I've had similar issues with pests in the past, and it's always a pain to deal with. From my research, it looks like the best way to prevent further damage is to store your tanks inside or cover them with something to impede the beetles' attack. Chemical treatments are not advised since these beetles feed on a wide range of trees, and it's not worth the potential harm to other wildlife. That being said, I recently discovered a pest control company that was a huge help to me - Wasp Pest Control Sunderland. They were able to provide some solutions and advice for dealing with pests, and they might be able to help you out with your beetle problem as well.

 

they must be russian bugs.
lol!
almost as bad as the diesel slime.
new stuff every day adapting to what is out there for food.

 

Vodka as bait.... is this what has become of this Russian liquor? It's down to being bug bait?

 

how about making glass and metal top jar traps for them?
they do that for the construction bees here.

ethanol as bait (booze like vodka) and dawn with a bit of water to drown them.

bait traps on the edges of the property to draw them away from the garage etc.

 

Head to left and massive compared to the rear.

 

picture from the video, they look just like their online pictures

Bug rear to left, and bug head to right. When they fly it is a delicate slow silent flight

 

got any good pix of the bugs?
are they seeking the ethanol?

 

Today, 87 degrees and the fuel eating bugs are here!
They were crawling and flying all around one generator tank, still on top of the tarp. None had found their way under the tarp yet.
At least 25 little Camphor shoot borer beetles.
I sprayed them with Hotshot, they died.

I have two gallon gas cans in white plastic bags, and no boozy bugs are on the plastic.

I am building a 12 by 16 gambrel roof shed to put these gens into. I will make sure it is well sealed.
video link

New video by Scott Downey

photos.app.goo.gl

 

till we get an aluminum eating bug! lol!
they have those plastic welder setups...
or just get metal tanks!

 

Got tank sealed up and taped up today.
One thing also hated about this tank, They have this well, so spilled gas can not drain away.
That also means any rain and water can't either. I think it real dumb of the designer.
My Generac tank drains away.

 

I have also repaired a bunch of plastic gas cans about 60 gallons worth, all had holes eaten into them.
My plan is to put them in white leaf bags and hope the bugs stay away, the bugs shy away from the white color supposedly from what the entomologists say.

I use them to fill my boat gas tank which is on a dock and it is whole lot cheaper than marina gas.
Boat tanks are monel metal, and each one is 150 gallons. Lets just say with gas priced sky high, I dont put much gas in the boat now.

 

Today pulled my other gas tank from the TroyBilt.
It is again HORRIBLE, all eaten up again with at least 20 new holes from last year when I fixed it.
The camphor shoot borers even ate new holes right into patched holes
I plan to cover whole tank in Aluminum tape like the other.
You can also see some holes are just partial, some actually are full thickness as in they leak gas.

I am surprised more of you dont have a problem yet. Of course if the tank is metal your good to go except for the rust.
pics

 

I was actually thinking about that the other day. I was wondering why didn't they just coat the inside of a metal tank with plastic like HDPE to stop it from corroding...

But then it hit me.... they probably thought of that already but instead, decided to drop the metal tank altogether and just make the whole tank plastic.

 

The combination of both would result in a vastly better tank.

 

I'll trade you my crusty metal tank for that plastic swiss cheese.

 

HAHA, I noticed on Amazon the generators all have stamped metal tanks.
You know manufacturer could plastic coat with HDPE the inside of metal tanks, just like many metal jerry cans are made. Like Wavian does. I think it is a roto molding process.

 

ALSO, the idle down control board is bad.
Anyone know a cheap fix?

 

I got the generator together, a Max Force Generac 6500 watt.
Fuel tank seems to be doing ok with aluminum duct tape covering the plastic.

This gen had sat about 3 years unused, It had no spark! I had to buy a new coil. Then it ran good. It also needs a new GFCI outlet, some how it is cracked.
The oil filter also I bought a Fram, so need to change the oil.
And the oil pressure wire broke, oddly I found it and the other 2 wires, red and white, seem to be partially chewed on, maybe a squirrel or a mouse did that, the yellow wire was completely parted.

