mstull
R.I.P.
I've always heard that auto gas starts going stale after a month, and continues to degrade. I know you can put fuel stabilizer in it to keep it from going stale. But I've never seen an STC that says it's okay to put fuel stabilizer in an aircraft's fuel.
A friend just got a 500 gallon (above ground) tank, and put (ethanol-free) auto gas in it for his C-150 (that has a auto gas STC). I mentioned that it would start going stale in a month and mentioned fuel stabilizer. He said he has used auto gas in his planes from tanks stored for many months, without worrying about it going stale, and without using fuel stabilizer.
What's the truth here? Does auto gas go stale slower when stored in large tanks? I've never heard of that. Do low compression GA engines tolerate stale gas for some reason? Is stale gas safe to use in his plane? Is fuel stabilizer safe to use in aircraft fuel? Should my friend add fuel stabilizer to the fuel in his tanks? And if so, how much? It would take a lot to treat that much fuel if you use the normal mixing ratio on the fuel stabilizer bottle.
A friend just got a 500 gallon (above ground) tank, and put (ethanol-free) auto gas in it for his C-150 (that has a auto gas STC). I mentioned that it would start going stale in a month and mentioned fuel stabilizer. He said he has used auto gas in his planes from tanks stored for many months, without worrying about it going stale, and without using fuel stabilizer.
What's the truth here? Does auto gas go stale slower when stored in large tanks? I've never heard of that. Do low compression GA engines tolerate stale gas for some reason? Is stale gas safe to use in his plane? Is fuel stabilizer safe to use in aircraft fuel? Should my friend add fuel stabilizer to the fuel in his tanks? And if so, how much? It would take a lot to treat that much fuel if you use the normal mixing ratio on the fuel stabilizer bottle.
