i have just brought a lawnmower that has been sitting in a garage for 9 months , the tank is 3/4 full of petrol, is it safe just to start it with this in or is it best to discard this fuel & put new in, a silly question i know but one person said petrol does go off & may damage the engine. Any help please!
2007-07-11 07:52:04 · 19 answers · asked by only me!! 2 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
Yes it can "go off". No damage likely, just starting difficulty.
If it's been stored in a vented container it will have lost a bit of the most volatile components, and won't vaporise in the cold engine quite as well as fresh. Put some new fuel in for first run and then add the old in several hits. NB after 9 months you might need to clean the carburettor as the fuel in there may well have dried to a gummy residue.
2007-07-11 20:46:57 · answer #1 · answered by The original Peter G 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Does Petrol Go Stale
2017-01-13 06:25:26 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes it does, it was not much of a problem with the old 4 star fuel, however unleaded does go off much quicker. Once the engine has fired up, it will run pretty much the same as fresh fuel,so don't discard the old stuff, mix it with fresh fuel. Drain the old stuff out of the carb' and top up the carb' if possible with fresh fuel and it should start and run near normal. I collect old engines and motorbikes for a hobby and it often happens to me after a winter layoff.
2007-07-11 11:46:11 · answer #3 · answered by wisernow 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes it does go off eventually but it takes quite some time and nine months isn't long enough for any significant degredation to take place.
Top the tank up with some fresh petrol and you should be fine. I wouldn't have any personl worries about doing so.
2007-07-11 07:58:11 · answer #4 · answered by 203 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It shouldn't damage the engine, but it may not work as well.
The more volatile components of petrol evaporate out with time, making the remaining fuel less volatile (harder to ignite), meaning the engine may be harder to start, and may use more fuel than normal, and not burn the fuel as efficiently.
2007-07-11 21:21:31 · answer #5 · answered by Neil 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You should be ok, petrol just normally evapourates, causing condensation in the fuel tank, watering it down, but 9 months is fine, so start up and get mowing that lawn.
2007-07-11 07:56:42 · answer #6 · answered by Simon H 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
through fact petrol caps presently at the instant are not vented. through fact the petrol in the tank is going down then the air stress above it falls and you get a partial vacuum. As you're commencing off the cap the air exterior the tank rushes into the tank to equalise the stress.
2016-12-14 05:52:58 · answer #7 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Eventually. Our lawnmower sits in the shed for months at a time and still goes for the two dry weeks of the year.
2007-07-11 08:03:20 · answer #8 · answered by Fourcandles 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
petrol does go stale after a while but it wont damage the engine itll just run like a bag of spanners for a while!
2007-07-11 08:13:20 · answer #9 · answered by vdv_desantnik 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Petrol does go off. It won't damage the engine because it won't start!
Buy a new gallon. Go on, you can afford £4.50 ;-)
2007-07-11 07:59:57 · answer #10 · answered by ? 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