Fuel Gelled

[rancherman]

When the fuel gells, does it just gell up the fuel filter or the lines and tank as well? My buddies 6.0 froze up a couple weeks ago in sub zero temps but my truck and our bosses' dmax were fine

First  signs  of  gelling  will be  found  (of  course)  at the filter. (it's  the  first  place  where there is  a  'restriction'..  LOL)     fuel in a  non moving  vehicle    will   start to 'cloud'  at the coldest  place first: along the edges  of  the  fuel tank,  and  the  fuel lines  first...     well,    fire up the engine,   and those  little  'clouds'   will  start  stacking up!     The  filter  stops em  every time.     It  actually takes  a  chemical,  or  a lot of  warm fuel to  put it  back into  solution.  (that is,  if  fuel  can  still flow through the filter)     I'd  bet,  even though  most  in here  (above the mason Dixon line)  are still running,     if they  went out and took  their  filter off,    they would see  at least  25 percent of the filter  covered  with   snot.    Especially  true  if  truck is  used  as  a  short tripper.

 

As  far as  the  'cancelling out effect'.....   I  think that is  a  GOOD  idea!    Think about it...  you have a chemical  that is  cutting  the  heck out of our fuel,  so it  won't    cloud up....   I'd  sure think  putting  an  oil  back in there  is   exactly  what  is needed!

That  2 stroke is  designed to  flow at  50 below,  and     putting it in  at  1%  solution  sure isn't  going to make it  worse!

Gelled  filters  are just   a  million little   'clouds'  all  gathered up  nice  and tight!      

Reminds me  of  my  ol  FIL,   he'd  say :  "don't use  these dang brand X   filters!!!  They  just  keep plugging up!"

Edited February 6, 2014 by rancherman

[rancherman]

 dang it...  I've got  pics  SOMEWHERE of    fuel  I got  in  mason jars...  various  stages  of   cloudiness, ranging  from  clear, to  dang near  opaque.

 

I  have    pics  of   crud  taken off the filters...     The  one  I really want to share is the   'ice crystal' one!     

Then,  there's  always  the biodiesel/wintertime  conundrum..   that  should be  it's own  thread!  oh,   algae too!

[Ilikeoldfords]

I havent heard many good things about the power service from the shops around town. Guys that use it a lot in the big rigs or heavy machinery usually have injector problems a few years down the road. The guys using either the Howes or the Shaffers stuff seem to not have injector problems like the power service.

I am in the same temp range that MnTom is and its not very much fun. Our high temp for the last 2 weeks has been -5 and there has always been a 15-20 degree windchill on that. Since my fuel gel issue, I have only run #1 diesel fuel and the Howes treatment. I have had steady pressure even with the ambient air temp down in the -30's.

[fossum99]

I tried number 1 form here in Bismarck again and I had slight gelling issues again but then I found this Yukon blend of diesel and wow does that stuff work never have to put other stuff in with it and never have had a problem gelling or power loss and its on the plus its 2 cents cheaper then number 1

[Ilikeoldfords]

The main reason I used the Howes is to give some lubricity back to the fuel. I am not sure where #1 runs on the lubricity scale but it cant be very good. I have heard about that Yukon blend. Does it have additives in it? Is it a blend of #1 and #2? What exactly is it??

[Mopar1973Man]

 dang it...  I've got  pics  SOMEWHERE of    fuel  I got  in  mason jars...  various  stages  of   cloudiness, ranging  from  clear, to  dang near  opaque.

 

I  have    pics  of   crud  taken off the filters...     The  one  I really want to share is the   'ice crystal' one!     

Then,  there's  always  the biodiesel/wintertime  conundrum..   that  should be  it's own  thread!  oh,   algae too!

 

Please do. I would love to post that up in the article database.

[TFaoro]

Well this morning the fuel gelled so hard I couldn't get any fuel up to the pump even with the diesel 911 in the tank. I changed the filter to a new one and now have fuel up at the injection pump, but I think it ran the injector lines dry because it won't even attempt to fire   . So I am trying to get an extension cord from my apartment to plug it in then I will have to go buy a wrench to crack the lines. Such a SHITTY day  :banghead:

[rancherman]

Please do. I would love to post that up in the article database.

ok,  the  pics  I've  got  are  actual  hold in your hand pics..  and   I won't   waste  too much time  searching for them today.  

I do however have a tractor that's  now  'down'...  and   I'll   take some  fresh digital  pics.    Give me a little  time.

[rancherman]

Well this morning the fuel gelled so hard I couldn't get any fuel up to the pump even with the diesel 911 in the tank. I changed the filter to a new one and now have fuel up at the injection pump, but I think it ran the injector lines dry because it won't even attempt to fire   . So I am trying to get an extension cord from my apartment to plug it in then I will have to go buy a wrench to crack the lines. Such a SHITTY day  :banghead:

after you get it  warmed up with the block heater...couple hours...  and   If you know you  have  fuel  to the  ip,   just  try  cranking it.   It  might  take  a  couple   10-15  second   stabs..   but  should    eventually  start.  (a little  rough at  first)         Then,  if  you need,  just   crack    2-3  of the  easy  to reach  lines..

No doubt....  it  is   a  defecating  day.

[diesel4life]

Power Service is a pretty good antigel... I know my brother in law in Wyoming uses it in his truck when he goes to the mountains and has never had any gelling issues in -30 to -35 degree weather. It also lowers the HFRR score so it is better than adding nothing but there are other additives out there that do a little better in that department.

