Fuel Questions

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Ferdinand910

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8
So I recently fixed the stripped clutch bell in my Savage XL and while I was doing a little bit of cleaning, some water has entered the gas tank. It wasnt a lot just enough to leave some droplets and a tiny pool in one corner if you tip the tank, I was able to get most of it out except for these small droplets. Is it safe to add fuel to the tank and run the truck?

Also, how long can nitrous fuel be good for? I have a smaller bottle of Backyard Basher I bought a year ago thats about half full and I have a jug of Blue Thunder that is at least 4 years old. Does nitrous fuel have a "life span" or can I just dump it into the truck and burn it?
 
You can store fuel safely for a couple of years as long as it is in a COOL Dry place and not sat on a concrete floor, Nitro fuel is Hygroscopic and will actually pull moisture right thru a container so storage is subjective to say the least....

You can tell by smell if it has evaporated the alcohol in it and is unusable in most cases... if in doubt I would say to get rid of it and start with known good fuel.....
 
If you have the space to store it, old fuel is good for cleaning air filters and whatnot.

As for the water in the tank, I'd do what @SavageDarwin suggests, then not worry much about it. Water mixes in with methanol, so it's not like water and gas. With pump gas, water will clog filters that gas needs to run through.

I think it's the methanol in the fuel that makes it absorb water. That's why when you store it, you want to squeeze as much air out of the bottle as you can without deforming the cap so it seals. It pulls the moisture out of the air.
 
You can store fuel safely for a couple of years as long as it is in a COOL Dry place and not sat on a concrete floor, Nitro fuel is Hygroscopic and will actually pull moisture right thru a container so storage is subjective to say the least....

You can tell by smell if it has evaporated the alcohol in it and is unusable in most cases... if in doubt I would say to get rid of it and start with known good fuel.....

How can it draw moisture though a sealed container?
 
Condensation that forms on the inside of storage containers is caused by water vapor in the air that is trapped within the container when it is sealed. ... When a container is placed in a refrigerator, it begins to cool from the outside to the interior, making the inside surface of the container the coldest surface.

The same thing happens to the fuel we use, that is why storing in a cool dark place away from light sources is important... not only condensation but moisture will actually leach right thru some containers.....
 
It will get through any non sealed places in the container but not through the container material its self.



Not necessarily so, plastic is porous and will actually allow microscopic moisture thru the actual container itself....
as I said metal containers are better at keeping moisture at bay and keeping fuels fresher, I squeeze my plastic fuel containers of as much air as I can before putting in the plug and lid onto them then store them is a cool dark place, so far in all my many years of fooling with nitro fueled R/C cars I have been lucky enough to usually have fresh fuel to burn....


A hygroscopic substance is one that readily attracts water from its surroundings, through either absorption or adsorption. Examples include honey, glycerin, ethanol, methanol, concentrated sulfuric acid, and concentrated sodium hydroxide (lye).
 
There is no magic number of years for experation.

No personally i hate blue thunder. I think its trash new and 4yrs old. Why take a chance a new gallon is $30. Apparantly it will last uou a while.
 
How many years do you think it would take to ruin a quart of fuel from microscopic moisture?


Seems at this point in the conversation you just wish to be argumentative, it really does not matter how long it may take, just that it is possible for fuel to be contaminated even in the original container, Point is to take precautions and try to keep the fuel from going bad, the cost of it alone makes that a smart move to me......
 
I've had an unopened gallon and 1/2 gallon in plastic jugs on my shelf in my office for a couple years. I ran nitro two or three times last year out of the half full jug after it sat for well over a year without any headache. It probably wouldn't last as long if you had it in an unheated garage or something. My house is always around 70F and I never take the gallon jugs out of the house. I just fill up a couple 500cc pit bottles when I go bash. Usually by the time I'm through 1000cc's, I'm tired of standing in the sun. :)
 

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