More fuel woes.

[Elessar]

Having, I thought, sorted the bug the port engine packed up again yesterday. I fed from
the starboard tank but couldn’t restart it. Came back on one engine and had some shoreside help to get into my berth.

This morning I found there was air in the filter and I removed the bowl to replace the seal. I found the bowl is crazed and I suspect that’s the source of the air.

Onto the ASAP site. They sell the bowls. But you need to know the model number. I don’t.

Onto the Parker site and their tech specs don’t have dimensions. Flow rate yes (I don’t even know that), clearance for filter change yes but no dimensions. Not even on the drawings!

Any ideas how to tell what filter bowl to order?

 

[omega2]

Try stabbing the filter with a small screw driver, then see if it works? could be too fine a mesh.

 

[jrudge]

Send a pic of bowl with a tape measure behind it to ASAP

They are amazingly helpful

 

[Elessar]

Try stabbing the filter with a small screw driver, then see if it works? could be too fine a mesh.

I’ve always used the same filters. Anyway putting it back together and bleeding it is an hours work I don’t want to do with the crazed bowl. I want a new bowl.

 

[Elessar]

Send a pic of bowl with a tape measure behind it to ASAP

They are amazingly helpful

That’s a good call. I could actually take it in to fareham tomorrow.

 

[Elessar]

Send a pic of bowl with a tape measure behind it to ASAP

They are amazingly helpful

I took it into Fareham. Its a branch store so I was not expecting the bowl to be in stock.

Two people and a lot of head-scratching, comparing filters etc. and they figured it out.
Once we were sure which one it was, we weren't sure if the drain assembly would transfer from my old bowl. A solution was found for that for a tenner rather than the £60 for a new drain assembly.
The parts are being delivered to the boat on Wednesday for no extra charge.

I think they definitely qualify as "amazingly helpful".

https://www.asap-supplies.com/

No connection other than having spent a small fortune with them mail order in the past, but now having the Fareham store takes it up a notch for south coast boaters.

Lets hope this is the end of my fuel problems.

 

[rafiki_]

Good stuff Mark. Always found Beccles incredibly well informed and helpful too.

 

[scubaman]

Having, I thought, sorted the bug the port engine packed up again yesterday. I fed from
the starboard tank but couldn’t restart it. Came back on one engine and had some shoreside help to get into my berth.

This morning I found there was air in the filter and I removed the bowl to replace the seal. I found the bowl is crazed and I suspect that’s the source of the air.

Onto the ASAP site. They sell the bowls. But you need to know the model number. I don’t.

Onto the Parker site and their tech specs don’t have dimensions. Flow rate yes (I don’t even know that), clearance for filter change yes but no dimensions. Not even on the drawings!

Any ideas how to tell what filter bowl to order?

Was there any leaked fuel under the bowl? I'm thinking that if there is a crack big enough let air in, it would also leak fuel when the engine was stopped. I recently replaced fuel lines on my boat due to a pitted and leaking hose. This was on the return side so no ill effect on the working of the engine but it was dripping fuel into the bilges.

After replacing the hoses, I bled and ran the engine for a while and all seemed good. We didn't take the boat out then, but on the following weekend we did and the engine died after a while. I also found air in the raw filter and scratched my head for a long time before deciding to re bleed and start up again. It has run fine since. There must have been air still trapped somewhere in the hoses.

You don't say how long yours ran before dying, but could it be a similar situation?

 

[Elessar]

Was there any leaked fuel under the bowl? I'm thinking that if there is a crack big enough let air in, it would also leak fuel when the engine was stopped. I recently replaced fuel lines on my boat due to a pitted and leaking hose. This was on the return side so no ill effect on the working of the engine but it was dripping fuel into the bilges.

After replacing the hoses, I bled and ran the engine for a while and all seemed good. We didn't take the boat out then, but on the following weekend we did and the engine died after a while. I also found air in the raw filter and scratched my head for a long time before deciding to re bleed and start up again. It has run fine since. There must have been air still trapped somewhere in the hoses.

