Auto gas

bucksmith

bucksmith

Did you lock the doors?
Couldn’t find anything in the search. Anybody have wisdom on the use of auto gas stc, in general, but also specifically in a C150?
Is there a minimum octane? Any non-ethanol source ok? Use of any additives recommended?
Anybody know how to go about buying in (semi)bulk? Might have a tank and pump we could get serviceable out at my buddy’s field.
Thanks!
 
I used to do it in a 150. There are two STC's. EAA and Petersens. I used 5 gal containers as well as a 100 gal tank in a pickup. Don't know about buying in bulk. Super important to get ethanol free gas. For the O-200 you only need 87 octane. I never used any additives nor have I heard of that. The biggest problem I had was airport management not liking me. I got kicked out of a couple large GA airports but if you're rural you'll probably be fine. Never had any maintenance issues and mixing with avgas is not a problem.
 
DE727UPS said:
I used to do it in a 150. There are two STC's. EAA and Petersens. I used 5 gal containers as well as a 100 gal tank in a pickup. Don't know about buying in bulk. Super important to get ethanol free gas. For the O-200 you only need 87 octane. I never used any additives nor have I heard of that. The biggest problem I had was airport management not liking me. I got kicked out of a couple large GA airports but if you're rural you'll probably be fine. Never had any maintenance issues and mixing with avgas is not a problem.
Click to expand...
That’s awesome, I’ve got multiple sources, but it’s all 87. My buddy with the plane thought we needed 92, so that’s good news.
He’s looking thru the books now, trying to find out if we have the STC.
Any idea what it costs if we don’t? Is it just paperwork, or is there equipment?
Thank you!

Edit: quick search found some answers on the stc. Seems like it’s just paperwork, and cheap.
 
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@bucksmith seems like you might have the answer, but Petersens is the way to go. The price will be in the webpage, I’d ball park around $200, as a guess.
I’ve run mogas in my Stinson since I bought it, and in my 180 and 182. No issues at all.

I’ve thought about buying a bulk tank and pump for my truck, but the cost to acquire/ savings per gallon (in my area) it would take a ton of hours to break even. The go-to airport 15 miles from my hangar has mogas at $2.99 at the moment. It gives me an excuse to go out and fly for 0.3 round trip.
Biggest thing is making sure no ethanol. Bad juju.

Fly Unleaded US Mogas Airport Map

flyunleaded.com flyunleaded.com
 
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Nark said:
@bucksmith seems like you might have the answer, but Petersens is the way to go. The price will be in the webpage, I’d ball park around $200, as a guess.
I’ve run mogas in my Stinson since I bought it, and in my 180 and 182. No issues at all.

I’ve thought about buying a bulk tank and pump for my truck, but the cost to acquire/ savings per gallon (in my area) it would take a ton of hours to break even. The go-to airport 15 miles from my hangar has mogas at $2.99 at the moment. It gives me an excuse to go out and fly for 0.3 round trip.
Biggest thing is making sure no ethanol. Bad juju.

Fly Unleaded US Mogas Airport Map

flyunleaded.com flyunleaded.com
Click to expand...
Just to be clear, are you advocating Peterson’s over EAA? Definitely more info on their site, just can’t imagine a difference in the product.
So I’m looking into it, a buddy of mine with a grass strip next door has an old tank and pump. Will investigate what it would take to bring it up to serviceability. Then I need to figure out how to get it filled. (Not even sure how many gallons it holds.)
Otherwise, would just try to find portable solution that’s slightly bigger than a 5 gallon can.
Thanks for the help!
 
A quick search shows they’re the same price. Either Petersen, or EAA would be fine. There is no after purchase support required, just the good old A&P sign off and form mailed to Ok City.

If you have the logistics to store fuel it’s pretty simple. But...I think now would be the best time to fill a 500 gallon tank, given the price of fuel. I don’t know much about gas storage, and whether it deteriorates. A google search would help I suppose.

Short story long, absolutely go for it. Makes ownership that much more affordable.
 
Nark said:
A quick search shows they’re the same price. Either Petersen, or EAA would be fine. There is no after purchase support required, just the good old A&P sign off and form mailed to Ok City.

If you have the logistics to store fuel it’s pretty simple. But...I think now would be the best time to fill a 500 gallon tank, given the price of fuel. I don’t know much about gas storage, and whether it deteriorates. A google search would help I suppose.

Short story long, absolutely go for it. Makes ownership that much more affordable.
Click to expand...

Car gas breaks down pretty fast. Without a stabilizer you will have brown gunk 90 days later. We used to have a 80 gallon tank in the back of the pickup that was hardwired to the truck.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I had the STC on my Grumman Cheetah. I couldn't tell the difference, if any at all between auto fuel and LL performance. The hardest part was to find gas stations that carried non-ethanol fuel. I don't believe there was a minimum octane level. How much bulk are you talking about? We filled a couple gas caddies (30 Gal. each) at the gas station, we had a holding tank and would transfer the caddies to the tank. It would last 2-3 months. I would highly suggest using a fuel stabilizer if you plan on having the fuel sit in tanks for extended periods of time.
 
Inverted25 said:
Car gas breaks down pretty fast. Without a stabilizer you will have brown gunk 90 days later. We used to have a 80 gallon tank in the back of the pickup that was hardwired to the truck.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
I thought that break down in gas was largely due to the ethanol?
(Just about to go fire up the lawn mower, that has never had ethanol course thru it’s veins. Guess I’ll find out in a minute.)
 
I would check your local agricultural chemical suppliers because they sometimes sell petroleum products in bulk as well. We get farm and road diesel and 87 octane unleaded delivered to the ranch house.
 
Another thing about Mogas. At least in Washington, you can apply for a rebate on state fuel taxes if you use the fuel in an aircraft. WA has super high gas taxes so it adds up quick and is worth the effort.
 
bucksmith said:
I thought that break down in gas was largely due to the ethanol?
(Just about to go fire up the lawn mower, that has never had ethanol course thru it’s veins. Guess I’ll find out in a minute.)
Click to expand...

Only 24 gas stations in all of California has ethanol free gas. Might as well use avgas it’s such a pain.


Ethanol-free gas stations in the U.S. and Canada

pure-gas.org is the definitive list of ethanol-free gas stations in the U.S. and Canada
www.pure-gas.org www.pure-gas.org
 
bucksmith said:
I thought that break down in gas was largely due to the ethanol?
(Just about to go fire up the lawn mower, that has never had ethanol course thru it’s veins. Guess I’ll find out in a minute.)
Click to expand...
I have no idea, chemically, how any of this works. But anecdotally I’ve had nothing but problems with carbs running ethanol fuel after a couple of weeks, ethanol free gas will sit for a couple of months up to a year with no problem, avgas will sit for years and run perfect. Ymmv
 
As stated above and elsewhere, it has drawbacks.
Airports hate it because they want/need revenue.
Financially, is it worth it? Maybe.
If you already have a truck with a tank, that's a plus.
Do you use a lot of fuel? Building time, flight school/club
Is there an ethanol free station reasonably close?
How many flight hours will justify a truck, pumps, tank, transportation time, STC, etc?
What is "worth it"?
Breaking even? 15-25% savings/flight hour?

If everything doesn't line up, just pay for the 100LL and save yourself a headache.

if 100LL or 87UL (or whatever it's called this week) becomes scarce, you still have a viable option.
 
I have an existing EAA STC on my C150, and also on a previous (2) aircraft. I have put 100’s of gallons of non ethanol 87 octane, through my planes dating back to 2010...I saved a lot of $$ over the years.
 
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