fuel polishing system, thoughts needed!

[dhayek]

Hi all i am new to the forum, i am a very happy owner in Beirut, Lebanon of an azimut 68 plus that i really love. after a lot of upgrading on the boat in general, i decided to install a fuel polishing system on my twin MTU 1150HP, mainly because our diesel over here is very dirty, and even though these MTU are bullet proof, they are expensive to repair, a set of injector is about 3500$. i have no experience whatsoever with these systems, so any input is appreciated, are they effective or a waste of money? i made a search on the net and found and contacted a company in the USA called reverso pumps, they have a fuel polishing system at a very reasonable price IMO (3000 us$), but once again i have no experience with these systems. anyone heard of them? are they reliable, or if anyone knows another company that sell such systems?
thanks in advance!
dimitri

 

[AndieMac]

Hello and welcome

The Reverso product appears to be widely accepted as good reliable equipment. I can't comment on the suitability of the fuel polishing system for your particular vessel, but I'm sure others can.

 

[Latestarter1]

I concur Reverso is well designed kit, they use propriety filters, mostly Separ so replacement elements can be sourced whatever your location.

 

[dhayek]

thanks for your input. good to know they make good products. i also want to know if fuel polishing systems are effective in general if someone tried them

 

[AndieMac]

i also want to know if fuel polishing systems are effective in general if someone tried them

Certainly are in the serious trans-ocean/remote location trawler yachts, where reliance on perfectly clean fuel is essential.
I'm not sure how the system works for vessels consuming 250 - 350 litres per hour though.

 

[Latestarter1]

Most of the good work is done when vessel idle alongside. Running system on timers works very well.

Once under way your return fuel is already polished.

 

[The engineer]

Alfa Laval

centifugal fuel polishing equipment is excellent, and when you see the water and muck draining from it you realise how sensible it is if you consume a lot of fuel. The saving on primary filters alone is significant, let alone fuel system components. Add into that increased reliability and security of never having any moisture in the fuel you are burning. Also a reduced likelihood of bacterial growth.

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

dhayek, welcome to the forum. I was in Beirut last year and I saw the marina there but I was wondering where exactly you can cruise from Beirut? I guess Israel is out of bounds and Syria is not a good idea at the moment. Cyprus?

 

[dhayek]

dhayek, welcome to the forum. I was in Beirut last year and I saw the marina there but I was wondering where exactly you can cruise from Beirut? I guess Israel is out of bounds and Syria is not a good idea at the moment. Cyprus?

thanks all for the input. like you say, we always start with cyprus, and from there we always go to the turkish coast and greek islands. along with cyprus these are 3 wonderful places to discover. the advantage when going to cyprus is that i dont need to refuel there, i got 5000 liters tanks, its very important when you know that 1000 liters of diesel in beirut cost 700 euro compared to 1500 euro in cyprus and 1800 euro in turkey.
by the way you enjoyed beirut?

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

you enjoyed beirut?

Yes I did. I was only there 3 nights but long enough to find that the locals are very hospitable and the food excellent!

 

[MapisM]

Most of the good work is done when vessel idle alongside. Running system on timers works very well.

Once under way your return fuel is already polished.

Yep, that works very nicely if the boat is structured with a separate day tank, which I don't think is the case with the AZ 68 (happy to stand corrected, though).
If you circulate the fuel and throw it back in the contaminated main tank(s), of course it's still much better than nothing, but not as bulletproof as with a day tank setup.

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

Yep, that works very nicely if the boat is structured with a separate day tank, which I don't think is the case with the AZ 68 (happy to stand corrected, though).
If you circulate the fuel and throw it back in the contaminated main tank(s), of course it's still much better than nothing, but not as bulletproof as with a day tank setup.

How should a day tank be used? I have 3 fuel tanks on my boat, 2 main tanks and a small 3rd tank which the broker described as a day tank. At the moment I have the connecting pipes between all 3 tanks open so that the fuel can find its own level. Should I not be doing that?

 

[MapisM]

Well, if you don't have a fuel polishing system, it doesn't actually make a lot of difference.
If you have it (or plan to fit one), you should normally fill only the two mains at the pump, and the refill from them the smaller tank through the polishing system.

PS: and of course the engines should then be feeded by the smaller tank, hence granting a supply of clean fuel.

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

Well, if you don't have a fuel polishing system, it doesn't actually make a lot of difference.
If you have it (or plan to fit one), you should normally fill only the two mains at the pump, and the refill from them the smaller tank through the polishing system.

PS: and of course the engines should then be feeded by the smaller tank, hence granting a supply of clean fuel.

Thanks thats what I thought

 

[dhayek]

i was between two types of polishing devices from reverso: one was a system that treat 150GPH that is a fixed system that should be installed on the yacht, the downside is that it need permanent installation, that is somehow complicated that i honestly prefer to avoid. the second choice was a portable fule polishing cart, that treats 600GPH and requires no installation, i thought that i will buy it treat my tanks most of the time and in the free time will have a technician polish other people boat, since no one has the system over here and they will be more than happy to treat their tank for a fee; this way i will be able to repay my machine and have it working for me in the free time, and it has a big capacity of 600GPH. what do you think?

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

the second choice was a portable fule polishing cart, that treats 600GPH and requires no installation, i thought that i will buy it treat my tanks most of the time and in the free time will have a technician polish other people boat, since no one has the system over here and they will be more than happy to treat their tank for a fee; this way i will be able to repay my machine and have it working for me in the free time, and it has a big capacity of 600GPH. what do you think?

Sounds like a great plan to me!

 

[Elessar]

How should a day tank be used? I have 3 fuel tanks on my boat, 2 main tanks and a small 3rd tank which the broker described as a day tank. At the moment I have the connecting pipes between all 3 tanks open so that the fuel can find its own level. Should I not be doing that?

The idea of the day tank for long cruises is to fill it, use it for the day and you can accurately monitor fuel use, to make sure you dont run out mid ocean.
But with modern electronics is is less relevant. Nordhavns and the like still have a day tank with a proper sight tube though. Reassuring.

Having polished fuel in it is a double bonus.

 

[The engineer]

Drain

It also should have a drain to sample fuel daily for water, particularly useful if you are not polishing. It takes seconds to do and can save heaps of trouble.

 

[dhayek]

meaning if i dont have a day tank (and i actually dont have one) the polishing will not be effective????

 

[The engineer]

Taking on clean fuel

is a great improvement on the unknown. If you know your tanks are clean then it is even better. If fuel is not stored on board for long it's good but if left stored and is susceptible to moisture and bugs then polishing into a day tank is the best way. but then life is not perfect! that's what primary filter/seperators are for.

In a perfect world fuel is stored in storage tanks, transferred to the day tank via a centrifuge. The day tank drain is tested daily for water ensuring freshly polished fuel delivered to machinery all the time. Quantity burned is measured by a sight glass in the day tank.