Boat owners got a break in early April when Gov. Beverly Perdue signed a bill that requires gas pumps dispensing ethanol-blended produces to be marked to disclose to consumers the percentage of ethanol in the fuel.
The bill, SL 2011-25, began as HB 187. Under its provisions, gasoline pumps must carry a sticker or notice whether they dispense ethanol at 10 percent or less or at more than 10 percent.
The law is designed to protect people driving older cars or using small engines that don’t tolerate ethanol-blended fuels. It is a bonus for boaters, who fought the Environmental Protection Agency’s approval of E15 fuels, as most marine engines just will not tolerate ethanol in concentrations higher than 10 per cent. In fact, many marine engines, small engines used for lawnmowers, chain saws, weed trimmers and older cars and trucks have experienced fuel-system breakdowns and more with E-10 gasoline.
The labeling became necessary last Oct. 13 when the EPA waived a limitation on selling fuel that contains as much as 15-percent ethanol, known as E15, for model-year 2007 and newer cars and light trucks. Marine engines are excluded, but marine industry representatives questioned the availability and labeling of E10 if E15 became the accepted norm.
The battle over ethanol in marine and other small engines has been going on since ethanol was first used as an oxygenation agent in gasoline. While boaters were assured the fuel had been tested and would be fine, the ethanol will attract water and will become heavy enough to drop out of suspension with fuel, creating a layer of the alcohol/water mix and a layer of gasoline in tanks.
Not only does sucking water into the fuel system plug filters and keep the motor from running, but the ethanol- water mixture creates a very strong solvent that breaks down components in the fuel system, corroding metals, deteriorating rubber gaskets, seals and fuel lines and dissolving the varnish deposits in older gas tanks and re-suspends that in the fuel. In some cases, the solvent dissolved plastic and fiberglass fuel tanks to the point that they leaked fuel into the bilge of a vessel.
Many boat dealers and mechanics have been swamped with ethanol-related issues over the past few years and want no part of E15 fuels.
“Ethanol-related breakdowns are the major part of our repair issues,” said Steve Smith of Blackbarry Marine in Southport. “We’ve seen ethanol issues as simple as clogging filters all the way to blowing engines from introducing trash from fuel lines, seals, gaskets and more that were broken down by ethanol and passed through the fuel system into the engine. It is not good, and the marine industry is still finding new things that are affected by the ethanol solvents. We’ve also tested the content and found fuel tanks with much higher ethanol levels than 10 percent.”
‘Many boaters, having suffered through the last ethanol transition to E10, agree that we should learn from recent history and first completely understand what the new E-15 fuel will do before approving its use in boats,’ said Margaret Podlich, an official with BoatUS. “What happens if safety is affected or boaters are forced to pay for expensive repairs? Remember that most boat engine warranties are void when using ethanol beyond the 10-percent level.’
BoatUS and the National Marine Manufacturers Association said pump labeling is one step in preventing misfueling.
Smith recommends using a good fuel treatment to help prevent ethanol-related issues. At least a half-dozen well-known fuel treatments geared toward combating the effects of ethanol are on the automotive market, and outboard manufacturers also offer treatments.
Manufacturers of ethanol fuel treatments say their products will continue to work, even with higher levels of ethanol.
“During the test process before the product came out, we conducted all sorts of tests with the different grades of [ethanol blend] gasoline,” said Matt Brown, sales manager for Sta-Bil’s marine products. “There are 200 to 250 fuel formulas, based on where you are in the country. We tested with everything – all the way up to E85.”
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