Years ago, while returning some distance from a regatta, my engine decided to stop. I started it up and found it would run at about 1/2 throttle. Motored that way for 45 miles. Took the Racor primary fuel filter apart and I was shocked that any fuel could have gone through at all! Solid black.
Replace the filters, both primary and secondary. Try again. Gary 30-1 -----Original Message----- From: CnC-List <cnc-list-boun...@cnc-list.com> On Behalf Of DON JONSSON via CnC-List Sent: Wednesday, November 14, 2018 2:12 PM To: cnc-list@cnc-list.com Cc: DON JONSSON <dbjons...@shaw.ca> Subject: Stus-List Dirty fuel? The other day when motoring the engine quit when pulling into the marina. Got it going again to make the slip but then it quit again. Repeat a few times. We thought the most likely culprit was the new fuel gauge not being configured correctly and had run out of diesel. Second culprit may be dirty fuel as had been sailing with very little fuel in the tank and that could stir things up. So the next day we began the investigation. We hadn't run out of diesel and there is about 1/4 of a tank. Checked the primary filter which is new and it doesn't look too bad. Started the engine again and it ran and then quit a couple of times. Trying again we rev'd it hard just before it could die and it kept going even when we put it back to idle. Now it seems to run fine. But it doesn't instil confidence. In the C&C fuel tank you can take out the gauge and you have a little (2 inch?) hole you can see into the tank. We put a camera in there and can see the bottom of the tank is about 50% covered with black. The rest shines. If you swirl a stick in there the black sediment is definitely light and moves. So perhaps it is the fuel filters. The secondary filter is not one you can look into so it could be there. Sailing the boat with little fuel in a following sea would definitely stir things up. But why is the engine running well now if it is a plugged filter? Why didn't it require bleeding? We got a quote to polish the fuel tank and it is decidedly not cheap. In fact I'd go all the way to damned expensive. So the questions: 1. Has anyone else had a similar experience and was it the fuel filters? We never had to bleed the lines and the engine now runs fine. 2. Does anyone have another idea as to what it could be? The engine only has 500 hours on it and starts and runs like a top (if you forgive the two alternators we have already gone through. Manufacturing fault on both claimed by alternator repair people.) 3. Can someone give advice on how to clean the fuel. We have access in the front of the tank but not behind the baffle which is about in the middle (I think). The hole is small to options seem limited. Can you dissolve the sediment? How did you flush it all out? Thanks for any help. Don Jonsson Andante, C&C 34 Victoria Sent from my iPad _______________________________________________ Thanks everyone for supporting this list with your contributions. Each and every one is greatly appreciated. If you want to support the list - use PayPal to send contribution -- https://www.paypal.me/stumurray _______________________________________________ Thanks everyone for supporting this list with your contributions. Each and every one is greatly appreciated. If you want to support the list - use PayPal to send contribution -- https://www.paypal.me/stumurray
