Sta-bil or Sea Foam which one?

James Holst wrote:

Which brings me back to this statement made early on in the discussion.

There is so much misinformation and urban legends out there about ethanol and fuel additives it’s hard to know where to begin.

I think it would be very interesting to get an engineer from both brands involved so we can get the straight scoop. We all rely heavily on our internal combustion engines. Having a true understanding of what fuel additives do and don’t do seems worthwhile. I’ll pursue the opportunity and see if I can’t make it a reality.

Well I thought I was enlightened but now I’m back to confused. HA.
I guess from all the responses others also are a little unsure of which one is best or perhaps either is best. I think feed back from the two brands discussed along with feed back from motor manufactures would be great information and give all of us new peace of mind.
Thank you everyone for your answers it is very interesting.

Wayne Daul wrote:

James Holst wrote:

Which brings me back to this statement made early on in the discussion.

There is so much misinformation and urban legends out there about ethanol and fuel additives it’s hard to know where to begin.

I think it would be very interesting to get an engineer from both brands involved so we can get the straight scoop. We all rely heavily on our internal combustion engines. Having a true understanding of what fuel additives do and don’t do seems worthwhile. I’ll pursue the opportunity and see if I can’t make it a reality.

Well I thought I was enlightened but now I’m back to confused. HA.
I guess from all the responses others also are a little unsure of which one is best or perhaps either is best. I think feed back from the two brands discussed along with feed back from motor manufactures would be great information and give all of us new peace of mind.
Thank you everyone for your answers it is very interesting.

In all honesty I don’t have a strong understanding of how these additives work either which makes it difficult to wade through what is truth and what is misinformation. I do know that a lot of the assumptions made by consumers about what Sea Foam does, or doesn’t do, can be completely off the mark based on my limited knowledge and the follow up I’ve had with Sea Foam. Over the last week I’ve had a nice exchange with Sea Foam by email and they’ve agreed to do a Q&A here at IDO for those interested. Personally I think it would be very helpful and possibly even insightful to get some straight answers about chemistry and how some of their products work. I’ll be posting more info on this opportunity in the very near future.

James,I think that is awesome to get manufactures involved in the forum for “real” info. On a larger scale, this may be something to do on a weekly or monthly basis. Especially on seasonal items that would be coming up – Batteries, Electronics, gear, hunting items, game cameras, and so on.

Randy Wieland wrote:

James,I think that is awesome to get manufactures involved in the forum for “real” info. On a larger scale, this may be something to do on a weekly or monthly basis. Especially on seasonal items that would be coming up – Batteries, Electronics, gear, hunting items, game cameras, and so on.

And don’t forget the ever important feminine hygiene products.

And breast pumps.

Clown, you really need to up your dosage of black cohosh and soy isoflavones.

I went through “man”ipause years ago. Now I medicate with fine malt beverages.

That’s weird. I have experienced the opposite. Running the 2 stroke kicker, in the spring, after using Sta-Bil made me sick smelling the exhaust. On the other hand Seafoam never did. To add to the discussion I have used seafoam, for like 20 years +, since it was recommended to me by a friend who was a master Merc mechanic. I use the seafoam, in every outboard, motorcycle, ATV, snowmobile and small engine in the first and last tank of the year. The rest I just use fresh gas. Premium, if possible. I never ever have had a fuel system problem.

gizmoguy wrote:

That’s weird. I have experienced the opposite. Running the 2 stroke kicker, in the spring, after using Sta-Bil made me sick smelling the exhaust. On the other hand Seafoam never did. To add to the discussion I have used seafoam, for like 20 years +, since it was recommended to me by a friend who was a master Merc mechanic. I use the seafoam, in every outboard, motorcycle, ATV, snowmobile and small engine in the first and last tank of the year. The rest I just use fresh gas. Premium, if possible. I never ever have had a fuel system problem.

Same here, except always run fresh 87 oct.

-J.

I don’t use it in the spring on my ol 90 Merc 2 stroke.

One can in each of the last two tanks seems to be working well over the last 14 years.

I did put Sea Foam in my generator and the gas went south. I could pour a gallon in the fire pit and light it with a match held in my fingers.

I spose I shouldn’t blame that on Sea Foam since the gas was somewhere over 4 year old.

Filled the generator up with fresh fuel and off she went!

That reminds me, I better refresh the ol’ generators fuel this spring.

suzuki wrote:

Do a search online. You’ll see what people have been seeing for many years.
It’s obvious to me that Seafoam is a good fuel stabilizer.

