When storing for extended periods, do you drain gas or not??.

[olycrfrider]

Okay, I am getting mixed suggestions on whether or not to drain the tank and carburator of gas or during the winter months. I always mix Stabil in my gas year round. My boat mechanic recommended to never drain my outboard motor of fuel while in storage because if you do, the ethanol in today's gas will dry up and leave a powder residue in the outboards carburator which will gum up the carb and affect performance. He said this will happen whether you use a Stabil gas treatment or not. If this is true with an outboard motor, wouldn't this also be true in a motorcycle carburator too? What do you guys think? Do you run your carburator completely out of gas for extended periods of storage or leave the gas in. Thanks for your input

[dazzabb]

Don't run it out of gas.

Just drain the float bowl and the tank.

[tvalliere220]

Drain carb via bolt on bottom oF carb, pull lower fuel line and drain all the gas out using the petcock.

[Grinstead_77G]

I follow the owners manual shut down procedure... Turn the gas off and blip the throttle 3-4 times or, even better, let the bike run until it runs out of fuel.

I usually drain the float bowl any time I'm off the bike for more than a few weeks.

I just unscrew the 17mm both and let the gas drain out into a shop towel.

I've found old gas in the carb makes starting more challenging.

I also use a little Stabil in the tank because it seems to keep the ethanol and gas from separating and from collecting moisture.