# Muck in diesel tank



## nedrawnep (Apr 26, 2008)

Had to remove my fuel tank to sort out fuel gauge. Set off for a few days away and broke down after a mile. Blocked gauze filter in the sediment trap (blocked with a black jelly like substance). It stopped again after 2 miles, every chance I had I stopped and cleaned filter. We finally arrived and before departure cleaned gauze again and renewed both fuel filters. Stopped after 15miles, filter was still clean. Made it home without further mishaps. What's the best way to clean the tank, can I put an additive in? It's a large tank, 40 gallons. Any help would be appreciated.
Peter


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## Deleted member 775 (Apr 26, 2008)

nedrawnep said:


> Had to remove my fuel tank to sort out fuel gauge. Set off for a few days away and broke down after a mile. Blocked gauze filter in the sediment trap (blocked with a black jelly like substance). It stopped again after 2 miles, every chance I had I stopped and cleaned filter. We finally arrived and before departure cleaned gauze again and renewed both fuel filters. Stopped after 15miles, filter was still clean. Made it home without further mishaps. What's the best way to clean the tank, can I put an additive in? It's a large tank, 40 gallons. Any help would be appreciated.
> Peter


i dont know of anything to put in the tank,the only surefire way to clean the system is remove the tank clean it out renew all filters that will cure your problem i would assume.  but i dont know where the jelly like substance comes from ?????


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## Trevor (Apr 26, 2008)

Hi nedrawnep,
has the van ever been run on cooking oil or bio diesel ?
A few of my friends have had a problem like yours (jelly like substance) after using dodgy bio diesel and cooking oil.


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## Deleted member 775 (Apr 26, 2008)

good idea ive heared that these bio fuels can lead to problems in the long run


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## Trevor (Apr 26, 2008)

mandrake said:


> good idea ive heared that these bio fuels can lead to problems in the long run


It depends on where you buy it from the back street sharks that make it dont care they just want your money.
There is a good place near me that makes good stuff but geting it is another story, sold as soon as it is made.
Fuel additive i think is to clean carbon buildup from the injectors which is supposed to give you better fuel consumption.
I would say it not going to clean your tank Mandrake has the best idea for that.


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## terry1956 (Apr 26, 2008)

*in answer,*

Hi, in answer its old bio fuel, My hymer when I got it had to have a new metering unit, filters and set of injectors, the lower half of the fuel tank was full of black jelly, It was german so I think that it was ran on bio fuel and over the winter the fuel would break down into this jelly. The reason for the new parts was the cam inside the metering unit broke up and bits of metal and rubbish had got into the injectors. Total cost over £1,400.
terry


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## cas (Apr 26, 2008)

Mmm intersting as my van had previously been run on bio fuel, so ive continued to do the same when I fill up at home as there is a place thats makes it and sells it near by, but i dont go looking for it if im out and need some.


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## mick (Apr 26, 2008)

Sure way it flush tank out with clean diesel , change filter's and put magnet on tank .


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## PaulC (Apr 26, 2008)

Put a magnet on the tank? This is an urban myth surly! Like the old one about the Arabs buying all the patents to the formulas that turn water into fuel,  but under the present climate expect a rash of other such claims!


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## Trevor (Apr 26, 2008)

terry1956 said:


> > I think that it was ran on bio fuel and over the winter the fuel would break down into this jelly
> 
> 
> .
> ...


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## sundown (Apr 26, 2008)

please correct me if im wrong, 
but didn't I hear gorden brown say recently, 
that, to help with climate change, 
all fuel, in the future is to contain 
a perentage of bio-fuel,
if so, is this giving the green light to bio-fuel usage?
or is the govt. endangering our fuel systems etc.
Im confused


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## Trevor (Apr 26, 2008)

sundown said:


> please correct me if im wrong,
> but didn't I hear gorden brown say recently,
> that, to help with climate change,
> all fuel, in the future is to contain
> ...


Ok Nick,
If the bio fuel is made properly ie with all the right addtives it should be ok.  The problems are with the back street production of bio diesel as they dont do it right you know what i mean cutting corners to make an extra penny.
Also i believe they do not clean the tanks out that they make it in hence the jelly like stuff that will collect in the bottom of your fuel tank.


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## alcarem (Apr 26, 2008)

nedrawnep said:


> Had to remove my fuel tank to sort out fuel gauge. Set off for a few days away and broke down after a mile. Blocked gauze filter in the sediment trap (blocked with a black jelly like substance). It stopped again after 2 miles, every chance I had I stopped and cleaned filter. We finally arrived and before departure cleaned gauze again and renewed both fuel filters. Stopped after 15miles, filter was still clean. Made it home without further mishaps. What's the best way to clean the tank, can I put an additive in? It's a large tank, 40 gallons. Any help would be appreciated.
> Peter



Sounds like you have got the diesel bug.It looks a bit like frogs spawn.It happens regularly in boats.The cure is to go to your local marina and purchase diesel bug treatment this should work but best also clean out all filters. Hope this helps.


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## Trevor (Apr 27, 2008)

The old term for it is waxing up, its what happend when diesel was allowed to stand in very cold temperatures, it dont happen what with the modern fuel addtive's, hence winter diesel.
Still waiting to hear if the van was run on Cooking oil or Bio diesel.


