Item dropped into fuel fill stem

[Visarend]

Been there, done that. A few years ago, when filling from jerrycans, a small piece of towel paper (some 1x1 cm) went into. I then sailed from the S of France to Menorca, then Mallorca, then Ibiza. Lot of motoring in a mostly windless summer. Then, a heavy blow of Tramontana/Mistral that lasted 3 days, anchored in a cala of Ibiza, and when the wind died, motor again around Formentera in heavy swell. And, guess what? The engine stopped abruptly in a 2 m of glassy swell close to the coast. I had to open the floors, access the central diesel tank, open the inspection and fish out the engine intake - that was duly clogged with the very same paper I spotted a week before, clean it, reinstall and bleed the engine. All accomplished before hitting the rocks of Formentera, with a useless main just dampening the rocking and in almost 40°C.
This is the reason why I warmly advise to proceed at once to do what I did the day after: buy a filter for the intake end and install it. I acknowledge having been lucky: the weather could have been worse and the coast closer.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Visarend

. . . All accomplished before hitting the rocks of Formentera, with a useless main just dampening the rocking . . . I acknowledge having been lucky: the weather could have been worse and the coast closer.

For those who think an engine quitting is just an "inconvenience", so nothing to worry too much about . ..

[Cadence]

I'm not a pilot but one thing I didn't see a64pilot mention was the preflight check of fuel tanks for water or possibly crud with a glass vial sampling the bottom of tanks on small aircraft.

[CaptWho]

Originally Posted by atoll

the cardboard cap should float to the top

The chances of it just floating out the top are kind of slim and you're really looking at a mess if that fuel gets away from you. Assuming that the piece hasn't sunk to the bottom of your tank and depending on the shape of the tank, there's going to have to be an actual fuel current to sweep the item out. Best of luck whatever happens.

[Catalacmarc]

Something to consider when you are looking at your fuel system. Make sure that anything that can get into the fuel line can get into the filter. We had a near disaster because the narrowest part of the fuel system was the shut off valve between the tank and the filter. The crude that clogged the fuel line would have passed to the filter if it were not for the narrow valve.