Diesel in holding tank

[Steven Bartling]

Hello folks ....I was hoping Peggy Hall ( or some other knowledgeable person ) could help me with an interesting problem.In preparation for winterizing my boat, a dockhandmanaged to pump about 5 gallons of diesel into myrigid poly holding tank before I managed to stop him.My questions are :1) How do I safely remove the diesel from the tank.2) Will the diesel degrade or damage the high quality black sewage hose and the rigid poly tank ?Thanks in advance,Steven Bartling1986 Pearson 28 "Tenacity"P.S. You may email me at bartling@celerence.com ifthat would facilitate discussion.

 

[Steve Dion]

Do not think that it is going to hurt anything.

Steven:I do not think that this is going to hurt anything. First the holding tank for the head is poly and so is you diesel fuel tank. The hose should not be effected either.As far are removing it, I would make the dockhands company responsible for removing and disposing of the sewage/fuel mixture. You will want to try to clean out the tank the best you can. I believe that diesel and head treatments will not work well together. It is just good that they did not do this to your fresh water supply.

 

[Peggie Hall/Head Mistress]

It won't damage the tank, but--

Petroleum products do degrade hoses and rubber and neoprene parts in pumps/macerators. You need to flush it out...and pumping it out is a major no-no. Emulsify it with low suds detergent and water, then go offshore beyond 3 miles and dump it if you can. Otherwise, it has to be captured like any other fuel spill. Once you've gotten rid of the diesel, clean out the tank with more detergent and water.