Rick,

I accept your comments with concern, but who knows we all share the same
path and I wish you well in finding your problem and certainly hope you
share with us what is the final solution.

Fuel lines are 20+ years old, associated tanks (if not replaced) are the
same age, and all of these things are suspect. Since diesel fuel is not
stable it accumulates sludge in the bottom of the tanks and on occasion
gobbles some up in a fuel line. This should pass through to the filter, but
who knows. For those of you in locations where the boat is not used year
round it makes sense to me to remove the fuel when hauled and polish it,
clean the tanks and put back on board. The idea of condensation in fuel
tanks is a fairy tale, it is unlikely this can happen and water in the
system usually is introduced with new fuel or during fueling.

The bleeder valve is important... open this so there is a complete loop to
the return line when priming, then make sure you close it, I know you
already know this, but just in case someone forgets why it is there let me
mention it.

Dual Racors or should I say dual filtration systems are nice, but what is
more important is a vacuum gauge so you can tell the status of the filter
and this is plumbed between the filter and the fuel pump, so I would elect a
vacuum gauge over dual filters. Dual filters would be nice, but expensive...
I could be wrong but I think they list for as much as $800, while a tee, 2 x
NPT/barbed fittings, and a close end nipple, and vacuum gauge probably lists
for ~$50 max.

Yes I have dual filters, fuel transfer pump and inboard polish system, but
then I am outfitting for off-shore cruising. Speaking of fuel polishing
systems there are several on the market, Reverso, Boss, Algae-X, to name a
few; however, there is not much to these systems and anyone can build their
own with a little ingenuity. They make sense for sailboats that sit with
fuel for long periods of time plus the cost of fuel ani't cheap.

Thoughts from S/V Bella

Dave

On 17 Sep 2006 21:34:30 -0700, Sonadora <sonadora@sail2live.com> wrote:
>
> Okay, it's finally happened.
>
> I've read stories. Stories about sailors' life and death struggles due to
> poor fuel filtration. The stories usually start out something like, "…we
> were motoring into mountainous seas." At which point I usually say to
> myself
> here we go again. It continues, "blah, blah, blah, then the engine died,
> blah, blah, blah, sludge, blah, blah, blah, fuel filters..."
>
> Every time I come across that story, my own mysterious fuel situation
> beckons. With only one exception, our trusty Yanmar 3GMF has always
> started
> and ran without any fuss. The one exception was due to lack of fuel. When
> that happened, I simply refueled, pumped the little finger pump primer
> about
> 30 times and we were good. Since then, I guess we were pretty lucky.
>
> Today, however, I finally rolled snake eyes in the fuel filter department.
> At least that's what I think, anyway.
>
> It all started around lunchtime. Our guests had arrived and I fired up the
> engine. They packed away their gear while the engine warmed up. Then the
> crew readied the dock lines to cast off. Just as the first stern line was
> released, the engine slowed then died. All those stories I'd read and here
> we were, still in the slip. No one could understand why I wasn't upset.
>
> I spent the rest of the day teaching myself about our fuel system. Here's
> what I discovered:
>
> I have one spin-on filter just after the tank, mounted at the highest
> point
> in the engine compartment (the mounting bolts protrude into the top
> silverware drawer). After that, something that I thought was another fuel
> filter (but isn't - I'll get to that), followed by the engine mounted fuel
> pump then the engine mounted fuel filter.
>
> I started troubleshooting by removing the filter from the engine first
> (now,
> keep in mind I'm a total noob when it comes to fuel systems, but I'm
> learning fast.) The filter looked okay. I could see light through it, but
> I
> decided to replace it anyway. After replacement I tried the little finger
> pump primer, but no fuel came out of the bleed valve.
>
> Next, I removed the upstream (first in the line) filter. This is a spin on
> number with a glass viewing bowl underneath it. I could not replace this
> filter at the time as our 'chandlery' doesn't stock this filter.
>
> Then, I removed that filter-looking unit after the spin on only to find
> out
> it was the old electric fuel pump (that explained the snipped wires from
> the
> base.) Talk about your schlock operations. Sheesh. I will be removing
> this.
>
> So, now I have the opportunity to set things right and I have a few
> questions.
>
> 1.) Does anyone know if the engine mounted fuel filter filters out the
> fine
> stuff i.e. a 'step-down' filtration?
>
> 2.) The only thing I didn't check was the fuel line to the first filter.
> What have others done to check this? I'm not doubting there's gunk in
> there.
> At this stage of the game, I don't have time to drain and remove the tank
> (I
> have two weekends left to get this done before haulout)
>
> 3.) I've seen some setups where there are two filters with corresponding
> valves to isolate one or the other. This would help with changing out
> filters. Does anyone have this setup?
>
> 4.) How do I prime the fuel line? Should I install some sort of small
> priming pump on the inlet side of the first fuel line?
>
> 5.) I'm looking at the Racor spin-on series with priming pump. Anyone have
> one of those?
>
> Dave, your filtration setup is beyond belief (and beyond my pocket book).
> Just thought I'd head you off before you suggested it [g].
>
> Any help is appreciated.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Rick Beddoe
> s/v Soñadora, 1978 Baba 30
> Minneapolis, MN
> http://sail2live.com
>
>
>
>
>
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Received on Mon Sep 18 07:38:06 2006