[ale] [OT] - Ethanol-free gas in the Atlanta area?

[Jeff Hubbs]

But is ethanol-free worth going out of one's way for for use with 
lawnmowers and/or 2-stroke lawn equipment, especially when such 
equipment sits idle for a few weeks or months at a time?

On 9/19/13 2:12 PM, Ron Frazier (ALE) wrote:
>
> Jim Lynch <ale_nospam at fayettedigital.com> wrote:
>
>> On 09/17/2013 07:21 PM, David Tomaschik wrote:
>>> Yes, it takes approximately 1.02 gallons of 10% ethanol gas to equal
>> 1
>>> gallon of pure gasoline.[1]  On the other hand, I'd suspect you burn
>>> far more by going out of your way for ethanol-free gas...
>> Which is about $0.07 per gallon savings at todays prices.  Don't spend
>> over 7 cents more for non-ethanol gas if you're doing it to save money.
>>
>> Jim.
> Jim,
>
> When I first read the numbers David and you quoted, I thought, that can't be right.  I looked this page up, which is a good resource:
>
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GGE - Gasoline Gallon Equivalent
>
> So, I ran the numbers myself and ... well ... came very close to yours.  Using the baseline btu for gas (114,000 btu / gal) and the btu for ethanol (76,100 btu / gal), I come up with 1.034 gallons of E10 (10% ethanol) to equal 1 gallon of E0 (0 % ethanol).
>
> For those wondering, using these numbers, the btu of E10 will be:
> ( (btu E0) * .9) + (btu E100 * .1) )
>   = ( 114,000 * .9) + (76,100 * .1)
>   = (102,600) + (7,610)
>   = 110,210 btu / gal.
>
> There is also a difference between the btu of the summer and winter blends of gasoline.  So that would change the numbers.
>
> The winter blend of gas has less btu / gal, so the relative hit you'd take on the ethanol would be less.  The baseline btu for gas quoted above is slightly less than the number for the summer blend.
>
> So, the cost difference could be as much as about $ 0.14 / gal.  But the concept is the same.
>
> If you assume a 20 gallon tank, using $ 0.07 / gal, the total cost difference is $ 1.40.
> If you assume a 20 gallon tank, using $ 0.14 / gal, the total cost difference is $ 2.80.
>
> I guess driving 50 miles to get plain gas is a bad idea.  Burn up more than 1/2 gal of gas (which for my car means 4 miles out and 4 miles back) to get to the pure gas station and back, and you're in the hole.  Pay more than $ 0.07 - 0.14 more per gallon, and you're in the hole.  Do both, and you're really losing $$.
>
> I do understand that there are other benefits to pure gas than the potential $$ savings.
>
> Now, on the other hand, if you have a flex fuel car and are using E85 (85% ethanol), you're going to be taking a BIG MPG hit.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Ron
>
>
>
> --
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>
> Ron Frazier
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