home made fuel polisher

[Mickey Panayiotakis]

So;

I'm about to buy a slightly used Racor filter.  MY intention it to attach it to a fuel pump and several wires and hoses to make a home-made fuel polishing system.  Short-term, I can manually clean fuel in my "neglected" tank (and my "less neglected" tank).  Medium-term, I want to be able to mount it somehow and flip a switch to move fuel from the lower tank to the higher tank, filtering it in the process, and using the higher tank exclusively for my daily diesel needs.

First question: how stupid am I?

Second question, assuming the answer to the first one is less than "totally": Any recommendations on fuel filter? I'm eyeing one of these:

http://www.go2marine.com/item/160837/walbro-marine-electric-fuel-pumps-12v-24v-frb-series-frb-13-2.html

Cheers

mickey

[David Cameron Miss Molly]

Mick I,kinda have what you are talking about going on now,I,ll take
some pictures and fwd,probably hauling tommrrow .I,have 2 independent
Racor filters each plumbed to the two seperate tanks,I,can by
switching valves in line run the returns from one tank to a different
tank,would be no problem to put a T in the line and pump from one tank
to another.
Dave 52

> "totally": Any recommendations on fuel filter? I'm eyeing one of these:http://www.go2marine.com/item/160837/walbro-marine-electric-fuel-pump...
>
> Cheers
> mickey

[Tom Fuhs]

To answer your first question:  I'd have to use my own frame of reference to give an answer, and as I think my reference point is slowly sliding down the scale, I think yer lookin' reel smart!

Second question:  I'd say you're on exactly the right path.  I'm planning to do pretty much the same thing when I eventually add another tank under the cockit.  I don't know if there is any difference, but automotive fuel pumps are a bit cheaper and I doubt they'd be any less reliable.  For example:  Pump.  I hate paying marine prices.  That pump has a lower flow rate, but at a higher pressure, so as your filter gets mungy, you'l still have flow.  That's my take, but you have to again consider my point of reference ;)   -Tom

[Alan Gluyas]

Hi Guys

 

My business (www.petrospection.com.au) is involved in the handling of bulk fuels and we have done this sort of thing commercially for years. I have looked at fuel polishing for boats, ships and underground tanks as a new business opportunity, because commercially it is becoming problematic to enter tanks to clean them or dispose of any fuel that does not come with a manufacturers quality certificate. We don’t need any more work, so we are not looking very hard at the moment.

 

The common philosophy on fuel polishing is that you have to induce enough flow into the tanks and lines to lift any settled detritus in the tank. There is no point in pumping at normal fuel flow rates whilst at dock because the crap in the tank just sits there until you are out being thrown around by 10 foot high waves when it all comes loose and blocks your filter sup. It happens all the time.

 

There is also no need to filter the fuel to the degree it gets filtered at the secondary fuel filter either. The aim is to get the big stuff out so the secondary filter can do its job without getting blocked. I am assuming that you have a primary filter on the engine and a secondary Racor type filter before that already. You all should have.

 

The industry standard for fuel polishing is the Gulf Coast Filters line of products that use a large filter element that looks something like a roll of paper towels. I think that GCF have some information on-line.

 

To do the job properly, you should have at least half inch transfer lines and high volume transfer pump.

 

Cheers

 

Al

 

Brite Star

CR 38 #82

Kettering Tasmania

 

 

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[David Cameron Miss Molly]

I,don't think you are studid,but why?If you have the ability to use
either tank independently of the other and switch back and forth why
transfer fuel?Is it just to polish the fuel what am I,missing

Dave 52

On May 8, 9:09 pm, Mickey Panayiotakis <svba...@gmail.com> wrote:

> "totally": Any recommendations on fuel filter? I'm eyeing one of these:http://www.go2marine.com/item/160837/walbro-marine-electric-fuel-pump...
>
> Cheers
> mickey

[Cab...@aol.com]

Lots of sailboats use a small day tank.

 

Breck Caine CR 38 #19

 

In a message dated 5/8/2012 9:09:45 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, svb...@gmail.com writes:

So;

I'm about to buy a slightly used Racor filter.  MY intention it to attach it to a fuel pump and several wires and hoses to make a home-made fuel polishing system.  Short-term, I can manually clean fuel in my "neglected" tank (and my "less neglected" tank).  Medium-term, I want to be able to mount it somehow and flip a switch to move fuel from the lower tank to the higher tank, filtering it in the process, and using the higher tank exclusively for my daily diesel needs.

