Buying gas in bulk

Heres the deal, I have access to a 500 gallon fuel tank. If I choose to, I can fill it with gasoline for season. Here's the advantages I see to it..
-Gas prices here in Ohio currently are sitting at around 3.50. Who knows what they will be at during the summer, But if i had to guess on the safe side, they will probably be going up, not down. Thus saving me money throughout the year.
-The boat is on a private lake and it would be very convienent to be able to fill it up without taking it out of the water.

Now here are my concerns, Can the gas deteriorate or go bad throughout the year? Theres no doubt that I will go through the gas from now until next November, I'd say I'd burn through a boat tank every 2-3 weeks. But the last thing that I want is to drop the money, and have the gas go bad halfway through the summer. Would this be an issue? And would something like perhaps fuel stabilizer correct the problem?

if it is in a sealed container it will not go bad, also if it is sitting on concrete, place some wood blocks under it so that air can circulate all the way around the container. you will be fine. also make sure you have a way to lock it, so your gas doesn't "evaporate" or find its way into everyone elses boat.
kal

And get non-ethanol if you can. Better for storage and easier on your fuel system.

+1 for non-ethanol. Ethanol is the biggest load of crap the government has ever tried to subsidize. Ethanol attracts moister and in the long run, can lead to rusting, especially in engines that are not used every day, like a boat. Also, I'm pretty sure it takes a lot longer for gas to go bad than a season.

I'd say do it! Wish i had the cash upfront to buy gas in bulk.

Check your local regulations too - seem to remember reading that my county does not allow the storage of fuel on residential property beyond what is normally used for lawnmowers etc - 2 5 gal cans. How are you going to get the tank filled 500 gallons at ~7lbs per gallon = 3,500 lbs of gasoline.

its doable, i have a friend that does the same thing, they have a fuel trailer thing that holds around that much. its really convenient. BTW just to be safe about the fuel staying good mix some stabile solution in it

Originally Posted by jyoungusa

Check your local regulations too - seem to remember reading that my county does not allow the storage of fuel on residential property beyond what is normally used for lawnmowers etc - 2 5 gal cans. How are you going to get the tank filled 500 gallons at ~7lbs per gallon = 3,500 lbs of gasoline.

The lake would fall under commercial property so the regulations shouldn't really be an issue. And I would just have a fuel truck come out and fill up the tank.

As someone else already stated about having the money to fill it. I'm dreading what it's actually going to cost to fill it up, but I hope all of the lake pals understand this year with prices shooting almost to 4 dollars a gallon, no one rides for free, sorry. So i do expect to be some what reimbursed for my expenses.

Thanks everyone for the responses, I'm going to inquire some different suppliers tomorrow for some non-ethanol fuel.

It will work in your car too,Nick.I don't think it will go to waste.I would add some StaBil like above said.

And get ahold of me I'll pay to burn some of it up.

Originally Posted by wakebrdjay

It will work in your car too

This made me wonder if you could get offroad gasoline for it. Do they sell it like they do off road diesel? If so that could save you a decent amount in taxes but then you couldn't legally use it in your car. Not sure what you have to do to qualify to buy that.

Message me your number on here Jay, I don't think it transfered out of one of my older phones.

And good suggestion with the offroad gasoline, My father get's off-road diesel for his construction business, If gasoline is done the same way it is definitely worth looking into.

I used to work at a golf course that has a 500 gallon tank that is filled with ethonal free, tax free gasoline. It is used in some of the work carts. It is dumb to pay tax on gas that isnt used on the roads.

+1 on being 100% sure the container is sealed. the gas will evaporate quick if it isnt.

i dont think there is "off road gasoline" is there? only reason there is that diesel you guys are talking about is because its used as heating fluid...and its red, and it just happens to run in a diesel truck or tractor.

Originally Posted by ilikebeaverandboats

i dont think there is "off road gasoline" is there?

I think it depends on the state. Apparently some states don't allow tax free gasoline but they do have a form that you can fill out to get some of the tax back at the end of the year.
http://www.americanboating.org/fueltax.asp

I'm sure there are other states that don't offer either option and tax is collected on all gasoline sales regardless of use.

I always thought the marina near me had a decent diesel price until I realized they we not collecting the road tax.

make sure you paint the tank white too... you don't want the fuel/tank getting any hotter than it has to... I would also make sure you have a way to shut the power off to the pump and then also lock it somehow... this will prevent people stealing it... I live in a rural area and if you don't do these two things you are sure to have people stealing your gas

If you do this put some stabilizer in the gas. It'll start breaking down after a month or two otherwise. You'll notice old gas does not vaporize when squirted/poured like fresh gas does. Old gas gets stale and pours like water with no vapor. You'll notice this is harder starting or just a feel like a little loss of power.

Also as others said check with your state about getting a refund on the gas tax. Easier to document and such if you get your boat gas all or mostly in one shot.

2-3 years ago, there was a website where you could buy fuel credits...kind of like buying gasoline futures for the average person. my neighbor at the lake was doing it.

Stroing that much fuel you may run into EPA issues, FYI...only if some a-hole neighbor decides to call you on it.

If storing that quantity becomes a legal problem, maybe buy in a couple smaller batches over the season? I'd go through 500 gallons pretty quick though. I'm about 35-40 gallons every time the boat goes out, but if I had it on the water instead of trailering I'd probably do a lot more 1-2 hour after work or quickie morning/evening runs. Either way check the law but just be discreet about storing it (tank inside a fence or out of plain sight). Would help avoid thieves too.. Out of sight out of mind.

Thanks everyone for the concerns! It will be stored in the boat house partially underground (the whole set up is difficult to explain without me posting a picture) as well as very close to my house but it would be nearly impossible for anyone to be stealing it from me without me knowing. They would basically have to drop their boat in my lake, move my boat, then put theirs under the roof. Regardless I still plan on securing it somehow.
And as far as regulations, what the neighbors don't know wont hurt them

if it were me, I would not have any part of it underground. there are really tight regs about underground storage. If for some chance it ever leaked you may never know and it could have some serious environmental impact if it was slowly leaking...not to mention big fines if it ever became a big issue. It's a small risk, but not one I would personally take to save a few bucks.

save the reciept, here in washington I save my reciepts and turn them in at the end of the year to the state for reimbursment on the road tax. usually equals about a free full tank of gas for me.