RTR-Leaving Fuel in the Tank

[Ericke1]

I raced 2 weeks ago and then brought the buggy home cleaned it up and put it away. The next day I put fuel in my tank but couldnt get my car to start, I later realized what the problem was and fixed it but never took the fuel out. Am I really going to damage the engine by leaving the fuel in the tank and some in the engine? Its been raining here every day so I havent had a chance to go empty it out.

 

[yuckfoo]

i always let it run out till it dies then a few drops of after run a few cranks of the motot eo distribute the oil and i vent the tank to let the fuel residue to evaporate.....
moisture and humidity bad.....moto care good.....

 

[cbreaker]

If there's fuel in the tank and engine, and you can't run the thing, then I'd suggest dumping out all the fuel from the tank and then turning the motor over a bit to run the rest of the gas out of the engine as much as possible. Put it on your box and let it go for a little bit - not too long - just enough to get the gas out of the fuel lines and such. Then I'd probably put in some after-run and turn it over a few more times to try and displace some of the fuel that's left in there.

Obviously the best case scenerio is to actually start the engine and burn off the fuel, but if you absolutely can't do this then I'd at least try to get as much out of the system as possible.

I've left fuel in my old engine before for a few days and although there was no evident damage from it, I would never do the same in my new engine. The fuel can corrode the parts in the engine and make for a bad situation.

 

[CorradoPsi]

yes, pull the fuel out of the tank, and start the motor so its pulls the fuel out of the lines and burns it. not only does the fuel attract moisture which is corrosive. but it can evaporate off in the carborator and clog it. ask me how i know :shrug: after run oil is a good idea, but not a nessessity.

 

[Nitro_Freak]

bad idea. the fuel in the tank evaporates, leaving an oily residue in there that is a serious pita to clean. also if you leave fuel in the engine you risk corroding the parts inside of it

 

[Hypedonrc]

I run it utill it dies, and if I'm not going to run it in the next 24-48 hrs, I blow it off with an air compresser (when available) and put a couple drops of afterrun oil in the glow plug hole. Then turn it over a few times by hand before putting the glow plug back in. On the other hand. My Nitro Rush has never seen after run oil, sat for a year+ at least twice now, and one of those times also had a half tank of gas in it. Just two days ago I dumped it out, put fresh nitro in it, and it fired right up, and ran great! So I say do what ever you want, but if you are worried about it I say better safe than sorry.

 

[NITRO 21]

I found out the hard way what leaving fuel in the tank can do with my first car, after breaking the arms on it I left it sitting for awhile not knowing that the fuel was gonna hurt it and after fixing the damaged parts I could never get the engine to run right again,since then I make sure I dump my fuel and also put a few drops of after run in the carb and the glow plug hole and turn it over since I have been doing this all my other cars have been running fine.

 

[yuckfoo]

true let it run out then either through glow plug or carb and just crank it over a few times........brace tank lid opn a little for about an hour to let fuel evaporate.........my 2.5 cents tried and true...

after run oil good thing.....undefined

 

[El Pirata]

There's really no harm in leaving fuel in the tank. I dare say I still have fuel in my tanks from Memorial Day weekend and have no worries about my engines starting. Think about it, it's still a fairly well sealed container that the fuel is residing, providing that you have no leaks in your fuel system.

From the sound of your problem, it sounds suspiciously like you've got a fouled glow plug or a bad glow igniter. If you've used ARO in your engine then that can also make starting a problem too.

 

[Ericke1]

The cooling head was just not tight enough on my engine thats why it didnt start. I'm going to take a chance and leave the fuel in until this Sunday when I can run my two buggies again.

 

[Hypedonrc]

I bet it will be OK. You can probably even run the fuel in the tank, but I would dump it out, and use fresh my self.

Oh yeah, if you don't already know, dump it only where you don't want green things to grow. Wouldn't want you to have a dead spot in your lawn the rest of the summer.

 

[El Pirata]

I prefer a slightly more Earth friendly method. I take old tupperwares and then use the bad fuel for cleaning parts. Thus far I have never filled up the container to the top.

 

[Hypedonrc]

That is a good idea El. I think I will use that one.