First question: how stupid am I?

Second question, assuming the answer to the first one is less than "totally": Any recommendations on fuel filter? I'm eyeing one of these:

http://www.go2marine.com/item/160837/walbro-marine-electric-fuel-pumps-12v-24v-frb-series-frb-13-2.html

Cheers

mickey

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[Cab...@aol.com]

I don't know for sure why it is done but some sailboats use a day tank.

 

Breck Caine CR 38 #19

 

In a message dated 5/8/2012 11:25:35 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, tc...@aol.com writes:

I,don't think you are studid,but why?If you have the ability to use
either tank independently of the other and switch back and forth why
transfer fuel?Is it just to polish the fuel what am I,missing
Dave 52

On May 8, 9:09 pm, Mickey Panayiotakis <svba...@gmail.com> wrote:

> So;
> I'm about to buy a slightly used Racor filter.  MY intention it to attach
> it to a fuel pump and several wires and hoses to make a home-made fuel
> polishing system.  Short-term, I can manually clean fuel in my "neglected"
> tank (and my "less neglected" tank).  Medium-term, I want to be able to
> mount it somehow and flip a switch to move fuel from the lower tank to the
> higher tank, filtering it in the process, and using the higher tank
> exclusively for my daily diesel needs.
>
> First question: how stupid am I?
> Second question, assuming the answer to the first one is less than

> "totally": Any recommendations on fuel filter? I'm eyeing one of these:http://www.go2marine.com/item/160837/walbro-marine-electric-fuel-pump...

[Mickey Panayiotakis]

Ah, confusion reigns I see. Or at least a multitude of opinions.

Alan, I've read lots of places that GCF is the leader in fuel filtering, but their minimum filter on their website is "under 300 gallons".  I'm looking at more like 50 gallons. SO…a bit overkill? Also, part of the goal is having a small filtration system on board so that I can filter the fuel after I go out in those waves and slosh things around. (or adding algae killer to the tank.)

To the point about what pump to use: the question is do I go high-flow or high-pressure?  It's true I can get an automotive pump a little cheaper (half to a third the price) which will have lower throughput (30-40gph) at higher pressures.  High pressures are important to knock stuff off the tank, is one thinking.  Matching (not exceeding) the filter capacity (40-60gph for a racor 500fg) is another.

The 300-gallon GCF polishing system seem to use a walbro fuel pump…and these do not seem to ever exceed 11 PSI: http://www.fuel-pumps.net/frseries.html (also from that site: http://www.fuel-pumps.net/fuelpolishing.html )

Perhaps an aerator or high-pressure air hose can help clear up the junk in the walls instead, if we can't get a fuel pump capable of essentially powerwashing the insides of our tank? Or a chemical?

On why have a separate tank…well that's  primarily a secondary consideration. What's imporant is to be able to clean the fuel in at least one tank, and to be able to move fuel from one tank to the other. The ability to run from either tank (or not) is immaterial. Why I want to do this:

1. Be able to clean fuel and separate "clean" from "dirty" fuel

2. Not all my diesel appliances run from either tank

3. The (manual) lift pump on my engine has a difficult time when drawing from the "lower" tank and the tank is low. (Adding an electric lift pump is another option here, but why not go for a transfer pump to move the fuel to the higher elevation)

4. (reason to keep them separate) Since one tank is lower than the other, if all the switches are not flipped correctly, the upper tank will just drain into the lower tank.  This means that if I'm running on the upper tank, the engine dies and I have to bleed the fuel filter.

5. I don't burn that much diesel in the summer time . (In winter I heat with diesel.) I want to be able to move fuel around and polish it at will.

Thoughts?

Y

[Alan Gluyas]

Hi Mickey

 

I agree about the issues of size but you need to address the problem of getting any rubbish in the tank into suspension somehow. High flows are the obvious and conventional answer. In commercial applications, where fuel is being polished using external pumping and filtration equipment, the trick is to use some form of high velocity jet or spray to break up any sludge so the suction pump can pick it up.

 

For the pump and filtration, you don’t need high pressure. Filters are low pressure devices. Our setup used a positive displacement diaphragm pump to suck the fuel out and a high pressure (100 psi) gear pump to jet it back in.

