Community Forums

Mr_D · 01-15-2012, 10:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sc3283

Why someone comes and make a long post about gassers when the topic is diesel??? Must like his name in lights!!

The need to up their posting number so they get more "Campfires" behind their name!

Mr_D · 01-15-2012, 10:56 PM

Back to the question:
The fuel needs to be "scrubbed". Find a boat place and ask them or just keep changing the filters.

rough road · 01-16-2012, 04:05 AM

What blend bio was it?

Elkhartjim · 01-16-2012, 04:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rough road

What blend bio was it?

The OP didn't say he used bio-diesel; he used bio-kleen.

Have you noticed, the OP never came back with another post. Hopefully he fixed his problem and is motoring on down the road.

rough road · 01-16-2012, 03:42 PM

Correct you are, then it becomes a matter of a load of wet fuel-but if it as bad as stated it has to have been over quite a long period of time.

I also hope that the lack of a post is an indication the problem is solved or perhaps they went to sleep one night and were consumed by the monster alge colony

TheArnolds · 01-17-2012, 07:09 AM

I purchased my first diesel last March and I find all of these comments to be very helpful with my understanding of some of the issues using diesel fuel and what to watch out for to keep me running down the road. Is there an addative that I could use on a regular basis as preventative maintenance? Waiting to get clogged filters as a first sign of trouble appears to be too little, to late...

Elkhartjim · 01-17-2012, 07:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheArnolds

I purchased my first diesel last March and I find all of these comments to be very helpful with my understanding of some of the issues using diesel fuel and what to watch out for to keep me running down the road. Is there an addative that I could use on a regular basis as preventative maintenance? Waiting to get clogged filters as a first sign of trouble appears to be too little, to late...

This best way to prevent algae growth is to keep your fuel tank full during storage. Most of the water comes from condensation in fuel tanks that are low and thats where the algae grows...in the water.

I've never had the problem (knock wood) in my MH but I've had the experience in some of my farm equipment and it always goes back the fuel tanks were low.

I use BioKleen in the 250 gal storage tank at our country place.
Power Service Products, diesel fuel additives, prevent gelling, clean injectors, disperse water, boost cetane, reduce emissions, improve fuel economyPower Service Products, diesel fuel additives, prevent gelling, clean injectors, disperse water, boos

Mike Canter · 01-17-2012, 07:20 AM

Jack, it takes water in your tank to cause Black Slime. Without water then no Slime. Always make sure your tank is full when you store it for any period of time so condensation cannot form inside. About onece a year and put in a fuel additive to disperse any water that may have collected plus I watch my clear bowl on the water separator/filter unit. If no water then no Black Slime. When I store it for and long period of time I add the preventive amount of Biobar JF to the tank on the fillup prior to storage. I am not sure you can get water much from truck stop tanks anymore because the tank is really controlled by the EPA. If it leaks they are in trouble plus the tanks can only stay in the ground for a specified time. Not like the old days when the tanks went bad and started leaking. The other thing is that diesel floats on top of water and the pickup tube in the truck stop tank does not go all the way to the bottom so you don't suck up water. There are also alarms that go off if water is detected in the tanks. I guess it is possible to run across a gas station that has a diesel pump that is not used much so the fuel has sat there for some time and if water is present then you are in trouble but all the diesel fuel is filtered before you get it into your tank. Most of the Black Slime originates in our own tanks.

bullwinkle · 01-17-2012, 03:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elkhartjim

The OP didn't say he used bio-diesel; he used bio-kleen.

Have you noticed, the OP never came back with another post. Hopefully he fixed his problem and is motoring on down the road.

Haven't checked out of the website--continuing to follow the responses. As suggested, I've kept the tank topped off and will continue to do so as we travel this winter.

Thanks,
Larry

rough road · 01-18-2012, 06:17 AM

TheArnolds, the pump diesel you buy is of very high quality and all necessary additives are blended into the fuel either at the refinery or at the distributor, don't spend alot of time worrying about having to become a chemist-and if your tank is/are not metal then you also have no condensation worries, or you have far fewer worries than if you have a metal tank, keeping the tank(s) full during storage is a good idea.

Moisture is present in all fuels, its unavoidable, in many hundreds of thousands of miles in the last 10 years I have never gotten 'bad' diesel from a station either in our personal vehicles or in any of our trucks-we have never used consumer added chemicals of any kind.

Elkhartjim · 01-18-2012, 07:56 AM

Interesting statement, roughroads. Do some manufacturers install something other than metal fuel tanks? Thats a pretty scary thought...plastic fuel tanks.

Mike Canter · 01-18-2012, 10:16 AM

Don't believe I have ever seen a diesel pusher with a plastic tank. Car and pickup trucks yes but not a diesel pusher.

