaw shack" group and some of the garbage that comes out of the narcissistic admin's mouth is seriously pathetic. 

One of the other issues with ethanol is it attracts water.  Your saw and any other piece of equipment has a vented gas tank which means as it sits the fuel will absorb water which then separates and settles to the bottom of the tank.  Because your saw is a 2-stroke engine, unlike a car, that causes serious damage to a saw.  There is no oil in that ethanol-water mixture that you're running through the saw.  Whereas, a 4-stroke can tolerate burning some water because it doesn't affect lubrication the way it does on a 2-stroke.

The environment is also a factor.  I only cut wood December through March and we have absolutely no moisture in the winter.  So as long as I run non-ethanol fuel and a good oil then fuel is really a non-issue.  I've had too much trouble with ethanol fuels over the years.  It's just not worth messing with it.

   

[Al_Smith]

If my saw gas sits for maybe two months I dump it in the old Fergie tractor that really doesn't care what it eats .The itty bitty amount of oil in the mix doesn't hurt it .New gas, new oil at 32 to 1 as a reminder . 8).Some of those saws have sat so long I know I'll have to rebuild the carbs .I've tried it both ways, leaving the gas in or running it out .Doesn't seem to make much difference .Truth of the matter is I have so many it's nearly impossible to keep them all exercised .

[NorCalKuma]

Live in Nor Cal and have to use ethanol or expensive canned gas. The poulan gas cap does get snug sometimes but never need a  tool to remove it. I always use Stabil 360 in the mix and leave the saw stored for a few months with that mix. "Sometimes" if I know the saw wont be used for several months then the last tank full is with canned gas. The echo seems to be fine with this approach also as does an older Sears/MTD/Chinese saw.

[sharp edge]

I,m going to use E-85 in my saws this year. Have 7 cords of fire wood to cut.

SE

[lxskllr]

Really? I'd be interested in hearing how that goes.

[Al_Smith]

On this ethanol stuff  last week I fired up my 5 KW gasoline generator which had sat unused for at least 7 or 8 years .It started after a lot of tugging on the string but it didn't run so good .Fuel lines were clogged up and the carb was funky,8HP Briggs .The gas was not all gummy like leaded used to get .I did however put two more gallons in the tank and a double shot of Stabil .The  tank is only about half full but in the future I will exercise it more because it's usually an easy starter  .No matter what it is they do better if they get a little run now and again .Too much stuff, it's almost a full time job .

[Tacotodd]

@sharp edge , just remember that e85 is only 15% real gas and 85% corn, so let us know, please, how that works for you, regardless of good or bad.

Just remember, companies such as Stihl "may" NOT honor a warranty on anything over 10% ethanol. That gives ALL dealers a rightful way out of having to deal with things they don't want to. It generally means the dealers will not honor a warranty such as that. E-anything, in general, just slowly "gums up the works".

Do what you want, but for me, the real thing.

I'm just lucky, I got stations around here that have real gas. Re-building the carb is the easy part. Dealing with the rest of the carb related stuff (removal, hoses that need replacing, getting the hoses through those tiny holes, getting the right IDs and ODs, the list and PITA's go on and on, then reinstalling, generally confined spaces) gives a new meaning to frustration. Yes, I realize that sometimes (even with the real thing) you just have to do this. But I'm going to do what I can to postpone the inevitable .