 

A word of caution: Spraying diesel fuel and water emulsions generates static electricity. Diesel fuel is a high flash point product but when in vapor form it is quite volatile. Static sparks and volatile fuel equals big bang. If you find yourself spraying fuel into a tank where there is any oxygen, make sure you fit the end of the sprayer with an earth strap to discharge any static build up. If you have a problem it will far too late to do anything about it. It is not far fetched – I lost a friend 20 years ago when a tank blew its end out.

 

With the filter, you will be expecting to strain out large volumes of crap, so a conventional diesel filter is not the answer. There are 10 inch cartridge filters available at any water supply centre that take big elements. These are cheap.

 

Cheers

 

Al

 

Brite Star

CR 38 #82

Kettering Tasmania

 

 

[Mickey Panayiotakis]

Alan

I'm a bit confused by your description. YOu used two pumps? (One is a high-volume pump to pick up the diesel and the other a high-pressure pump to create havoc inside the tank.)  Are these two pumps in-line (e.g. tank -> pump 1 -> filter -> pump 2 -> tank )? Or are they completely separate?

Suppose I do set up a high-pressure pump to knock the sludge off: how do I get past the first baffle? Wouldn't I need an inspection port on every baffle?

The static electricity thing sound scary.

mickey

[Tom Fuhs]

Al,  What you're saying agrees with what I've read elsewhere.  It seems that folks will build or buy a "fuel polishing system" only to find that they really don't do much because of the problem you mention.  Asyou say, the effectiveness of  fuel polishing is tied to how well you can stir up the muck on the bottom.  This is affected by access to the compartments of the tank / placement of tank baffles.  I wonder if something similar to those octopus pool cleaners would work.  Basically a nozzle at the end of a length of flexible hose that is positioned in the tank so that it randomly sprays fuel around.  With enough pressure, it should fly around and loosen things up pretty well.  I think you would probably need one for each compartment of the tank to stir things up.  I'm probably describing something that already exists, but maybe not.   Maybe I'm over thinking / over engineering things (I tend to do that).  One problem I see is that you need hose that will take the high pressure of the return pump and yet still be flexible enough to do the octopus thing.    I think the real challenge is to come up with a system that can be easily fit to our existing in place fiberglass fuel tanks, and still be effective. 

Tom
SV Eclipse
CR 38 #115
Rock Hall, MD

On Wednesday, May 9, 2012 1:47:16 AM UTC-4, Al wrote:

Hi Mickey

 

I agree about the issues of size but you need to address the problem of getting any rubbish in the tank into suspension somehow. High flows are the obvious and conventional answer. In commercial applications, where fuel is being polished using external pumping and filtration equipment, the trick is to use some form of high velocity jet or spray to break up any sludge so the suction pump can pick it up.

 

For the pump and filtration, you don’t need high pressure. Filters are low pressure devices. Our setup used a positive displacement diaphragm pump to suck the fuel out and a high pressure (100 psi) gear pump to jet it back in.

 

A word of caution: Spraying diesel fuel and water emulsions generates static electricity. Diesel fuel is a high flash point product but when in vapor form it is quite volatile. Static sparks and volatile fuel equals big bang. If you find yourself spraying fuel into a tank where there is any oxygen, make sure you fit the end of the sprayer with an earth strap to discharge any static build up. If you have a problem it will far too late to do anything about it. It is not far fetched – I lost a friend 20 years ago when a tank blew its end out.

 

With the filter, you will be expecting to strain out large volumes of crap, so a conventional diesel filter is not the answer. There are 10 inch cartridge filters available at any water supply centre that take big elements. These are cheap.

 

Cheers

 

Al

 

Brite Star

CR 38 #82

Kettering Tasmania

 

 

Y

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[Cab...@aol.com]

The best way to keep the tanks clean is to use the boat.

 

Breck Caine CR 38 #19

 

In a message dated 5/9/2012 1:47:17 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time, alang...@iinet.net.au writes:

Hi Mickey

 

I agree about the issues of size but you need to address the problem of getting any rubbish in the tank into suspension somehow. High flows are the obvious and conventional answer. In commercial applications, where fuel is being polished using external pumping and filtration equipment, the trick is to use some form of high velocity jet or spray to break up any sludge so the suction pump can pick it up.

 

For the pump and filtration, you don’t need high pressure. Filters are low pressure devices. Our setup used a positive displacement diaphragm pump to suck the fuel out and a high pressure (100 psi) gear pump to jet it back in.

