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Go Back   WakeWorld > >> Boats, Accessories & Tow Vehicles Archive > Archive through March 18, 2009

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Old     (fixin2wakeboard)      Join Date: Mar 2006       06-23-2008, 12:54 PM Reply   
I would like to get some opinions on whether or not you personally would put Swifty brand gasoline in your boat? For those who may not be familiar with Swifty gas stations.. it is a gas station chain here in the Midwest. I have heard that this gas has a high concentration of alcohol in the gas blend and have always avoided this gas station. Circumstances may require me to switch from BP brand gas to Swifty... Of course I would continue with 89 octane as a minimum. Would you feel comfortable with this gas in your boat engine?
Old     (wake1823)      Join Date: Dec 2005       06-23-2008, 1:07 PM Reply   
Where are they buying their gas from? I have never heard of a company called Swifty with their own refineries.
Old     (lakeski)      Join Date: Dec 2006       06-23-2008, 2:11 PM Reply   
No I wouldn't use it, but not because of the Swifty name.

If it has ethanol in it, I'd buy at another station that sells pure gasoline regardless of the brand. Ethanol can be hard on boats, particularly rubber gaskets, etc. found in your fuel system. Many boats have a sticker next to the fuel cap which advises against using alcohol in your fuel.

Search ethanol on this site and you'll learn more about how it can cause harm to boats.
Old     (tj_in_kc)      Join Date: Jan 2008       06-23-2008, 2:39 PM Reply   
Never heard of Swifty. I have heard of a lot of people that run Casey's General Store brand gas. Because the 89 is the same price as the 87. Its an ethanol/corn gas as well.

a boat engine is really not any different than a truck engine in terms of gas/octane so i really doubt it would hurt, unless its got water in the gas...

(Message edited by tj_in_kc on June 23, 2008)
Old     (wake1823)      Join Date: Dec 2005       06-23-2008, 3:17 PM Reply   
All gas is blended with ethanol..usually up to 15%.
Old     (fixin2wakeboard)      Join Date: Mar 2006       06-23-2008, 5:01 PM Reply   
I am not sure where Swifty Serve Corp, based in Durham, N.C., buys there gas from... I googled it, but couldn't find any more info... A guy in my crew used to own an auto service shop and swears off this brand of gasoline because of the high content of ethanol... Just wondering if anyone else had heard this.
Old     (ridininmd)      Join Date: Jun 2006       06-23-2008, 5:08 PM Reply   

quote:

All gas is blended with ethanol..usually up to 15%.



Not all gas is blended, it will say on the pump. You can still find it without you just have to look for it.
Old     (srh00z)      Join Date: Jun 2003       06-23-2008, 5:52 PM Reply   
I have been seeing more and more "This gas contains 10% Ethanol" stickers this year than ever before. I always take note and I can't think of a fill up within the last few months where I didn't see one of those stickers.
Old     (lakeski)      Join Date: Dec 2006       06-23-2008, 7:02 PM Reply   
If you live in the highlighted area on the map, you are stuck with reformulated gas (E-10 or 10% ethanol) by EPA mandate:

www.epa.gov/OMS/rfg/whereyoulive.htm

If you live in the rest of the country, you need to check the pump to see if you are pumping pure gasoline or E-10. Like Stephen says, more and more stations are pumping E-10, because the typical motorist feels good burning ethanol, instead of OPEC oil. Of course, with food and fuel inflation, ethanol is getting some blame and its popularity among the public and politicians may be retreating somewhat.

