Old gas in tank

C

C-Val

Member
Hi Everyone
The C-Dory I am looking at right now has been sitting for a very long time. Its been hardly used for 10 years!

The previous owner said when he pulled it out of storage the gas was almost like tar! He took it to a dealer and had all the carbs redone so it seems to run fine but I was wondering what the inside of the fuel tank must look like.

Do you think they have to be replaced or if fresh gas in now put in will the tank itself be ok as is?? Is there an additive I should put in beside stabil??

Secondly, would you suspect damage to the motor itself sitting that long?
Thanks
 
I would think that the mechanic cleaning the carbs would have emptied and cleaned the bad fuel from your tanks. You can buy an electric fuel pump online and pump the fuel from your tanks into a portable container then buy a handy no mouth sucking required siphon hose from Bass Pro Shops and add the gas from the container to you car as required. We add blue marine stabil and Yamaha ring free everytime we fuel up. The ringfree helps avoid carbon build up at the top of you cylinders or on the back side of your valves if you have a 4 stroke engine. We have been using it for years in both 2 stroke and four stroke motors.
D.D.
 
Make sure you have a good fuel / water seperator filter between the tank and the motor. If all the old gas was replaced you may still have some residue on the tank walls. When you add new gas, it may dissolve some of this into the new fuel, especially if you are using fuel with ethonal in it, as it is a fantastic solvent.
 
The most common problem for boaters is contaminted or old fuel, especially with newer ethenol mix fuels. I decided if the boat was going to sit over winter, the fuel would get thrown out in the spring. There's a hazordous waste facilty near where I live and they take it for free. It may sound drastic, but its a small price to pay for peace of mind. I havent had any issues for years since I started doing this.
 
I think that throwing out fuel from over a winter is a bit over kill. If you put Stabil, RingFree and Startron, as well as drain the carbs, it should be OK. A good Racor filter should catch any debris.

The Startron may be hocus Pokus, but a friend had a diesel tank where some very old fuel had gelled, and he put in the Statron, and left it there (on passage) for a few months--then pumped out the liquid. That fuel was over 25 years old (It was a small tank integral to the hull, he had forgotten about).

We leave our tanks full for a number of months, treated, and the engines run fine the next time we fire them up.

However, If there is any question, then just leave the tanks empty. As well as pumping the tanks out, you can polish the fuel. I have my own system--just an electric fuel pump and Racor filter.

I would not replace the tanks. Just keep checking the filter--if you don't have a Racor--put one in. Preferably with the clear bowl, so you can see the fuel at the bottom and if there is any water. Drain this regularly.
 
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