(Østlandets Blad): Earlier this year, petrol station chains started selling 95 octane petrol labeled E10. The 10s indicate that now up to 10 percent of the fuel is bioethanol, that is, fuel made from animal and plant residues.
Many people used to fill their lawnmowers and snowblowers with regular petrol, and there are many who wonder what to do now that E10 has arrived.
– There is a lot of confusion about this. I probably have ten phones every day. People call and ask for petrol. They have learned that ordinary 95 petrol is not good, says Gunnar Hvamstad at Norsk Maskinservice in Ski.
– Never sold as much as this year
He started Norsk Maskinservice in 1987.
– We have sold alkylate petrol for 20 years. We have always sold a lot of it, but never before have we sold as much as this year. After the new rules came in, we have tripled our sales. The first ten customers we had yesterday morning were supposed to have petrol, says Gunnar Hvamstad.
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The next day, four customers have already secured a five-litre jug when we stop by two hours after he has opened for the day.
– I fill the basket at the till several times a day, he says.
In the most hectic times, he doesn’t have time to fill up the basket before the cans disappear. He constantly receives new supplies from the supplier.
– I thought I had bought petrol to cover the summer this year 14 days ago. Yesterday I got two more pallets…, says Gunnar Hvamstad.
Stiff price per litre, but still economical
He estimates that a homeowner with a fairly normal garden will use two five-litre cans during a season. And yes, NOK 58 a liter is seen in isolation as a stiff price, but at the same time not, he points out:
– If you use the wrong petrol and have to send the machine in for repair and clean the carburettor, it quickly costs under NOK 2,000. Then you have used up those costs for several years to come. So even though NOK 290 for a five-litre bottle sounds like a lot in terms of the liter price, it is economical to use it. Also for your health, when you walk backwards while using the machine, says Gunnar Hvamstad.
While there may not be any prolonged exposure at a time, it is exhaust you’re walking around after all.
Must be in a workshop and cleaned
It’s exactly the same with snow blowers.
– When you have to start the snowblower in late autumn, it is not started until it snows, and then it may not start at all. Then there is old petrol left on it. Often the customer has been and filled up with 95 octane unleaded which is getting old. Then it has to be taken in and cleaned, and in some cases the carburettor replaced, says Gunnar Hvamstad.
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In a car, the petrol is used up all the time, while it remains in the machines.
– The main point, as we inform customers, is that petrol always has a shelf life. The oil companies operate on the assumption that it is fresh. The storage period is three to four months. Many people have a petrol can standing in the garage for both one and two years, and this can cause problems. Ethanol attracts moisture during storage. Then you eventually get carburettor problems, he says.
If you use gasoline from a gas station, it is important to drain the lawnmower or snow thrower of fuel when it is put away for the season.
– We sell products that are often left over from season to season, says Hvamstad.
Alkylate gasoline tolerates this storage much better.
Correct on cars from 2011 and newer
According to a press release from NAF, the number 10 means that up to ten percent of the fuel is bioethanol, i.e. fuel made from animal and plant residues. This only applies to 95 octane petrol.
– Eventually, all petrol will be E10. It replaces what has hitherto been 95 octane E5. For the vast majority of engines and cars, this transition goes smoothly. If you have a petrol car from 2011 or later, the car is approved for E10, says senior communications advisor Nils Sødal at NAF.
The challenge is therefore cars from 2010 or older.
– If you have an older car, you should check with the dealer whether the car can withstand E10. Cars that are from 2001 or older, including vintage cars, should not use E10. The same applies to older outboard motors. Veteran cars and outboard engines must use 98 octane, which is still E5, he says.
To be marked
According to NAF, all pumps containing E10 must be clearly marked, but not all stations have done so, Sødal believes.
– Some stations are still not sufficiently marked with E10, so here you as a customer and consumer must check carefully what you fill up, especially if your car is not brand new, he says.
It is also a challenge that several of the stations have stopped selling 98 octane super, which is the alternative for cars that cannot use E10.
– There is no obligation to deliver on 98 super. This means that many stations no longer offer E5 for those with older cars. This means that anyone with an older car risks having to drive far to find the right fuel, says Nils Sødal in NAF.
Gives advice to boat owners
The boating industry association Norboat writes in a press release that increased ethanol mixing causes major challenges related to the storage of petrol, which in turn can result in propulsion failures and engine stoppages on boats.
– Water in the petrol can become a frequent cause of engine stoppage if boaters fill up with the new E10 petrol, as boats have a different consumption pattern than, for example, a car. A boat that is only used for a few hours at a time and perhaps only at weekends, and a tank that is therefore not filled with fresh petrol frequently, with E10 in the tank will risk the engine stopping the next time the boat is to be used. It can potentially lead to dangerous situations as engine stalling at sea involves other risk factors than engine stalling along the road, says Thomas Nicolai Bjøness in Norboat.
Norboat therefore recommends that all boat owners switch to filling with 98 octane. This petrol quality still has the designation E5, and is currently without the addition of bioethanol.
Facts about E10
E10 is a fuel with up to 10 percent bioethanol (biofuel).All cars from 2011 or newer can run on E10. E10 should not be used on outboard engines and cars older than 2001, including vintage cars. Car owners who are unsure whether their car can handle E10 should check with their dealer. E10 is more climate-friendly than traditional fossil fuel. Emissions from biofuel are not considered fossil fuel and do not contribute to climate emissions. There are around 820,000 petrol cars on Norwegian roads, compared to 1.1 million diesel cars and 600,000 electric cars (SSB 2023).
2023-07-22 17:14:30
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