dirty diesel tank

[youen]

How do you clean a diesel tank in situ when there is only the hole of the gauge sensor which can be undone,there is no inspection hatch,and I am quite sure there is bulkhead inside .What can I use to flush it and be sure nothing wrong stay inside.The boat is an hallberg rassy 34 .Thanks

 

[lw395]

You can use a pela oil extractor to suck the water and crud off the bottom of the tank.
Fit a larger suction hose, the standard one will clog.
You can 'polish' the fuel, i.e circulate it through a filter and back to the tank.

 

[pvb]

The tank will most likely be baffled, but these probably won't be full height. As for access, many HR boats use the Volvo tank plate (green circular plate about 200mm diameter) and you could remove this to give improved access.

It's possible to make up a DIY fuel polishing system with an electric pump and a separate filter housing. When I did it on my HR352, I pumped the fuel out through a filter into plastic jerrycans, then poured it rapidly back in to the tank to stir up any sediment, then pumped out again through the filter..... repeatedly. There are companies who will come along and do fuel polishing; costly but probably quicker and cleaner than DIY.

Treat your fuel with Startron too for longer term problem-free motoring.

 

[nickthorn]

On my colvic i removed the gauge and and the drain cock and washed out with a pressure washer and degreaser. I continued this until the water came out clear. It took a age to do and disposing of the dirty water was a nightmare, but it done the trick

 

[ghostlymoron]

This topic was aired thoroughly this time last year following a posting by me about a gadget advertised in PBO magazine which polished fuel as you use the engine. Various solutions were suggested, most involved sucking out the fuel, filtering, and returning at a high rate to ensure a degree of stirring inside the tank.
I considered making up a re-cycling system with a small pump and filter unit but in the end got the tank cleaned by the guys who service the engine.