Do you ever put the two-stroke oil per TANK of fuel in a chainsaw?

[Danny D.]

I almost never use my chainsaw, so, a gallon gas:oil mixture sits, and sits, and sits.

Rather than mix up a gallon, at a time, do any of you just mix a chainsaw tankful of fuel:oil mixture?

My Husqvarna 445 chainsaw has a gas tank which is 0.99 pints (0.47 liters) according to the specifications.

That calculates out to 0.31 fluid ounces of oil, or 9.4 ml of oil per tank, which shouldn't be too hard to add using the 1 ml eye dropper that comes with the Kirkland Minoxidil liquid.

Do any of you bother to mix fuel:oil in the tank of your chainsaw? Does it work out OK?

Also, why do the instructions say never to use TCW two-stroke oil?

[gfretwell]

I usually mix it a half gallon at a time and dump the rest in my truck. An ounce or so of oil is not going to hurt anything in a tank of gas.

If you are going to do this pint at a time thing, go to the drug store and get a big syringe. I have a bunch if you want me to mail you one.

10cc is a common size and that is pretty much perfect for your use. The email address is good

Outboard motors run a whole lot cooler than lawn equipment. It is different oil.

[Danny D.]

gfretwell wrote, on Tue, 30 Sep 2014 01:24:20 -0400:

That is probably a good idea.

I actually have been mixing 2 gallons at a time (because I have a two- gallon gasoline jug), but, the gas I just put in the chainsaw is from last winter (so it's about a year old).

I didn't know what to do with it, as you can't just pour it out on the ground, so, I like the idea of putting it into an automotive gas tank.

Thanks for that idea.

That makes sense since I need, for my 50:1 fuel:oil ratio, about 9.4ml per tank, so, a 10ml syringe would be perfect (0.31 fluid ounces).

Thanks for the information on the TCW oil.

[Danny D.]

Jon Danniken wrote, on Tue, 30 Sep 2014 07:00:46 -0700:

A small container is a better idea, because the oil will mix better when shaken than if shaken in the chainsaw itself.

I wonder if they even sell 500mL *approved* gas containers.

[gfretwell]

The little 1/2 gallon can I have is a regular gas can with the spout and all, just smaller. I bought a bunch of those little oil bottles on sale somewhere that have one dose for a gallon off gas and I measure out the tad over an oz you need for a half gallon when I refill them from a bigger container of oil. I just keep several ready to go so it is fast to mix up a batch. The "jigger" is a good measure for a 1/2 gallon. You want just shy of 1 1/2oz and that is the second line on a shot glass (but I use a metal one) Between my weed eater and the chain saw I can usually burn a half gallon before it goes bad but if I think it is getting old I toss it in the truck. These days gas may start going over to the dark side in

3 months so don't keep it if you are not sure you are going to be using it.

[Vic Smith]

I commonly use gas in my weedeater and mower that is 18-24 months old. The mower is a 4-stroke, the weedeater 2-stroke. Mixed the weedeater gas/oil in a gallon jug 2 summers ago, and it runs fine with it. Not like I'm trying, it's just doesn't use much. I'll toss the remaining in the Spring. About a pint is left. The 5 gallon jug I use as the source for the mower was filled at the same time, and is almost empty. I just use the little jugs of 2-cycle oil. They're 4 oz and in a gallon of gas works out to 32:1. Probably a bit more since I don't drain every last drop of the oil from the jug. Weedeater calls for 40:1 but it's been running fine for about 10 years without a plug change. Your gas aging might work for Florida, but not northern Illinois.

[David L. Martel]

Danny,

And everyone else. What's old gas and what problems does it cause. I buy a gallon of gas (90% gas,10% etoh), Mix it up with the oil. Let t sit in a gas can. Use it for about 2 months.. Never had any problems. How old is "old gas" and what problems does it cause? Outboard motors run cooler than weed whackers, so the oil formula is different. Do not use outboard oil in your weed whacker, it will not luricate properly.

Dave M.

[J Burns]

Ethanol absorbs water from the air. The water speeds the spoiling of the gas and causes problems of its own. My worst problem is my weedeater tank. It's not sealed. My mower tanks aren't sealed, either.

[gfretwell]

I am sure humidity and temperature has a lot to do with it.

[Danny D.]

