My folks have a gas powered generator that they've never used, but have on hand in case the power goes out and the basement starts to flood.
I just fueled it up and added some stabilizer, as god knows how long it could be before it gets used. My question is this - how long can stabilized gas sit before it too goes bad? (And what does "bad" mean anyhow?)
Thanks all. JP
******************* My Jeep is rusting.I use Sta-bil towards the end of the fall and all winter in the plastic gas cans for the mower and the snowblower.
The manufacturer claims it stabilizes gasoline up to 12 months at regular concentration and 24 months at double concentration. See the link below.
I don't know that I would leave fuel in the generator year-round but you might check with the manufacturer on that.
How long do they expect outages to last? Running 24/7 these things use a lot of fuel. In an outage lasting 4 days a 3500 watt generator will burn around 50 gallons of gasoline.
They probably wouldn't run it 24/7. At night they'd shut it down I'm sure. We probably haven't had a 4 day outage in years. Last time it was an ice storm that wreaked havoc for weeks in some spots.
Thanks for the info. JP
The one lungers are pretty good about accepting most any fuel once they are running. But they can be real stinkers to get started on old fuel. My general definition of old fuel is: high performance 3 months max, automobile with FI, 6 months, older vehicles, tractors, and small engines- 12 months. Using a stabilzier will double that. Keep a can of starting ether nearby.
The best bet is to figure out some sort of fuel rotati> My folks have a gas powered generator that they've never used, but have
Even with stabilizer its best to run the engine dry so that you dont get any gum and varnish drop-out in the carburator passages. If you dont want to run the engine dry then consider to put a drain c*ck on the carburator bowl to make it easier to remove the gasoline. A yearly maintenance of a carburator flush with isopropyl alcohol will ensure that all the gums and varnishes are gone.
24 m> They probably wouldn't run it 24/7. At night they'd shut it down I'm
For maximum reliability, develop a schedule of running the generator for an hour once a month, or whatever other schedule you decide on. Then you know for sure that the generator will start and run. Once you develop the schedule, stick to it.
Better fuels for storage considerations are propane and diesel, although diesel shouldn't be stored above ground in sub-freezing temperatures. In some climates it will gel.
Other things to consider if power outages are a problem are heat and light that do not use electricity.
Earle
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