not really... i wouldnt let gas sit in soda pop bottles over night... gasoline has a nasty habit of eating certain type of plastics... and ethanol will eat rubbers as well... this should be done in Glass... theres a video of a guy using actual Chemistry beakers separation funnels and what not to do this... much better video... not to mention gas starts eating the plastics immediately so who knows how contaminated your fuel now is with plasics...
Just a little thought and common sense goes a long way Isaac!! I've been struggling a few years to make non-ethanol gas for my small motors, without making a mess, and this helped tremendously. Thank you and God bless.
@@doktorhunggari4415 The alcohol is more than a 'cereal filler' and corrosive additive. Alcohol is both an oxygenator AND an octane booster. In a high compression engine with a simple ignition system you will likely have detonation and that detonation will destroy your engine. MTBE (Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether) was removed from gasoline and replaced with methanol because it was contaminating the ground water from leaking rusted ground storage tanks under service stations. Even the REC90 non ethanol gasoline is not the same Ethyl gasoline that Isaac was used to...
As a college automotive instructor I teach how to use the separation process to help drivability issues to determine if the wrong fuel is being used. Great video, thanks
DON'T GET CAUGHT: big Petro will use you & the children for fertilizer for their mom food grade : ethanol greedery ¢¢¢¢_$$$$$💸💸💸💸 but if you tell em how to reverse the process: you'll be famous , ( if they forget the second process,? ☮️
All, keep in mind, if you remove the ethanol, and you have a motor that requires, or is sensitive to a minimum octane number(ie a car, motorcycle or some higher end lawn equipment etc..), you must add another octane modifier such as Toluene/Methylbenzene or Methyl alcohol to bring the octane number back up. Ethanol besides used as a fuel "filler" is also used as a cheaper alternative octane booster by petrol/gas blenders. Instead of a stuck carb, bloated seals or clogged fuel injector, you might have pinging detenation or pistons that want to escape the engine block.
I would do this with high-octane premium gas and hope the finished product is acceptable. You can buy octane boosters. I wonder what's in them - anybody know?
At 2:42 Please don't pour gasoline or any flammable liquid inside your house or garage. If it catches fire you will lose your house. Go outside and pour it far enough away so you can walk away if it goes bad, and you won't have to fight a burning gas can. Thanks for the information on removing ethanol.
You may be very nervous pouring that gasoline in your garage into a small bottle with a cherry can. In my neck of the woods here in Wisconsin, all gasoline containers have to be painted red. I guess you don’t have to do that where you live. I’m not sure this whole process is really worth it because of the loss of theoctane in this gasoline that you’re going to process and also handling gasoline is careful as you can be, is still super dangerous. I’d rather pay a little bit more, though. I don’t think I’ll live another 77 years no matter how safe I am.
It's a crying shame that the government has to stick their stinkin nose in every thing we do. We know that they are all that smart. Look how much they messed up with covid.
Your views for this video is likely to vastly increase very soon! We in UK have recently been informed that possibly 600,000 older cars will struggle to run well on the new E10 petrol (gasoline) that is being enforced on us from September 2021. Many of us are ill-prepared, I for one am not very chemically minded. Finding your video very simply explaining the process of extracting ethanol from petrol is so satisfying - very kind of you, thankyou!
@@rayperkins6006 Many thanks for your comment. According to how I read this, though, London will only have E10 by the end of 2021. Confusingly, the article suggests, while the pump will by outputting E10, the fuel station could continue to advertise that fuel as their standard current unleaded www.mylondon.news/news/zone-1-news/e10-petrol-petrol-londons-garages-20876963
enjoyed this, we used to us a 20ltr clear container with a tap on the bottom on building sites to clean out water from cement mixers and other petrol/gasoline-powered tools,i would put some drops of food colouring in the water so you can see what you are removing easer.
I think the thinner the bottle, the more precise it is to remove the gasoline and with less loss. So after doing this process with a large amount in a wide large bottle you can put the rest that is difficult to separate in a very narrow bottle. In a narrow bottle, fluid levels will be higher.
I was more thinking of leaving a larger margin between the water level and the gasoline to avoid getting any water. Yes, you would have more gasoline at the end not drained but you put it aside. The next time you need a batch, get it and use the mostly water and some gasoline in the next extraction, separation. When you have too much water, you just push the tube to the bottom and syphon off most of the water and start all over.
The more ethanol the more problems you will have with your car. My SUV was getting 18.5 mpg. Now since they been messing with ethanol it's getting 16.4mpg
@@marty64thorntonPartially False. Ethanol doesn't hurt anything as long as the gasoline is getting used within 60 days. The lower BTU is why mileage is lower, otherwise the Ethanol has much better octane than gasoline to prevent detonation and also lowers intake air temps in port injected motors.
You can also spray a coffee filter with silicone water proofing spray such as that which is used on tents. The water will not pass through but the petrol will, or vica versa
I have looked at several methods for doing this and yours is, by far, the most creative. Thank you! I will use this method with gallon glass jars, non-alcohol octane booster, a little sta-bil and with or without 2-cycle engine oil depending upon end use. Great video!
Can you tell me what non-alcohol octane booster you would use....I need to have an octane rating of about 91. Also, how much water will you used in each gallon glass jar to mix with fuel? I assume you are starting with 10% ethanol. thanks.
Thank you Ben. The two observations I have.. 1. We will be paying government for unwanted ethanol. Either 5% or 10% depending on if fuel is E5 or E10. More importantly, you didn't mention, when the ethinol is remove from the petrol, the octain rating is drastically reduced, and may cause 'knocking'. Can we measure the resulting octain to calculate booster additive.
