Honda Eu2000 storage

Jason W.

Jason W.

Dysfunctional Veteran
Joined
Feb 27, 2009
Location
nebo nc
I was prepping things for next weekend and decided to do a function check on the generator, was very hard to start, ended up firing it off of brake clean, had to keep it half choked to keep it running. I had kept it in the camper for about 3 weeks with gas in it, I wouldnt have figured the gas would have varnished or gained moisture that fast, after running it for a hour or so it is fine with fresh gas and stabil.

What are you guys doing for storage, running it out of gas, using stabil? Finding ethanol free gas is hard to find.
 
Man I leave mine for month at a time and have no problem might have some water in the gas maybe needs a plug they have a screen in the fill neck so it's hard to get dirty gas in it
 
Mix some blu stabil with every tank.
Not red, blue.

It combats ethanol

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You can find it with and without the marine labeling...it doesnt matter the word boat just adds $2 dollars...
 
Oh yeah...on a generator...the last 30 seconds or so before you shut it down load the damn thing up...whatever load you have load it up...AC, Heater, both whatever just try not to shut it down on idle
 
karatejosh said:
Man I leave mine for month at a time and have no problem might have some water in the gas maybe needs a plug they have a screen in the fill neck so it's hard to get dirty gas in it
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Water is exactly what im thinkin, the generator is new(maybe n hour on it) Ill give the blue stabil a go, I used red today.
 
Some guys are even putting a small amount of oil in the tank, almost like a 2 cycle. Claims the oil film will keep the corrosion of eth., at bay!
Guys & Gals, with vintage cars, are heaving a bad time. Just like Not driving my Jeep, & the carb going bad on me. o more than I drive it, I've switched to no E-premium.
Sta-bil has a 360 product, that is suppose to keep an oil vapor in your tank, but I haven't looked for it.
 
I stopped running ethanol gasoline in ALL of my small engines due to this issue... I also shut off the fuel valve and let it run dry (but this takes at least 4 minutes or so) But, yours could be water. Either way, Stabil should take care of it.
 
I am thinking maybe the extreme heat of it being in the sun within the camper made condensation happen faster, does that make any sense.
 
Ron said:
Oh yeah...on a generator...the last 30 seconds or so before you shut it down load the damn thing up...whatever load you have load it up...AC, Heater, both whatever just try not to shut it down on idle
Click to expand...

Onan says to let it run with no load for 30s before shut down.
 
shawn said:
Onan says to let it run with no load for 30s before shut down.
Click to expand...

Yep.

And every good generator tech I know would tell customers "Dont listen to that advice, load it before shutting it down.

There is a balance here. If you hit the kill switch under heavy load you can do some bad stuff (bent valves and worse under extreme condition)
And I should have made a more thorough statement. Many times (most?) a gen this size is barely loaded, you are getting some incomplete combustion and carbon loading in the cylinder (its not truly "wet stacking" as that is a diesel only concern but very similar) This causes a more difficult start if shut down from here.

So what Id say would be the "best" practice would be load it for 30 seconds, drop the load and shut down within 30 seconds.
If I had to choose I'd rather one be shut down too hard than not hard enough.

If you'd have bought your generator from a decent generator sales engineer you'd already know this...
 
Ethanol Free only for me plus seafoam
And run for about 5 min every two or three months
Mine is a EU 2000 also. Have you checked GOGAS down here
There premium is pure gas
 
Is running it out of fuel with blue stabil in it better than leaving blue stabil gas sitting in the tank. Basically run it out or leave gas in it?
 
Most EU2000s I know of run on the ragged edge of their rated capacity, not "barely loaded", but ymmv.
 
Jason W. said:
Is running it out of fuel with blue stabil in it better than leaving blue stabil gas sitting in the tank. Basically run it out or leave gas in it?
Click to expand...
My 2 cents; if your going to run it every 4-6 weeks, I'd leave the gas in the tank. If not, you might want to drain the tank. I had a 4 stroke engine that had been run dry, & sat for 6+ months. When I refilled the tank, the needle was stuck in the carb bowel. Even with running them out of gas, there will always be a few drops left, & they can cause corrosion. A 2-cycle mix, with non E-premium, is probably the least likely to mess up > leaves an oil film.
 
I use non-ethanol premium in all my small engines. I also mix in the recommended amount of Stabil (red) when preparing for winter storage.
My theory that has worked flawlessly for me for many years..... and I rarely have any problem with small engines.
1. Don't store anything with a fuel tank where it can be in direct sunlight. Hot to cold cycles will produce condensate.
2. Don't store anything with a fuel tank under a tarp or in an enclosed area that can make it prone to condensation.
3. If it has to sit for much longer than 3 months start it up and run it long enough to get the engine up to normal operating temperature to completely dry any accumulated moisture.
 
I ended up leaving some ethanol fuel in my genny from our last trip (thinking I was going to run it dry which never happened). This weekend, took us at least 30 minutes to get it running. Ended up opening the choke and sticking the end of a propane torch inside and let the her start off LP gas. Great example of what ethanol can do in just 1 months time!

The next morning, only took a one pull start just like it use to when I ran non-ethanol fuel. That stuff is just nasty and gums up everything.
 
Yep, it only took a few weeks for it to get mine, it started first pull this last time though, thank you stabil!
 
Jason, I can't believe you didn't call or email me.
I read a LOT of BS in the posts above. But I won't criticize.
The heat definitely helped the fuel left in your carb float bowl degrade in 3 weeks. Especially if it had Ethanol, or very old gas to begin with, or what grade and where you got it. Gasoline can be a PITA.


What I do to my EU's at home and at work is to drain the carb if we do not plan on using them for more than a few weeks . We also utilize Stabil and other fuel stabilizers and treatments, as well as PM.

Open the access panel and with a medium small flat bit screwdriver you can drain the carb float bowl.
The drain tube comes out of the bottom of the frame a quarter the way to the back on the access panel side.... Near one of it's rubber feet. It is a clear vinyl tube coming from the float bowl.

Please dispose of the gasoline in a responsible environmentally friendly method.

Do not over tighten the screw when retightening.

If you forget and it has been a while and you have trouble starting it... Drain the carb and get some fresh gas in there.

Thanks to our government to meet emissions, and with trying to stay "green", to make customer liked fuel economy good. And to stay cost effective in a highly competitive market, The carburetors on EU 2000s have many tiny orfices.

On our lawn mowers and Pressure washer engines we tell you to turn the fuel valve off and run the carb out. This way when you turn on the fuel valve fresh gas goes to the bowl from the tank.

On EU 2000s for multiple reasons, the fuel valve is tied into the engine stop switch which is why I am telling you to drain your carb. You cannot turn the fuel off and then let the engine run until carb runs out of gas.

I and a colleague of mine made a patent for an auto draining carb that puts the fuel back in the tank when you shut the engine off. But sadly, it is a feature that will cost a little money on previously stated highly comptitive product but is better for the environment than draining your carb.

For multiple reasons, The EU 2000 has a pulser fuel pump... When the carb is Empty, it will take a few good pulls to get fuel moving to fill the carb bowl back up.

You have my email if any more questions.

Best regards to all purchasing Honda's I and my colleagues appreciate feedback, the good and the bad so we can make our customers better product to help them fill their needs.
 
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