Safe Disposal of Stale Gasloline

[Vince]

How should/could stale gasoline be safely disposed ?

[Seth Goodman]

If it's just a small amount (say a gallon or less), add it to a nearly full auto gas tank.

[rchanson]

Pour it into the gas tank of your car or other vehicle. The dilution with the new gas will not cause a problem for the vehicle. Acttually, I have often found the myth of stale gasoline just a myth. However, for my chain saw, old gas is really a problem.

[Duane Bozarth]

...

Then it isn't a myth, is it? It's a variable.

[PaPaPeng]

In my province there is a law that vehicle owners who change their own motor oil must dispose of the waste oil at a gas station dump tank. I disposed of contaminated gasoline in the same place. I asked the owner first if it was OK and he said yes.

[The Real Tom]

If you really believe it's 'bad' then you might want to just use it diluted. Don't put it in your car since it might mess up with the emission system, or just overall operation. Personally I would just use it in my typical 2-cycle engines(lawnmower kind), but diluted.

Just a guess....

tom

[SteveB]

I'm sorry. It's a myth? But, it's a myth that won't run in your chainsaw? If it's just a myth, it SHOULD run in your chainsaw just fine. Right?

STeve

[SteveB]

I went to our local landfill transfer station a few weeks ago. As I was sitting there getting checked in, I noticed a notice that said, "AMNESTY DAY". I asked about it, and they said they had them four times a year. That people can bring in anything but explosives, and that kind of stuff. I had a bunch of old oil base paint that I wanted to dump, so I made the trip that Saturday.

I just dump mine in the car. I don't ever have that much, and it doesn't ever get that old.

STeve

[ConcreteFinishing&StuccoGuy]

Add the 'bad' fuel to the gas tank of your truck or car at a rate of 1 gal to 15 of good. What do you think refiners do with there less than perfect gas??????

-- Troweller^nospam^@canada.com

[ConcreteFinishing&StuccoGuy]

LOL, or send it to me, i can dispose of it for you at a reasonable cost as long as gas stays over $4 a gallon up this way.

-- Troweller^nospam^@canada.com

[HeyBub]

Here's what you do NOT want to do: pour it in a storm drain followed thirty minutes later with a match.

This combination will blow manhole covers for two blocks, belch fire out of the street storm-drain openings, turn over parked cars, and cause granny-ladies walking their dogs to drop their donuts.

Every emergency vehicle for miles will respond with much running about by the occupants. TV trucks, helicopters overhead, neighbors standing outside their doors (kids safely inside), waiting to be interviewed. Dogs barking. Cats up trees.

Then, the next day, the federals arrive.

No, don't do that.

[Walter R.]

What, precisely, is the nature of "stale" gasoline? I use a 2 GL container for my chainsaw and leaf blower. 2 Gal last about 2 years. I have never had a problem with stale gas. Is this another urban myth?

What is it that has deteriorated in stale gasoline. Just curious.

Walter The Happy Iconoclast

[Red Cloud®]

According to group regular, Richard Kinch, you can safely drink it. Problem solved!

rusty redcloud

[George E. Cawthon]

First you need to know what stale gasoline is. If it is less than a year old, it isn't stale. If it still smells and looks like regular gas, it isn't stale. If you have small amounts of stale gas you can dilute it (about 1 gallon per 10 gallons of fresh gas) and burn it in your vehicle or other engine.

If you really want to throw it away and it is really stale, then call the appropriate city or community office for disposal of hazards materials

--oils, paints, etc. Check also check with auto supply stores.

[Joseph Meehan]

Gasoline does go bad. In the old days (I'm old enough to remember) that was about 6 months. Today gasoline last longer and you can generally store it for up to a couple of years before it starts showing its age. It is not a all or none thing, it slowly changes.

As noted, if you have some old gas, just mixing it with fresh gas works fine.

Note: old gas does not automatically have a lower octane rating. So you don't need to use premium to counter it. :-)

[Joseph Meehan]

Gasoline is made up of many different hydrocarbons. Some long some short. Octane has 8 carbons for example. As it ages some of them fall apart and then recombine with mixed company so they may make longer or shorter combinations. For several reasons this process tends to speed up over time. A "stabilizer" can slow the process down (it can't reverse it) .

[Dave Morrison]

Ain't a myth. My old Ford 1970 F-350 sat for a couple of years, I started it up and moved the beast one day so I could put a for sale sign on it. I let it run for about an hour to make sure everything worked. All ok. Couple of days later a potential buyer showed up and on startup it made a few loud noises and started to belch smoke out of one of the exhaust pipes. I lost the sale, anyway I dug into it and found a couple of bent push rods with the valves stuck. careful use of a torch, solvent, and a hammer freed them up. I followed up with fresh gas and top oil and everything returned to normal. The gum in the old gas stuck the valves. Talking to a few old mechanic types I got " yep it'll do that". Dave

[James "Cubby" Culbertson]

I just dump mine on my annoying neighbors yard. Stale or not, it does a right fine job killing his grass! (kind of fun to spell words out in his yard this way too!).

Kidding of course. You might check with your city's waste department. Ours has contracted with a private company to accept hazardous materials such as gasoline, oil, and such. Doesn't cost anything either. Cheers, cc

[George E. Cawthon]

Our land fill finally got smart. They have one day a week to take hazardous stuff to the dump at no cost to the dumper. Then they sort the stuff, and put it on shelves, especially paints, sealers, stains, paint thinner, acetone, and all sorts of chemicals for week control, insecticides, half empty cans of oven cleaner, etc. You take what you want for free or pay a minimal cost (like $0.25 for a nearly full gallon of paint). The other stuff, like used oil, gets dumped into big recycle tanks.

[SteveB]

Dunno, but my Honda mower wouldn't work. Took it to the shop, and the guy told me it was "bad gas" that had been in there too long, and the good stuff had evaporated. You can smell "bad gas". It really smells just like varnish.

BTW, it cost me $50 to get the "bad gas" taken out, and the mower running again.

Steve