He did say that the gas is being used for a chainsaw. Small engines don't need high octane ratings but will benefit greatly from ethanol free gas since it won't cause desegregation or oxidation from the ethanol trapping eater moisture
@@nativecowboy1_3cowboys_wer84 Sthil recommends 89 or higher octane in chainsaws. Removing ethanol brings it down to about 85. Gotta be careful with the crappy octane boosters because they are often made of ethanol. Most won't say what the contents are.
Yes, giod point. After some research, I found that the ethanol adds about two numbers to the octane, so if you used 93 it would drop to about 91 after ethanol removal. They use other chemicals like benzine to get the octane levels up to premium level because they don't want to put more than 10% ethanol in most gas, at least until all the vehicles can handle it.
Thanks Ben! Isaac uses his brain and some basic chemistry and ingenuity to solve a common problem with modern ethanol infused (fouled) gasoline. Clean out that ethanol for the engines and tubing that can't handle the alcohol!
The problem with ethanol is not the ethanol it is the people who have small engines and don’t maintain them properly. Never let gas sit in a container with open top, shut the gas valve to carburetor off and run engine til it’s dies (install a shut off valve if it doesn’t have one) and remove gas from tank. This only needs to be done if your not using motor for 3 months or so. Modern engines are designed to run on ethanol fuel. My Sthil MS-261C chainsaw is designed to run on 25% ethanol.
Thank you for the tip! I need larger quantities to run an early 60s carburated vehicle. How much water do you need to add in that big water container to be able to repeat the process on a larger scale?
Thank you, this was a great solution to getting the gasoline out with out the need to invert the bottle and taste fuel with the old method of siphoning.
@@benhasselbring1205 Hello Ben, I gave it some thought and I used some food coloring mentioned on other channels to make the water and ethanol more visible. I then inserted the ethylene tubing all the way to the bottom corner of the container and siphoned off the water ethanol solution at the bottom. It worked great the first time and hopefully all the times to come. I also used a needle pin for inflation of basket balls or footballs to pressurize the container with a small bicycle pump to prime the siphon and installed a fuel shut off valve at the end of some vinyl tubing to control the flow of the water ethanol solution and gasoline. I'm able to let the ethanol water sink to the bottom of the clear vinyl tubing and then with minimal gasoline waste flow the gasoline back to the container. Thank you for the basics which I was able to extrapolate my extraction system, I'm sure my snow blowers will be happier and work better in the Chicago snow storms. Thank you sir and Merry Christmas with hopes for a better 2021.
@@rayhoffelt Its great to hear that everything has worked out for you and you have made the most out of the system. We are very glad we could be a source of inspiration. Thanks for watching, best wishes, and merry Christmas!
You can get a fluid transfer pump from harbor freight for like $10, I believe it screws onto larger bottles with matching threads, could be worth it for large quantities. Great video!
All the simple solutions are the best. Thank you for an excellent video. Very useful! My only amendment would be to do this well away from buildings/vehicles. Thanks from the UK
This works well. What I have done in the past get one of those lemonade dispensers with the spigot at the bottom. Dump the gas and water in there and let it settle. Then turn the spigot on until all the gas is out. Of course, you have to do some math so that the water is always below your spigot. My math minor finally paid off!
Thank you, I was about ready to give up on my 2 stroke engines for good. Replacing fuel lines and carb rebuilds too often now with all this ethanol in our fuel. Can't wait to give this a try.
You'll still be rebuilding, but not as often. It's the benzene in the fuel that beats up carbs - this method does not get rid of it. Engineered parrafin fuels are the only sure bet.
I remember my father telling me about a way to remove water from gasoline. Back in the 1950s the only way to transport fuel for tractors was with steel drums and a hand pump. Any humidity in the air would eventually condense and build up inside the drums. They used an old felt hat in a funnel and pumped the gas through it while filling the tractors. The gasoline would run through the felt but the water was held back. Surface tension? Not sure how it works, but apparently it did work. May be something that could be incorporated in a larger volume ethanol removal apparatus. Good video
Your process is identical to what a wine maker would called "racking" - The only difference is that you're pulling the floating gasoline off the water, where the winemaker is trying to pull the wine off the sludge of dead yeast and assorted "ick" that sediments out during fermentation. the "turn the bottle over and loosen the cap to let the water run out" method you described is the same as a chemist's separatory funnel, and works incredibly well, and with zero spillage when you've got things set up properly. Nice demonstration.
Thanks so much! I see no reason why this same transfer method wouldn’t work to delete water from old fuel, with or without ethanol. Water always settles to the bottom and your easy siphoning method will do the trick. One thing I would improve upon is the soda bottles. I’ve been using 2 quart rectangular plastic fruit juice bottles from Langers for other purposes which are a thicker plastic and have a larger cap.
Good man. Having watched several videos on this topic, i am going to create one for this very purpose. Take a 20 litre water bottle, and install a valve/petcock on the very bottom, on the bottom rib, furthest lowest point on it. (drain off crap, and water). Make several horizontal lines, around the bottom, outside, 1 cm apart, for 3 inches. Then, am going to go ' gas cleaning ' removing ethanol, and using THAT, as a cleaner in a spray bottle. Good luck, all !
I remember as a kid I use to have a neighbor who would often need gas for some reason or another. He would often syphon gas out of his truck tank. What he would do is put the syphon hose into the trucks gas tank, then he would put his hand over the opening of the gas tank around the hose. Then he would blow into the hose building up air pressure in the trucks gas tank. After building up some pressure he would put the end of his syphon hose into his gas container and the gas would come out with no need to suck in and gas
If you're going to extract the ethanol, which I don't recommend, you should wash the gas at least a couple of times in your separatory funnel, then dry the gas through a buchner funnel loaded with granular anhydrous sodium sulfate. Taking the ethanol out reduces the octane rating by about 4 points for E10 gas. The added cost of using a quality octane booster adds a significant amount to your fuel price.
