Honda 2.3 HP Winter Storage?

[pjmsj21]

I purchased a new Honda in August that I won’t be using again till Spring. I’ve not really used it since purchasing but ran it in a fresh water tank, closed the fuel line till it stopped. Should I just drain the gas tank and call it good? The motor is stored indoors.

 

[IStream]

That's what I'd do.

 

[jamhass]

Fogging oil never hurts ...

... unless you get it in your eyes

 

[IStream]

I wouldn't bother. It'll be stored for 6 months indoors. 

 

[bmiller]

I'd drain it, then only run ethanol free premium in the future.

Every small engine I own, chainsaw, lawn mower, outboards, motorcycle, ATV etc, run ethanol free premium and have no issues firing up. Even if they sit all winter with fuel in them.

 

[IStream]

I'd drain it, then only run ethanol free premium in the future.

Every small engine I own, chainsaw, lawn mower, outboards, motorcycle, ATV etc, run ethanol free premium and have no issues firing up. Even if they sit all winter with fuel in them.

This is my experience as well but not everyone has easy access to ethanol-free fuel.

 

[dylan winter]

Marvelous little bits of engineering

Noisy bastards

Good starters

As easy to maintain as a lawnmower

D

 

[pjmsj21]

I'd drain it, then only run ethanol free premium in the future.

Every small engine I own, chainsaw, lawn mower, outboards, motorcycle, ATV etc, run ethanol free premium and have no issues firing up. Even if they sit all winter with fuel in them.

OP here....I asked the dealer as to whether they filled it with ethanol free gas and he kind of said that they did but I'm not totally confident that that is accurate.   So when in doubt I would prefer to drain the gas tank and not worry about the gas....unless it is pretty standard for dealers to routinely use ethanol free?

 

[bmiller]

Marvelous little bits of engineering

Noisy bastards

Good starters

As easy to maintain as a lawnmower

D

Yea, I dropped mine in Bahia Concepcion. A little fiddling and it ran the rest of that trip. Took a major cleaning though the next season to get it going again. 

 

[Ishmael]

OP here....I asked the dealer as to whether they filled it with ethanol free gas and he kind of said that they did but I'm not totally confident that that is accurate.   So when in doubt I would prefer to drain the gas tank and not worry about the gas....unless it is pretty standard for dealers to routinely use ethanol free?

Up here in Canuckistan the marine fuel docks all sell ethanol free midgrade as a standard thing, but I have never heard of things being that easy in the USA.

 

[Sail4beer]

4 stroke air cooled easy to maintain or abuse motors. 
 

Don’t sweat that engine too much. Run it dry, fog the cylinder if you want and put it away for the season 

 

[Sail4beer]

In case you want to full store your 2.3 for some reason, you can get ethanol free gas by the quart from the Home Depot for $10 or cheaper, call your local car dealer and ask if they have ethanol free since they will probably have high octane race gas as well without the sour mash added. 

 

[Fah Kiew Tu]

I purchased a new Honda in August that I won’t be using again till Spring. I’ve not really used it since purchasing but ran it in a fresh water tank, closed the fuel line till it stopped. Should I just drain the gas tank and call it good? The motor is stored indoors.

You guys have shitty ethanol fuel, yeah? In which case I'd drain it.

Otherwise, no need to bother. I've got the older 2HP model, use it quite a lot, leave it 3 months over winter, it always works fine.

I give mine a wash-down with fresh water every so often and spray the bits Honda made out of plain steel with Lanotec or similar.

As Dylan says, noisy little things but - lightweight, reliable, no impellor or internal passages to corrode. If I drowned mine I'd buy another one immediately.

FKT

 

[Hawaiidart]

Run it out of fuel, then pull the choke and empty the fuel from the carb.  Hit the shut-off when it dies. I actually ran the carb empty every time I used it.  And yes, 100% ethanol free fuel only!  Make sure to store it right side up or vertical. 

 

[Jud - s/v Sputnik]

I purchased a new Honda in August that I won’t be using again till Spring. I’ve not really used it since purchasing but ran it in a fresh water tank, closed the fuel line till it stopped. Should I just drain the gas tank and call it good? The motor is stored indoors.

I’ve got an 10 year old air-cooled Honda 2hp.  I’m lazy about doing service on it...never done anything...but every winter I simply run it completely dry of fuel.  Good to go for winter storage.

This winter a full service of the thing is on my list...

 

[Ajax]

You guys have shitty ethanol fuel, yeah? In which case I'd drain it.

Otherwise, no need to bother. I've got the older 2HP model, use it quite a lot, leave it 3 months over winter, it always works fine.

I give mine a wash-down with fresh water every so often and spray the bits Honda made out of plain steel with Lanotec or similar.

As Dylan says, noisy little things but - lightweight, reliable, no impellor or internal passages to corrode. If I drowned mine I'd buy another one immediately.

FKT

In most places you can find non-ethanol fuel. You have to check the local marinas or sometimes fuel stations that cater to offroad vehicles like farm equipment.

 

[sail69]

Go to your local or regional airport...$6 a gallon.  No waiting.

In most places you can find non-ethanol fuel. You have to check the local marinas or sometimes fuel stations that cater to offroad vehicles like farm equipment.

 

[Ajax]

Go to your local or regional airport...$6 a gallon.  No waiting.

Expensive, true but if all you're doing is fueling a 2hp OB, it's not that big an outlay. It's not like you're buying 50 gallons of the stuff.

 

[sail69]

All my small engines run on it.  Generator is on stand-by with it.  Swear by it.   Never going back to ethanol.