diesel Fuel Filter

[Charlie]

I live about 800 miles from my boat and sometimes on a Sunday morning I go out and play with the diesel engine on my tractor and wish it was my boat. Today I went to change the fuel filter and found horrible brown sludge in the filter. Thinking back it must have come from the 55 gal drum where I store "red" diesel. The bottom of the drum rusted out and I imagine there was a thick coating of rust and diesel on the bottom of drum that got in the tank.

My first thought was to empty out the fuel tank on the tractor (it is gravity fed to the fuel filter). I unhooked the fuel line and poured some of it into a glass jar and I had clear diesel flowing thru. I'm going to dump the drum but should I:

1) Dump the tank?
2)Is there anything I can do to clean the injectors or is the damage already done?
3)Add bio-diesel to the tank (b/c it is an excellent solvent) and see what comes out of the tank?
4) Take the tank off and clean it (its plastic and only has a small access to it)?
5)Set up a racor or similar primary filter system?

Any help would be appreciated.
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[delmarrey]

this artical will give you an idea of what you have (Residual tar)............._/)

http://www.algae-x.net/faq_answers.htm

BTW-Adding Biodiesel is not recommended on older engines. It can eat the seals.....The newer engines have the proper seal material for bio....

Charlie, Delmarrey is correct. You have algae. An algaecide in the drum should take care of it, BUT, you will then need to filter out the sludge that the dead algae creates before you put it in your tank. If you are using a transfer pump, you should install a filter on the pump. As for the injectors, damage is unlikely. The filters are pretty good at catching this stuff before it gets that far. You will want to empty the fuel tank, and possibly return the fuel to the drum to be treated and filtered.

[Alan Wheeler]

Diesel "bug" can often look like a rusty brown sludgy slimey gunk. It can be very common for it to grow in only a few places. Like the filters only. The tank maybe fine. Of course, it may have come from the drum or source further upstream and the filters have trapped it. If the engine is running OK, I doubt you have an injector issue. Just ensure the filters get renewed and the housings are well cleaned. Check the lift pup. Inside there is often a fine screen. This will clog up. Remove and clean if there is one. Dose the fuel tank with a Biocide to kill any growth inside. If the tank is easy to remove, then a simple clean would do just as effectively. I would still consider doseing both your tank and your storage drum to ensure both are free from future growth and the big trick is to keep water out of both tanks. No water! no growth!

[never monday]

Add a Racor 120 series and keep close tabs on the bowl. Why go thru all the extra work. If this were a boat, my recomendation would be different.

[Charlie]

Thanks
Del Marrey I thought it was rust. The botom of the barrel has pinholes that actually rusted thru and leak diesel. There is a slimey odor from it though so I think it is algae. Its a 2000 tractor so I don't think there will be any probs w/ seals. I wonder if it will do any good though?

Kai thanks for the idea of returning the fuel from the tank to the barrel. I was trying to figure where to dump it legally. I'll just put it back in the barrell.

Wheels The tank is not really difficult to remove but I'm in the middle of a project that needs to be done before the rains come. How would you reccomend cleaning it? There is an access hatch I can get a brush in thru but won't be able to get to the whole tank. Now that I think about it I'm going to search for a post about putting rock salt(or something like that) in the tank that will act as a scouring agent.


Pat I'll do that. I was unsure where to put the Racors but I think that putting them in my transfer pump system would be a good spot.



Biocide seems to be the consensus so I'll do that as a band aid till I finish this project.

Charlie, I wouldn't go too far cleaning the tank. A couple of gallons of clean fuel, and run it over the windrows for a bit,then drain what's left and the tank should be fine for fresh fuel.

[Alan Wheeler]

Yeah go like stink over bumpy ground. Like a good corrigated dirt road. :-)