Alcohol was a trick the truckers use to use when there diesel fuel was contaminated with water. Diesel or gas will not blend with water, however it will blend with alcohol. Alcohol and gas will also blend. Alcohol is used as an emulsifier that causes fuel and water to blend together. The problem with ethanol blended fuels, is it is not as stable as fuel that does not have it. Many arguments can be made for why they started blending ethanol with gas, but now that they are, we have to deal with it. Any fuel that is to be stored is best kept in a steel container. I like aluminum because it wont rust when water gets into the tank and sits on the bottom. However with ethanol blended fuel, water will blend with the fuel instead of collecting on the bottom of the tank. The problem with ethanol blended fuel is it keeps absorbing moisture as its stored. Thats why it's important to store it in air tight containers. Ethanol fuels will also cause more varnish build up that coats carb parts causing issues.
