SeaFoam question?

[Pappin]

I use seafoam in my gas every year on my second fill up after getting my boat out of storage. Will it hurt to run it every fill up? I've heard people say to not use it at all and some have said use it every time! I need some more opinions.

 

[ondarvr]

It's not needed, but you could use it whenever you want. The makers of it would love for you to believe you needed to use it in every tank.

 

[cptbill]

If your using non ethanol fuel You probably only need something for extended storage, but if your going to the local gas station to fill up you should be using something for ethanol and theirs lots of stuff out there that cost a lot less than seafoam

 

[WIMUSKY]

As far as cost, you can usually pick up a can for around $6. But, I've seen it as high as $11.

Use every tank? I don't see the need. Periodically throughout the season, if you want. It's supposed to clean your fuel system. But unless you tear the fuel system down in the spring and inspect the carb etc. and tear it down in the fall to see if there is a difference, one will never really know whether it works. Some call all fuel additives snake oil. Some say you never have to use additives even for storage. Some say always use an additive for storage. All say their method works.

All that being said, my personal preference is to dump a can in every now and then and I always use it in all my motors during winter storage. Do whatever makes you feel good. I don't think there is a wrong answer......

 

[bruceb58]

SeaFoam is a mixture of isopropyl alcohol, oil and naptha. If you really think that is going to help you, use it. If you have fuel injection, the additives with PEA(Techron and others) in it are way better.

BTW, don't use SeaFoam with any engine with O2 sensors on it.

 

[redneck joe]

I only use it once per year and anytime i get a new used motor and have had good lick with it. Buy in the gallon jug if you are going to use it frequently

 

[HT32BSX115]

SeaFoam is a mixture of isopropyl alcohol, oil and naptha.

I always wonder why anyone thinks that additional alcohol, oil and naphtha does any engine any "good" at all. On the one hand, we have people claiming "problems" running gasoline with alcohol added. OTOH, we have people wanting to add every Snake oil on the shelf!

4-stroke engines are pressure lubricated. Putting oil in the fuel only lowers the octane number, increases deposits in the combustion chamber and plugs (from additional unburned hydrocarbons) and the risk of detonation (pinging)

Naphtha is already a component of gasoline. We probably don't really need to add more. I think the chemical engineers that formulate gasoline have that one covered.

Do whatever makes you feel good.

This I agree with..........

I use seafoam in my gas every year on my second fill up after getting my boat out of storage. Will it hurt to run it every fill up? I've heard people say to not use it at all and some have said use it every time! I need some more opinions.

It'll probably only "hurt" your wallet.

I am one that never uses it. I use the money I would have spent on the "snake oils" to just buy regular gasoline.

So I guess I could say your fuel cost would be much less because that $53+tax you would spend on a gallon of Seafoam is far better spent on the roughly 28 gallons of regular gasoline (@$2/gal) you could buy in it's place........

It's even better if you live in an area where gasoline is around $1.60/gal ..... now you get somewhere around 35 gallons of gasoline for the price of just 1 gallon of Seafume..........

Just saying........


Rick

Let me also add that if you buy Seastuff in the 16fl oz bottle, (@$9.49+tx at Advance Auto) the price becomes a whopping $76/gallon (+tax) (8 x 16oz = gallon)

Which is roughly equivalent to about 50gallons of gasoline at $1.60/gal

 

[redneck joe]

Thats why i buy in the gallon.....

 

[72fj40]

I think seafoam is a personal choice. I did some testing with it and found on a cost basis it was a wash between using it or not. I tried it in a high mileage fuel injected vehicle that was getting 18.5 mpg, I added seafoam during a fill up and got a couple more mpg's. I then filled up again without it. Mpg's fell back down to 18.5mpg's. I did this a couple more times and got the same results. If I do the math with the cost of the fillup and the added cost of seafoam compared to buying a couple more gallons of gas results in the same cost. Seafoam did make the engine run a little better, i figure it is because of something in seafoam. I question whether It really cleans anything in the fuel system because the mpg's always dropped to the original mpg's. If it cleaned the system I would expect an overall improvement after its use.

 

[redneck joe]

Ive used it with sucsedd to clean, not as a regular maintenance item

 

[bruceb58]

If I do the math with the cost of the fillup and the added cost of seafoam compared to buying a couple more gallons of gas results in the same cost.

Since the BTUs in the SeaFoam should be less that what the same volume of gasoline is, I kinda question your results. The fact that a major constituent of SeaFoam is oil, you are slowly ruining your O2 sensors.

 

[ondarvr]

There is nothing in Seafoam that is going to increase your MPG, that is unless one of your sensors is reading a rich condition due to the Seafoam and leaning out the fuel.

 

[HT32BSX115]

There is nothing in Seafoam that is going to increase your MPG

I did a google search for "Seafoam, Mileage" and got as many people claiming a drop in mileage as an increase..................

The only valid test would be a test on several vehicles, operated on a dyno in tightly controlled conditions conducted by an independent lab . (Seafoam would never allow this kind of test)

No one doing a "test" on their own vehicle can produce meaningful results. It's just not possible.

