Bad Fuel

[koko64]

No wonder it was running bad. Is that 98 RON gas or soy milk!
Down here 98 is a bright clear yellow. Is that water contamination, ethanol dilution or diesel accidently put in the wrong tank?


https://www.flickr.com/photos/150482584@N03/shares/83D8j4

[koko64]

I'm guessing water affected. Bike would not idle well and backfired, but ran ok on higher revs, say about 2000+rpm. Fresh fuel from another gas station provided clear, crisp looking 98, like yellow soda which is what I normally see. Of course I notice the fuel colour after I check synch, IMS settings, float, check ignition, plugs, etc, etc.

My ethanol test strips haven't arrived so I have stored a fuel sample.

[Speeddog]

With our fuels here, the water just sits at the bottom:

[koko64]

This stuff was at the bottom of the bikes fuel tank, it looks very milky though with no delineation between fuel and water as you would expect. It appears a bit soapy too bubbling or frothing a little as it pours into the oil pan. The effect is backfiring and stalling at idle speeds while fouling plugs. The motor will stall at idle but run with the choke so either way it will foul plugs.
Those CV carb drain screws are handy.

I'll send a pic to my industry contact.

[Howie]

Water will settle to the bottom.  Water and ethanol used to become milky and settle to the bottom.  Now it forms something more brown.  No idea what you have, except it sure doesn't look good.  I would keep some as a sample for the appropriate authorities.

[koko64]

Yep. Saved some in the jerry can. It has ruined a set of plugs and shagged my carbs.
It's a bit soapy looking. A car guy suggested diesel contamination. Waiting to hear from my industry informant.

[koko64]

http://20170804_143942 by Tony Kokonis, on Flickr


Still waiting to hear from my contact. This bloke knows his stuff and has great inside knowledge and many years experience in the industry.

I am getting anecdotal reports from others who run carbed vehicles or smaller motors of issues with BP 98 in particular.

The fuel above appears to have been contaminated, is from a "bad batch" or has deteriorated over time.

[koko64]

Had a conversation with my industry contact. He said it appears from the pic to possibly be diesel contamination.

Learned a lot about fuel storage tank cleaning regimes, water accumulation, bilge pumping of base water and the lower standards for fuel storage here compared to other developed countries. Learned a bit about wrong turns fuel companies have made with their formulas too.
One issue is fuel pumps not being rested after tank filling to allow the disturbed sediment to settle. Dilligent operators allow the tanks to settle for hours or overnight and clean their tanks on a monthly basis.
Much of this is common knowledge but it shows you can be unlucky when filling up. There have been plenty of threads here when bad fuel was the issue.

I have seen very dirty fuel, ethanol affected fuel and water contaminated fuel but this sample has thrown me a curve ball.

I have been put in contact with someone who can test the sample from deep within the industry.

[Howie]

I never fill p when here is a delivery truck.  Off to the next station.

[koko64]

Yep, drive on.