premixed gasoline

[Dusty MI]

I like my 120 volt chain saw.
With the newer battery technology I would think a battery powered one would be real nice with no long cord or generator to mess with.
My 120 volt one has been around a while. I don't have a need to use it a lot.

 

[M-MAN]

I looked at it at the mower shop.
$8 a quart is way out of my price
range.

 

[glennster]

i noticed the smell when running the premix is similar to the smell of those model airplane engine when you were a kid. i think that fuel had
oil and nitro methane in it. i wonder how the chainsaw would do running on a little nitro?..

 

[redtom]

I stumbled across a YouTube poster called
Chickanic. It's a gal that owns a small
engine/mower dealership. She posts good how
to videos. She had a good post debunking
premixed fuel and one discussing ethanol
free or RV gas. Her videos are well made
and informative.

 

[tperson]

In my opinion, the real advantages to canned gasoline is no ethanol and conveniencethat s about it. I have a hard time paying $20/qt for something I can make at home for a fraction of the cost. No, I don t run my 2-stroke stuff weekly and probably only use 1-2 gallons of mixed gas a year in my trimmer/chainsaw/blower/ice auger/etc. Several (7?) years ago, I switched all of my handheld stuff to aviation fuel (110LL) after doing a significant amount of reading. To me, spending an additional $15/year on avgas to ensure that my carb isn t gummed up, is worth every pennybut, given the cost, I m hesitant to use it for more than intermittently used handheld tools.

Here s the advantages:
- Contains 98% of the energy found in straight (non-ethanol) pump gas so there s no reason to re-jet
- By law, CANNOT CONTAIN ETHANOL
- Doesn t contain the olefins or polyfins that gasoline does and therefore never varnishes.
- The exhaust smells good
- I can drive onto the tarmac at the local airport (slightly more than a grass strip) 24/7/365 and pay at the pump, just like an automotive gas pump; the only rule is that you can t put it in your vehicle.

Here s the disadvantages:
- Contains lead and may foul O2 sensors on EFI engines
- Costs about 2x of pump gas
- Has a lower RVP than pump gas and may require slightly more effort to get started in cold temps (I ve never noticed this, but it s possible).

You may have different experiences and/or opinions, these are just mine.

Tom

 

[BillinCentralMO]

I like it in the saws. I never use up a whole gallon of home made premix before it goes bad. Can buy a can of
premix and keep it on the shelf at the farm. Menards even has one that works in 50: 1 and 40:1. The leaf
blowers take 40:1. Its probably cheaper than the home premix I was throwing out half of after it went bad.

 

[Hemmjo]

I tried premix TruFuel. Did not like it.

But I did keep the cans. I mix my own 1 qt at time. At the end of a job. Empty the fuel from the saw tank and run what remains out of the carb.

What remains in the can goes in the mower or snow blower, depending on the season.

 

[Fixingfarmer]

Harbor freight even sells the cans. With battery tools improving I will admit the only thing left that gets mixed here is the post hole digger. It wasn't so long ago you couldn't find a battery saw worth a darn. Now they run long enough to completely process a good sized tree ready to split before I'm ready for a rest anyway. The old dirt bike has an injector on it so that is easy no mixing.

 

[wp6529]

Friends down the road spend the extra $ for the Ethanol free gas, I don't. My 2 cycle mix is in a 2 gal can that is continuous vented as the silly valve nozzle broke. The can sits in a non-climate controlled shed over the winter. Come spring I top it off with fresh regular gas and 2 cycle oil, eyeballing what's left and shooting for 40:1 and give it a shake. My 2cycle chainsaw, hedge trimmer, string trimmer, backpack blower, etc. just get topped up, primed and perhaps a shot of ether for the first start of the season. I don't seem to have any more problems with my 2cycle equipment than my friends do. I replace a primer bulb now and then, perhaps every couple years for a given item.

I will say the Makita LXT sawzall I got recently has been getting a lot of use trimming smaller tree branches and whatnot. For some clearing I was dropping smaller trees with my chainsaw and letting my 8yo use the sawzall to limb them while the wife and 6yo dragged stuff to the dump trailer. Everything has it's place.

 

[Ericp351]

Today it was time to burn my existing brush pile and to cut up downed trees and dropped limbs and add them to the fire. My saw is a small Husky, approx. 15 years old. I use it only two-three times a year, and sometimes I run it out of gas but sometimes it sits for months before the next use. Today it started better than ever before on the two year old pre-mixed gas that I put in, and it ran well and restarted well after every time of being off for a half hour to an hour. I love premixed gas!

