Fuel Additives vs Snake Oil Discussion

Silver Streak

Silver Streak

King of the hill :~)
I know this post will open a door for a some disagreements due to advertisements and die-hards for their favorite product(s); however, I want folks to do their on research on this issue and post up their proof before they become victims of engine damage.



My opinion!


High concentrations of etoh (ethanol alcohol) in fuels used as an oxygenate can have 2 negative sides, first is that any type of alcohol will dry out seals / hoses and the second issue is that alcohols are very hydroscopic in other words they attract water so separate out of the fuel. All hydrocarbon fuels are hydroscopic and when any type of alcohol is mixed in the product you will get product separation (alcohol water layer & hydrocarbon fuel layer).

All these additives on the market pretty much do the same, they change the polarity of the interphase so that the alcohol / fuel mixture are more compatible. In my opinion if you run the engine regularly don’t use this stuff. What you will get over time is that the ethanol will dry out any non-alcohol compatible hoses.


Ethanol

Read all of these links
http://www.fuel-testers.com/is_gas_additive_safe_with_e10_list.html


Forum Discussion
http://drriders.com/topic5368.html
 
I use a bottle of gumout FI cleaner from time to time in all my vehicles. Every 10k or so. Thats about it. Been using it since my first car pretty much.
 
OffroadTaco4x4 said:
What is your alls opinions on sea foam?
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Seafoam

Large amounts of alcohol is in this cleaner; be very careful of damage to gaskets and other components when used directly to your fuel tank. Sea Foam is another snake oil that can do more harm than good when added directly to fuel tank.

Seafoam is Naptha and Light Oil, this solvent that might actually be effective has Xylens, Ethyl Benzene, and Mineral Spirits in addition to Naptha and Alcohol. The Naptha that you will find in SeaFoam has more paraffin and is not an effective solvent in a combustion chamber on its own.

Please do more home work on this chemical!
 
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I really don't think these additives work at all its like saying dump in this liquid and presto your engine runs better! Well I would like to see some science and proof behind it
 
I run an automotive shop and we use seafoam quite often very good stuff if used correctly A+++ RATING FROM ME!!!
 
I have seen damage on our fuel clean rubber hoses with it at full strength so very much make sure you have a full tank of fuel when adding it to the tank but on the other hand we have a few vehicals come in with sticking rings we pulled the plugs and filled the cylinders over night sucked out the cylinders reinstalled plugs started no more smoking or oil consumption
 
I've used seafoam from time to time and used correctly it does wonders for small engines. I used it twice in my taco it's 3 years old and I just rolled 18000 miles on it . If you don't drive the truck everyday it preserves the fuel just a little bit longer. Now I went to the upper peninsula 2 years ago and the fuels that they had at the time contained no ethanol due to the gas station was near a marina I added a 3/4 of a can of seafoam and filled it with 92 octane. I have the unichip that allows all 3 fuels to be run in the motor. And holy **** I drove it back and I'm not pullin anyone's leg we got 420 miles out of a tank . I thought the truck was broke lol but if you can find gas without ethanol the mileage is way better and now the only places that sell non ethanol gas are the marinas and your going to pay for it big time does anyone know which companies sell non Ethanol fuel still and correct me if I'm wrong I heard the rumor all gas is going to be brought up to 15 to 20% ethanol now please let me know thanks
 
Deano1964 said:
I've used seafoam from time to time and used correctly it does wonders for small engines. I used it twice in my taco it's 3 years old and I just rolled 18000 miles on it . If you don't drive the truck everyday it preserves the fuel just a little bit longer. Now I went to the upper peninsula 2 years ago and the fuels that they had at the time contained no ethanol due to the gas station was near a marina I added a 3/4 of a can of seafoam and filled it with 92 octane. I have the unichip that allows all 3 fuels to be run in the motor. And holy **** I drove it back and I'm not pullin anyone's leg we got 420 miles out of a tank . I thought the truck was broke lol but if you can find gas without ethanol the mileage is way better and now the only places that sell non ethanol gas are the marinas and your going to pay for it big time does anyone know which companies sell non Ethanol fuel still and correct me if I'm wrong I heard the rumor all gas is going to be brought up to 15 to 20% ethanol now please let me know thanks
Click to expand...

They cant raise ethanol content above 10% anytime soon. Thats the most that most of the cars on the road today can handle.
 
That's what I thought but these gas stations around my house are saying its going up to 15% but who knows these days I can't see it going up any more the cars aren't made for it unless its e-85 ready
 
E85 is known to not last as long a regular gas. There is less energy when you burn it so more is needed to make similar power levels to gas.
 
Silver Streak said:
I know this post will open a door for a some disagreements due to advertisements and die-hards for their favorite product(s); however, I want folks to do their on research on this issue and post up their proof before they become victims of engine damage.



My opinion!


High concentrations of etoh (ethanol alcohol) in fuels used as an oxygenate can have 2 negative sides, first is that any type of alcohol will dry out seals / hoses and the second issue is that alcohols are very hydroscopic in other words they attract water so separate out of the fuel. All hydrocarbon fuels are hydroscopic and when any type of alcohol is mixed in the product you will get product separation (alcohol water layer & hydrocarbon fuel layer).

All these additives on the market pretty much do the same, they change the polarity of the interphase so that the alcohol / fuel mixture are more compatible. In my opinion if you run the engine regularly don’t use this stuff. What you will get over time is that the ethanol will dry out any non-alcohol compatible hoses.


Ethanol

Read all of these links



Forum Discussion

If you're able ask about BG 44k. That poured into the tank in conjunction with a top engine cleaner. Hook into your vacuum line with the tool and it blows white carbon out of your tailpipe for 5 minutes. It actually burns off any carbon buildup on the throttle body as well as any top engine components.

Some dealers and service shops have it. Also there is a fuel dyer that takes the water/moisture from the gas. Numbers are 208(44K( and Fuel dryer is 203
Click to expand...
 
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