water in fuel

[cpt vic]

ok this day went down hill fast.. last weekend everything ran fine and today shortly after leaving the marina, dogging sputtering and running rough and unevenly so go back check the seperating filter and voila there is water!
we have had the same gas for about 3-4 wks and have been at about 1/2 full in both tanks for 2 weeks ,so is that enough for condensation to ruin it .prior to today it ran fine.
and if we drain them do we need to replace filters or add water absorbing treatment(didn't know if that stuff even works)?
we never had this trouble in all the boating yrs past so am thinking it has to do with this ethanol thing??
any thoughts out there???

[rogerbum]

I'm thinking it's more than likely just a bad batch of gas coupled with inattention to the water separator. Probably had water in there all along but only had problems when the bowl in the separator filled. Did you check it prior to leaving the dock or only after the problem occurred?

I've been running 10% ethanol gas for quite awhile here without problem.

[B~C]

Not sure about the newer boats, but, on my 99 the fuel tank vents are a good sorce of water in the fuel. There is no check valve or elbow to keep water out if the waves hit you just right. I've replace mine with a model that has a check valve.

My tanks sat at about half full most of the winter, I drained the fuel and refilled before using. The fuel I drained worked just fine in the car. Many boat folks feel that it is better to just keep enough fuel in the tank that you will use in the near future. There have been some grate debates on boat boards about condensation in tanks

I would think you could replace the water separator filter and drain the fuel and be good to go....a spare plastic cap that fits your gas can is a handy thing, drill and install a fuel fitting in the cap to match that on your engine and you now have a slow, but safe way to drain the boat tanks.

good luck

[Sneaks]

My second trip out as a new owner I stalled due to water in the fuel. My fuel filter was totally soaked as was the external one. Eventually I found out a neighbor thought he was doing me a favor by dumping his extra gas cans into my tank without telling me. (He wanted to empty the cans to trash them) In any case, I now have a 10 micron way oversized Racor inline and have never yet seen water in the base.

As for the "store it full/empty" debate, I keep the Jenny B in a marina and rather than pay $4.65/gallon at the local on the water fuel station, 'druther put it on the trailer, tow it to the gas station, fill it completely and dump it back in the water at a cost of $3.06/gallon.

Don

[flagold]

I put an (almost) clear auto type filter inline near the bulb (and bought a whole bunch of spares (buck something at Discount Auto) as a quick check of the fuel system on starting. It saved some grief a couple of times now.

[Dreamer]

Flagold, This threw up a red flag for me. $2.00 auto fuel filters have no place on your boat! They are fragile, come apart and cause catastrophic consequences. Yes, I have seen the charred mess they can cause. Please, be safe and use boat parts on boats.

[flagold]

I'm not worried at all. Looked at them, they're sturdy. Bought a bunch of them, and with a simple hose clamp, replace them whenever they show water. Some of the cheapest crap I've ever seen has "marine" stamped on it.

Appreciate the concern, but water out of my engine and stranding is the main concern for me.

[oldgrowth]

Both of the above post have merit. You don't want junk on your boat. You notice I did not say cheap junk. Just because you bought it at a marine store and it is expensive does not necessarily make it better and in some cases as good as a cheap item you would buy at a discount store.

From his posting on this site I tend to think flagold has the ability to differentiate between dangerous and safe items. Generally I do believe boaters should abide by Rogers advice.

[flagold]

[ksidener]

Flagold, do you have a water separating fuel filter as well, or are you only running with the auto type filters and trowing them away when/if you see any water in the fuel?

Does anyone have any suggestions for the best place to mount say the small Racor water separating filters? As they have the clear bowls on the small units, I'm tempted to mount them in my 22' Cruiser on the motor well somewhere so I can see them, but not sure the sunlight won't be a problem on the fuel.

I'm considering mounting a pair of the Racor MARINE 025-RAC-02, one for each of my Honda 50's.

Any input most appreciated.

Kelly

[thataway]

Most people mount the racors in a protected location for several reasons. The bowl can detiorrate from U"V light. The filter/bow/drain can be hit in an open space. The factory installs them under the motor well or in the "lazarette" areas on the C Dory 25 and the Tom Cat 255, resptively.

If you are concerned about sunlight on the fuel, then you could make a cover--I don't think that sunlight on fuel is a major problem, but all of my filters are under the deck.

I have the small clear plastic filters in front of the transducers of the flow meters. Material goes thru these small coarse filters which is trapped by the Racors.

I have seen both Racor, Sierra, and even Frams, mounted on the outside of the motorwell, but not in my boats.

[drjohn71a]

Kelly,

Keeping in mind that Dr. Bob's advice is the primary best way, I thought you should know that in the TomCat's with baitwells they put the Racor filters out the stern over the swim step. These do not have the clear plastic parts, just the metal. You can see them in my photos. Care must be taken to put them so the tilted engines don't hit them.

On my old boats I commonly used thelarge, automotive style Mercury I/0, metal filter cups. You can dump the water out of them, but they don't have the Racor drain plugs which are easier to maintain - but they cost less and hold more water until there's a problem.

John

[flagold]