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Winter and Diesel


DavidPeckham

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7 hours ago, MartynG said:

I am not so sure that currently diesel keeps so long as it did in that past . Bio diesel  is added in ever increasing quantities and this may degrade or attract moisture.

 

So I am not sure keeping the tank filled over winter for a boat that is little used  is essential -  it could be better to add fresh fuel in the spring.

 

I do use a fuel additive and have changed over a  year ago to Clearwinner LA88 which absorbs water into the fuel  (but bear in mind no additive can deal with significant quantities of water in the fuel).

https://www.clear-winner.co.uk/products/marine/

 

PS Yes water in fuel can cause tanks to  corrode at the base . I know of a few cases.

 

 

I started out topping up diesel for the winter as that seemed to be received wisdom at the time.  I got a water build-up problem that I think was due to a leaky deck fitting about ten years ago, and pumped several litres of dirty water then cloudy diesel out with an oil extractor pump. After that I checked for water every six months and got diminishing amounts for the first couple of years and then nothing.

 

When added biodiesel came in I stopped topping up in the autumn due to concerns about the potential for it to decompose over time and make bug growth more likely. In the several years since then I haven't found any further water in my six monthly checks, or in the water trap, so while tank condensation might be an issue I have not seen appreciable water ingress because of it.

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1 minute ago, alias said:

When added biodiesel came in I stopped topping up in the autumn due to concerns about the potential for it to decompose over time and make bug growth more likely. In the several years since then I haven't found any further water in my six monthly checks, or in the water trap, so while tank condensation might be an issue I have not seen appreciable water ingress because of it.

That's interesting thanks .

 

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8 hours ago, fatmanblue said:

I'm lucky enough to have a boat with a tank like that, 350 litres either side of the engine beds with the top a good 20cm below the water line.  I have somewhat presumed that condensation in the tank is not the issue it is where the tank is part of the counter or otherwise above the waterline.

 

22 years and no problems yet.

Same design here. Never found any water in my agglomerator. 

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8 hours ago, fatmanblue said:

I'm lucky enough to have a boat with a tank like that, 350 litres either side of the engine beds with the top a good 20cm below the water line.  I have somewhat presumed that condensation in the tank is not the issue it is where the tank is part of the counter or otherwise above the waterline.

 

22 years and no problems yet.

Same design here. Never found any water in my agglomerator. In our Daytank, we can leave one valve open so at end of day, the daytank fuel falls back into main tank via the agglo. To de-risk the consequence of condensation forming just in the daytank.

Edited by mark99
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On 18/10/2020 at 19:19, Timx said:

Nothing, it was a free lecture on how diesel degenerates. I can understand how people do not wish to comment on this forum.

I was relaying what I was told by the lecturer, I don’t understand your aggressive stance, I should of not contributed.well done goodbye.

I have to say that it did not sound aggressive to me when I firstt read it .. . 

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According to the following website diesel  can hold 90ppm in warm weather but only 60ppm in cold weather . 

https://tanktransport.com/2018/04/water-in-diesel-can-be-destructive/#:~:text=Your diesel may hold 90,the bottom of the tank.

So 30ppm can drop out  of the fuel in winter 

Say a tank holds 300 litres . The 30ppm amounts to 9ml or less than two teaspoons of water .

 

 

Could it be better to hold less fuel in the tank over  early winter so there is less  water to drop out as temperatures drop  ? Or is the condensation potential for greater volume of water ?

Is it best to refuel in the depths of winter when the fuel will be colder and  as a result will have less potential to drop water out?

 

Just thoughts .... answers not required?

 

 

 

 

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2 hours ago, MartynG said:

According to the following website diesel  can hold 90ppm in warm weather but only 60ppm in cold weather . 

https://tanktransport.com/2018/04/water-in-diesel-can-be-destructive/#:~:text=Your diesel may hold 90,the bottom of the tank.

So 30ppm can drop out  of the fuel in winter 

Say a tank holds 300 litres . The 30ppm amounts to 9ml or less than two teaspoons of water .

 

 

Could it be better to hold less fuel in the tank over  early winter so there is less  water to drop out as temperatures drop  ? Or is the condensation potential for greater volume of water ?

Is it best to refuel in the depths of winter when the fuel will be colder and  as a result will have less potential to drop water out?

 

Just thoughts .... answers not required?

 

 

 

 

 

Surely most of the water found in the bottom of the tank comes from condensation and water ingress through leaky seals, not from water held in suspension from diesel.

 

Whilst I have never found much water in the ottom of the fuel tank of my current boat, I found over 25 litres of water from condensation in the bow thruster compartment, accumulated over several years.

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3 minutes ago, cuthound said:

 

 

Whilst I have never found much water in the ottom of the fuel tank of my current boat, I found over 25 litres of water from condensation in the bow thruster compartment, accumulated over several years.

You have a bow thruster!!!  I am surprised and would be even more surprised if you admitted to using it on a regular basis.

 

Haggis

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3 minutes ago, haggis said:

You have a bow thruster!!!  I am surprised and would be even more surprised if you admitted to using it on a regular basis.

 

Haggis

 

Yes it came with the boat. First one I had used in over 40 years boating.

 

It is very handy when reversing, but until I had the motor refurbished earlier this year it hadn't worked for about 3 years. ?

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1 hour ago, cuthound said:

 

Yes it came with the boat. First one I had used in over 40 years boating.

 

It is very handy when reversing, but until I had the motor refurbished earlier this year it hadn't worked for about 3 years. ?

I'll forgive you  - I think ?

  • Haha 1
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