Is fuel still good after sitting in a seald drum over the winter?
 

I just emptied my tanks (130 gallons of 93 E10 pump gas with marine STA-BIL) into two 55 gallon drums. I also added some red STA-BIl to the mixture. With the fuel being in a sealed steel drum, will it be ok to run in the boat next year?

Phase separation , I wouldnt trust it , I would burn it up in a vehicle .

agreed - non ethanol gas would be ok.

Sta-bil works by floating on top of the fuel and denying it the interchange with air.

It does nothing to stop ethanol separation.

siphon into your car after mixing it up with a stick or broom handle.

Uncle Dave

I wouldn't chance it in a twin turbo motor BUT for the posters, remember "phase separation" happens when the alcohol attracts MOISTURE and its not going to in a sealed drum. I filled a 55 gallon drum up with E-85 last October (2011) ,used 4 gallons of it on the dyno on a street car project and the 50 remaining gallons has sat since then in the capped drum (not in direct heat or sunlight) and my son just tested it and then ran all of it thru his boosted street car in past few weeks, we took several samples and there was ZERO moisture in it. The only water that's going to get in a sealed non vented container is the stuff that got put in it when you filled it. I also have a 55 gallon drum of race gas that's half full , as a precaution I purge it with nitrogen gas before capping it as there is so much room in the drum, Smitty

Where do you get the nitro?
Im guessing a bar tap bottle.

UD

Key word is sealed drum, I keep a drum of race gas on hand, because it has so much room being only half full I fill it with a nitrogen blanket before screwing cap on as good measure, more moisture than whats already in the fuel and drum CANNOT get into it without being open to atmosphere. A farmers 500 gallon tank is vented to the atmosphere so that when the sun-shines on it it doesn't build up pressure and explode, would definitely attract moisture having a OPEN connection to atmosphere. I would definitely NOT leave drums outside exposed to sunlight UN-vented as they could expand and blow up but I leave them in UN-heated building out of the sunlight and have never had a problem. Were your drums of race gas that went bad sealed? Maybe your C-16 breaks down over time just sitting because of something else in the composition, Smitty

I guess when we are talking race gas it depends on what is in it, Sunoco say that there 112 is good for 3 years:


"Sunoco® Supreme™ is a 112 octane leaded race fuel designed for competition engines routinely operating over 7000 rpm. Supreme is blended to achieve a high motor octane number and fast burn speed to ensure engine protection lap after lap and pass after pass. It features a comprehensive additive package to enhance shelf life by improving storage stability and minimizing oxidation. Sunoco Supreme is designed for compression ratios up to about 15:1 in small block V8s, and can tolerate higher compression ratios in smaller or more efficient combustion chambers. Supreme’s fast burn speed also makes it a popular choice for 2-stroke applications.

As with any gasoline, Sunoco Supreme should be stored in opaque, tightly sealed containers and kept where temperatures are stable. Properly stored, the shelf life of Supreme is in excess of 3 years."
But digging around with the other race gas they sell IF you get some 106 octane unleaded because it is oxygenated they only recommend keeping it one year , again though like I originally said, if the OP is running the twin turbos he describes in his avatar I would NOT run it next year just for the fact that pumping it into the boat, having it set in the boat attracting moisture and then pumping it back out there is a chance that some of the better stuff evaporated being exposed to the atmosphere at times and that it attracted some moisture along the way, Smitty

I asked this same question about a 55gal drum of 112 that I had used about 20 gal from, was quickly sealed afterwards and sat in the barn for 2 years. Two of the biggest names in racing fuel systems told me to mix it with pump gas and use it in my lawn mower, or use it for weed killer. Not what I wanted to hear, but considering ther expertise and history, I did just that.