 

A word of caution: Spraying diesel fuel and water emulsions generates static electricity. Diesel fuel is a high flash point product but when in vapor form it is quite volatile. Static sparks and volatile fuel equals big bang. If you find yourself spraying fuel into a tank where there is any oxygen, make sure you fit the end of the sprayer with an earth strap to discharge any static build up. If you have a problem it will far too late to do anything about it. It is not far fetched – I lost a friend 20 years ago when a tank blew its end out.

 

With the filter, you will be expecting to strain out large volumes of crap, so a conventional diesel filter is not the answer. There are 10 inch cartridge filters available at any water supply centre that take big elements. These are cheap.

 

Cheers

 

Al

 

Brite Star

CR 38 #82

Kettering Tasmania

 

 

Y

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[Mickey Panayiotakis]

I think there are only two baffles on the fiberglass tanks.  (I took the liberty of adding Patrick's excellent writeup here:

https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0Byhmy7dhLouaaEFFZXgyZmsya3c

with links to his pictures).

IN that case, a small-ish hole should suffice to push in a fairly rigid pipe. Maybe a copper pipe so we can ground it?

mickey

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[Paul]

Run your polisher during a sail in rough seas. It'll jiggle all of the yuck from the bottom of your fuel tanks.


Paul

On May 9, 2012, at 11:28 AM, Clay <clay...@gmail.com> wrote:

>
>
> On May 9, 11:14 am, Mickey Panayiotakis <svba...@gmail.com> wrote:
>> I think there are only two baffles on the fiberglass tanks. (I took the
>> liberty of adding Patrick's excellent writeup here:https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0Byhmy7dhLouaaEFFZXgyZmsya3c
>> with links to his pictures).
>>
>> IN that case, a small-ish hole should suffice to push in a fairly rigid
>> pipe. Maybe a copper pipe so we can ground it?
>>
>> mickey
>

>> On Wed, May 9, 2012 at 10:02 AM, Tom Fuhs <tomf...@verizon.net> wrote:
>>> Al, What you're saying agrees with what I've read elsewhere. It seems
>>> that folks will build or buy a "fuel polishing system" only to find that
>>> they really don't do much because of the problem you mention. Asyou say,
>>> the effectiveness of fuel polishing is tied to how well you can stir up
>>> the muck on the bottom. This is affected by access to the compartments of
>>> the tank / placement of tank baffles. I wonder if something similar to
>>> those octopus pool cleaners would work. Basically a nozzle at the end of a
>>> length of flexible hose that is positioned in the tank so that it randomly
>>> sprays fuel around. With enough pressure, it should fly around and loosen
>>> things up pretty well. I think you would probably need one for each
>>> compartment of the tank to stir things up. I'm probably describing
>>> something that already exists, but maybe not. Maybe I'm over thinking /
>>> over engineering things (I tend to do that). One problem I see is that you
>>> need hose that will take the high pressure of the return pump and yet still
>>> be flexible enough to do the octopus thing. I think the real challenge
>>> is to come up with a system that can be easily fit to our existing in place
>>> fiberglass fuel tanks, and still be effective.
>>
>>> Tom
>>> SV Eclipse
>>> CR 38 #115
>>> Rock Hall,
>
>

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[Clay]

I knew of an individual that put a filter/polisher kit(not sure what
make/manufacturer on the diesel fuel return line...don't know if it
had a by-pass system as part of the kit. Seemed simple enough..

On May 8, 9:09 pm, Mickey Panayiotakis <svba...@gmail.com> wrote:

> "totally": Any recommendations on fuel filter? I'm eyeing one of these:http://www.go2marine.com/item/160837/walbro-marine-electric-fuel-pump...
>
> Cheers
> mickey

[Mickey Panayiotakis]

But use it under power? I understand that using the boat makes the fuel woosh around, and using hte fuel keeps it clean. BUt if I sail, I don't get much benefit with teh slushing unless I polish it immediately thereafter. What am I missing?

Y

[Larry Barker]

That depends on what the yuck is and how long it has been there. It may not unstick .
Water will settle right back to the bottom. Along with heavier stuff.
I think if you all have this much concern best to empty the tank. Flush with a appropriate solution. Then u know where u are. Reload with new clear fuel. After all we are talking about dumping 40 gal max. Not 500 like in a power boat.
Larry
Venteux



Sent from my iPhone

[David Cameron]

Run your engin while sailing,some.I,have to power about 2 hours going and coming,maybe thats the difference,

Dave 52

[Alan Gluyas]

This is getting bigger than Ben Hur so it might be a good idea to go back to
what we are trying to achieve.

