The ethanol eates away the rubber/plastic fuel lines in all motors(chain saw, trimmers,boat,etc.)
With 2 cycle engines the oil that you mix has a fuel stabilizer in it. With ALL other small four cycle engines
you should add fuel stabalizer to the gasoline/ethanol mix.
FYI, ALL offshore motor boats should have 2 engines.
“FYI, ALL offshore motor boats should have 2 engines.”
Good is you can afford it and the fuel that the extra one eats.
Even better to have three just in case the first two fail.
Around here, one well maintained one will get you by for most purposes, except going to Bimini, or the Bahamas, but even then, you’d need a boat with enough fuel capacity, which normally gets you up to twin engines anyway.
However...engine failure is only one kind of failure that can leave a boat with no power at sea.
For the rest of us who have bills to pay and a budget to live within, there is Towboatus and Sea tow. A bit of insurance can save a lot spent on that extra $20,000 outboard.
Most modern outboard designs (4 stroke and DI 2 stroke) are very reliable. The key if you're going offshore in a single-engine boat is to be absolutely rabid about maintenance...wholly different than the casual maintenance most folks perform on lake boats.
And NO ethanol.