There is no federal regulation preventing us from installing an electric fuel pump on a
diesel fuel system wherever we desire.
Locate the electric pump at a level equal to or below the bottom of the
fuel tank else, as previously mentioned, the pump may not pull fuel through an air lock in a line from the tank. The pump will not pull fuel through a clogged
fuel filter yet it will push fuel through one that is why the pump should go before all filters and just after a tank shut-off valve below any fuel level. Use a
screen (not a filter) between the tank shut-off valve and before the pump. You can find them at Shucks, etc. You can see the
screen to tell if it is gunked up.
Use a fuse in line with the pump and double clamp the fittings on the fuel lines. Install a simple toggle switch nearby so that when you periodically inspect the engine space when running (as you should) you can quickly put the pump into play when starting to foul a filter (which happens just at the most inopportune times when you cannot change the filter or sit there pumping a manual one).
I view an electric pump as a
safety item on boats going to sea with
diesel engines. They can make the difference between disaster and a good time! Good
installation practices make them safe.