Ethanol and boat motors just don't mix

You've all heard stories about ethanol ruining boat motors. But why, exactly, is it so harmful? In a recent magazine article, Captain John N. Raguso, Marine Products Editor with The Fisherman and a licensed USCG Master and charter boat skipper with more than three decades of offshore experience writes the following:

PHASE SEPARATION
According to Frank Kelley, Mercury's Fuels and Lubricants Manager, public enemy #1, and the one thing to avoid at all costs when using an ethanol blended gasoline, is the presence of water. Once water gets into the fuel (it can occur via condensation from a half-filled tank, a loose fill cap, deck water and/or spray sneaking into your vent line, among other ways), you get a nasty situation called phase separation. Only one ounce of water introduced into 100 ounces of E-10 gasoline can cause 10 ounces of ethanol to "separate" from the petroleum base and combine with the water to sit on the bottom of your tank, creating a lethal witch's brew that will choke your engine. The bad news, according to Frank, is that once phase separation occurs, it is very difficult to get the ethanol back into the gasoline. "Sooner or later a slug of essentially ethanol and water with little or no gasoline tries to go through the engine." Bottom line is that no manufacturer's engines, inboard or outboard, were meant to run on this nasty ethanol and water mix.

An even bigger problem is that running phase-separated gas through your engine can potentially void your warranty, as stated in many new engine warranty manuals. Dean Corbisier, Suzuki Marine Press Manager, mentioned that all Suzuki four-stroke outboards are compatible with the new ethanol-blended gasoline, providing that the ethanol mix is strictly regulated at 10 percent or less. There was an interesting section in the Suzuki manual that mentioned that they, "Highly recommend the use of alcohol-free fuels whenever possible."

Yet another problem brought to my attention after interviewing various boat mechanics was there had been an initial surge of carburetor and fuel pump rebuilds, due to the lack of compatibility of the alcohol in the ethanol-blended gasoline, compromising the neoprene components of the O-rings, gaskets, diaphragms and seals of older engines that were developed prior to the wholesale distribution of the E-10 fuel.

Note: Pontiac Cove Marina sells ethanol-free gasoline only. We pay extra to keep ethanol out of our fuel. Be aware that when you fill up your boat at a highway filling station, you are getting 10 percent ethanol in your fuel.