It all goes back to that "feel-good" thing.

And I totally get that!

I think seafoam is a personal choice. I did some testing with it and found on a cost basis it was a wash between using it or not. I tried it in a high mileage fuel injected vehicle that was getting 18.5 mpg, I added seafoam during a fill up and got a couple more mpg's. I then filled up again without it. Mpg's fell back down to 18.5mpg's. I did this a couple more times and got the same results. If I do the math with the cost of the fillup and the added cost of seafoam compared to buying a couple more gallons of gas results in the same cost. Seafoam did make the engine run a little better, i figure it is because of something in seafoam. I question whether It really cleans anything in the fuel system because the mpg's always dropped to the original mpg's. If it cleaned the system I would expect an overall improvement after its use.

Hmm.... I may be using different math........... Seafoam recommends using 1oz per gallon of fuel for "maintenance" (2ozper gallon for "cleaning") and says there's no upper limit in the amount you can use........

Many people drive 20,000-30,000 miles per year.

If you got 18.5mpg and drove 20,000 miles, you'd use 1081 gallons ...

Using Seafoam's own "maintenance" recommendation, you would need to buy 8 gallons (actually 7.6 gallons required but if you buy only the additional 0.4 gal, you would pay more for the smaller container)

8 gallons at the best price I could find would cost you roughly $424 ........ if you only used 7.6 gallons the cost would be $402 (if you were "cleaning" for an entire year, [for 20,000 miles] it would cost you roughly $800!!!!)

You said you got a "couple more MPG" for most of us, a couple is TWO......... (2) MPG increase...........

If you got 20.5mpg for 20,000 miles, you'd use 975.6 gallons of fuel. (A 105.5 gallon DIFFERENCE)

At $1.60/gal, you save $168. At $2.00/gallon you save $211

since that 7.6 gallons of Seafoam costs $402 Gasoline would have to cost $3.81per gallon for it to be a "Wash"............

Even @ $2/gallon for gasoline , I don't think it's worth an additional $402(or $800 if you're cleaning) to get 2 mpg The numbers don't crunch.

I couldn't find a claim on their website where they claim a mileage increase (they probably know better........someone would actually DO a "real test" and start a class action) ...........AND after doing a search for "Seafoam + MPG" there was as many claiming an increase as a decrease.......


So back to the OP's original question.

Will it hurt to run it every fill up? ...........I need some more opinions.

According to the SEAFOAM FAQ, NO. https://seafoamsales.com/faq-ask-jim/

And according to Seafoam

Can I add too much Sea Foam to fuel? no

But I would be VERY suspicious of someone saying that when they sell it! **** YOU use more, THEY make more money!!****

So, in my opinion, to reiterate, you're wasting your money using the stuff!


Regards,


Rick

 

[alldodge]

seafoam / snake oil

 

[HT32BSX115]

seafoam / snake oil

Minus the snake!!

 

[redneck joe]

Love these threads.


About 20 years ago had an egr valve replaced and after i picked it up it still ran rough, maybe even worse than before. Called them and he told tme to use seafoam to knock off the carbon buildup that had been accumulating due to the bad valve. Double the recipe he said. I did and ran perfectly for the next 10 years.


Many other times over the years I've used when I've picked something old. Usually fixes half all problems.


That said, i do not add anything regularly. Just once every year or two at double the recipe.

 

[alldodge]

Minus the snake!!

your opinion

 

[bruceb58]

About 20 years ago had an egr valve replaced and after i picked it up it still ran rough, maybe even worse than before. Called them and he told tme to use seafoam to knock off the carbon buildup that had been accumulating due to the bad valve. Double the recipe he said. I did and ran perfectly for the next 10 years.

Go on youtube and look for videos where people put carbon caked pistons in full strength SeaFoam and NO carbon ever comes off. If full strength SeaFoam doesn't take carbon off, how does diluting it to 80:1 make it work?

These anecdotal stories are what makes people buy this stuff.

 

[HT32BSX115]

These anecdotal stories are what makes people buy this stuff.

Yeah..... Slick 50 had a pretty good run until they were sued by the FTC.

Most of the anecdotal "evidence" is usually people reporting that they "tried it and it seems to work , but hasn't hurt anything".

Never understood using any product "because" it seems do something and it doesn't seem hurt anything............

your opinion

It's a "Stealth" snake! Like the Stealth results!!

 

[redneck joe]

Go on youtube and look for videos where people put carbon caked pistons in full strength SeaFoam and NO carbon ever comes off. If full strength SeaFoam doesn't take carbon off, how does diluting it to 80:1 make it work?

These anecdotal stories are what makes people buy this stuff.

well it did work, then and in the interim and since i did it and since i saw a better running engine it is not anecdotal to me. I'm not a chemist but maybe cold raw seafoam is different than hot exploding seafoam, kinda like gasoline.


But like i said, i do not use every tank just every now and then. I do believe running regularly and using good gas is the key more than magic additives.