But I bet it's cheaper than buying a new 2-stroke generator after the alcohol did its trick to the carburetor. We had no power for 12 hours today, so I fired up my generator (free from a neighbor years ago, no manual included). It ran about 20 minutes, then died. A friend found a manual for it online. Turns out the manual warns strongly against gas containing ethanol, as it wrecks the carburetor. I'd just bought high-octane gas and mixed in the 2-stroke oil, but it looks like the ethanol may be the culprit.
That depends on if you're buying 26 gallon octane booster for $10 a bottle or buying it for about $5 elsewhere. It will be cheaper than buying a tank of non-ethanol at an increased price or paying for a higher octane rating.
@@TheGuyThatWondersWhyit's more expensive to buy high octane fuel and way cheaper to buy a $5 bottle to treat 21 or 26 gallons. Remove the ethanol first and then add the octane booster.
Sucks this is your only video.. i enjoyed listening to you. And I imagine from what I see of your garage you could provide a wealth of knowledge.. please consider doing more how to vids.
What in his garage is making you think that. If you saw my garage you would think I’m a hundred wealths of knowledge,but I’m probably not. Sorry man. Just joking.
Hi great video, but surely you have now removed some of the explosive power of the petrol? So will it now ignite as good in the engine or will an additional additive have to be used? Thanks Nigel. Uk.
Thanks for sharing this information. I was wondering if any octane reduction may result in this process? I saw someone else do this procedure an they mentioned adding an octane booster. Thanks again,you earn my subscription!
You can add a pinch of salt to the water to shift the equilibrium more to the side of the water. Would also strongly suggest using molecular sieves or a drying agent like calcium chloride, because the water still inside the gasoline will do more harm then if you left in the ethanol.
You need to make a video to explain this in more detail please. I was going to use this method to extract ethanol because I want to keep moisture out of the gas/petrol for long term motorbike storage, but if, as you say, water will contaminate the fuel then it is pointless.
So will this process not completely separate the water/fuel? I'm planning on doing this to remove the ethanol to be used in a 2-stroke outboard engine. There is an onboard fuel-water seperator , so if all the ethanol had been extracted but there is a small amount of water , I would assume the seperator will then be able to remove it before it reaches the engine. Yamaha reccomend 86 octane fuel , I'm planning on using 95 octane E5 , removing the ethanol should result in a loss of 2 octane. 2 stroke oil also reduces the octane rating of fuel so estimating it'll reduce it further down to 89. My question is what percentage of water would you say is left in the fuel after this process?
@@ocarroll3578 It's true that some water will be left behind in the gas because the gas will dissolve a very small amount of water. But I have a hard time believing that the amount of water left in the gas is a significant problem. Gas naturally absorbs water vapor from the air anyways, so you never really have completely dry gas unless your working under strict laboratory conditions. I'm no chemist, but I would think that gasoline left in contact with the atmosphere probably becomes saturated with water (to the same degree as following the procedure in this video) pretty quickly. In any case, if you're really worried about the water content, you can put a little bit of drying agent like sodium sulphate powder in the final ethanol-free gas, shake it around, and then pour the dehydrated gas off into another container leaving the drying agent behind.
Ethanol free gas is WAY better for classic cars i highly recommend using it. Old carburetors and fuel injectors weren’t designed to run on ethanol, double that effect when it’s something you only drive in the summer since the ethanol will degrade and absorb water in your beautiful classic car’s gas tank
2 things to note: 1. You may need to add some sort of octane booster since the ethanol upped the octane levels. So your 92 octane gas turned into 85 or 87. 2. Your torque wrench needs to be recalibrated. Since you left it set to a torque value, the spring has permanently changed and thus your torque readings will be off.
A little Marvel Mystery in the Oil (MMO) in the gas negates the ethanol and gives extra power via oil. Lubricates the top end while running also. Here in Florida with the heat and humidity its a must.
My solution to bad gasoline, leaking carburetor gaskets and risk of engine fire, was convert to propane. Solved it. By the way on the farm gasoline that was in tanks for extended time lost its volatility. The mechanic finally looked to the fuel as a potential problem and put a match to an open bowl test and could not get it to ignite. So the modern fuels have some infused fuel that volitize destroying combustion.
You should have mentioned that taking the ethanol out will reduce the octane level of the gas. Chainsaws should have 91+ octane. Octane boosters often have ethanol in them, so you have to be careful what you use to boost it back up.
AS a kid in Oklahoma, we used to get Drip gas from pipe line condensate traps. this would have water in it. Would pour it through a felt hat when filling cans, which filtered the water.
Love this! Thanks! I can almost smell the gas fumes in your workshop 🤣 just like mine! Someone told me that the leftover gas after this process is very low octane... Like 50 or so. The ethanol raises the octane rating, and the base gasoline is low quality. Do you know if that's true? 🤷♂️
It depends on the amount of ethanol used in the start. As an example common 87 with 10% ethanol you will drop 2 points to 85. The higher the blend of ethanol the more the drop. Ethanol is high in octane and fuel suppliers figure that in to the overall octane of the finished fuel blend. We are paying the farmers to supply ethanol as a measure to use corn...simple enough. All the claims about saving the environment is questionable in my mind.
There is a Shell gas station near me that has a NON-ETHANOL gas pump that I fill my gas cans with. It cost a little bit more, but it's worth it. Ethanol eats Aluminum and Pot Metal that carberators on small engines are made of. I do add Stabilizer to it. Be safe my friends.
If the gov't forces sale of 15% ethanol, it will destroy engines on cars sold before 2012. Both our cars are older and in perfect condition. This information would save us from having to buy new cars. Thank you very much for this. Also, I would never have thought of the clever siphon method. That was a forehead slapper.
@@jimboniface7202 probably not a good idea. Mothballs are made from naphthalene. In liquid form Naphtha, which it becomes when mixed with gasoline, will eventually dissolve most plastics and rubber. If you just touch a primer bulb with naphtha, lacquer thinner, acetone etc, it will instantly dissolve.
