Ethanol-blended gas costs boater thousands of dollars in repairs
21.06.10
St. Petersburg, Florida - Summertime means more boaters are heading out on the water, and more of us are working on our yards. But if the yacht begins stalling or the lawn mower dying, it may be the gas that's being used.
Boat owner Leo Calzadilla shakes dry reddish colored flakes from interior a fuel line. "That is what the ethanol is eating up inside the hoses," he says.
Calzadilla says he's paid out just about $5,000 replacing parts on his two boats, all because of the ethanol used in gasoline.
"Constant changes of filters, immutable changes of hoses, being stranded out in the water," have been some of the problems Calzadilla says he has encountered.
Calzadilla says when wet, the now dry gunk makes its way through the speedboat's fuel system and clogs the motor. He says it's all due to the alcohol-blend gas attracting water. The 6 month old combustible filter for his boat is covered in rust. "That's what water will do," says Calzadilla.
The ethanol contamination is keeping mechanics at Roaring Marine in St. Petersburg busy. "Weekly I am pumping out gas tanks, getting rid of debris," says work manager Dave Latham. He adds, "The ethanol is a problem. It accumulates water, clings to the tank, all the debris is at the bottom of the tank and the first preoccupation the engine sucks up picks up is at the bottom of the tank."
Source: 10 Connects