Is my gas bad???

[jtricer1973]

Hey guys, I have some mixed up gas that has been sitting in my garage for about 8 months. Do you think its bad or good. It's premium gas mixed with Golden Spectro oil if that matters. Its about 4 gallons and as much as gas costs these days I hate to throw it out and it be good but also don't want to put bad gas in my bike either. What do you think? Also, is there maybe something I could put in it to stabilize it if it is bad?

Thanks

 

[racer09]

i have always heard it goes bad after a few days but i might be wrong

 

[Okiewan]

s. Do you think its bad or good.

Unless it's been stored in an air-tight steel container, yeah.. it's crap. Dump it an invest another $5.00.

 

[quik720]

5.00 for four gallons of gas?! Where are you located?! LOL

 

[cooldude3552000]

it's definetly bad. When I had my cylinder resleeved the guy there told me not to use gas more than 7 days old. Here it cost well over $3 for a gallon of premium.

 

[Okiewan]

5.00 for four gallons of gas?! Where are you located?! LOL

Texas :nener:

 

[DLHamblin]

Hey guys, I have some mixed up gas that has been sitting in my garage for about 8 months. Do you think its bad or good. It's premium gas mixed with Golden Spectro oil if that matters. Its about 4 gallons and as much as gas costs these days I hate to throw it out and it be good but also don't want to put bad gas in my bike either. What do you think? Also, is there maybe something I could put in it to stabilize it if it is bad?

Thanks

If its stored in a closed container out of the sun, pre-mix can be used for 2-3 weeks max. 8 months; definitely bad.

 

[jtricer1973]

Thanks guys, I guess I will dump it. Probably take it out to some national forest and dump it. LOL.
Just kidding

 

[Jaybird]

Don't dump it. That is silly.

Put it in your car or truck and never look back. Or the lawnmower, or rototiller. Don't throw it away.

It will also run in your bike, but it will also more than likely run like crap and could varnish things up.

Gas lasts more than just days, that is way anal.

 

[KX02]

Agreed, I just got done mowing my lawn with race gas I had leftover from last October. The mower not only started, but ran fine. I definitely would not run fuel that old in my KX, but have never had a problem with it in my weedwacker, leaf blower, or lawn mower. Where do you guys "dump out old gas" anyway?

 

[Danappger]

I think in the old days when people used to run castor oil there might have been some truth to the idea of premix going bad, but with modern oils it doesn't seem to be a problem provided the container is tightly closed and out of the sun... I regularly run premix that's sat for a couple of months over the winter with no trouble.

-Dana

 

[motometal]

I'm definitely not as anal as some folks when it comes to gas, but I figure a coupla three months and it's time to burn it in something else and get some fresh stuff.

a couple days? Are you crazy? this stuff was alot older than that before you even bought it.

anyway, I must relate that I have a friend that thinks I am too picky on using old gas, he had gas that was about 1.5 years old (mixed) and ran it in his CR250 just to prove a point (against my nagging), it didn't start as well as normal but ran and rode fine, I expected it to at least ping but it didn't. Not recommending this practice, just telling the story.

 

[VintageDirt]

My gas is definitely bad.

 

[Kevin003]

I usually don't use gas thats more than 2-3 weeks old. But thats just me.

 

[83MX80]

i have some 40-1 mixed for my KDX and its been sitting all winter and i needed to cut the grass and ran what was left of just straight gas until it ran out, then poured in some pre-mix in a honda self-propelled briggs 4 stroke engine and it ran fine... if we have old oil we burn it in our 8x4 burn barrel(thats 8 feet across and 4 feet deep, big mofo).

 

[sunnyboy]

3 bucks plus 4 bucks for oil that is seven.is it worth 7 bucks to mess up your bike and a day out with it and several hours removing the varnish ,plug etc. this new gas dose not last long and the pre mix oxadizes even faster.usually i keep gas a mounth no more than two.

 

[Peer Lovell]

Old gas is fine for a lawn mower or snow blower, never use pre-mix in your vechile.
It will fry the catalytic converter.
To dump old gas look in your local phone book for whatever recycling facilities exist.
Every town has some method of taking stuff like this.

 

[adam728]

Old gas is fine for a lawn mower or snow blower, never use pre-mix in your vechile.
It will fry the catalytic converter.

And just how does it fry your cat? Every vehicle I have owned in the last 8 years has drank a lot of premix and I have never had a problem. Sure, I wouldn't run the tank dry and then run it on just 32:1, but dumping a few gallons of premix into a truck that already has 10 or 15 gallons of straight gas has worked fine for me.


And gas stored in a sealed steel container will last a long time, many months. Many premix oils act as a stabilizer as well, further extending the life of the gas. It's plastic cans that let fumes and vapors pass that allow the fuel to varnish and drop in octane points. I run my gas through the Jeep once it's 4-6 weeks old. If I had a steel can I would not be afraid of going 6+ months. Think of race fuel in barrels. We used that stuff at the old shop after it was well over a year old.

 

[motocrouse]

Why would it not hurt a two stroke blower or weed eater yet hurt the bike? They are air cooled & run at over 10,000 RPM's constantly! It says not to use premix that is more than a few hours old in the owners manual for my YZ250, & while this seems ridiculous, there must be a reason.

It isn't a question of the gas going bad with pre-mix, it is the issue of the oil losing it's viscosity / lubricating properties. Gas stored in sealed metal cans most certainly lasts longer, but not necessarily premix. It may be true that some oils or some types of gas last longer, but who cares? It's better safe than sorry so why mix more than you are going to use? My dad uses a quart sized empty oil bottle & mixes just enough to run his 2 stroke lawn equipment so he doesn't wind up with extra sitting around.

Also, with modern pump gas, you are getting a chemical soup mixture of who knows what additives, alchohol, etc. It doesn't last as long as premix made with race gas. You should be using race gas anyway. You don't have to, but it runs better & it is better for your bike.

I never use premix that is over 2 weeks old in anything, especially if it is mixed with pump gas. I pour it in my 4 stroke power equipment & vehicles. The only way it will hurt a cat. converter is if the race gas you use to mix it is leaded.

Anyone who would run 1.5 year old premix in a 2 stroke motor that they care about isn't very bright. Sure, it will work but it isn't very good for the bike! Just because you don't know it right away doesn't mean it doesn't matter!

I'm sure someone will disagree, but I trust my roommate since he has a masters degree in petrophysics & works for Haliburton. He also worked in a refinery for a while, so he knows a lot about that kind of stuff. He agrees that to be on the safe side you should just try to use fresh premix if at all possible, & you really probably shouldn't make a practice of using it after it has been sitting for 2 weeks (especially in a plastic can).