80% of the fuel I use is auto fuel so I'm always monkeying with my fuel/alcohol tester.
Put a little water in it.....squeeze a little gas out of the nozzle....usually getting more than just a little and wearing gas.
I like the idea of the food coloring, seems much simpler and cleaner.

You guys are making this a lot harder than it needs to be! Just buy one of these and you will know imediately if there is alcohol and what the percentage is. http://www.aircraftspruce.com/search/se ... l%20tester

Jaerl wrote:You guys are making this a lot harder than it needs to be! Just buy one of these and you will know imediately if there is alcohol and what the percentage is. http://www.aircraftspruce.com/search/se ... l%20tester

How does it work? Looks good, and priced lower than food color?

Add water an shake then read alc percentage

tcraft wrote:Add water an shake then read alc percentage

Nice... Going to get one too. For the boat right now. No STC for MoGas in Scout yet.

8GCBC wrote:

Jaerl wrote:You guys are making this a lot harder than it needs to be! Just buy one of these and you will know imediately if there is alcohol and what the percentage is. http://www.aircraftspruce.com/search/se ... l%20tester

How does it work? Looks good, and priced lower than food color?

Looks like some kind of hydrometer. The little plastic thingy sinks in gas but floats in the alc/water mix that settles at the bottom. Simple.

exodus wrote:

8GCBC wrote:

Jaerl wrote:You guys are making this a lot harder than it needs to be! Just buy one of these and you will know imediately if there is alcohol and what the percentage is. http://www.aircraftspruce.com/search/se ... l%20tester

How does it work? Looks good, and priced lower than food color?

Looks like some kind of hydrometer. The little plastic thingy sinks in gas but floats in the alc/water mix that settles at the bottom. Simple.

It looks to me like it is nothing more than a regular fuel tester with equal graduations so you can read it as percent. I think you still need to add water to the bottom line first.

Jaerl wrote:You guys are making this a lot harder than it needs to be! Just buy one of these and you will know imediately if there is alcohol and what the percentage is. http://www.aircraftspruce.com/search/se ... l%20tester

It looks like rocket science

Terry wrote:80% of the fuel I use is auto fuel so I'm always monkeying with my fuel/alcohol tester.
Put a little water in it.....squeeze a little gas out of the nozzle....usually getting more than just a little and wearing gas.
I like the idea of the food coloring, seems much simpler and cleaner.

You might try getting one of those cheepo siphons with a sqeeze hand pump. Fill the gas can then siphon to your tester. Probably less messy. Worst case, you'll have to burn the gas in your rig instead but if the place you buy has been clean so far your chances are good its good.

You just add water to a line on the body. Then fill to another line with gas. Put your thumb over the end and shake. Then read the Percentage of alcohol on the scale. It's readable immediately. Its also a screw driver and a regular old fuel tester too. Only bad thing is the pin that goes in your sumps is plastic and not metal. Works great for everything.

Jaerl wrote:You just add water to a line on the body. Then fill to another line with gas. Put your thumb over the end and shake. Then read the Percentage of alcohol on the scale. It's readable immediately. Its also a screw driver and a regular old fuel tester too. Only bad thing is the pin that goes in your sumps is plastic and not metal. Works great for everything.

Thats all the same monkey motion the food coloring system eliminates. I'v been using the water method but am going to convert to food coloring.

Food coloring and gas or water and gas? Both do the same thing. You guys do what you want but these testers take maybe 10-20 seconds to use. You need a sump checker in your plane anyway and I always carry water in my plane so I already have everything I need. Seemed like a good idea to me.

It's the way its always been done...pretty easy. Its just using the idea that [V1(water) +V2(alcohol)]<<(V1+V2).

Jaerl wrote:Food coloring and gas or water and gas? Both do the same thing. You guys do what you want but these testers take maybe 10-20 seconds to use. You need a sump checker in your plane anyway and I always carry water in my plane so I already have everything I need. Seemed like a good idea to me.

I use the same tester that you posted. I have a 50 gal tank in my pickup, so the alcohol test happens at the gas station. Sometimes water is not easily available.
That little tester needs to be held in one hand while trying to get somewhat close to the right amount of gas from the pump nozzle. The 1/2 ounce of gas you are trying to get usually ends up being a cup full, with gas running down your arm.
The tester works and it's not really that big of a deal to get it done.

If the food coloring works, just about any container that won't tip over would work.
And you won't smell like gas the rest of the day.

The only time I test it is after it is already in the cans. I only buy clear gas and the test is only to confirm it. Not a lot of stations around here sell straight fuel so they know exactly what I am after. Never had them lie to me yet about ethanol.

By the way, you don't need to buy this tester. Just put a line on any transparent container and fill it to the line with water. If the water level goes up after putting in the gas, there is alcohol of some kind in it. It is really obvious.

Glidergeek wrote:

Jaerl wrote:You guys are making this a lot harder than it needs to be! Just buy one of these and you will know imediately if there is alcohol and what the percentage is. http://www.aircraftspruce.com/search/se ... l%20tester

It looks like rocket science

It certainly is, and it's fun discussing things to death Actually for our purposes who gives a rats ass how much alcohol is in the fuel, we don't want any!! So knowing the percentage is irrelevant. All that's needed is a small test tube and a cork. Prefill it with a bit of food coloring to a marked line, so it's ready when your at the pumps. If the dyed volume does not rise above the line, it's good. If it disperses into a higher volume then alc is present, Save the rest of the dispensed sample from the pump for the lawn mower and find another station. If your real cheap use left over water from cooked beats or red wine.
PS Red wine make a great acid /base tester too. turns blue in an alkaline solution.

All good points the point of food coloring is that no matter what you do in good gas it will not mix or change color no matter what you do I shook it to death an alc free gas would not take in food coloring.

Tried the food coloring test today on known 91 Oct (ethanol free) and known 87 Oct gasoline with Alcohol..works just as stated in this thread. No contamination on the 91Oct after shaking, with the 87 Oct turns the jar the color of the food coloring. I can furnish pictures of the test but I believe the former test and pictures.
HC

[quote="exodus"]..... All that's needed is a small test tube and a cork. Prefill it with a bit of food coloring to a marked line, so it's ready when your at the pumps. If the dyed volume does not rise above the line, it's good. If it disperses into a higher volume then alc is present, ....If your real cheap use left over water from cooked beats or red wine.........[quote]

This sounds like you're doing the water test, but with food coloring (or beet juice) to make it easier to see. Might as well just use water. The attraction of the food coloring test seems to me to be that no measuring etc is required-- just add a drop or two of food coloring and shake.
I do the water test now on all the alleged E-zero I buy. So far it has always proved out OK. I use an old glass prescription pill bottle with some hand-drawn lines.... lots cheaper than a $15 "fuel tester".

I always thought red wine had alcohol in it.