Exactly, that is a reason why when I’m cleaning a carburetor or use starting fluid to clean is just as good or good enough for today but it doesn’t on the rubber O-rings and diaphragms. Stinks but it is what it is
One could also run the siphon hose down to the bottom of the bottle and just siphon off the water/ethanol mix. I just buy 91 or 92 octane gas as where I live, there is no ethanol in that grade of gasoline and I only run the high grade in my small engines. It's amazing how many people don't know that one should not run E10 in their small engines. It's especially bad for long term storage as the water in the ethanol can cause rust or oxidation in the metal lines or metal storage thanks ie: Rust.
Great information thank you when I see water in the bottom of my gasoline I usually just stick the hoes all the way in and just life in the water out until a little bit of gas comes with it I like your method to it looks like it worked pretty well thank you very much
Whenever I siphon gas from a car, I put a rag around the hose where it goes into the tank, hold it tight with one hand, and blow into the hose to pressurize the tank enough to force the gas thru the hose. Of course, I take the hose out of my mouth before any gas comes out. Once the gas is flowing, you can remove the rag from around the hose..
You can't even get the 10 cents for the bottles in my state so if you have some tubing around it would be totally free to do it. That looks like the tubing that is used for refrigerator water supply and I already have some of that.
Comment below states: 'Would also strongly suggest using molecular sieves or a drying agent like calcium chloride, because the water still inside the gasoline will do more harm then if you left in the ethanol.' Would that be true? The whole point to me of extracting the ethanol would be to ensure it remains free from moisture in long term storage in bikes as it rusts the tanks and clogs the carbs.
We use to do this when getting fuel from a fuel tank but using only one hose. You seal off the opening to get gas tank filler tube with a damp cloth. Blow into the hose until the tank cannot take any more air. The gasoline will come flowing out.
Thanks for showing how to intentionally cause “phasing” of ethanolized fuel. Many little engine will love you! You have no idea of how many boats across the country are “harbor queens” (non operating) because of E10 fuel. Carbs and fuel pumps killed, vapor separators eaten(fuel injection) fuel tanks dangerously compromised. Great money if your a boat mechanic because you know exactly what to look at and it will happen again unless you run it often and keep the fuel fresh.
Good tutorial on how to remove ethanol from gasoline. If you said it I miss it what is the formula to make 5 gallons. Thank you for posting this. Later
So far, out of all the ethanol videos I've seen on UA-cam, yours is the best approach to remove the ethanol from gas. A Big thanks!
not really... i wouldnt let gas sit in soda pop bottles over night... gasoline has a nasty habit of eating certain type of plastics... and ethanol will eat rubbers as well... this should be done in Glass... theres a video of a guy using actual Chemistry beakers separation funnels and what not to do this... much better video... not to mention gas starts eating the plastics immediately so who knows how contaminated your fuel now is with plasics...
i don't want corn syrup in my gas
@@theorenhobart and plastic juice is just as bad... use glass or designated petroleum safe containers...
You can also freeze the water/alcohol mixture so it is a chunk of ice, then just pour the gasoline our.
So, the Ethanol doesn't act as an anti-freeze? Then, that's genius.
My freezer won't hold a 5 gal. gas can. It will if i move things around, but my wife won't budge!
@@johnnellis3025 🤣🤣🤣
That's how they make applejack. They keep pulling the ice out and the remaining liquid gets more concentrated.
I think it does, but I'm not sure how much the freeze point will drop. Adding more water per volume of ethanol will raise it some
Just a little thought and common sense goes a long way Isaac!! I've been struggling a few years to make non-ethanol gas for my small motors, without making a mess, and this helped tremendously. Thank you and God bless.
Good to hear!
Are there any significant octane issues with the ethanol removed?🙏🔑✌️
@@doktorhunggari4415 The alcohol is more than a 'cereal filler' and corrosive additive. Alcohol is both an oxygenator AND an octane booster. In a high compression engine with a simple ignition system you will likely have detonation and that detonation will destroy your engine.
MTBE (Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether) was removed from gasoline and replaced with methanol because it was contaminating the ground water from leaking rusted ground storage tanks under service stations.
Even the REC90 non ethanol gasoline is not the same Ethyl gasoline that Isaac was used to...
@@benhasselbring1205 So water is actually heavier than gasoline and is why it sets at the bottom?
I am using e85 e10 mixtures to keep oil clean and exhaust clean. I have lung problems. 20 years of successful motoring!
As a college automotive instructor I teach how to use the separation process to help drivability issues to determine if the wrong fuel is being used. Great video, thanks
please, could you explain this or direct me to another resource? also, do you then extract the alcohol from the water?
DON'T GET CAUGHT: big Petro will use you & the children for fertilizer for their mom food grade : ethanol greedery ¢¢¢¢_$$$$$💸💸💸💸 but if you tell em how to reverse the process: you'll be famous , ( if they forget the second process,? ☮️
Maybe you can show these guys how to demulsify the water and then a basic alcohol distillation to remove the ethanol from the water 🏆
@@jaewok5G you can freeze the mix. The alcohol won’t freeze if you don’t get temperature much less than 32 degrees.
This system seems easier and cleaner than the "drain the water from the bottom" system.
Good video. Well done.👍
Thank you.
All, keep in mind, if you remove the ethanol, and you have a motor that requires, or is sensitive to a minimum octane number(ie a car, motorcycle or some higher end lawn equipment etc..), you must add another octane modifier such as Toluene/Methylbenzene or Methyl alcohol to bring the octane number back up. Ethanol besides used as a fuel "filler" is also used as a cheaper alternative octane booster by petrol/gas blenders. Instead of a stuck carb, bloated seals or clogged fuel injector, you might have pinging detenation or pistons that want to escape the engine block.
