Fish Tip: Treat Your Engine

Fish Tip Treat Your Engine Right

By Eric Burnley

The name of this magazine is PropTalk, and the thing that makes the prop turn must be in good shape or you aren’t going fishing anywhere. Ever since the government put 10 percent alcohol in our gasoline to cut down on those nasty emissions, our outboards have suffered. In my case, the 1996 Mercury on my 1996 Starcraft would have given up the ghost long ago if not for those additives that combat the nasty effects of that alcohol.

There may be other products on the market, but Sta-Bil and Star Tron are the two I have used for years. I add them every time I fill my six-gallon tanks, and so far, the motor has run just fine.

In addition, I changed out all the fuel lines on the motor. The original lines were getting soft, and I felt that perhaps the alcohol was having a negative effect on them.

If you live near a gas station or marina that sells non-alcohol fuel, you can get away without these additives. I do not. I understand that fuel is more expensive than what we pay at the regular gas pumps, so there is that to consider. A very little additive goes a long way, so it may be less expensive to use the additive and regular pump gas than the nonalcohol fuel.

Another advantage of most additives is they also prevent the gas from breaking down during storage. You must check the label to see if and how long each one protects before putting the boat up for the winter. In my case, I drain my six-gallon tanks into my truck and store the tanks empty. When I had my 24 Albemarle, I stored my 120-gallon tank full with the correct amount of additive.

Another product that I use on a regular basis is WD-40. I spray it all over my engine every time I take the cover off making sure I soak the spark plug wires and all linkage. Finally, I grease all the fittings on my steering connections.

# Sta-Bil, Star Tron, and WD-40 all play a role in keeping your engine running right.

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