Had just added 4 gals to Honda generator prepping for
another powerless night.

Power unexpectedly restored hours early.
Looking to reduce amount in gen tank by
several gallons.

Need tips on suitable gear.

Can you siphon the gasoline back into the gas can and pour it into your car or keep it for a few months in case needed. There are all kinds of easy siphoning kits you can buy relatively cheaply.

You can get clear tubing from lowes or home despot. Siphon it out then you can remove the tank and drain it completely. Leav the tank out in the sun uncapped and let the rest flash off.

https://www.amazon.com/Hopkins...a-387343444452&psc=1


I’ve used one similar to this for a few gallons at a time.

Fluid transfer pump. Harbor Fright. $4.99 This is the bulb type. Avoid the one with the pump. Siphon out the gas then just run out the last few drops.

Kerosene pump

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Dyn...for-Liquids/21804882

Does anyone else just keep fuel in the tank?

I put sta-bil in ethonal free gas and leave it topped off. I run it under load about every three months to excercise it, then cut off the fuel and let it die. Always started on the first pull for the 5 years I've had it and it isn't even one of the fancy Hondas.

Pinch the fuel line going from the tank to the carb with a vise grip pliers. Remove the fuel line from the carb and put it in an empty gas can. Release the vise grip pliers and gravity will do the rest.

The fuel line from the tank probably goes to a shut of valve, but same idea.

quote:

Originally posted by KDR:
Does anyone else just keep fuel in the tank?

I put sta-bil in ethonal free gas and leave it topped off. I run it under load about every three months to excercise it, then cut off the fuel and let it die. Always started on the first pull for the 5 years I've had it and it isn't even one of the fancy Hondas.

This is what I do, except I run it every 2 months. Keep it close to full with Sta-Bil treated non-ethanol gas, no issues.

The comments above are really good, but I learned this trick many years ago from an old mechanic when we worked at the Buick dealership. This is something that I don't think many people know about or how to do it, so here it is, presented as an alternative, as if you don't have a fuel transfer pump but you do have a source of compressed air.

First of all, you do NOT want to start a siphon by sucking on a hose to get the gasoline flowing. Do NOT do that!

You should practice first with water, instead of fuel, to get the hang of this, as this is a bit hard to explain, so bear with me, the concept is easy once you get the idea.

You will need compressed air and a hose. Assuming you have commercial power or your generator running, or a large compressed air storage tank full, you only need an air blower nozzle on the end of the air hose, the type you that keeps the line closed until you press a knob or move a lever to allow the compressed air to blow out.

Your compressed air source needs to be more than some dinky little 12 volt flat tire inflator you keep in the glove box. You need a source of air that is enough to move air CFM quickly.

You are going to create a "Venturi Effect", as my old friend taught me.

This works better, if you have a limited source of compressed air, and works fantastic if you have a lot of compressed air, such as provided by a 220 volt or so larger compressed air that can provide a good amount of CFM air, like a mechanics shop. A 110 volt home air compressor will work fine as long as it can deliver enough CFM to make this work.

Having said that, get a hose to transfer the fuel. You should try to find a hose with a smaller-ish diameter than a larger-ish diameter.

Place one end of the hose in the gas tank. Have your receiving container ready to go, and place it below the level of the tank you wish to drain.

Hold the transfer hose down low, and then place the air nozzle parallel to it, with the nozzle tip adjacent parrel to the outlet end of the transfer hose, and slightly angle it so that the air will move mostly parallel, this will create a venturi effect . Activate the air hose nozzle and watch the end of the transfer hose, and keep it right there at the receiving liquid tank, when the fuel starts to come out of the transfer hose then place it in the receiving liquid tank.

If you are having a hard time getting it started, you may have too big of a diameter, or too long in length, of the transfer hose as compared to the diameter and air flow of the air hose. You can squeeze the end of the fuel transfer hose to reduce diameter, and thus provide more air relative to that, to get the fuel flow started. The rush of air has to be enough to create the venturi effect to get the fuel flowing.

Then just proceed with the fuel transfer as you need. Be safe and smart and use common sense.
.