I'd rather have ethanol for the octane than breath extremely toxic aromatics.
You should use a higher octane fuel, such as 91.
#TRUTH
so buy 94 and maybe get 91 ? seems good to me
I would do this with high-octane premium gas and hope the finished product is acceptable.
You can buy octane boosters. I wonder what's in them - anybody know?
At 2:42 Please don't pour gasoline or any flammable liquid inside your house or garage. If it catches fire you will lose your house. Go outside and pour it far enough away so you can walk away if it goes bad, and you won't have to fight a burning gas can. Thanks for the information on removing ethanol.
You may be very nervous pouring that gasoline in your garage into a small bottle with a cherry can. In my neck of the woods here in Wisconsin, all gasoline containers have to be painted red. I guess you don’t have to do that where you live. I’m not sure this whole process is really worth it because of the loss of theoctane in this gasoline that you’re going to process and also handling gasoline is careful as you can be, is still super dangerous. I’d rather pay a little bit more, though. I don’t think I’ll live another 77 years no matter how safe I am.
Its a shame we have to remove that mess at all....But since we have to/or should..Your way is simple,logical and effective..Thank You for your post.
It's a crying shame that the government has to stick their stinkin nose in every thing we do. We know that they are all that smart. Look how much they messed up with covid.
Your views for this video is likely to vastly increase very soon!
We in UK have recently been informed that possibly 600,000 older cars will struggle to run well on the new E10 petrol (gasoline) that is being enforced on us from September 2021.
Many of us are ill-prepared, I for one am not very chemically minded.
Finding your video very simply explaining the process of extracting ethanol from petrol is so satisfying - very kind of you, thankyou!
In the UK, all 97 octane fuel will remain at
@@rayperkins6006 Many thanks for your comment.
According to how I read this, though, London will only have E10 by the end of 2021.
Confusingly, the article suggests, while the pump will by outputting E10, the fuel station could continue to advertise that fuel as their standard current unleaded
www.mylondon.news/news/zone-1-news/e10-petrol-petrol-londons-garages-20876963
@@RiverMerseythe filling station will have to mark the E rating of the fuel on the pump (E5 or E10).
@@rayperkins6006 thankyou from me and my old landrover.
And what about my bike! It's a disgrace....
Thank you. Excellent demonstration! Simple but scalable.
enjoyed this, we used to us a 20ltr clear container with a tap on the bottom on building sites to clean out water from cement mixers and other petrol/gasoline-powered tools,i would put some drops of food colouring in the water so you can see what you are removing easer.
Very well presented and easy to see the process you must be a teacher of very high levels of knowledge
Well done to you
I think the thinner the bottle, the more precise it is to remove the gasoline and with less loss. So after doing this process with a large amount in a wide large bottle you can put the rest that is difficult to separate in a very narrow bottle. In a narrow bottle, fluid levels will be higher.
Great idea, Ed!
I was more thinking of leaving a larger margin between the water level and the gasoline to avoid getting any water. Yes, you would have more gasoline at the end not drained but you put it aside. The next time you need a batch, get it and use the mostly water and some gasoline in the next extraction, separation. When you have too much water, you just push the tube to the bottom and syphon off most of the water and start all over.
Thank you. That was simple, effective and informative.
you can also put your finger over the second hole in the cap and squeeze the bottle to prime the siphon much safer too
Instructions unclear, sprayed fuel all over my nice shirt. /s
@@btwbrand Recommend not smoking.
Man....that is awesome! What a great video....the voice of experience shows how to get it done right with no mess and no gasoline hangover!
Good, very helpful video. Here in UK we've just gone from 5% to 10% ethanol, so thank you for showing us this practical solution.
USA has been running om 10 for a long time. But now aparently..apparently... we are gonna go to 15...
The more ethanol the more problems you will have with your car. My SUV was getting 18.5 mpg. Now since they been messing with ethanol it's getting 16.4mpg
@@marty64thorntonPartially False. Ethanol doesn't hurt anything as long as the gasoline is getting used within 60 days. The lower BTU is why mileage is lower, otherwise the Ethanol has much better octane than gasoline to prevent detonation and also lowers intake air temps in port injected motors.
I recall as a kid we had some very fine metal gauze that would pass petrol, but not water. Set in a funnel it would clean petrol.
You can also spray a coffee filter with silicone water proofing spray such as that which is used on tents.
The water will not pass through but the petrol will, or vica versa
Yup... mr funnel.... steves small engine repair also did a video on it
ua-cam.com/video/p1aJoohWNms/v-deo.html
Thank you for taking the time to make this video, very informative 👍
If you open it upside down you will also have air bubbles bubbling back up through the bottle which will mix the liquids up again.
I have looked at several methods for doing this and yours is, by far, the most creative. Thank you! I will use this method with gallon glass jars, non-alcohol octane booster, a little sta-bil and with or without 2-cycle engine oil depending upon end use. Great video!
Can you tell me what non-alcohol octane booster you would use....I need to have an octane rating of about 91. Also, how much water will you used in each gallon glass jar to mix with fuel? I assume you are starting with 10% ethanol. thanks.
Probably best to add the two cycle oil after finishing the ethanol removal procedure.
Thank you Ben. The two observations I have.. 1. We will be paying government for unwanted ethanol. Either 5% or 10% depending on if fuel is E5 or E10. More importantly, you didn't mention, when the ethinol is remove from the petrol, the octain rating is drastically reduced, and may cause 'knocking'. Can we measure the resulting octain to calculate booster additive.
99 esso fuel has no ethanol, so what gives 99 its high performance label ... do the refinery’s add some sort of Octane booster ?
He did say that the gas is being used for a chainsaw. Small engines don't need high octane ratings but will benefit greatly from ethanol free gas since it won't cause desegregation or oxidation from the ethanol trapping eater moisture
@@nativecowboy1_3cowboys_wer84 Sthil recommends 89 or higher octane in chainsaws. Removing ethanol brings it down to about 85. Gotta be careful with the crappy octane boosters because they are often made of ethanol. Most won't say what the contents are.