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## t&s (Apr 27, 2008)

regular servicing including changing both filters ,oil and water  also draining the fuel filter of water between services should not be forgotten
might save a repeat breakdown
(in older vehicles i used to do a service  every 5000 miles)
i believe it was worth the extra cost of a gall of oil and a filter  
as regards to chip fat i would not take the chance of using it but may be the old idea of putting 1 gall of petrol to 10 galls of derv in the winter to stop waxing up this might help ?
i always used it all my pre hdi vehicles it seemed to  improved the running but dont overdo it as it also increases the compression and you dont want to blow your engine


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## Belgian (Apr 30, 2008)

Trevor said:


> Ok Nick,
> If the bio fuel is made properly ie with all the right addtives it should be ok.  The problems are with the back street production of bio diesel as they dont do it right you know what i mean cutting corners to make an extra penny.
> Also i believe they do not clean the tanks out that they make it in hence the jelly like stuff that will collect in the bottom of your fuel tank.



Bio diesel is as good as normal diesel, if not better. But indeed there are some who fraud with it adding all sorts of used oils and everyting combustible which is cheaper. (but this happens also with normal diesel at those small pumps I reccon)


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## Trevor (Apr 30, 2008)

Nedrawnep the starter of this thread has not been back on, so we are not going to find out what the problem was.


> Bio diesel is as good as normal diesel, if not better


Belgian i agree 100% my friends say if its a good supplier its better than normal diesel.


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## terry1956 (Apr 30, 2008)

*bio fuel*

Hi all, well I am not to sure of the long term use of bio fuel, As to the powers that be they will will talk any old rubbish, remember not so long back when they said diesel was clearer and better then petrol, now its the other way round. When my hymer went down, 15mph tops and white smoke all over the place, and later was told it was bio diesel at fault, I had to get a lot of info on bio diesel, for the court case that was to follow.i looked at the german motorhome forums and at the time there was a lot of reports of bad bio diesel going around. In the USA truckers had to use a 60/40 mix to keep their engines running, and there was lots of reports of metering units going down all over the place and big garage bills. when I was in germany around 3 years back with our ford motorhome, I did get a full tank of bio diesel, I found that the engine did not pull so well and that it used a fair bit more fuel, At the end of the tank we had covered less miles then with normal fuel, so the 2 cents pl we saved at the start turned into a lost at the end.
Maybe its ok as part of the mix, but I will not be going 100% again.
terry


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## nedrawnep (May 2, 2008)

*Muck in diesel from Nedrawnep*

Sorry haven't been able to use my PC for a while. Thanks for all suggestions and advice. I was running it on a 50% cooking oil mix (new oil) it ran with no problem on warm days. Hard to start when cold, loads of white smoke and would not tick over until the engine was warm. Did some research on the black jelly and it would appear to be a diesel bug. I have purchased a fuel additive from a boat dealer, it attacks the bug and breaks it down so it will pass through the filters. Will put it in today and check the sediment trap in a few days. I have 2 sediment traps and filters before the twin fuel filters. I have owned this motorhome for 4 years and although I've cleaned the sediment traps regularly, I didn't know there was a gauze filter in the first trap until 2 weeks ago. So I conclude it's partly down the the cooking oil. I have a friend in a fuel shop and in his opinion cooking oil will damage pumps and injectors quicker than straight diesel. The cost to repair can easily outweigh the savings. My vehicle has a 6 cyl Ford Cargo engine and I hate to think what a pump overhaul would cost. Will let you know how the fuel treatment works.
Thanks again
Nedrawnep


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## terry1956 (May 2, 2008)

*Interesting.*

Interesting, But I have only seen people use used cooking oil for bio diesel, something to do with the break down of the sugers and fats.
Anyway I don,t think I will ever rise it again.
terry


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## wildman (May 28, 2008)

PaulC said:


> Put a magnet on the tank? This is an urban myth surly! Like the old one about the Arabs buying all the patents to the formulas that turn water into fuel, but under the present climate expect a rash of other such claims!


Myth maybe but like all myths are rooted in fact. The magnet has an effect on the diesel bug which is the cause of the jelly like substance. Just google diesel bug for more info. As for running a car on water it is not a stupid as it sounds either see here.

http://www.runyourcarwithwater.com/?hop=5startech


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## Deleted member 207 (May 29, 2008)

nedrawnep said:


> I was running it on a 50% cooking oil mix (new oil) it ran with no problem on warm days. Hard to start when cold, loads of white smoke and would not tick over until the engine was warm.



I'd be a bit wary about dropping the "real" diesel that low, the diesel fuel acts as a lubricant in the pump, so you may end up doing a bit of damage to the seals and pistons in the older injection pumps. Bio diesel can go off quite quickly if allowed to settle, neat veg oil probably does the same thing as it gets heated and returned to the tank a few times before getting into the engine and burnt. 



nedrawnep said:


> Did some research on the black jelly and it would appear to be a diesel bug. I have purchased a fuel additive from a boat dealer, it attacks the bug and breaks it down so it will pass through the filters. Will put it in today and check the sediment trap in a few days.



Service stations with above ground tanks are more susceptable (SP?) to algal growth as the fuel temperature can go up and down by a few degrees each day. Also if the fuel sits around for a long time, even in underground tanks, can increase the risk of growths. Look for a few diesel pumps on the forecourt with lorries taking on 500 litres and you will know the fuel is good and fresh.


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## t&s (May 29, 2008)

wildman said:


> Myth maybe but like all myths are rooted in fact. The magnet has an effect on the diesel bug which is the cause of the jelly like substance. Just google diesel bug for more info. As for running a car on water it is not a stupid as it sounds either see here.
> 
> http://www.runyourcarwithwater.com/?hop=5startech




seen this idea on tv many moons ago a persentage of water was injected as a mist in the same manner as diesel injectors ,
it makes sence 
as most engines seem to run better in damp weather 
unfortunatly most proven fuel saving ideas have been bought up by the fuel companys and shelved


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