David L. Martel wrote, on Tue, 30 Sep 2014 13:32:04 -0400:

I don't really know, but, what my understanding is, is that, after about

3 months, here in California, the gasoline absorbs water (and maybe stuff oxidizes also) such that it won't burn as well.

Certainly, I've left gas in my mower and it wouldn't start in the spring.

I would think two-stroke oil would make the gas last even less, although I couldn't tell you chemically how or why.

Here is a picture of the 2-gallon gas can I'm currently using:

If I can find one of those in 500ml sizes, that would be perfect for 10mL of oil, and then it would fill up exactly one tank of the chainsaw at a time.

That way, there would be no wasted gas sitting around forever.

[David L. Martel]

J.

How long does it take, where you live, for gas to "spoil". What does spoil mean for gas? Can you tell that it is spoiled? What happens when you use spoiled gas? I know when milk has spoiled but I've no idea when gas has spoiled I've seen many warnings about using "old" gas in small tools. Old is undefined. My experience is that gas which was purchased months ago works just fine. The tools start right up and run with no difficulty. That's why I'm asking. What is old gas and what does it do to the equipment? How do you know when gas is "spoiled".

Dave M.

[Vic Smith]

Spoiled gas IME is gas that loses it's "volitiles." Haven't had water issues with gas. But if you leave a gas container open it will lose volatiles and can absorb water from the atmosphere. I've used 2-year old gas with no problems. Kept in closed containers. Could be I've been lucky with equipment. Some small engine carbs foul easily, and some need the "bang" fresh gas provides.

[Ralph Mowery]

Some of the 2 stroke oil has the equivilent of Sta-bal in it and makes the gas last longer before going bad.

The way I see it, gas goes bad in two ways.. It looses whatever it takes to start the engine, or it chemically turns into something that gums up the works. Very scientific wording.

I also think the ethanol absorbes water out of the air and causes the gas to loose power. When I was using it in my 5 kw generator I noticed that if I drained all the gas and put in fresh it would run smooth unloaded , but if the gas had been in it for several months it would hunt to find the speed. I started usint the ehtanol free and putting Sta-bil in it for good measure and that hunting around without a load stopped.

[Frank]

Stabil will extend the life of the mix. I must have had some around for

5 years before it went bad but stored stabilized gas I use in my generator goes into the car after 2 year storage. Mower shop advised against doing this with gas with 2 cycle oil in it.

I was using the same mix in chain saw, weed wacker and mower but when I needed a new mower and it is 4 cycle it took a long time to get through

2 gallons of mix before it went bad.

[David L. Martel]

Vic,

Certainly gas is a mixture and it's contents can change. Losing volitile constituents will change the gas. I don't know anyone who does not store gas in tightly sealed gas cans or in tightly sealed gas tanks. My one bad experience with old gas was many years ago when I failed to run my mower dry when putting it up for winter. The next Spring I had to disassemble the carb and clean it with Gum-Out.

[ChairMan]

Danny, if you use your chainsaw as ltitle as you say look at Stihls Motomix. Stays good for 2 years I've been using it in all my Stihl equipment and when i bought a blower over the summer they said if I bought a quart with my purchase they would extend the warranty to 2 years instead of 1 YMMV

[Stormin Mormon]

Would be nice if someone had studied this. I'd dare to guess the petroleum companies have, and they kinda like short life gas.

Much like pharma industry trains nurses and doctors to pitch out medicine (and force the customer to do without, or buy new stuff) when it reaches some imaginary expiry date.

One guy I knew, his expired meds would just disappear when his visiting nurse service would visit.

. Christopher A. Young Learn about Jesus

.

[Stormin Mormon]

Smallest I've gone is per one gal metal can of mix. For my two stroke, I always buy alcohol free premium. Might go stale, and I don't know it.

. Christopher A. Young Learn about Jesus

.

[J Burns]

Stabil is 95% hydrotreated kerosene and 5% "additives." Lamp oil is likely to be hydrotreated kerosene. Hydrotreating removes aromatics and sulfur.

I still don't know the chemistry by which Stabil works.

[J Burns]

A lot of scientists must publish research papers to get degrees or maintain credentials. The periodicals that specialize in publishing research may require an author to sign over his copyright. The author may want the public to have access, but the publisher is now in control. Reading an article can be very expensive.

Because copyright laws have been changed, without public notice, from the days of the founding fathers, I think some research from the 19th Century may still not be freely available to the public. Corporations profit from public ignorance. All we know is what they say in the ads they force on us.