I truly believe that these days getting Black Slime or an algae is the fault of the /owner/operator. Diesel fuel (and gas) comes from the refinery into the local area via a pipeline and not in trucks. The USA is covered in these buried pipelines. For an example our local Atlanta fuel comes up from the Louisiana Gulf Coast area via a pipeline into a local tank depot/farm. The tanker truck being Petro, Flying J, Texaco, Exxon, whatever goes to this tank depot/farm and fills up with the same fuel as other gas station regardless of brand name. Same goes for gasoline. Just because you go to a Texaco or an Exon does not mean that fuel comes from a Texaco or Exxon refinery. If Texaco has a special additive/detergent then it is added to that tanker truck when it fills at the tank depot/farm and that is the only thing that makes in "brand" unique is that additive. Fuel regardless if it is diesel or gasoline going to a Flying J or a Mom and Pop store is all the same fuel from the same big tank and the farm. Now a little more info. The EPA is real hard on gas stations on checking their tanks. These days they are all double walled tanks and have to be dug up and swapped out on a schedule plus there are alarm systems that tell you if they are leaking. If they should leak water in that means that fuel gets out and that is a big big fine so it just does not happen anymore. The tanks are below ground where the temperature is pretty stable so no condensation and all the fuel is filtered before it gets to the nozzle. Most if not all of these storage tanks have a water detector and if it is detected then the water is pumped out of the bottom of the tank. Now lets talk about your MH tank. Most of those diesel tanks have a small sump area in the bottom of the tanks where the pickup tube is located. Thse small depressions or sumps are designed to catch water and get pumped up into the separator. If there is water in that tank the idea is to suck it up into that water separator and leave it there so it does not get into the injector. Water getting into an injector will turn into steam and expand and blow the tip off the injector and cause real damage. That is why you need to check that water separator bowl on a routine basis. If you do not have a clear bowl to view it then drain some fuel out of the bottom of the filter(s) on a regular basis into a mason jar so you can check it for water content. I am lucky in the fact that I have a sensor in the bottom of my clear bowl that will light a warning on my dash if water is detected (one reason I stayed with that $256 Racor unit because it is plug and play into that Monaco warning system). Like I have said before it takes a little water in your tank for a long period of time to cause Black Slime or algae and it will not happen overnight. That little bit of water in your tank is most likely going to come from fueling in the rain while not undercover such as Flying J RV lanes, or from condensation in a high humidity area that has big tempearture changes between night and day such as Florida or anywhere on the Gulf Coast. Sitting as a Snowbird on the Gulf Coast for a month at a time with a less than full tank is asking for problems.

I always laugh when I get one of those emails that says not to buy fuel from a certain brand gas station so you can hurt them. So now you have to go and buy fuel from a different gas station which is really the same fuel as what the other station is using

. The only person that is inconvienced is you. So don't buy fuel this Thursday in a protest........normally you drive a set amount of miles a week so the fact that you don't buy fuel on a Thursday means that you are going to buy it on a Wed or a Friday. You still buy the same amount of fuel in a week. So who is getting inconvienced, you or the station? People just don't know how fuel is distributed.

Do you know they use the same pipeline from the refinery to the tank farm for diesel, regular gas, premium gas and any other type fuel. All they do is drop what is called a "pig" in the line which stops most of the mixing and then change from diesel to regular gas. When that is through they drop in aanother pig and change to premium gas.

That is a pretty high level description of how the fuel is distributed around the USA.

Elkhartjim · 01-18-2012, 10:38 AM

Not that it needs to be said, but Mike is spot on about gasoline/fuels.

One of my sons works for Enterprise Pipeline Co in Houston. They are just like any other freight company except they don't use trucks, they use a pipeline. Exxon may ship premium fuel and Shell ship jet fuel right behind it. The "pig" they use is an inert gas between shipments so they don't cross contaminate. There is such a shortage of pipelines in the US (don't get me started as to why) that the small producers have a very hard time getting their product to market as well.

The additives are added at the tank farm just as Mike stated. I don't remember but they don't need to add much to claim the additive is there. It could be as low as a thimble full in 5000 gallons.

I know we'll stir up a brand war here but the fact is, Shell may be selling Exxon/Mobil refined product and Valero may be selling Shell refined product and Valero selling Shell refined product and Wally World selling the lowest priced. Of course thats this shipment, the next shipment may be totally reversed.

BTW, a very nice explanation, Mike.

rough road · 01-19-2012, 07:00 AM

For way more than you ever wanted to know about diesel fuel go to:

Chevron With Techron Homepage

select products
select diesel
download their tech specs-right side of page-, its the best collection of info I have ever seen

Mike, as far as injector tips exploding, moisture is present in diesel fuel all the time, there is a industry spec for the amount that should be in the fuel-in fact the process of diesel combustion generates its own moisture-fuel is used to cool components, this releases even more moisture. This moisture will do alot, flashing off moisture takes energy and will reduce power, it will make smoke, it will cause rust, it will ice up in very cold weather, but an injector grenading due to moisture is something I need more convincing of.

I am not saying that 'free bulk water' is present in all fuel, but the situation is not far from this and the purpose of additives (water) is to bring the water into solution/suspension in order that it can be flashed off.

My top suspect in the op's instance is bio diesel above B5.