ethanol = hangover?

so, here is the situation, over the last several years, I will often have a bad headache the day after I use a chain saw, weed wacker or lawn mower. The exhaust bothers me alot more than years ago. 2 days ago, I took 2 empty gas jugs in my car to work and filled them up on the way home. I drove with the windows 1/2 down of course, but, had a bad headache the next day too. No exhaust to blame since I hadn't run anything. I am begining to wonder if the ethanol, being a type of alcohol, is actually giving me a 'hangover'? Any of you guys have problems with this? These days, almost all solvents bother me anyway. Not so much when I was younger. So, why the problems now? Just age?

You could very well be more sensitive to chemical fumes than you were when you were younger. It's possible, though I would think it's unlikely the alcohol fumes from ethanol are adding to the problem. Some people become very sensitive to minute amounts of certain chemicals like perfumes and I would think alcohol is part of most perfumes. I assume you have 10% ethanol in your gasoline so that leaves 90% gasoline and 10% alcohol to make fumes. My hunch is the gasoline fumes are giving you more of a problem than the alcohol fumes but you never know.

yep ,,.. allergies ,,, the older we get , the less tolerate we become to stuff that used not bother us ,,, the old adage ,,YOU WILL GET USED TO IT NO LONGER WORX ..I would get like you describe after pumpin the manure pits ,,..I had a headache and would be bug eyed still at midnite even though I showered and scrubbed soon as I come in hours before.. finally go tosleep around 4 am , and would not wake up til noon ,, my dear wife learned the drill and let me sleep in ,I would have a headache (hogchit) hangover, LOl.. that took a few daze to get completely over it ,.. and that was in my late 20s til age 40,..when I was in my teens it did not bother me,, other than the nasty filth and odors ,,. but no lasting effects ..

More likely the gasoline fumes than ethanol... I'm more sensitive to some things than I used to be too. Getting half stoned on gasoline fumes will probably leave you with a hangover..

Rod

Diesel exhaust is gives me the worst headache, but so do chainsaws and weedwackers. I have no problem with a clean burning gas engine. Organic smells like strong perfumes gives me a headace too.

I solved the weedwacker problem by buying a 4 stoke husqvarna, which actually has a honda engine on it, very clean burning.

I can only use an electric chainsaw, powered by a portable generator.

Your body gets to a point where it rejects the things it considers bad. 40 years ago I smoked. Now I can't stand to be next to any one who smokes, the smell on their clothes gives me a headache.

WELCOME TO OLD AGE. You will need to learn how to adjust. Try using a respirator with charcoal filters, like you would use when spray painting.

I had a safety course at the beginning of my last job. The lady said gasoline is something to be aware of. She recommended standing upwind of the pump when refueling. I think benzene is one of the components that is the worst. When I haul gas in my car, I put it in the trunk and keep the windows closed and the fan on medium or high. That pressurizes the car and hopefully blows the fumes out the back. I also have an exhaust leak that comes in the car when the windows are open at low speeds, so that is another reason.
My late wife had what has been coined as multi chemical sensitivity. She was allergic, or supersensitive to most everything. The partial list is: Petrochemicals, herbicides, pesticides, insecticides, fungicides, cleaning supplies etc. The list seemed endless. Her father is also affected by many of the same. Living in row crop seed producing farm country makes things worse. When he lived in isolation in West Central Minnesota, he did not have near as many problems. He did admit that when they were spraying potato fields, he did have problems. Now that he lives in town, he has to be aware of when the neighbors are having their lawns sprayed. We all know the reputation that homeowners have about overdosing their lawns.

I would think the words benzene and methane have more to do with your headaches than the word ethanol.

Northvale,
Reading your post I was sure you were going to eventually say that you bought Ethanol-free gas to make your headache diagnosis... but alas!
If you don't believe what others have stated, perhaps you could give that a try???

It's amazing what ethanol gets blamed for these days.

Well I am going to throw this out here, the biggest problem is what you are probably eating! A headache is from inflammation, ever hear the term "food is either medicine or poison"? Eating and drinking processed food is poison.

More importantly; you should drive with the windows all the way up or all the way down, never half way. If you get hit in the side a half open window will slice your head off like nothin'.

I to cannot stand diesel exaust or even the smell of spilled diesel at the pump. I got rid of my gas powered saw and weedwakers years ago because I could not start them. Would take them to shop and they would start on first pull, would shut them off and have me try to start and they would not, hand back to repairman and his first pull they would be running. Guess I just could not pull hard and fast enough to start them. And sitting next to some one with wine or bear the smell bothers me.

sure, our 'filters' don't work as good when we get old.
any fumes, any meds, whatever......alter those brain waves and you can get a hangover.
soon as you smell any fumes, you are already getting high from them. start walking into walls if you breathe em too long.
Respirators help, but don't be fooled, most chemicals can enter thru your skin, and pretty much all of them can get in thru your eyes.
My worst 'hangover' headache was after painting in an enclosed area with a good respirator on, but when I finished, I was a hurtin with beet red eyes. That headache was no fun.......

"It's amazing what ethanol gets blamed for these days. " Yes,LOL and the 90+% that is gasoline, a concoction of more than 60 very nasty, many times cancer causing chemicals, is NEVER to blame for any problem.

Are you sure it wasn't E85 and you forgot that there was 15% gas in it and drank too much?

As we get older, our bodies change and different things affect us. Maybe your lungs are being effected from this. Maybe need to be checked out.

E-85 is 90% ethanol and 15% gasoline. Might try some of that and see if your headache is more severe. Also, you could test the single components: straight gasoline (no ethanol) is available many places and grain alcohol for drinking (Ever Clear) is sold.

Perhaps ethanol gives you the headache but my guess would gasoline as more likely.

I can't start chainsaws either. That is why I have an electric start generator and a electric chainsaw, however my husqvarna 4 stroke weedwacker doesn't require fast or hard pulls. I love mine.