We are in the process of getting up to 12 inches of snow on top of the 5 already on the ground. I’ve got a great snow blower that unfortunately hasn’t been started in a couple of years. While doing all of the trouble shooting things to get it running I drained the old gas and now have a bucket with about a half gallon of old gas in it, and I just realized I have no idea what to do with it.
So, should I see if it is a good ice melting tool (who cares about the EPA) or what?
Mix it with fresh gas and use it in the snowblower, or wait until spring and use it in a lawnmower.
Metal bucket? Burn it off in the middle of your snowy yard. Set it on a brick or cinderblock well away from anything flammable and toss a match at it. Let it burn out. Other than a slight fireball from the initial fumes igniting, it should burn relatively low.
BTW, the dealer who sold me my snow blower warned me that the number one problem with them after a few years is letting alcohol-mix fuel sit in the carb, where it will etch and erode the aluminum. He said if I do little else to summerize it, shut off the fuel flow and run the carb dry.
Or if you really don’t want to chance it in an engine, find a fire ant nest and reenact Sodom and Gomorrah.
No fire ants up here, and plastic bucket. It still looked good (clear), and smelled like gas. I’m thinking I may add it to the gas in our van (20+ gallons) so the dilution will be much smaller than if I added it to the 2.5 gas can I use for the snow blower and mower.
It still seems like I should be able to find something more fun (and probably involving fire). I’m building a fire in the fireplace tonight… maybe soaking some rags would make a good fire starter. What harm could possibly come from a great idea like that?
:eek:
A splash of Heet and pour it in your car tank, then.
If your snow blower is a two-stroke engine which uses gas and added oil, don’t put the gas in your van.
So ask Santa for a metal bucket. Any relatives owe you a belated Christmas gift?
First of all, I would put it into a proper container rather than just leaving it in a bucket. Then I would either slowly add it to good gas for the snow blower or I would just dump it into my pickup truck where it would be diluted enough that it wouldn’t matter.
Make sure you say “hold my beer and watch this” first, and also make sure someone is filming so the disaster clip can get uploaded to youtube.
I can hold my beer in one hand and the lighter in the other… what do you think… I’m stupid?
I’m not even sure they make 2-stroke snowblowers. I think some of the very small “snow sweeper” units might be.
Gasoline does evaporate if left in an open container.
Is this pure gasoline or a gasoline/oil mixture?
If pure gasoline I would probably gradually mix it in the gasoline in my car.
Setting your house on fire might be the most spectacular way to dispose of some old gas. But if you inexplicably decide to handle it the right way, you can take old gas to any place that does oil changes. They’ll have the facilities to safely dispose of petroleum products and they generally accept stuff people bring in and dispose of it for no charge.
Dribble it onto the snow to form the outline of your superhero logo. Then, when your supervillain arch nemesis is near, light it on fire as a dramatic symbol that you will continue to fight to keep the streets safe.
Or, just pour it into your car’s gas tank.
Adding it to my trucks gas tank is how I deal with any small engine fuel I end up with. Truck will burn anything.
True. But given the choice between evaporation and burning, I would burn it. Burning gas is better on the environment than evaporation.
And if you burn gas, be very very careful.
This sounds like a great way to win a Darwin Award.
I guess it’s just me but I’m amazed at how often this questions gets asked. And I know some will be shocked at my answer but, just dump it out! Preferably on a paved surface. It’s just gasoline, em’ kay? It isn’t nitroglycerine or Plutonium. Right this very second there are literally millions of gallons of gas being sloshed around and spilled onto the ground. Gasoline evaporates extremely fast, so even if you dump it on dirt all of it will evaporate into the air before getting anywhere near anybody’s ground water.
Why, pray tell, is this superior to using it as fuel for an internal combustion engine?
Donny use it as a starting fuel in your fireplace. I seem to recall a fireplace inspector once telling me that the gasoline burns at too hit a temperature for the fireplace walks and can less to cracking of the bricks. I’m not due if that is true, but I swear this is what he told me.