diesel .. again

[jimi]

.. just been down the boat to provision & check it for the long weekend coming up, there was some brown crud in the fuel filter, tried to drain using the drain tap at botttom but just got clean diesel out. Should I just ignore & sort out after the weekend or is it potentially more of a problem. Ran the engine for about an hour and it was oK . Engine is a Yanmar 3gmf

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[snowleopard]

crud?

what sort of crud is it? if it's gritty solid it's probably rust flakes from a dockside tank. if it has a jelly-like consistency it's probably diesel bug.

do you put biocide into your tank?

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[jimi]

Re: crud?

I don't use biocide, I thought that in the UK winter it was too cold for the diesel bug?

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[snowleopard]

Re: crud?

might just be a bit from last season that's made it's way through to the filter now. or perhaps the recent weather could have done it. did you top up the tank over winter to reduce condensation?

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[Heckler]

change the filter and clean the bowl out, will probably get you away for the weekend, but make sure you have the fixings on board to change and clean again if you get in the cack.
the god of taff getting you back for taking the p out of us taffs
s


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[jimi]

Re: crud?

I always keep the tank fillled up, and the boat's been used throughout the winter. Think I'll pop into the chandlers tomorrow and get a biocide.

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[rich]

Re: crud?

have a chat with Depsol,give him a pm.

<hr width=100% size=1>rich )

 

[snowleopard]

winter use?

do you mean the engine has been run regularly? if so it would be easy for the bug to flourish. remember that excess fuel from the injectors finds its way back into the tank and is hot so the fuel in the tank is warmed every time it's run.

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[jimi]

Re: winter use?

Yes, used the boat virtually every weekend.

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[AndrewB]

Diesel bug

I've had it in the past, probably picked up in Thailand. Eradicated sucessfully with biocide and English winters. However, it was there again, after a gap of five years, when I checked last week. Guess last winter was really mild.


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[colvic]

Brown crud sounds very like dirt and not bugs etc.. If you can wipe it with a finger and it feels at all grity, something the constituency of flour, then it is most liukely a combination of dirt in the diesel you bought and also dirt in your diesel tank. Sediment filters are a glass bowl that allows you to see the build up of the sediment. Unless you have really dirty tank)s) once a season should suffice for cleaning.

Diesel is a dirty fuel and if your tank has an inspection cover take it off and you will be staggered by the amount at the bottom of the tank, clinging to the sides.

We had to be pulled away from the rocks at beachy Head four years ago when a VERY rough sea stirred up the sludge in our " cleaned before she went on the market sir" tank that it blocked all the filters and the engine stalled. Thank God for the RNLI . When we checked the tank there was at least 60 litres of fuel we couldn't use as it was so dirty and the sludge in the tank filled half a bucket. Hadn't been cleaned in 16 years.

Keep an eye on it and you should be OK


Phil

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[GTester]

Try www.expresslube.co.uk

They might be able to help

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[Guest]

Winter ???? Makes not a jot of difference

My company samples and tests diesels through summer and winter in many different parts of the world, but for myself - its the Baltic ...... this winter my home was in an area of -32 C ..... We still were getting bug counts in our testing - same as all the years previous .....

UK winters are mild and quoting 'hibernation/ killing off' bugs in UK winter is not on !!

Sorry but I don't agree !!!!

Oh by the way - I don't use biocide - just keep my tank topped up and try to keep it clear of 'free-water' to the minimum.


<hr width=100% size=1>Nigel ...
Bilge Keelers get up further ! I only came - cos they said there was FREE Guinness !

 

[pvb]

Choice of biocides...

If you have got bugs in your tank, you'll need to add something to get rid of them. Most biocides available in chandlers will kill the bugs, but they don't do anything about the residue, which is a sticky slimy brown gunge. This sticky stuff doesn't pass through filters, so the filter clogs up and ultimately the engine stops.

You've probably heard of Soltron, which is an enzyme-based bug treatment. It works rather differently, and actually gets rid of most of the sticky slimy stuff which clogs filters. I've been trying it for the last year, and on the basis of that experience, I'd say it's good stuff. I've had none of the filter problems which I had before, and the fuel tank is starting to look cleaner inside. Few chandlers stock Soltron, but it's easy to get online; I get mine from <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.bluesports.co.uk/>BlueSports</A>. It's not cheap, but it's good value.

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[jimi]

Re: Choice of biocides...

Yep it looks like a bug! Its just occurred to me that my Eberspacher installed a few months ago is also in the transom. I've spent a fun day changing filters, bleeding the bloody system emptying the engine of seawater (cranked it too hard in an attempt to bleed it) .. so I'm really pissed off now .. weekend's up the Swannee , I'm a biocide convert now.

Cost 2 filters
1 biocide
1 Locktite tube
1 pnf tape
lochktite & PNF didnt work so new secondary filter fitting as well as filter

I'm off for a few pints!


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[jimi]

It was sort of slimy jelly so I reckon it was the bug!

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[colvic]

That's a bugger. Let us know how you get on.

Phil

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[Bejasus]

Jimi, if it's 'the bug', then bugs eventually become immune to biocides, which are really nasty substances. I am not a Soltron agent but I am sure Depsol will give you all the blurb. 'The bug' cannot develop an immunity to soltron which is an enzyme and works in a totally different way. It will not only destroy 'the bug', but will break it down into particles small enough to pass through the filters and be burnt in the combustion process. This is why tanks actually clean up over a period of time. You need a double dose in the tank as the inital treatment and then as per the instruction thereafter. Dom will give you the lowdown but he is on vacation until 28th. You can also purchase online from <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.arweb.co.uk/argallery/h00>http://www.arweb.co.uk/argallery/h00

 

[pvb]

BlueSports are cheaper...

Buying Soltron online from <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.bluesports.co.uk>BlueSports</A> is cheaper than ASAP.

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[BrendanS]

Bugs can gain an immunity to anything they're presented with

Soltron, biocides, etc, etc.


They are superbly good at this, due to their ability to reproduce vast numbers in very little time

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