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With this recent drop in gas prices, I have been using Premium/Non Ethanol gas in my mowers. That seems to be doing a good job of cleaning out the carburetors, resulting in easier starts, and smoother running. I think I will continue to do so while we are getting a break at the pumps.

Where I live, there has been no change in the price of ethanol-free gasoline. We still pay $3.59 per gallon for 90 octane E0. Regular octane 87 E10 is from $0.88 to $1.49 per gallon depending on where you go.

I do not mind paying full price for the E0 in town, as I use it in all of my equipment, including mixing with oil for my trimmer and chainsaw. I also keeps 10-15 gallons on hand at all times for my generator.

But, it would certainly be nice if we could see that price drop here!!

EDIT!!! Curious to see if gas prices had dropped in the last 3 weeks since I filled my cans, I went up to the local Marathon and sure enough E0 was only $1.99 a gallon. Too bad they were closed and I was not able to fill up the can that I had brought with me. I think it's about time to fill up my 55-gallon drum! JK

Same here, no change in the price of E0. Been using it for about three years. Always $3.89/gal. Worth it to me, I run it in my ZTR too.

When ever you use the nonethanol fuel, please remember to do this. Before pumping any fuel into your gas can puta gallon or two into your car. Why? With today’s one hose pumps you have no idea of what the person before you used. You may end up with a half can of ethanol fuel in your can, because that is what is left in the line back to the transfer point. Your car won’t know the difference, but your small engine will.

The only station near me with E0 gas dropped that for E15 (the turds). So now i am back to taking the ethanol out of E10.

I just paid $2.19 for 87 Oct E0. 87 E10 was $1.62. That's a normal differential of ~ 60 cents higher for E0. I could use E10 in the GT but it has a diaphragm fuel pump and would need re-build more often. No E10 ever in little 2 strokes.

Rivets said:

When ever you use the nonethanol fuel, please remember to do this. Before pumping any fuel into your gas can puta gallon or two into your car. Why? With today’s one hose pumps you have no idea of what the person before you used. You may end up with a half can of ethanol fuel in your can, because that is what is left in the line back to the transfer point. Your car won’t know the difference, but your small engine will.

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Yup, if your station uses a "common" hose for all the blends. Luckily our stations have a separate hose for the 91/non-ethanol Octane. Today's price for Premium is $1.70....$1.35 for 87 octane....and the prices may drop even further in coming weeks. Some places in Missouri are at $1/gal for 87 regular....that's about the Only good financial news lately.

I use 93 octane on all outdoor power equipment with B&S fuel treatment. 93 octane has been under $2 a gallon for a while now. It's important to read operators manual before first start up. My first chainsaw Husqvarna model 36 said to use 91 octane gas.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/STAR-TRON-...pbyIOKtmkeG9ihD6ELYaApQJEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
STAR-TRON is one of the best says our own JD Technician of 21 years.
Thanks ILENGINE for your information & all your first hand expert advice over the years.

mechanic mark said:

I use 93 octane on all outdoor power equipment with B&S fuel treatment. 93 octane has been under $2 a gallon for a while now. It's important to read operators manual before first start up. My first chainsaw Husqvarna model 36 said to use 91 octane gas.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/STAR-TRON-...pbyIOKtmkeG9ihD6ELYaApQJEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
STAR-TRON is one of the best says our own JD Technician of 21 years.

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Very true. Stihl, Husqvarna ,Makita/Dolmar all call for a minimum of 90-91 octane.

Y'all are lucky. It's illegal for gas stations to sell E-0 here. Have to go to a marina or racetrack and pay $5+.

BPierce said:

Y'all are lucky. It's illegal for gas stations to sell E-0 here. Have to go to a marina or racetrack and pay $5+.

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You can take cheap E10 and use water to remove the ethanol. Kinda a PITA but you get better gas.

Hammermechanicman said:

You can take cheap E10 and use water to remove the ethanol. Kinda a PITA but you get better gas.

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Yes, but the marina is just 20 miles away. Here in the middle of nowhere, 20 miles is next door. I usually try to make the first tank of the season gasoline. After that, they get pump gas and then they're all ran empty and then fogged at the end of the season.

We use water and graduated containers to measure alcohol content. Get a few cases a year of poor drivability that turn out to be twenty to thirty percent alcohol. Always fun to have a newbie bring you a fuel sample in a styrofoam cup, though.

Octane ratings....Husqvarna states 90 (RON) (Europe). That translates to 86.5 (R+M/2), which is the rating you read on a US pump.

I guess I'm fortunate in that the station I use, the only one selling E0 90 in my town, has a separate pump. Have had no trouble with the starting and performance of my equipment since I switched.

deminin said:

Yup, if your station uses a "common" hose for all the blends. Luckily our stations have a separate hose for the 91/non-ethanol Octane. Today's price for Premium is $1.70....$1.35 for 87 octane....and the prices may drop even further in coming weeks. Some places in Missouri are at $1/gal for 87 regular....that's about the Only good financial news lately.

