old gas in gas tank - thoughts?

[TRO]

Howdy guys,

I haven't been on here forever and partly because I haven't been able to get out on the water in forever. I haven't had a chance to run my SANTE 230 since last March. I'm going to be getting it ready for summer next weekend. Cleaning, maintenance, etc.

I had originally filled the gas tank to full in January of 2012 and put in gas stabilizer, but only the minimal amount for protection - not the amount suggested for long term storage. Subsequently ran it in March of 2012 and ran about 1/4 of a tank out of it.

It has been in covered storage for the last year. It is a 2008.

I'm guessing the gas in the tank isn't in top-notch condition after that long with condensation, etc.

Any thoughts on how to make sure no engine components are damaged when I run it for the first time? Drain gas tank and fill with new gas? Add stabilizer or gas treatment and run through the gas currently in there before adding new gas?

Thanks for any info!

[jbach]

you're way overthinking this. run it and top off with fresh.

[Quinner]

Draining would be the safest bet however adding 3/4 tank of fresh fuel to what is there with a can of heat would probably be just fine.

I would not run what is there without adding fresh fuel

[shag]

I agree with Quinner.... If it was me, I would drain/siphon - and put fresh fuel in. 1 year is a long time to sit.

[dan1166]

Keep thinks simple. Put it in the water and run it. If it won't run, then drain and install new gas. Don't do extra work if you don't have to. Spend the time and money saved on the water behind the boat.

Dan, the Nautique Man

[TRO]

Thanks guys. I'm going to put in some Heet and top off the tank and take it out and run it and see what happens.

[DanielC]

I would take the gas cap off, and smell the gas. Does it smell like fresh gas, or not.

[spunkie202]

add the fuel additive and run it as long as you can at low speeds and then mix the fuel with fresh 93 or 100 octane

[northwestwater]

hi tro! just curious. did you get it to run? i keep my boat on a lift and run it all winter long. earlier this year, i was gone for about a month and when i came back, my boat died when i tried to take it out. called the dealer. after changing fuel pump, they realized the gas tank had tons of water in it. they siphoned out all the gas and i got bill, mostly labor for the three trips it took to figure it out and made me wish i had the foresight to siphon the fuel. We still have yet to figure out how all the water got in there but, i take a lot more care these days, in smelling and looking at the fuel before i start it up. i know our problems are different but, just thought i'd add my thoughts. I'm not good at fixing things myself so making sure the gas is good is cheaper for me than having to deal with the boat if it won't start or plugs up the fuel pump. anyway, good luck. i'm curious if it worked.

[TRO]

I added a couple of bottles of Heet to it. Turns out there was 1/2 tank of gas in there. I ran it on the Flushpro in the yard for quite a while. It ran a little rough at first, but after about 15 minutes, it was running fine. I didn't run it past an idle because it wasn't in the water though.