I had to drain out the older 2 year old gas I put in for a test, as it could not run properly unless partially choked.
Video of it running

New video by Scott Downey

photos.app.goo.gl

Coil is #
0G9241T

 

I ordered some more aluminum tape to finish this. But beginning to wonder if vapor fumes will push the tape off the plastic. So maybe the tank should also be shrink plastic wrapped, with something like this

18" Stretch Film/Wrap 1200ft 500% Stretch Clear Cling Durable Adhering Packing Moving Packaging Heavy Duty Shrink Film Stretch Wrap(1 Pack, Clear)

Buy 18" Stretch Film/Wrap 1200ft 500% Stretch Clear Cling Durable Adhering Packing Moving Packaging Heavy Duty Shrink Film Stretch Wrap(1 Pack, Clear) at Amazon. Customer reviews and photos may be available to help you make the right purchase decision!

www.amazon.com

When I finally get some fuel in the tank, I will let you know how just the tape works. I am pretty certain this plastic wrap does not react with gasoline. And even wondering if that is all it would need, if it is vapor proof wrap.

I am also wondering about the white shrink wrap plastic put on boats.

LLDPE has an A-Excellent rating against gasoline

LDPE Chemical Compatibility Chart

www.calpaclab.com

 

No the tape is fine. Just saying to keep spillage to a minimum or clean it up immediately.

 

I dont really know what any of you would do if you were facing devastating beetle attacks, they start in March and go thru June here at least
The glue may lift in a few places near the fill, but not all will and tape is cheap.

 

That should stand up well to re-entry.

I'd be careful to not make any gas spills/splashes. I don't know of any adhesive that can withstand gasoline... and that includes aluminum tape adhesives. You could end up with a sticky, mushy mess on the tank as the spilled gas goes under the tape and melts the adhesive.

 

Looks fit for space, if the tape had the gold foil it would look straight out of nasa.

That foil tape is great stuff. I use it often.

 

Well, I know who I'm getting to wrap my Christmas presents next year

 

Covering the tank in aluminum tape. But I ran out.

It goes on good and it conforms to the odd shape. I was reading these bugs do not like WHITE, this aluminum should dazzle their little bug eyes.

 

Sorry if this sounds selfish but I have to ask. If I've never run gas in my generators does that mean I'm safe?

 

Sounds reasonable, if you have a virgin generator that hasn’t touched ethanol….

For the first time ever I currently have only E0 gas on hand and in all my machines and tanks. Hope that’s good enough lol.

 

'the distribution of the species will continue to expand in North America'
They are coming for your tanks, you can count on it, so get ready for them to be attacked.
Maybe the new EPA standards for gas cans will help. Supposed to be less permeable to fuel vapor. There are so many fuel systems that will be attacked, this fuel can drilling bug is spreading fast.
Emptying - draining the gas tank-can is not going to help, they come after tanks and rubber fuel lines due to the vapors. So storing inside might be a help, and that may be dangerous due to fuel vapors in enclosed spaces. I think tanks-cans are just going to have to be armored against attacks.
Bug sprays will wash off, people wont remember to keep spraying their cans.

Cnestus mutilatus, Camphor Shot Borer (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) (lsuagcenter.com)
Ecological Significance and Pest Status
The camphor shot borer was introduced from its native range in Asia, where it is reported to be a pest of forest trees. It was first documented in North America based on specimens captured in Mississippi. The species was first documented in Louisiana during 2009. They can now be found throughout the eastern half of the United States as far north as Pennsylvania. They do not appear to pose a direct threat to native trees, mainly because of their preference for smaller branches. However, they have an unfortunate and unique way of creating problems. They are strongly attracted to vapors given off by gasoline, possibly because of the high ethanol content of modern formulations. Ethanol is commonly released by stressed and dying trees and serves as a powerful attractant for insects, such as the camphor shot borer, that attack stressed tress. This has resulted in an alternative common name for the species, gasoline beetles, for their habit of boring into gasoline tanks and hoses by mistake. Mysterious, BB-sized holes began appearing in plastic gasoline containers and fuel lines of small engines shortly after the discovery of camphor shot borers in Louisiana. Close inspection revealed that many of these holes were plugged by the dead bodies of the female beetles. Such incidents create fire and environmental hazards because of leakage of fuel, often only discovered during fuel transfers. At least one case of near stranding in the Gulf of Mexico was reported from Florida after beetles bored holes through marine fuel lines.
Climatic modeling suggests that the distribution of the species will continue to expand in North America because of climate change and wide availability of hosts, so they and other Asian species of ambrosia beetles are likely to pose a continuing threat into the future.