Is the EPA serious?

[Fred W]

Lets do the math, assuming that a blender pump has E10 and E15 as the two options and that there is 1/3 gallon in the hoses. If you pumped only 2 gallons of E10 after someone else just pumped E15 from that pump you would get: (.3 x 15) + (1.7 x 10) / 2 = 10.75 % ethanol instead of the expected 10%. If you filled your FJR (usually at least 5 gallons) you would get (.3 x 15) + (4.7 x 10) / 5 = 10.3% ethanol.

Doesn't seem like that big of a deal to me especially since there usually isn't exactly 10% ethanol in E10 fuel (that's just the max they can blend in). But stopping at only "dedicated hose" (non-blending) stations would be a way to avoid the whole thing.

 

[FJReady]

Fred, you're such a thread killer there with all that practical stuff backed by real math etc. Jeesch.

 

[SkooterG]

Doesn't seem like that big of a deal to me especially since there usually isn't exactly 10% ethanol in E10 fuel (that's just the max they can blend in). But stopping at only "dedicated hose" (non-blending) stations would be a way to avoid the whole thing.

It IS a big deal when they make you buy/pump a minimum of 4 gallons!

 

[Fred W]

They are clearly talking about CARS that have greater than 4 gallon tanks. It would be pretty hard to pump 4 gallons into my WR tank, since it holds only a little more than 2.

 

[wfooshee]

They are clearly talking about CARS that have greater than 4 gallon tanks. It would be pretty hard to pump 4 gallons into my WR tank, since it holds only a little more than 2.

No, they're not, and that's the whole point. The mandate would require that all purchases from blended pumps be at least 4 gallons.

EPA requires that retail stations that own or operate blender pumps either dispense E15 from a dedicated hose and nozzle if able or, in the case of E15 and E10 being dispensed from the same hose, require that at least four gallons of fuel be purchased to prevent vehicles and engines with smaller fuel tanks from being exposed to gasoline-ethanol blended fuels containing greater than 10 volume percent ethanol.
Since motorcyclists and ATV users, as you suggest, have relatively small fuel tanks, they should pay careful attention to the labeling of blender pumps to ensure that an appropriate fuel is chosen, in this case E10 or E0.

They've dumped responsibility for proper fuel blend onto the consumer rather than the dispenser by stating in their response that users of motorcyclists, ATVs, and other small-capacity machines need to pay careful attention to the labeling and use non-blended pumps if they can't pump 4 gallons. So if you're nearly out of gas on the road on your Honda VTR1000 (which holds 3.5 gallons) how far can you go to find a station with dedicated hoses for E10 or E0?

Incredible that he actually mentions "engine with smaller fuel tanks" and then mandates an amount greater than many of those small tanks.

 

[HotRodZilla]

They are clearly talking about CARS that have greater than 4 gallon tanks. It would be pretty hard to pump 4 gallons into my WR tank, since it holds only a little more than 2.

No, they're not, and that's the whole point. The mandate would require that all purchases from blended pumps be at least 4 gallons.

EPA requires that retail stations that own or operate blender pumps either dispense E15 from a dedicated hose and nozzle if able or, in the case of E15 and E10 being dispensed from the same hose, require that at least four gallons of fuel be purchased to prevent vehicles and engines with smaller fuel tanks from being exposed to gasoline-ethanol blended fuels containing greater than 10 volume percent ethanol.
Since motorcyclists and ATV users, as you suggest, have relatively small fuel tanks, they should pay careful attention to the labeling of blender pumps to ensure that an appropriate fuel is chosen, in this case E10 or E0.

They've dumped responsibility for proper fuel blend onto the consumer rather than the dispenser by stating in their response that users of motorcyclists, ATVs, and other small-capacity machines need to pay careful attention to the labeling and use non-blended pumps if they can't pump 4 gallons. So if you're nearly out of gas on the road on your Honda VTR1000 (which holds 3.5 gallons) how far can you go to find a station with dedicated hoses for E10 or E0?

Incredible that he actually mentions "engine with smaller fuel tanks" and then mandates an amount greater than many of those small tanks.

Because he's...Say it with me: Stuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuupid. It amazes me how these government idiots with no Goddammed common sense get put into positions to further display their level of idiocy.