@@grizzkid795 you could start with premium 93 octane, no?
Yes, giod point. After some research, I found that the ethanol adds about two numbers to the octane, so if you used 93 it would drop to about 91 after ethanol removal. They use other chemicals like benzine to get the octane levels up to premium level because they don't want to put more than 10% ethanol in most gas, at least until all the vehicles can handle it.
Thanks Ben! Isaac uses his brain and some basic chemistry and ingenuity to solve a common problem with modern ethanol infused (fouled) gasoline. Clean out that ethanol for the engines and tubing that can't handle the alcohol!
The problem with ethanol is not the ethanol it is the people who have small engines and don’t maintain them properly. Never let gas sit in a container with open top, shut the gas valve to carburetor off and run engine til it’s dies (install a shut off valve if it doesn’t have one) and remove gas from tank. This only needs to be done if your not using motor for 3 months or so. Modern engines are designed to run on ethanol fuel. My Sthil MS-261C chainsaw is designed to run on 25% ethanol.
Thank you for the tip! I need larger quantities to run an early 60s carburated vehicle. How much water do you need to add in that big water container to be able to repeat the process on a larger scale?
Thank you, this was a great solution to getting the gasoline out with out the need to invert the bottle and taste fuel with the old method of siphoning.
Good to hear!
@@benhasselbring1205
Hello Ben,
I gave it some thought and I used some food coloring mentioned on other channels to make the water and ethanol more visible.
I then inserted the ethylene tubing all the way to the bottom corner of the container and siphoned off the water ethanol solution at the bottom. It worked great the first time and hopefully all the times to come. I also used a needle pin for inflation of basket balls or footballs to pressurize the container with a small bicycle pump to prime the siphon and installed a fuel shut off valve at the end of some vinyl tubing to control the flow of the water ethanol solution and gasoline. I'm able to let the ethanol water sink to the bottom of the clear vinyl tubing and then with minimal gasoline waste flow the gasoline back to the container. Thank you for the basics which I was able to extrapolate my extraction system, I'm sure my snow blowers will be happier and work better in the Chicago snow storms. Thank you sir and Merry Christmas with hopes for a better 2021.
@@rayhoffelt Its great to hear that everything has worked out for you and you have made the most out of the system. We are very glad we could be a source of inspiration. Thanks for watching, best wishes, and merry Christmas!
You can get a fluid transfer pump from harbor freight for like $10, I believe it screws onto larger bottles with matching threads, could be worth it for large quantities. Great video!
Thank you. This, i believe, is the best system for me to remove ethanol and water from my gas for my small engines.
All the simple solutions are the best. Thank you for an excellent video. Very useful! My only amendment would be to do this well away from buildings/vehicles. Thanks from the UK
This works well. What I have done in the past get one of those lemonade dispensers with the spigot at the bottom. Dump the gas and water in there and let it settle. Then turn the spigot on until all the gas is out. Of course, you have to do some math so that the water is always below your spigot. My math minor finally paid off!
you mean tun the spigot on until all the water is out right?
Thank you, I was about ready to give up on my 2 stroke engines for good. Replacing fuel lines and carb rebuilds too often now with all this ethanol in our fuel. Can't wait to give this a try.
You'll still be rebuilding, but not as often. It's the benzene in the fuel that beats up carbs - this method does not get rid of it. Engineered parrafin fuels are the only sure bet.
I remember my father telling me about a way to remove water from gasoline. Back in the 1950s the only way to transport fuel for tractors was with steel drums and a hand pump. Any humidity in the air would eventually condense and build up inside the drums. They used an old felt hat in a funnel and pumped the gas through it while filling the tractors. The gasoline would run through the felt but the water was held back. Surface tension? Not sure how it works, but apparently it did work. May be something that could be incorporated in a larger volume ethanol removal apparatus. Good video
I really appreciate this and can't wait to implement the valuable knowledge you have passed on to us. Thanks!
Your process is identical to what a wine maker would called "racking" - The only difference is that you're pulling the floating gasoline off the water, where the winemaker is trying to pull the wine off the sludge of dead yeast and assorted "ick" that sediments out during fermentation. the "turn the bottle over and loosen the cap to let the water run out" method you described is the same as a chemist's separatory funnel, and works incredibly well, and with zero spillage when you've got things set up properly. Nice demonstration.
Brilliant idea to BLOW to start the syphon. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks so much! I see no reason why this same transfer method wouldn’t work to delete water from old fuel, with or without ethanol. Water always settles to the bottom and your easy siphoning method will do the trick.
One thing I would improve upon is the soda bottles. I’ve been using 2 quart rectangular plastic fruit juice bottles from Langers for other purposes which are a thicker plastic and have a larger cap.
Can use food colouring to see the water/fuel boundary
True. Especially useful with clear or light-colored gas.
Great explanation and Demonstration!
Very simply and very accurate systen .
Many thanks
Good man. Having watched several videos on this topic, i am going to create one for this very purpose. Take a 20 litre water bottle, and install a valve/petcock on the very bottom, on the bottom rib, furthest lowest point on it. (drain off crap, and water). Make several horizontal lines, around the bottom, outside, 1 cm apart, for 3 inches. Then, am going to go ' gas cleaning ' removing ethanol, and using THAT, as a cleaner in a spray bottle. Good luck, all !
Great detailed video - never thought of blowing in the bottle to start the siphoning.
