My dad was in McCall a few days ago. He said the Maverick gas station has a sign proclaiming that their gasoline doesn't contain ethanol. I don't know if that will help anyone, because it's about 3/4 of a mile into town to the gas station from the airport. It helps me though, because I have an aunt that lives in McCall who will happily ferry a few 5 gallon cans for me. So, I really told you all that to tell you this: Yay!

There's a gas station/market on the corner of Sunnyslope Rd and Apricot Ln (Hwy 55 just north of Marsing, Idaho) that is advertizing "Ethanol Free Gas". Within a 30 minute drive from Caldwell/Nampa airports.

As a wannabe Idahoan, I'm curious. I know ID is an aviation friendly state but do they advertise ethanol-free gas to attract pilots or to piss off tree huggers?

pa150 wrote:As a wannabe Idahoan, I'm curious. I know ID is an aviation friendly state but do they advertise ethanol-free gas to attract pilots or to piss off tree huggers?

Maybe both . But there's also alot of boaters, ATVers, dirt bikers and a lot of old cars in the state (at least in the Treasure Valley, Boise area). I've only lived in Idaho for 3 years now, so I don't know the whole story.

As a wannabe Idahoan, I'm curious. I know ID is an aviation friendly state but do they advertise ethanol-free gas to attract pilots or to piss off tree huggers?

That's funny, and two sided.

If your flying cross country, is it such a big deal to buy one tank full of 100LL or even the forbidden ethanol blended fuel just to get back home?

On the other side, and I grow corn and sell it to an ethanol plant, How is any one fuel more green or tree friendly than any other?

Bill

Flat Country Pilot wrote:

As a wannabe Idahoan, I'm curious. I know ID is an aviation friendly state but do they advertise ethanol-free gas to attract pilots or to piss off tree huggers?

That's funny, and two sided.

If your flying cross country, is it such a big deal to buy one tank full of 100LL or even the forbidden ethanol blended fuel just to get back home?

On the other side, and I grow corn and sell it to an ethanol plant, How is any one fuel more green or tree friendly than any other?

Bill

Bill,

Yes it's a big deal, and depending on the aircraft, can do serious damage - - even from one filling. I had a Stemme S10-VT, and inadvertantly fueled with ethanol blend (<7%). It turned the fuel tank sloshing compound into jelly and resulted in fouled fuel system and carburetors. In another aircraft, first indication of problems was the fuel cap seals swelling - I drained the tanks.

In my motorhome, 10% blend results in more than a 15% reduction in fuel mileage. Even if you don't consider the rediculous tax payer subsidies to the ethanol program, do the math . . . ethanol makes no sense at all, and worse, does damage. Ethanol, right after health care and Al Gore's garbage, has to be one of the biggest rip-offs in the USA.

Yes it's a big deal, and depending on the aircraft, can do serious damage - - even from one filling. I had a Stemme S10-VT, and inadvertantly fueled with ethanol blend (<7%). It turned the fuel tank sloshing compound into jelly and resulted in fouled fuel system and carburetors. In another aircraft, first indication of problems was the fuel cap seals swelling - I drained the tanks.

In my motorhome, 10% blend results in more than a 15% reduction in fuel mileage. Even if you don't consider the rediculous tax payer subsidies to the ethanol program, do the math . . . ethanol makes no sense at all, and worse, does damage. Ethanol, right after health care and Al Gore's garbage, has to be one of the biggest rip-offs in the USA.

Bumper,

The reason I asked is if anyone is landing at an airstrip that has fuel for airplanes, would it most likely be 100LL? If not, wouldn't it be fuel that is intended for planes, non ethanol blended mogas? If landing on a road near a gas station, I understand not wanting the ethanol. Is it bad to pay twice the price for 100LL a few times a year to get home from a remote location?

Even if you don't consider the rediculous tax payer subsidies

I don't want to mix politics with flying because these threads usually end up in the toilet, good luck with that

I am not in favor of any subsidy for anything, period! That gos for ethanol, the farm bill, health care, Egore, etc.....

In this case, if ethanol is a great product, it should be able to stand on its own in the marketplace. I don't write the rules, just follow them. So as long as the price of corn cash flows a crop, I'll grow it and sell it to the ethanol plant.

Bill

Flat Country Pilot wrote:Is it bad to pay twice the price for 100LL a few times a year to get home from a remote location?

Yes!

Not only that but my Continental O-300 has a couple of cylinders that run cool. It has problems with lead buildup in those cylinders because 100LL contains at least four times as much lead as the engine was designed for. Despite running it as lean as possible to help prevent lead buildup, I still ended up with a damaged valve and a huge repair bill. It's ridiculous to have to pay more for a highly poisonous additive that has been banned from all the other types of fuel that is not needed in that quantity in my engine. It's indefensible that it will damage my engine and might kill me.

In my motorhome, 10% blend results in more than a 15% reduction in fuel mileage.

First of all, I'm using some % of ethanol in every engine I own that uses spark plugs---that means every engine. I just brought 12.4 gallons of E85 home from the closest station(19miles----I carry jugs in the trunk for whenever I know I'll be passing the station) to make a 30% blend in my Mom's Buick LeSabre. I just calculated out the last tank of E30 and it was 26.5 mpg. If Bumpers experience is correct that for every 10% ethanol you lose 15% mileage, then that car would do close to 45 or 50 mpg on straight gas---I don't think so. I just can't figure out what you did to have such poor mileage.

P.S. The winter of 88/89, I ran a Michigan payloader for a friend and the Maverick was one of the lots I cleared snow from. My first airplane trip to McCall was in summer of 1986 and I'll always remember a bumper sticker on a local 65 Dodge pickup----"Wilderness, Land of No Use".

This late in the flying season (my mountain strip gets snowed in, I got another week or so left....) I don't want to fill my 300 gallon bulk tank up again with premium mo-gas as all my rigs except the S-7S use regular. So, for the last couple weeks I've been hauling fuel from the nearest "real" gas station, 15 miles away. On the way there I have to drive right by a ethonal mo gas place, thats only 3 miles from my strip, that is kind of annoying! I burn Av gas when I absolutely have to, but I'd much rather throw some money in the kitty for use of the airport courtesy car, and go get real mo gas, as I did several times this year. I make sure to use a lead scavanger and it seems to be working, judging by my plugs. NO WAY would I use ethonal in the plane.....
I make it clear to our local Chevron distrubutor how much we appreciate him staying ethonal free, and I give him all my business, including diesel for my crane, as a sign of support.

I just flew into McCall today. At least two gas stations were advertising no-ethanol fuel. I bought ten gallons from one of them @ 2.85 per gallon, and it indeed tested negative.