Most gasoline nowadays contains ethanol additives. The ethanol is intended to reduce carbon emissions. Unfortunately ethanol has some nasty side effects like increased engine corrosion and clogged fuel systems. We use Sta-bil fuel additive (http://goo.gl/cdER07) to protect our equipment when it is not being used.
My wife and I own several pieces of gasoline powered equipment. Here’s a partial list: a 3000 Watt generator we use for RV camping, a lawnmower, a weed eater, a leaf blower, and a pressure washer. Each piece of gear contains a gasoline engine that’s often filled with ethanol laden fuel.
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Depending on the season, there are times when the equipment is not used very much. (For example, there’s not much demand for a lawnmower in the middle of winter.) Fuel starts to break down within 30-60 days of storage. If ethanol fuel sits in the engines for too long, it causes all sort of problems. Good luck starting a leaf blower after it’s been stored with ethanol for a few months. We always want our RV generator to fire on the first crank.
In the old days we might drain the fuel from all of this gear, which was time consuming and messy. But leaving an empty fuel tank (especially one with traces of ethanol) may just invite corrosion. It’s actually better to leave the fuel in the gear and treat it with Sta-bil.
Sta-bil fuel stabilizer keeps fuel fresh for easy starts once we get these items out of storage. It also claims to prolong engine life. Sta-bil removes water to prevent corrosion. It cleans carburetors and fuel injectors. It also protects our engines from gum and varnish rust.
It’s easy to use. There’s no need to drain the existing fuel from the engine. You just add it to the tank.
Many people swear by this product. In fact, many people add a little to their automotive gasoline engines, and not just when they’re placing cars into storage. Many of the protective benefits many be realized even if the car and/or engine is in service.
Sta-bil fuel stabilizer is a good product. We always keep a container of this stuff in our garage.