“Seafoam and Stabil both have the basic ingedients of fuel stabilization: Alchohol and Naptha. Both remove moisture – which is the main cuplrit in tanks that sit for long periods. Get rid of the moisture and it helps keep fuel “pure”. Naptha (specific) keeps chemicals of many types from changing/degrading over time – thus, stabilizing.
The light oils keep seals pliable, parts moving and deposits from sticking – which makes everything better in the spring.”

I could not agree any more with what your saying. EVERY gallon of gas that I have burned through my 1997 Merc 50hrs 4-stroke has been burned with the recommended ratio of Seafoam and to this day I have NEVER had to clean the carbs (which is pretty rare for a 18 year old 4 stroke motor…). NO ENGINE DAMAGE EITHER…And ta’ think I didn’t even “dance butt naked around the equipment during a full moon” so I think the Seafoam is doing just fine as a detergent AND as a fuel stabilizer (which on it’s website does state this fact…). Don’t believe every thing that has been said during this thread. Everyone’s own experiences dictate how and what equipment/products they use…RR

Don’t believe every thing that has been said during this thread

roosterrouster wrote:

And ta’ think I didn’t even “dance butt naked around the equipment during a full moon”

I don’t believe it.

James Holst wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Wayne Daul wrote:</div>

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>James Holst wrote:</div>

In all honesty I don’t have a strong understanding of how these additives work either which makes it difficult to wade through what is truth and what is misinformation. I do know that a lot of the assumptions made by consumers about what Sea Foam does, or doesn’t do, can be completely off the mark based on my limited knowledge and the follow up I’ve had with Sea Foam.

I think this is an excellent idea.

Understandably, manufacturers may be hesitant to get into specifics on HOW their products work, but IMO most of the misconceptions out there are around WHAT the products are actually intended to do.

For Sea Foam, the number one thing I would like to know is this:

– Is Sea Foam a fuel stabilizer that prevents degradation of gasoline during storage? If so, WHAT specifically does it actually prevent or enhance? For example, does it prevent or delay water contamination and if so, how?

What I think IDO members would really benefit from are the specifics, not just “it can’t hurt”, but what, exactly, does it do to help?

The #1 thing I have observed over the past few years is that a large number of marine engine owners now believe that they MUST use additives on a consistent or constant basis.

This is coupled with the fact that when asked what they think these additives are doing, those who use them seem either unclear on what benefits they are receiving or they respond with a perceived benefit that is actually physically impossible for ANY additive to deliver.

For example, I’ve been told by several people that adding an additive will “remove” or “undo” ethanol. I’ve also been told that using an additive will “undo” phase separation. All of these things are impossible, but I think there are large numbers of people out there who believe things like this.

Personally, I feed my engines a steady diet of plain old gasoline. I buy non-oxygenated for my small engines and 2 stoke outboards and I run regular old pump gasoline for inboard marine engines. I only add Sta-bil before storage if the storage time will be greater than 4 months. I use fuel system cleaners like Sea Foam only when I have a problem that they can help with as far as a possible dirty fuel system.

In the past 10 years, the ONLY engine problem I’ve had that was fuel system related was in a brand new Stihl brush cutter that was being run on fuel WITH Stihl’s own-brand oil that is advertised to contain a fuel stabilizer. Go figure.

Grouse

Brian Klawitter wrote:

Don’t believe every thing that has been said during this thread

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>roosterrouster wrote:</div>
And ta’ think I didn’t even “dance butt naked around the equipment during a full moon”

I don’t believe it.

Scouts honor Brian. I have never done that dance and hoped it would make my engine run good. I have, however, used seafoam in my gasoline and never had a problem :-)…RR

^

Well, I read through this thread again and I’m just as confused as I was to begin with.

No more, no less.

Well, I read through this thread again and I’m just as confused as I was to begin with.
No more, no less.

Sad to say…I am in the same boat as you

I use Seafoam for fuel system cleaning/maintenance and Stabil for fuel system storage.

It works for me.

I do wonder what both additives do when added to a system that has not been maintained properly over the years. Does “gunk” get loosened, enter the system, and cause issues?

I use seafoam once a year. Stabil in the fall and always 100 percent gasoline. No ethanol fuel ever. Never a carb or engine problem 35 years. Don’t know exactly what either product does but I don’t care because this works for me.