I remember as a kid I use to have a neighbor who would often need gas for some reason or another. He would often syphon gas out of his truck tank. What he would do is put the syphon hose into the trucks gas tank, then he would put his hand over the opening of the gas tank around the hose. Then he would blow into the hose building up air pressure in the trucks gas tank. After building up some pressure he would put the end of his syphon hose into his gas container and the gas would come out with no need to suck in and gas
just need a drain on the bottom of the tank/bottle and let it sit and then drain the water out
If you're going to extract the ethanol, which I don't recommend, you should wash the gas at least a couple of times in your separatory funnel, then dry the gas through a buchner funnel loaded with granular anhydrous sodium sulfate. Taking the ethanol out reduces the octane rating by about 4 points for E10 gas. The added cost of using a quality octane booster adds a significant amount to your fuel price.
But I bet it's cheaper than buying a new 2-stroke generator after the alcohol did its trick to the carburetor. We had no power for 12 hours today, so I fired up my generator (free from a neighbor years ago, no manual included). It ran about 20 minutes, then died. A friend found a manual for it online. Turns out the manual warns strongly against gas containing ethanol, as it wrecks the carburetor. I'd just bought high-octane gas and mixed in the 2-stroke oil, but it looks like the ethanol may be the culprit.
@@scottk3292 why would you buy high octane gas, do you know what higher octane means ??
That’s why you start with 91 or 93 octane first.
That depends on if you're buying 26 gallon octane booster for $10 a bottle or buying it for about $5 elsewhere.
It will be cheaper than buying a tank of non-ethanol at an increased price or paying for a higher octane rating.
@@TheGuyThatWondersWhyit's more expensive to buy high octane fuel and way cheaper to buy a $5 bottle to treat 21 or 26 gallons.
Remove the ethanol first and then add the octane booster.
Sucks this is your only video.. i enjoyed listening to you. And I imagine from what I see of your garage you could provide a wealth of knowledge.. please consider doing more how to vids.
What in his garage is making you think that. If you saw my garage you would think I’m a hundred wealths of knowledge,but I’m probably not. Sorry man. Just joking.
Hi great video, but surely you have now removed some of the explosive power of the petrol?
So will it now ignite as good in the engine or will an additional additive have to be used?
Thanks Nigel. Uk.
Very well explained Sir, thank you.
Love it! So simple and practical!!
Thank you for this technique. Now i know another way to siphon gas from my equipment at the end of the season without risking that sip of gasoline!
Great job 👍can the water mix be used for anything after extraction
Why not push the tube to the bottom and syphon out the water until the fuel comes out of the tube?
Great idea! Thank you for giving us the informaiton. Fantastic.
Thanks for sharing this information. I was wondering if any octane reduction may result in this process? I saw someone else do this procedure an they mentioned adding an octane booster.
Thanks again,you earn my subscription!
Damn, I never comment on ideas, but this one deserves a mention.
You can add a pinch of salt to the water to shift the equilibrium more to the side of the water. Would also strongly suggest using molecular sieves or a drying agent like calcium chloride, because the water still inside the gasoline will do more harm then if you left in the ethanol.
You need to make a video to explain this in more detail please. I was going to use this method to extract ethanol because I want to keep moisture out of the gas/petrol for long term motorbike storage, but if, as you say, water will contaminate the fuel then it is pointless.
So will this process not completely separate the water/fuel? I'm planning on doing this to remove the ethanol to be used in a 2-stroke outboard engine. There is an onboard fuel-water seperator , so if all the ethanol had been extracted but there is a small amount of water , I would assume the seperator will then be able to remove it before it reaches the engine. Yamaha reccomend 86 octane fuel , I'm planning on using 95 octane E5 , removing the ethanol should result in a loss of 2 octane. 2 stroke oil also reduces the octane rating of fuel so estimating it'll reduce it further down to 89. My question is what percentage of water would you say is left in the fuel after this process?
Calcium chloride is incredibly corrosive.
@@ocarroll3578 It's true that some water will be left behind in the gas because the gas will dissolve a very small amount of water. But I have a hard time believing that the amount of water left in the gas is a significant problem. Gas naturally absorbs water vapor from the air anyways, so you never really have completely dry gas unless your working under strict laboratory conditions. I'm no chemist, but I would think that gasoline left in contact with the atmosphere probably becomes saturated with water (to the same degree as following the procedure in this video) pretty quickly. In any case, if you're really worried about the water content, you can put a little bit of drying agent like sodium sulphate powder in the final ethanol-free gas, shake it around, and then pour the dehydrated gas off into another container leaving the drying agent behind.
Very well explained. Thank you and well done.
A great video young man. Thanks.
Excellent video thanks from London England 👍🏴
Ethanol free gas is WAY better for classic cars i highly recommend using it. Old carburetors and fuel injectors weren’t designed to run on ethanol, double that effect when it’s something you only drive in the summer since the ethanol will degrade and absorb water in your beautiful classic car’s gas tank
Great concept...... like the small bottle idea....THANKS..
2 things to note:
1. You may need to add some sort of octane booster since the ethanol upped the octane levels. So your 92 octane gas turned into 85 or 87.
2. Your torque wrench needs to be recalibrated. Since you left it set to a torque value, the spring has permanently changed and thus your torque readings will be off.
A little Marvel Mystery in the Oil (MMO) in the gas negates the ethanol and gives extra power via oil. Lubricates the top end while running also. Here in Florida with the heat and humidity its a must.
Excellent demo
Would one of those water separator filter funnels be the way to go...??
Very informative and interesting mate. 👍
Good video. Just a tip, though. For T.V. demonstrations, it saves time to have all your ingredients, equipment ,etc on the bench before you start.
Yup definitely not one we prepared earlier going on here..
My solution to bad gasoline, leaking carburetor gaskets and risk of engine fire, was convert to propane. Solved it. By the way on the farm gasoline that was in tanks for extended time lost its volatility. The mechanic finally looked to the fuel as a potential problem and put a match to an open bowl test and could not get it to ignite. So the modern fuels have some infused fuel that volitize destroying combustion.
