Sludge!

[Whitelighter]

Ok, accepting that I have some fuel issues on Whitelighter, I was wandering if I am taking the best course of action. I have asked the engineer in Kos to change the fuel filters, check and flush the fuel lines and check the fuel pumps. Which is fine and I understand how it is to be done.

When it comes to the tank I am a little lost however. He has suggested flushing it, but I don't know how easy this is as there is no obvious big inspection opening. I don't want unneccassary expense, but don't want a repeat of the problems either. Is this flush the right course of action, or would a liberal dose of Soltron do the trick?

Ta

 

[BrendanS]

depends on what the sludge is made out of. If it's a metal tank and there are bits of rusted flakes, then soltron and other treatments of little use.

You can always make up a recirculating system like Boatone did, with a pump and filter. Nearly always some sort of access - eg take out sender unit or similar from top of tank and insert tube. Depends how many baffles are in the way though

 

[Whitelighter]

It is a metal tank, but I thought it was Ally or SS - might be wrong though.

The primary filter had soft brown/black stuff in it plus a bit of hard white, which we think is calcium, suggesting water present.

 

[BrendanS]

You could try dumping in a massive dose of soltron and see if has an effect, then resort to mechanically removing the stuff if that fails.

Dosing with soltron has to be the easier option, though a recirculating system such as Boatone built is quite easy, and would pretty much guarantee you've got the stuff out, assuming you can get a tube down to the bottom of the tank fairly easily

 

[Tony7]

Jez, I have excatly the same prob at the moment. The dreaded BUG, lots of black sludge. Filters n fuel lines clogged up. call in the experts!!!!
I'm having the fuel tank and lines purged, current fuel (aprox 500lts) is pumped out and put through filter process to clean, Racor and in line filters changed, spray thingies on the engine removed cleaned and replaced.
Not cheap but then I dont want to be in the middle of the Med and find I haddnt sorted the problem.
Will allways put soltron type stuff in, in future.
Suggest you ask around the marina I'm sure someone will offer the pump out and filter service.

 

[npf1]

I used a small Whale camping water pump (approx 1.5" diameter) on the end of a stick and poked it around the bottom of the tank to suck up all the water and [--word removed--]. Seemed to work OK but my tanks probably weren't too bad in the first place. Got a few seconds of black stuff before clean fuel was seen at the pump.

 

[Nick_H]

Do you want to break down again next time you go out? You said the engineer was straight with you last time, so I would take his advice, remove, filter and treat the fuel, and flush the tank. If it has a build up of sludge you are asking too much of any fuel treatment on its own.

 

[tcm]

i used a compressor airline to blow the gunk up into the tank from a convenient point, whammed in soltron, changed filters.

"flushing" the tank means you have to get all the fuel out. There are service lorries which will do this sort of thing ( eg interlube) of a recirculation thing i suppose.

I would massive doese soltron, fill tank up the night before and allow to settle, get familar with where filters are a consider washing "old" filters in diesel instead of chucking them in case you need loads on the trip!

 

[duncan]

if you buy them in bulk they ( the racor 500 ones) aren't expensive.............tink I paid under a 5er apiece last box

I am just getting to the end on my problems in this area (I hope) having hovered out the bottom of the tank using a length of aluminum tube attached to an oil change pump a few times (almost fun!).

I was advised by another forumite that theere was nothing 'alive' in the gunge collecting in the filter - but I never did get any confirmation of what it actually was. Suspected bug residue after a bad infection but regular soltron since (3 years) - tanks only 5 years old.

 

[totopalm]

Hello Jez,
tough luck, been there. The problem is if you have
the "BUG" in the tank, flushing might sort it. In my case my
Princess went sick off the Freisan Isles,after much changing
of primary filters, i staggered into Den Helder. I had the bug
in both tanks (badly)
The problem with the bug it sticks all over the tanks sides
and bottom, and the only way i could cure it was to cut
holes in the sides of both tanks.then i could get into the
tanks, and using brushes lashed to sticks, cleaned the
sticky mess off the tank sides. I hired a pump with a
filter in line, first used the pump as a power hose using
diesel to flush the tanks, then used the pump to filter all
the fuel i had removed from the tanks (500 galls or so)
I had 5gallon plastic cans piled high on the pontoon, what
a sight!! Then i got a local engineer to make up plates to
bolt over the holes, which were 10inx5in.
I ran the fuel through the filters several times, the put it
all back into the tanks, with some fuel treatment gunk
that the engineer recommended. Never had another
problem, nor did the person who bought it, from me.
The good thing that came out of it was, that the tank
could always be cleaned inside. Drastic but effective