Diesel Fuel

[petes]

When I purchased my CD30 two years ago, the tank (13 Gals) was full. I may have added 2 to 3 gallons of fresh diesel fuel to the orignal since then, topping off for the New England winters to prevent condensation. (I also conditioned the fuel as well.)

How long is Diesel fuel that has been conditioned good for ? I know about gasoline, but I am not that familiar with Diesel fuel.

[s.v. LaVida]

pump it out, have the tank cleaned, put in new fuel.

you'll save a ton on fuel filters and a possible engine fuel blockage.

good luck,
mike

[wayne grenier]

If at all suspect-pump it out and dump it into your home heating oil tank-we are only talking about 13 galls-so that's maybe 2 trips with a 5 gall jug-but I would assume you burn at least 13 galls a year? so your fuel should not "go bad"-I have no idea what the shelf life of diesel fuel is or how long it can be extended with stabilizers-suffice it to say I add fuel stabilizers to my diesel fuel and gas stabilizers to all my gas powered tools-like the lawn mower-the outboard-the hedge trimer etc-and they all started up this spring no problem-however its very simple to clean out a gunked up carburetor on a lawn mower-clogged fuel injectors or an injection pump on a diesel is much more serious and should be avoided! go for a motor and burn that fuel!

[rtbates]

I've read that diesel STARTS to lose it's stability after only 30 days. Granted it takes a lot longer to "go bad" enough to cause filters to get plugged. Keep it as fresh as humanly possible. Diesel is much more sensitive to age degradation than gasoline and diesel engines are much more dependant on good fuel than gas engines.
The local Mercedes dealer's biggest selling single item is diesel fuel stabilizer. Lots of old folks who hardly drive own Merc diesels apparently.
One of the best things you can do for your diesel is to run it. If you naturally don't have to use much engine to get from your dock or mooring I'd suggest you bite the bullet and at least motor sail a bit to use the fuel and run the motor.

randy 25D Seraph #161

[Jim Lewis]

I bought a small wet/dry shop vac for about $20 to use for sucking the fuel and whatever crude there is out of the tank. It takes less than 30 minutes to undo clamp and remove large filler hose from top of tank and complete the transfer of old fuel and crude into 5 gallon cans. I am carefull not to allow the shop vac to fill to cut off point, as not sure that is good idea so have to monitor it closely and only allow vac to fill to about 2/3 s......refill tank with a gallon or two of fuel and rock boat, then suck that out and you are good for a number of years depending on where you get your fuel. I get all of mine inland at high volume car service station, add bio bor and thats it.......if your shop vac hose won t fit in top of tank just tape a piece of bilge hose to the end and be careful not to blink cause your vac will be full in a matter of seconds.....make sure you check for any safety issues that might be involved....this has worked for me but may not work for everyone.......

[Jim Sullivan]

I would strongly recommend against using a shop vac for this application. Shop vacs are OK for non-flammable liquids but are not considered safe for handling flammable liquids). These warnings are generally stated in the instructions for use. There is a very good possibility of fire/explosion--electrical spark with vapors from the liquid. A number of safe methods have been discussed on this Board for removing fuel from a tank (do a Search).