Fantastic explanation thank you so much 🤔🙋
Nice video Ben I learned something new
So, what do you do with the ethanol water mix left over from this process?
Make gravy
You should have mentioned that taking the ethanol out will reduce the octane level of the gas. Chainsaws should have 91+ octane. Octane boosters often have ethanol in them, so you have to be careful what you use to boost it back up.
Best tip for separating ethanol, great! Thanks for posting!
Fantastic siphoning technique- thank you!
AS a kid in Oklahoma, we used to get Drip gas from pipe line condensate traps. this would have water in it. Would pour it through a felt hat when filling cans, which filtered the water.
Excellent Video, well done!
Thank you, the simplest example yet
Most practical video I've seen explaining how to do this. Thanks.
Love this! Thanks! I can almost smell the gas fumes in your workshop 🤣 just like mine!
Someone told me that the leftover gas after this process is very low octane... Like 50 or so. The ethanol raises the octane rating, and the base gasoline is low quality. Do you know if that's true? 🤷♂️
It depends on the amount of ethanol used in the start. As an example common 87 with 10% ethanol you will drop 2 points to 85. The higher the blend of ethanol the more the drop. Ethanol is high in octane and fuel suppliers figure that in to the overall octane of the finished fuel blend. We are paying the farmers to supply ethanol as a measure to use corn...simple enough. All the claims about saving the environment is questionable in my mind.
Thank you very much, amazing video!
There is a Shell gas station near me that has a NON-ETHANOL gas pump that I fill my gas cans with. It cost a little bit more, but it's worth it. Ethanol eats Aluminum and Pot Metal that carberators on small engines are made of. I do add Stabilizer to it. Be safe my friends.
If you are in Canada, Shell no longer carries Ethanol free. despite this some of their pumps stil say Ehhanol free.
Not any more! You can thank the dumbass politicians that Ethanol-free is illegal now.
I have never experienced problems with E85 in TWENTY years. MOST of what you say just does not add up.
If the gov't forces sale of 15% ethanol, it will destroy engines on cars sold before 2012. Both our cars are older and in perfect condition. This information would save us from having to buy new cars. Thank you very much for this. Also, I would never have thought of the clever siphon method. That was a forehead slapper.
Excellent tutorial!
Brilliant, you can buy an octane enhancer additive, to replace the drop
moth balls according to mythbusters
@@jimboniface7202 probably not a good idea. Mothballs are made from naphthalene. In liquid form Naphtha, which it becomes when mixed with gasoline, will eventually dissolve most plastics and rubber. If you just touch a primer bulb with naphtha, lacquer thinner, acetone etc, it will instantly dissolve.
Exactly, that is a reason why when I’m cleaning a carburetor or use starting fluid to clean is just as good or good enough for today but it doesn’t on the rubber O-rings and diaphragms. Stinks but it is what it is
Make sure any bottles you use are HDPE or gasoline will deteriorate the lining of them and they will leak over time.
One could also run the siphon hose down to the bottom of the bottle and just siphon off the water/ethanol mix. I just buy 91 or 92 octane gas as where I live, there is no ethanol in that grade of gasoline and I only run the high grade in my small engines. It's amazing how many people don't know that one should not run E10 in their small engines. It's especially bad for long term storage as the water in the ethanol can cause rust or oxidation in the metal lines or metal storage thanks ie: Rust.
Good video. I learned some things
Great information thank you when I see water in the bottom of my gasoline I usually just stick the hoes all the way in and just life in the water out until a little bit of gas comes with it I like your method to it looks like it worked pretty well thank you very much
The separation would be a lot easier by using a separation funnel. The can be had on auction sites for cheap.
And I have been "taking a sip" of gasoline my whole life, Thank you for the video.
Me to, then I dot clear hose!
Whenever I siphon gas from a car, I put a rag around the hose where it goes into the tank, hold it tight with one hand, and blow into the hose to pressurize the tank enough to force the gas thru the hose. Of course, I take the hose out of my mouth before any gas comes out. Once the gas is flowing, you can remove the rag from around the hose..
Why is the jerry can and the spout new? Haven't you done much of this?
What ratio of water to gasoline do we add water to achieve that ratio?
Any special uses for the remaining leftover ethanol water mixture?
You can't even get the 10 cents for the bottles in my state so if you have some tubing around it would be totally free to do it. That looks like the tubing that is used for refrigerator water supply and I already have some of that.
Just wondering, what to do with the water/ethanol?
Comment below states: 'Would also strongly suggest using molecular sieves or a drying agent like calcium chloride, because the water still inside the gasoline will do more harm then if you left in the ethanol.' Would that be true? The whole point to me of extracting the ethanol would be to ensure it remains free from moisture in long term storage in bikes as it rusts the tanks and clogs the carbs.
We use to do this when getting fuel from a fuel tank but using only one hose. You seal off the opening to get gas tank filler tube with a damp cloth. Blow into the hose until the tank cannot take any more air. The gasoline will come flowing out.
Is there a ratio of alcohol , water and gasoline?
Thanks for showing how to intentionally cause “phasing” of ethanolized fuel. Many little engine will love you!
You have no idea of how many boats across the country are “harbor queens” (non operating) because of E10 fuel. Carbs and fuel pumps killed, vapor separators eaten(fuel injection) fuel tanks dangerously compromised. Great money if your a boat mechanic because you know exactly what to look at and it will happen again unless you run it often and keep the fuel fresh.
Aviation fuel works on boats, yo.
You can add some food coloring to the water, your choice of color, makes it a lot easier to see.
Good tutorial on how to remove ethanol from gasoline. If you said it I miss it what is the formula to make 5 gallons. Thank you for posting this. Later
Is there an ideal water to fuel ratio when doing this? For example.. you need this much water to clean "X" amounts a fuel?
Deserves Nobel prize !!