Pre mix does have a place- OK for hobbyists that may only require 1 ratio, those who cannot easily wield a measuring cup, widows, et cetera. Not practical for those who use 2 cycle equipment more than they type. The basics apply and work- fresh gas- ethanol free when practical, additive when not. Highest octane available Mix well, remembering that 50:1 is only a placation to the EPA . Remove or clean all silly screens in your exhaust. Adjust your carbs, watch your plugs. Try to be smarter than what you are working on. End of season- your tractor and older car will gladly drink up your leftovers.

 

[BarnyardEngineering]

I tried premix TruFuel. Did not like it.

But I did keep the cans. I mix my own 1 qt at time. At the end of a job. Empty the fuel from the saw tank and run what remains out of the carb.

What remains in the can goes in the mower or snow blower, depending on the season.

Hemmjo, what specifically did you not like about it?

My experience is the stuff is almost magical. I've lost count of the $5 auction chainsaws I've revived with the premix fuel. Knock the big chunks off, maybe put in a new fuel line, dribble some fuel in the intake, and give it a pull. I've got a Partner P70 and a Mcculloch 610, both reasonably valuable "collector" saws that run perfect just adding fresh fuel and new fuel lines, and those are just the latest two.

I love that I can just put my good saws down when I'm done with them and not worry about them.

 

[Hemmjo]

Hemmjo, what specifically did you not like about it?

My experience is the stuff is almost magical. I've lost count of the $5 auction chainsaws I've revived with the premix fuel. Knock the big chunks off, maybe put in a new fuel line, dribble some fuel in the intake, and give it a pull. I've got a Partner P70 and a Mcculloch 610, both reasonably valuable "collector" saws that run perfect just adding fresh fuel and new fuel lines, and those are just the latest two.

I love that I can just put my good saws down when I'm done with them and not worry about them.

The TruFuel did not hurt any of my equipment. I did not feel my equipment ran as strong on TruFuel as it did on real gasoline. It was just not convenient for me to use. It does not fit into my overall fuel system. I have tried it, I kept the cans to mix my own.

My chainsaw usage is very sporadic. I might use my old 1977 Husqvarna 65 everyday for a week, then not again for a couple of years. The same with my Husqvarna trimmer/polesaw. Although my wife does like things trimmed so that sees more use. I also have a nice craftsman leaf blower AND a snow blower I picked up off the curb at the same house a couple of years ago. Neither one ran when I got then. When I need fuel I mix it fresh 1 qt at a time. If there is mixed fuel sitting in the fuel shed when I am filling the mower or tractor, it gets used up.

My family burns about 100 gallons of fuel per month. This includes wife's car, my truck, old Ford 860 tractor, and lawnmowers. I have 3- 55 gallon barrels in my fuel shed, out away from everything else. I have two bricks labeled "New" and "Old". I always use from the old tank, except for the small engines they always get the newest. When the old tank is empty, the "New" brick moves there and it gets filled with two trips to the station. The "Old" brick moves to the next barrel. So, never have less than 100 gallons of fresh fuel on hand.

I have been using this system 10 years. I started it because I also have a small gas powered generator that will run the well, the freezer, refrigerator, microwave and lights. There is no point having a generator, if you have no fuel. Old fuel is worse than no fuel. Storing fuel in cans long term, until you need it, is wasteful as it goes bad. In a blizzard, or big storm often you cannot get fuel. So I keep it on hand along with 20 gallons of diesel for the big tractor and 10 gallons of K1 kerosene for the heater in the workshop. Also have 2 cords of wood if needed to heat the house. Can't use the wood stove regularly because the wife has allergies. But if the house Is freezing, she will choose warm over cold.

 

[560Dennis]

Used husky pre mixed on the end of the season in mower .

 

[Ericp351]

You must not be old enough to remember back in the days before ethanol was added to our gas, we used to have gas lines freeze. The solution was to add Heet gas line anti-freeze, and alcohol! Now since we have ethanol in our gas we don't have any problems with gas lines freezing, the ethanol, (a type of alcohol) prevents that. The last time I used any Heet was in 1980!

Type-O-alcohol Matters! Heet= iso. Obamna Eth. I trust you also are old enough to remember Not having valves stick. Also, a pint in 20 Gal. does NOT = 15%. Actually 12 oz., being conservative.