[diesel4life]

Well this morning the fuel gelled so hard I couldn't get any fuel up to the pump even with the diesel 911 in the tank. I changed the filter to a new one and now have fuel up at the injection pump, but I think it ran the injector lines dry because it won't even attempt to fire   . So I am trying to get an extension cord from my apartment to plug it in then I will have to go buy a wrench to crack the lines. Such a SHITTY day  :banghead:

How cold is it out your way? Were you able to get the 911 in there and get it mixed in the tank and run through the lines?

I've never had to deal with it in my truck, but did have it happen in a CAT 906 on a pipeline I was working on, 2 miles from the nearest road/form of civilization. That was a tough day.

[TFaoro]

Somewhere around -15deg this morning. I put in enough diesel 911 yesterday for 50 gallons! Then I drove 30-40 miles in traffic, which should have gotten the 911 into all of the lines,filter, and injection pump. I had to have gotten crap fuel at some point????  :banghead: 

[mopartechnician]

I would think running an anti-gel and 2 stroke would work well together but i thought i read on here not to do it.

It was -17 the last two nights here and i havnt even tried to drive mine. Its not worth the hassle.

[TFaoro]

It was -17 the last two nights here and i havnt even tried to drive mine. Its not worth the hassle.

I'm in college and this is my only vehicle, so I can't help but have to drive it. I've never had a problem starting it's just the fuel. I spoke with yankneck earlier and he suggested trying to fill up at a big truck stop as they should have anti-gel in their tanks. He also suggested more diesel 911 to help prevent it even more. What are your thoughts?

[Ilikeoldfords]

Definitely go to the big truck pump. If anything you know they will have a good blend, otherwise there would be trucking companies up their butt about having trucks down because of their fuel. I wonder if you got a bunch of water in there last time you filled up. When I had troubles, I just dumped the whole quart of 911 in there and it seemed to work ok. Still didnt have full pressure but I was able to make it until I could top off with 10-15 gallons of #1. Problem solved.

[TFaoro]

I tried draining the water out of my oem separator and the first fuel was blue, but that doesn't mean the rest of the tank isn't contaminated. I will get to a truck stop as soon as I get it running and top the tank off. 

[diesel4life]

Somewhere around -15deg this morning. I put in enough diesel 911 yesterday for 50 gallons! Then I drove 30-40 miles in traffic, which should have gotten the 911 into all of the lines,filter, and injection pump. I had to have gotten crap fuel at some point????  :banghead: 

Northern Colorado has its fair share of cold weather, I'm not familiar with where you live but if you get alot of sub zero weather the fuel should be conditioned pretty well for -15. Especially if you shocked it with 911. I have heard horror stories from a guy that drives a tanker for a large company as to some of the short cuts fuel station owners will take to save a buck. Getting a bad tank of fuel is entirely possible. I stick to the same station for all my fuel, I know the owner and he is very particular with the deliveries he takes as well as maintaining his tanks as he owns a large construction company and supplies his own fuel for his equipment and trucks. I recently ran a tank of fuel by accident without adding any antigel and ran through a few consecutive days of below zero weather down to -12 and never had any gelling issues at all. -12 is pretty cold for here so it tells me that he carries a pretty good blend.

[dorkweed]

Just saying, not arguing here…………………..but I've never had a fuel gelling problem since I've been running 2 stroke oil as an additive and since I've had my GDP Walbro LP fuel system.

 

Thinking "outside the box" here………………..My Walbro is able to produce pressures, and enough volume that "the extreme" cold will effect me less than others running other systems.

 

Tell me what y'all think before I do!!!  

[Yankneck696]

He got his fuel at a Shll station, which many of are now independent. Could be no additive at all. That's why I suggested to use a Truck Stop to top off. He was still having problems this afternoon.

Ed

[rancherman]

I still believe that   running  a  conditioner that  keeps  the parafins  dissolved....  along  with   a   lube  such as   2 stroke  is   no way  problematic.   (just  my   own  experience)

 

I have  not   experienced  any  problems   in  2  really bad  winters  running  the  combo.   This  truck  will sit  for  a couple weeks,   outside,   so  there  is plenty of  time  for  all sorts  of  nasty  stuff  to happen  in the  tank. 

 

I'm comparing    'typical'  winters  of    the  past  'without'  2 stroke,  and  the  past 2  'with'  2 stroke.         I've  always  run  50/50  'advertised'  fuel  in  my  bulk tank. (whats  actually  in there is   anybody's  guess!)     When  the  temp looks  to go below  zero,   then  I'll make  sure  there is  added  conditioner too.  I  only  put the  conditioner in the actual  machines  tank... not the  bulk tank.

It's  when  I  get  fooled  by  mother nature,  or  just forget  to  get  something  treated,  that's  when  I  have problems.    Zero degrees  seems to be  my  magic number  for  most of my  diesel engines,  on untreated  fuel.   When it  drops  below,  that's  when  I'll start  adding  the  PS or  howes.

I've  run  a  lot  of  gasoline/oil mix  older  snowmobiles,  and never had  a paper  fuel filter  plug  because it's too cold....   

Anyway,   to   make this post  full circle,   I still believe  that    any  'cancelling'  effect of  running  these  2   products  is  actually good:   the  conditioner  no doubt  makes  the fuel  drier,  but   the  2 stroke  adds  the lube!     the  'net' result   still has  to be better than  a  'dry' fuel!

I am just one   test mule,   but   I  haven't seen  MORE  problems  running the  two. I haven't  seen  any accelerated  clouding  when the  2 stroke is  added.   When  I do have  problems,  It's cause I screwed up second guessing  Mother Nature!