You don't say how long yours ran before dying, but could it be a similar situation?

There is a small sump under the filter and having taken the filter out so many times recently and not cleaned the sump I wouldn’t have a clue if it was leaking.
New bowl and new seals, and we’ll see if that’s the last of it.

 

[canveyrover]

There is a small sump under the filter and having taken the filter out so many times recently and not cleaned the sump I wouldn’t have a clue if it was leaking.
New bowl and new seals, and we’ll see if that’s the last of it.

Hi the rule is before the lift pump air the pump sucks in air after the lift pump fuel leak The fuel filter is before the lift pump so it will draw in air.So you are unlikely to see a fuel leak .

 

[Portofino]

Hi the rule is before the lift pump air the pump sucks in air after the lift pump fuel leak The fuel filter is before the lift pump so it will draw in air.So you are unlikely to see a fuel leak .

If the tank level was higher than the filter then when at rest what’s stopping fuel leaking out .
Assume the tank vent is patent .

That’s another thing to exclude with the OP s problem the tank vent .Is there enough air getting in ?

 

[Elessar]

If the tank level was higher than the filter then when at rest what’s stopping fuel leaking out .
Assume the tank vent is patent .

That’s another thing to exclude with the OP s problem the tank vent .Is there enough air getting in ?

Good call on the tank vent. I’ll check it. Thanks.

 

[Elessar]

Just an ASAP update.

Parts arrived at the marina as promised just 48 hours after me visiting the shop.
Bowl fitted. Engine bled and running!

ASAP were great as others have experienced.

 

[Elessar]

A question now.

The new bowl is a slightly different design. There are 2 drain plugs, one at the bottom and 1 about an inch up the bowl.
The old one only had one.

Why?

 

[Portofino]

Without a pic ,
The higher one could be an access port for a sensor like water in fuel ?

 

[Elessar]

Without a pic ,
The higher one could be an access port for a sensor like water in fuel ?

Hmmm. You may we’ll be right.

 

[volvopaul]

A question now.

The new bowl is a slightly different design. There are 2 drain plugs, one at the bottom and 1 about an inch up the bowl.
The old one only had one.

Why?

Water in fuel sensor port

 

[Elessar]

Water in fuel sensor port

Portofino was right then, thank you Paul!

I will leave it blanked off and stop worrying. (I only changed one bowl no point trying to wire one in)

 

[Elessar]

Went for a quick spin last night and the engine died before getting out of the berth. I'm sure the bug is clear and I switched tanks anyway, but there was air in there again (checked at the secondary filters) and it wouldn't re start. I'm guessing the primary filter has air in again and I wasn't going into the engine bay in decent clothes as I've not cleaned it up since the last episode.

The racor has a new bowl, new bowl seal, new lid seal and new o ring. I have to assume that isn't leaking.
Between the tank and the racor filter I do have a T to the gennie. Not best practice I know but adding another tank feed is as difficult as cleaning diesel bug........
The tap to the gennie was off. That T has to be the next think to look at. Compression fitting in copper pipe, fitted by me.
I will tighten the nuts on the T, bleed the system and hope for the best but I have guests every weekend for a while now and this is annoying me. Any bright ideas about how to find an air leak more definitively? No diesel is leaking out as far as I can tell. I need the diesel equivalent of soapy water on a gas line.

Help and ideas please! Last night I was asking around for a drill for scuttling duties!!

 

[julians]

This might be a bit of a long shot, but it's an easy to try long shot, so probably worth looking at.

If your engine has any spin on fuel filters, then just check that they are correctly tightened up.

I had similar symptoms to what you describe and it turned out to be the spin on fuel filter needed an extra half a turn. It wasn't quite sealing 100% so was allowing air to be sucked in, it wasnt leaking any fuel out.