There are several issues emerging here.

1. Processing the fuel on an on-going basis to keep the amount of entrained
water and sediment under control. This what is normally called fuel
polishing
2. Treating contaminated fuel and/or dirty tanks on a less frequent basis to
remove water and solidified sludge from the tank bottom and lines. This is
tank cleaning and fuel treatment.
3. Having multiple redundant filtration and/or tankage systems to ensure
reliable fuel supply. This is called common sense.

None of these three concepts really has much to do with the others.

Automatic fuel polishing really needs a proper system with good fuel flow
to pick up water and loose sediment. It needs a filter capable of taking
reasonable fuel flows and absorbing reasonable quantities of sediment and
water without blocking. The filtration does not need to be to engine
secondary filter specification.

Treating tanks with hard sediment needs access with e jet, possibly on a
wand, through access ports to be able to stir up the tank bottom sludge. We
have used 3/8" stainless tubing with a squashed end to get a good jet. This
requires some pressure. We then stripped the tank out with an air powered
diaphragm pump, which will handle crap without clogging up, to deliver back
to through the filter to the storage tank on the ground outside the boat.
The filtered fuel was then pumped back at high pressure to jet the tank
clean again.

With any engineering problem, simplifying the outcome makes for the most
elegant solution. When you try and get one solution for multiple problems
then the chances of finding an elegant solution reduce. In other words, the
likelihood of success is inversely proportional to the number of required
outcomes.

Fixing any ones of these things is easy, but not necessarily cheap.

Cheers

Al

Brite Star
CR 38 #82
Kettering Tasmania

-----Original Message-----
From: cabo...@googlegroups.com [mailto:cabo...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf

Of Larry Barker
Sent: Thursday, 10 May 2012 8:03 AM
To: cabo...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: [caborico] Re: home made fuel polisher

[Mickey Panayiotakis]

Well put, Alan.  I guess my primary desire is to be able to move fuel from one tank to the other, and filter the fuel as I move it.

My primary reasoning for the "day tank" is that I usually use the aft tank which sits higher than the engine.  My engine manual fuel pump sometimes (though I have not investigated throroughly) coughs a little when pulling fuel up from the forward tank (which sits below the engine) when the tank is empty.

The aft tank also feeds my webasto heater in the winter, which ensures that the fuel in that tank is used quite regularly. The lower/forward tank rarely gets used by comparison. So, my goal: keeping the "top" tank clean by always adding clean fuel to it, and still being able to use the "lower" tank for extra fuel storage.

mickey.

[pat...@dayshaw.net]

Mickey et al,

Your approach is what I've done on Silhouette although with a
variation or two.

As I related previously, I pulled and rebuilt my 35 gallon fiberglass
bilge tank which was leaking badly due to the sealant having failed.
Of course that also allowed me to completely clean out the tank and
start fresh. I had also replaced the 28 gallon aluminum tank under the
cockpit two years ago so that also started out clean.

I have my fuel system configured as follows:

I treat the cockpit tank as my "day tank" for two reasons; 1) When
living in the Pacific Northwest (Washington state) I use it to feed a
drip-feed diesel heater with its own suction tube via gravity feed
most of the time. Although When its really cold I do need to use a
small fuel pump as the fuel just won't flow reliably since the pick-up
tube makes it a siphon rather than true gravity feed. 2) I also like
to have a positive pressure on the Perkins feed pump so I chose the
upper tank.

I have an electric fuel pump I use as a transfer pump that has its own
suction line in the bilge fuel tank. I have the system valved to allow
all of the following:

1) Transfer fuel from the bilge tank to cockpit day tank. It has a 10
micron Racor 500 filter in line so the fuel is filtered as it is
transferred. I elected this approach because I am doing long range
cruising and haven't taken on fuel from a proper fuel dock in the past
6 months. All the fuel in Mexico and now here in the Galapagos comes
via Jerry cans or other portable containers via the Pangas/Water Taxi
drivers or similar "home made" fuel barges. It would be nice to filter
everything through a Baja filter or similar as it comes aboard,
however, the Panga guys usually won't wait and in places like Puerto
Ayora, Isla Santa Cruz, Galapagos where I am now, the anchorage is
open, exposed and very rolly 24X7 so you want the fuel transferred as
quickly as possible to prevent damage from the boats banging together.
My SOP is to transfer as much fuel to the day tank as possible and
then all the new fuel of unknown quality, goes into the bilge tank. It
then gets pre-filtered during the transfer or when I put the system in
"polish mode". On only one occasion was I too low on fuel to do this
and had to add new fuel directly to the day tank. It was also a case
where the transfer arrangement was clearly well maintained and I felt
the risk of contamination was low. I can on occasion use a Baha style
filter but more often not.