^ are you saying you shouldn’t siphon gasoline with your mouth? PSHAWWW. Back in my day we ate asbestos sandwiches with grey Poupon and siphoned LEADED gas out of ford fairlanes to wash it down.

Crazy talk….kids these days don’t even know how good leaded gas smells or tastes…siphoning unleaded would be like washing your mouth with Diet Coke, blechhh.

I get as much regular gasoline out by running it low at the end of my use or siphoning, then add a gallon or two of 100LL avgas from my local small airport.
Then run a few minutes to get it through the fuel system and turn off the shutoff valve and let it run until it stops.
The avgas is very good in storage and has no ethanol content. It also costs no more than ethanol free and often less.

I bought an electric fuel pump, some wire and alligator clamps, rubber fuel line, and fuel filters so I could syphon 100 octane avgas from 55 gallon drums directly into my vehicles.

This served me well for removing fuel from small fuel tanks as well.

Total cost was about 60.00.

quote:

Originally posted by Gibb:

quote:

Originally posted by KDR:
Does anyone else just keep fuel in the tank?

I put sta-bil in ethonal free gas and leave it topped off. I run it under load about every three months to excercise it, then cut off the fuel and let it die. Always started on the first pull for the 5 years I've had it and it isn't even one of the fancy Hondas.

This is what I do, except I run it every 2 months. Keep it close to full with Sta-Bil treated non-ethanol gas, no issues.

This is what I do, as well, except I only run it for about twenty minutes or a half hour once-a-year.

The key is real gas, not that Ethanol-contaminated garbage.

quote:

Originally posted by MikeinNC:
^ are you saying you shouldn’t siphon gasoline with your mouth? PSHAWWW. Back in my day we ate asbestos sandwiches with grey Poupon and siphoned LEADED gas out of ford fairlanes to wash it down.

Crazy talk….kids these days don’t even know how good leaded gas smells or tastes…siphoning unleaded would be like washing your mouth with Diet Coke, blechhh.

That’s good. You could siphon Wood Alcohol, I think, to get more Fiber in your diet, because wood is fiber. Lol.
.

quote:

Originally posted by Gibb:

quote:

Originally posted by KDR:
Does anyone else just keep fuel in the tank?

I put sta-bil in ethonal free gas and leave it topped off. I run it under load about every three months to excercise it, then cut off the fuel and let it die. Always started on the first pull for the 5 years I've had it and it isn't even one of the fancy Hondas.

This is what I do, except I run it every 2 months. Keep it close to full with Sta-Bil treated non-ethanol gas, no issues.

Ditto

Some great suggestions gents. Appreciate the notes on
dietary modifications as well.

I suppose the non ethanol fuel would not
abuse my diabetic food intake efforts as well.

Used a small pocket Venturi effect fitting
back in early 60s tire service days to
deflate truck tubes. Might work here?

check out harbor freights battery operated transfer pump
$15.00

Dump in some Stabil and run it occasionally . That's what I do . People freak out over gasoline like it's going to ruin your engine overnight . I've never purchased non ethanol gas for my power equipment and the only issue I ever had was from an engine that sat up for nearly a year . Got it running with some Starting fluid and SeaFoam .

quote:

Originally posted by MikeinNC:
^ are you saying you shouldn’t siphon gasoline with your mouth? PSHAWWW. Back in my day we ate asbestos sandwiches with grey Poupon and siphoned LEADED gas out of ford fairlanes to wash it down.

Crazy talk….kids these days don’t even know how good leaded gas smells or tastes…siphoning unleaded would be like washing your mouth with Diet Coke, blechhh.

I know, right? Growing up, if we couldn’t siphon gas, we didn’t ride our motorcycles. I was practically raised on gasoline. I learned to take a mouthful without inhaling or swallowing it.

A “Safety Siphon” is what I use now. For emptying small equipment, get the smallest one.

Safety Siphon - The Original Safe Multi-Purpose Self Priming Pump By The Original Safety Siphon - 6 Foot High Grade Hose, 1/2" Valve https://a.co/d/0W756BE