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The gas station that I get my E0 from has a separate dedicated pump about 50 feet from the others. It is very common for snowmobilers and boaters to trailer equipment right up to the pump and fill their machines. Back in the day you would see dedicated hoses at Mobile and BP for their three grades of fuel but within the last 10-15 years around here, all stations went to single hoses. I think the only one that we have around here with a dedicated hose for E10 is the 94 Octane sold at Shell.

Rivets said:

When ever you use the nonethanol fuel, please remember to do this. Before pumping any fuel into your gas can puta gallon or two into your car. Why? With today’s one hose pumps you have no idea of what the person before you used. You may end up with a half can of ethanol fuel in your can, because that is what is left in the line back to the transfer point. Your car won’t know the difference, but your small engine will.

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That is a fact. I run 100% gas in my truck also, so it gets the nozzle first, them my gas cans.

Hard to do when you're on a motorcycle that needs Premium. It would be interesting to know just how much of the previous grade of fuel you get when switching from regular to premium.

We all recognize the advantages of E0 versus E10 but I've never heard of E0 improving carb. performance. What is it about non-ethanol gas that would lead to carbonator cleanout after a month's use? The same applies to premium versus regular; higher octane usually doesn't translate to performance improvement by itself.

TonyPrin said:

We all recognize the advantages of E0 versus E10 but I've never heard of E0 improving carb. performance. What is it about non-ethanol gas that would lead to carbonator cleanout after a month's use? The same applies to premium versus regular; higher octane usually doesn't translate to performance improvement by itself.

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I don't know about a "month" but the issue is that Ethanol is harmful to the rubbers found in carburetors and fuel systems. Have you ever wondered why not all vehicles are capable of running E85? It's not just the computer that has to be capable of adjusting for the increased octane, but he fuel system components in E85 are completely different (materials) to handle the added ethanol.

So, while virtually all engines intended for regular unleaded, containing some small amount of ethanol, should be fine, it does not mean that the machine WONT have some small adverse effect over time. This is why most engine manuals for small equipment specifically direct consumers to use a fuel additive that combats the harmful effects of ethanol.

cruzenmike said:

I don't know about a "month" but the issue is that Ethanol is harmful to the rubbers found in carburetors and fuel systems. Have you ever wondered why not all vehicles are capable of running E85? It's not just the computer that has to be capable of adjusting for the increased octane, but he fuel system components in E85 are completely different (materials) to handle the added ethanol.

So, while virtually all engines intended for regular unleaded, containing some small amount of ethanol, should be fine, it does not mean that the machine WONT have some small adverse effect over time. This is why most engine manuals for small equipment specifically direct consumers to use a fuel additive that combats the harmful effects of ethanol.

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I understand what you say and agree but that doesn't mean switching to E0 will undo anything caused by E10 - as far as I know. The OP suggested that E0 isn't just less harmful but will also undo E10 damage.

TonyPrin said:

We all recognize the advantages of E0 versus E10 but I've never heard of E0 improving carb. performance. What is it about non-ethanol gas that would lead to carbonator cleanout after a month's use? The same applies to premium versus regular; higher octane usually doesn't translate to performance improvement by itself.

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Correct, higher octane will not improve performance unless the compression ratio of the engine is high enough to require it.

But higher octane fuels generally have different additives, such as the quantity of detergent in the higher priced fuels.

TonyPrin said:

I understand what you say and agree but that doesn't mean switching to E0 will undo anything caused by E10 - as far as I know. The OP suggested that E0 isn't just less harmful but will also undo E10 damage.

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You are correct, you cannot undo the harmful effects of ethanol once they have happened.

Another little known fuel fact:

Higher octane fuel has a lower specific gravity than lower octane fuels.

Who cares? Probably nobody but that means you're paying more to get fewer BTU's per gallon. Simply put, if your engine doesn't require it, you'll burn more of that expensive fuel to do the same work that can be done with less of the less expensive fuel.

We buy fuel by the gallon (a volume measurement) but burn it by the pound (a mass measurement). This accounts for about half of the efficiency advantage of diesel engines.

Anyone else seen a drastic increase in gas prices the last ten days? April 26 I paid $.96 for E87. Today the price is $1.64. I’ve seen it go up before, but $.70 in less than two weeks when they say there is no shortage.

Rivets said:

Anyone else seen a drastic increase in gas prices the last ten days? April 26 I paid $.96 for E87. Today the price is $1.64. I’ve seen it go up before, but $.70 in less than two weeks when they say there is no shortage.

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No major changes around here....mid Missouri. E87 prices have been staying around $1.40 for the past month, and I gassed up yesterday for $ 1.38. Crude oil prices have begun to come back to a more normal range...$20+/barrel in recent days, so I expect as that price stabilizes, and more people begin to get out of the house again, we may see prices rising a bit. I doubt we will see anything like the $4 a gallon we saw a few years ago.