Question for 33 gal. owners

[dannydyn]

Just curious, for those of you with the 33 gal. tank and don't put a lot of mileage on a regular basis - do you fill the tank full at every fill up, or partially?

I don't put a lot of miles, and wonder if letting all that gas sitting in the tank for long period is good.

Thoughts?

 

[vincentw56]

Probably would help if you explained what a long period of time is. And if it is gas or diesel.

 

[cskindt]

I wouldn't fill any tank, regardless of size, if I knew I wasn't going to use the gasoline within 3 months. I would consider using a fuel stabilizer after that.
It's the same concept as 'winterizing' your other equipment or motorcycles or whatever. If you haven't treated gasoline and it sat over the winter, you might be familiar with that distinct odor of bad gas and clogged orifices.
For diesel, I would go to 6 months, then use diesel fuel stabilizer, not the same as gasoline stabilizer.

 

[O'Town Ram]

Gas powered. If not going to use the tank within 3 months (500 miles or so) I would use a fuel treatment. If you use your truck less than 200 miles/month I would use ethanol free fuel.

I fill my tank all the time to reduce the risk of condensation in the tank. This is in FL.

 

[Jako]

"All in all, while the experts agree there are too many variables to determine exactly when gasoline goes bad."
FROM:

Does Gasoline Go Bad?

Crude oil lasts hundreds of millions of years underground, but is gasoline at risk of spoiling?

www.livescience.com

and

Gasoline Has a Surprisingly Short Shelf Life, Which Might Ruin Your Post-Apocalyptic Plans

If shows like The Last of Us were true to life, none of the cars would start, and the characters would all be doomed—not very entertaining, huh?

www.popularmechanics.com

 

[2021EcoDiesel]

I tend to fill mine all the way, but I'm good for 2K miles per month so I'm filling 4 times a month anyways. Diesel truck here, and I use HotShots EDT additive every fill up.

 

[dannydyn]

Probably would help if you explained what a long period of time is. And if it is gas or diesel.

Good question, honestly not sure myself. But if you live in a populated area with gas station on every corner, is there a benefit to filling the tank full at every fill up? lugging around all that extra gas? I put about 12 miles a day on the truck (home --> gym --> train station --> home), and some other light driving around town. Nothing crazy. Gas stations all around me, with a 33 gal. tank I can probably go 2 months on a single tank. If I can fill up at any given moment, why lug around 2 months old gas.... I guess that's my question. Not really an argument, just trying to weigh the benefits for local, every day driving. Obviously road trips would be a different story. Even then, on a 33 gal. tank, I'll need to take a **** long before I need to refill...

 

[2021EcoDiesel]

Good question, honestly not sure myself. But if you live in a populated area with gas station on every corner, is there a benefit to filling the tank full at every fill up? lugging around all that extra gas? I put about 12 miles a day on the truck (home --> gym --> train station --> home), and some other light driving around town. Nothing crazy. Gas stations all around me, with a 33 gal. tank I can probably go 2 months on a single tank. If I can fill up at any given moment, why lug around 2 months old gas.... I guess that's my question. Not really an argument, just trying to weigh the benefits for local, every day driving. Obviously road trips would be a different story. Even then, on a 33 gal. tank, I'll need to take a **** long before I need to refill...

I don't see anything wrong with letting your tank go down to 1/4 or so then even if it takes several weeks to use that much fuel. The Hemi will burn 1-2 month old gasoline just fine. Exposure to oxygen/outside air makes gas go bad faster, in your relatively sealed fuel tank it will last just fine. Just don't run it too low cause that could damage your fuel pump, yada yada yada...

 

[PistashIOS]

I'm a prospective Ram 1500 buyer now, been shopping and found one with the 33 gal tank - I typically drive 125-150 miles a day for work, so the extra range is nice- fill up on avg 1x a week. If the 3.0ED performs better than my 3.6L Gladiator, it should lessen my gas station stops...guess I'll have to start buying my RedBulls from Costco now savings on both sides of the coin! In answer to the OP, I would agree - having gas or diesel sit for a long time does go bad...but we're talking after months of stagnation.

