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Some water in the diesel tank

gringogordo

By gringogordo
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John Orentas Veteran II

John Orentas

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Ben.

 

If it is not too much don't worry about it, as it is pumped through to the engine it will settle out at the bottom of the pre-filter, just empty it out now and again.

 

I have a theory that very tiny amounts may well get through to the injectors and pass through with the fuel completely unnoticed, doing no harm to anything.

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gringogordo Contributor

gringogordo

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Ben.

 

If it is not too much don't worry about it, as it is pumped through to the engine it will settle out at the bottom of the pre-filter, just empty it out now and again. 

 

I have a theory that very tiny amounts may well get through to the injectors and pass through with the fuel completely unnoticed, doing no harm to anything.

 

Hi,

 

I had a service by a RCR mechanic. Unfortunately I didn't make it back on time to speek to him and he left a note which said, amongst other things, there is a small amount of water in the tank and it should be treated asap. I assumed this meant pouring in some liquid magic. Do you think I'm wrong?

 

As to the cause I think its either very minor (as you say) or due to opening the tap at some stupid moment while winter cruising. Obviously I'll swear blind its the former.

 

Cheers,

 

Ben.

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colinjw Collaborator

colinjw

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There is a product made by "Fortron" which is supposed to absorb water into the diesel and also help cut down on the diesel bug problem.

 

Water in fuel in smallish quantities usually comes from condensation in the diesel tank but as mentioned previously, keeping your tank full will eliminate condensation. The bad news is that the tank must be filled up completely so that the top of the tank is covered with diesel to stop the condensation.

 

John....water going through injectors is bad news! I have seen too many ship's engines injectors coming off second best when water has passed through them.

But the water should not get as far as there but get trapped in the prefilter as you say.

 

Colin

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maffi mushkila Rising Star

maffi mushkila

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There is a product made by "Fortron" which is supposed to absorb water into the diesel and also help cut down on the diesel bug problem.

 

Water in fuel in smallish quantities usually comes from condensation in the diesel tank but as mentioned previously, keeping your tank full will eliminate condensation. The bad news is that the tank must be filled up completely so that the top of the tank is covered with diesel to stop the condensation.

 

John....water going through injectors is bad news! I have seen too many ship's engines injectors coming off second best when water has passed through them.

But the water should not get as far as there but get trapped in the prefilter as you say.

 

Colin

 

Cladosporium Resinae is the bug you refer to I think.

 

Its not just a diesel problem as such, jet fuel suffers in the same way.

 

Jet fuel being a fancy name for Parrafin.

 

The 'bug' grows at the interface between fuel and water.

 

If you are a pilot flying with 50/60,000 lbs of fuel it can really screw up your day.

 

I don't know how much of a problem it is in narrow boat tanks, but would be interested to know. How common is it?

 

How ever it does have its uses.

 

Fuel spills onto the land are treated with this fungi which breaks down the fuel and it biodegrades into the soil.

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gringogordo Contributor

gringogordo

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Cladosporium Resinae is the bug you refer to I think.

 

Its not just a diesel problem as such, jet fuel suffers in the same way.

 

Jet fuel being a fancy name for Parrafin.

 

The 'bug' grows at the interface between fuel and water.

 

If you are a pilot flying with 50/60,000 lbs of fuel it can really screw up your day.

 

I don't know how much of a problem it is in narrow boat tanks, but would be interested to know. How common is it?

 

How ever it does have its uses.

 

Fuel spills onto the land are treated with this fungi which breaks down the fuel and it biodegrades into the soil.

 

Its ther first time I've had the problem (although I've only had the boat for 2 years). I did go on a boat maintenance weekend course though and he spent amount of time talking about preventative measures so I think it is something to be aware of rather than something which commonly becomes a problem.

 

spluttering to a halt and having to bleed the system can upset your day, but its probably not as bad as falling out of the sky!

 

Cheers,

 

Ben.

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John Orentas Veteran II

John Orentas

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Colin

 

I think I did say "very tiny amounts". The kind of quantities that will pass through along with the fuel without preventing combustion. On a 2, 3 or 4 cylinder small engine, significant amounts of water will stop the engine so preventing damage.

 

I imagine with an 8 or 12 cylinder engine you could have one of the injectors passing water for long enough to be damaged.

 

(Some one will make a joke out of that)

Edited by John Orentas
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bottle Veteran II

bottle

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Hi

 

Water in the tank is not a major problem but it is if it reaches your take off.

All fuel tanks have take offs usually approx 2.5cms above the bottom so if your water (which will allways be at the bottom) is less than 2.5cms deep no problem.

 

I would try and remove it.

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maffi mushkila Rising Star

maffi mushkila

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Hi

 

Water in the tank is not a major problem but it is if it reaches your take off.

All fuel tanks have take offs usually approx 2.5cms above the bottom so if your water (which will allways be at the bottom) is less than 2.5cms deep no problem.

 

I would try and remove it.

 

Do tanks on boats not have a water drain tap?

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John Orentas Veteran II

John Orentas

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Maffi.

 

All modern boats should have a drain fitted, (I didn't have one fitted on the grounds that it is something else to go wrong). So it is a simple matter to run off a gallon, in practise however the drain will never be right at the bottom of the tank so you are not likely not to get all the water.

 

For anyone who is obsessed about it, the better way might be to put a bit of list onto the boat and suck from a bottom corner. An electric oil change pump would be just the job.

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John Orentas Veteran II

John Orentas

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The engine should be installed with a pre-filter to cope with the larger sediments and water (tap or plug on the bottom) and a secondary filter, this unit is often supplied with a new engine, it will take out the finner sediments before the fuel reaches the pump and injectors, usually this too will incorporate a water trap.

 

There was a requirement for a drain facility on fuel tanks but it is only advised now (I will check tomorrow) but it of limited value, see my my previous reply, in practise the water traps should pick up any water in the tank.

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Alastair Rising Star

Alastair

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The old fuel tank on my boat has an 'can-shaped' extension on the bottom. The fuel is taken from about 2 thirds of the way up the can. The bottom of the can has a drain tap.

 

This is an excellent arrangement, makes it easy to check the fuel (just run a bit out, drain the tank, drain off water, etc.

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DHutch Veteran II

DHutchDonate to Canal World

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BSS states that any boat built after June 1998 must have a drain valve fitted.

 

I recommend that everybody gets BSS.  It can be downloaded free.

 

I Agree, you can get a hardcopy (in a nice plasic ring binder) for free as well, which is deffonatly worth it if your fitting out or working on a boat, i got one im not planning to do any major work on the boat, but its good reference, i read it cover-to-cover when i got it.

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paulf Explorer

paulf

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My tank hasnt got a drain off and the boat was built after 98 , plus its just passed its first BSS. After reading that article about condensation in tanks written by an american surveyor whose name eludes me [ excellent article too ] I came to the conclusion condensation isnt an issue . Ive had a water in tank problem for a couple of years now . I just drain off the accumalator ? every couple of days . I find that fuelset doesnt allow the water to mix with the diesel and be burnt by the engine and if I dont drain it off manually ,the engine will splutter and the white smoke will appear . If you are concerned about the level of water in the tank , you can use water finding paste to test the depth of it. I was always taught that if you have water in your tank its more than likely the case someone has put it there. I dont drain my cars diesel system nor my vans and have never had water problems with either of them in the last 6 yrs. I drained my boats tank last summer completely and im sure if Id filled up at Esso or BP ever since [not possible of course] the problem woudlnt have surfaced again.

 

Regards Paul

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