If in doubt about whether a station is pumping E-10 or pure gas, ask a worker at the gas station. If they don't know what you are talking about, move on to another station. I've found that stations that pump pure 100% gasoline know it and they are proud of it. Selling pure gas is a matter of pride for them and they will brag about it. In fact, many of them are now putting up signs which say 100% gasoline - no ethanol.
Old     (bac)      Join Date: Feb 2008       06-23-2008, 7:32 PM Reply   
Everything in Houston is 15% blend. No luck for me unless I'm riding in the Hill Country. Oh well, guess its time to start watching things. Does anyone have an idea of the time frame it takes for the ethanol to start drying out the seals and rubber?? I'm assuming it will manage on how often you run your boat, but just looking for a ballpark figure, if there even is one yet.
Old     (jpuckett)      Join Date: Apr 2005       06-23-2008, 7:54 PM Reply   
Here in North Carolina and Virginia we have Gate stations. I would put Swifty in the same catagory. The Gate gas doesn't get as good of fuel mileage as the brand names. So I would say they also have a higher ethanol content. When you run E-85 ethanol in your vehicle you lose fuel mileage and performance as compaired to gasoline. I personally don't buy gas from the Gate stations, but they do have a great deal on Pepsi brand soft drinks!
Old     (h2oaddiction)      Join Date: Aug 2007       06-23-2008, 8:46 PM Reply   
If you live in western Oregon you have no choice but E-10. By Sept. 16 the entire state will be E-10. It is pretty much that way now since most of the refineries have switched over. Just wait, your state could be next!! Find the E-free and use it while you can. I lost 2 mpg since the switch in the truck, I am sure the gph on the boat has suffered too. Political B.S.
Old     (boarditup)      Join Date: Jan 2004       06-23-2008, 9:07 PM Reply   
All gasoline has to meet minimum standards to be transported and sold. Other than a few additives, all gasoline is the same. Brand does not matter.
Old     (bill_airjunky)      Join Date: Apr 2002       06-23-2008, 9:24 PM Reply   
I thought that all the gas sold around here was E-10.

I do know of one station that sells racing gas that has no ethanol in it, but it's for off road use only & your not allowed to pump it in your vehicle. I guess a boat isn't off road, but I'm not sure what burning 110 octane gas does to a Monsoon.
Old     (tanner)      Join Date: Oct 2005       06-23-2008, 9:41 PM Reply   
In OK we finally passed a law here that made gas stations put the stickers that stated they had ethanol in them. Until that law went into effect you had no clue if it had it or not. Now that the stickers are required 30% of the gas stations have now switched to Ethanol free here.
Old     (tonality)      Join Date: Mar 2005       06-24-2008, 12:17 PM Reply   
BillK, i'd say a boat is about as 'off-road' as you can get! :P

110 octane gas wouldn't do anything to the motor, but it's pointless to run it because the motor's not set up to take advantage of it. Now, if you were to bore/stroke and supercharge that badboy...


hmmm. :-)
Old     (1boarder_kevin)      Join Date: Mar 2007       06-24-2008, 12:51 PM Reply   
Karl,
I normally would agree with you, but it has been proven that ethanol hurts gas milage significantly, so I would assume that 10 % ethanol would decrease gas milage. Either way we still have some time to stay away from ethanol in SC.
Old     (shredhead)      Join Date: Jun 2003       06-24-2008, 1:20 PM Reply   
I am with Karl, brand doesn't matter.

All thing being equal, octane, ethanol content, etc. Gas is gas.

Oil companies spend millions making you believe otherwise.
Old     (chpthril)      Join Date: Oct 2007       06-24-2008, 1:25 PM Reply   
^^^ What Karl stated, and 10% ethanol decreasing fuel mileage have nothing to do with each other???

What Karl stated is accurate, and ethanol does reduce fuel mileage. Fuel mileage is not the reason to stay away from ethanol........it's harmful to plastic and rubber fuel system components in older boats.
Old     (rio_sanger)      Join Date: Apr 2007       06-24-2008, 2:34 PM Reply   
"I guess a boat isn't off road"

?????????????!
Old     (fixin2wakeboard)      Join Date: Mar 2006       06-24-2008, 3:22 PM Reply   
TigeMike... when you say older boats, would a 1999 SAN be considered an older boat? I know its not brand new but for this discussion, would you consider it old?
Old     (boarditup)      Join Date: Jan 2004       06-24-2008, 4:19 PM Reply   
For most parts in the ECM era, there are no problems with 10% ethanol. For pre-ECM parts - especially carbs, the gaskets, floats, seals, and hoses will soften and disintegrate. I had a 1969 boat and had to replace the entire fuel system. It cost about $600 including carb and gas tank. I did the work myself.

Ethanol in the 10% range has about a 5% decrease in HP. It varies by ECM module, temp, and humidity. The alcohol will absorb water and you can run it, but it robs HP.

If you want to know if your boat is equiped for alcohol, look at the fuel lines. There are markings on the lines with the USCG approval numbers. Those can be cross referenced for the approval for alcohol fuels. Many will have it labeled on the hose itself. Same with carbs, the model and SN can be cross referenced. I believe, but don't know, that all of the EFI systems were engineered for alcohol content.

Running extra octane will not make a difference. Some premium gas is all gas, no alcohol. Almost all regular has alcohol since MTBE was banned. Virtually all mid grade has alcohol. You cannot get away from it. With the latest farm bill, it will be in all gas in a year. If in doubt, change it out this winter.

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