 

[cskindt]

Good question, honestly not sure myself. But if you live in a populated area with gas station on every corner, is there a benefit to filling the tank full at every fill up? lugging around all that extra gas? I put about 12 miles a day on the truck (home --> gym --> train station --> home), and some other light driving around town. Nothing crazy. Gas stations all around me, with a 33 gal. tank I can probably go 2 months on a single tank. If I can fill up at any given moment, why lug around 2 months old gas.... I guess that's my question. Not really an argument, just trying to weigh the benefits for local, every day driving. Obviously road trips would be a different story. Even then, on a 33 gal. tank, I'll need to take a **** long before I need to refill...

It sounds like a moot point then. Fill up if the gas prices are good.

 

[spyder]

I can't imagine not filling up a bunch of times every month. My fuel bill budget is over 300/month just from running around.

 

[Dewey]

Never had a problem with old fuel. Mine somehow goes empty every 5-6 days on average.

 

[ORSPG]

Just curious, for those of you with the 33 gal. tank and don't put a lot of mileage on a regular basis - do you fill the tank full at every fill up, or partially?

I don't put a lot of miles, and wonder if letting all that gas sitting in the tank for long period is good.

Thoughts?

What is a "long time"? weeks, months, a year?

 

[dannydyn]

What is a "long time"? weeks, months, a year?

I'd say couple of months.

 

[JJRamTX]

I always fill it up. Less risk of condensation in the tank that way. Same with my boat, always top it off and add a Stabil 360 Marine additive before it goes to hibernation for 5 months and it always starts right up on the first crank after winter is over.

 

[HSKR R/T]

Good question, honestly not sure myself. But if you live in a populated area with gas station on every corner, is there a benefit to filling the tank full at every fill up? lugging around all that extra gas? I put about 12 miles a day on the truck (home --> gym --> train station --> home), and some other light driving around town. Nothing crazy. Gas stations all around me, with a 33 gal. tank I can probably go 2 months on a single tank. If I can fill up at any given moment, why lug around 2 months old gas.... I guess that's my question. Not really an argument, just trying to weigh the benefits for local, every day driving. Obviously road trips would be a different story. Even then, on a 33 gal. tank, I'll need to take a **** long before I need to refill...

Sounds like you aren't just letting the truck sit, you just don't put a lot of miles on it. Should be no issue letting the tank run down before filing up. For those worried about condensation, since he is driving it regularly, the evap system will help prevent that. If actually leaving the truck sit for months at time, I'd be more concerned.

My 2000 Dakota I have, my last deployment while I was active duty, I filled the tank and let it sit in my in-laws yard, parked on plywood, for 8 months while I was gone. When I came back, hooked up battery and it fired right up and ran fine. It would take a long time if sitting for modern fuel injected vehicles to have an issue with bad gas.

 

[Malodave]

On my 33 gal EcoDiesel with 3.21 gears I get about 8-9 Days of work commute of 30 miles each way.

I am fabricating the last few parts to add an AUX fuel Tank to the Bed holding another 72 Gallons. Best
Mileage I got so far was 28.5 mpg. I usually average about 25 on my commute. 50% highway speed and 50%
30-35 mph roads.

Malodave

 

[Snwjnky]

I'd love to be able to fill my tank. My credit card stops at $100, and with these Bidenomics / California prices, I can let it go much past 1/2 tank

 

[cskindt]

I'd love to be able to fill my tank. My credit card stops at $100, and with these Bidenomics / California prices, I can let it go much past 1/2 tank

Which The Inflation Reduction Act is part of.

 

[scottmoyer]

Exposure to oxygen/outside air makes gas go bad faster, in your relatively sealed fuel tank it will last just fine. Just don't run it too low cause that could damage your fuel pump, yada yada yada...

Is the fuel system "relatively" sealed? There are multiple connections at the tank, where one should be a reverse vent. It allows the tank to breathe air when gas is pumped to the engine. Without it, you'd be creating a vacuum in the tank and it would collapse. The gas vapors route through a charcoal cannister and into the intake to be burned and all excess fuel is returned to the tank via a return line, but a sealed system would cause the gas to boil. Boiled gas causes vapor lock. That's why we used to have vented gas caps.