2) The valving arrangement lets me use the transfer pump to polish the
fuel. It does not provide the high pressure bottom wash that Alan
speaks of, but then I had sparkling clean tanks when I started out 8
months ago and I use my total fuel load on a regular basis so it
doesn't sit and stew.

3) The valving allows me to use the transfer pump to pressurize my
fuel system after a filter change or in any situation where the system
needs to be bled. Makes filling the new filters a snap. Very little
engine cranking is required as I can apply 6 psi fuel pressure all the
way up to the injection pump and then only need to crank briefly and
crack one or two of the high pressure lines and I'm done. This is on a
Perkins 4-108 which has a reputation for being difficult to bleed.

4) I have it valved so I can take engine suction from either tank.
This allows me to switch between tanks in case the main filter gets
clogged and I can also use or bypass the electric fuel pump in this
configuration.

5) I have vacuum gauges on my fuel filters so I have an indication,
besides the clear inspection bowls, what shape they are in. Currently
the transfer filter is just starting to show a slight restriction so
it has clearly captured some junk. The Racor 500 that feeds the engine
is still clean.

I tried to cover all the bases and have a system that's as flexible
and reliable as possible. Nothing high tech about it, just a few
valves and lengths of fuel hose.

BTW, I use a spring wound timer switch (think bathroom light/fan) to
control the transfer pump so I can set it and forget it (more or
less). I have the dial calibrated for the number of gallons I want to
transfer. With the 10 micron filter in line it takes 20 minutes to
transfer 5 gallons. There is also a bypass switch that allows me to
run the pump continuously if the engine suction pump fails or I'm
using it to bleed the system.

As Alan pointed out this approach doesn't meet all the requirements
that he outlined but so far it has worked well for me and has gotten
me this far.

Patrick
Silhouette, CR 38, #43
www.svsilhouette.com
Next stop French Polynesia

[pat...@dayshaw.net]

Mickey et al,

Your approach is what I've done on Silhouette although with a
variation or two.

As I related previously, I pulled and rebuilt my 35 gallon fiberglass
bilge tank which was leaking badly due to the sealant having failed.
Of course that also allowed me to completely clean out the tank and
start fresh. I had also replaced the 28 gallon aluminum tank under the
cockpit two years ago so that also started out clean.

I have my fuel system configured as follows:

I treat the cockpit tank as my "day tank" for two reasons; 1) When
living in the Pacific Northwest (Washington state) I use it to feed a
drip-feed diesel heater with its own suction tube via gravity feed
most of the time. Although When its really cold I do need to use a
small fuel pump as the fuel just won't flow reliably since the pick-up

tube makes it a syphon rather than true gravity feed. 2) I also like

to have a positive pressure on the Perkins feed pump so I chose the
upper tank.

I have an electric fuel pump I use as a transfer pump that has its own
suction line in the bilge fuel tank. I have the system valved to allow
all of the following:

1) Transfer fuel from the bilge tank to cockpit day tank. It has a 10
micron Racor 500 filter in line so the fuel is filtered as it is
transferred. I elected this approach because I am doing long range
cruising and haven't taken on fuel from a proper fuel dock in the past
6 months. All the fuel in Mexico and now here in the Galapagos comes
via Jerry cans or other portable containers via the Pangas/Water Taxi
drivers or similar "home made" fuel barges. It would be nice to filter
everything through a Baja filter or similar as it comes aboard,
however, the Panga guys usually won't wait and in places like Puerto
Ayora, Isla Santa Cruz, Galapagos where I am now, the anchorage is
open, exposed and very rolly 24X7 so you want the fuel transferred as
quickly as possible to prevent damage from the boats banging together.
My SOP is to transfer as much fuel to the day tank as possible and

then all the new fuel of unknown quality goes into the bilge tank. It

[Mickey Panayiotakis]

Hey Patrick

How about some pictures or a diagram? (*grin*)

Thanks

Y