When is diesel fuel too old?
- Thread starter shank
- Start date
Not sure if there is a precise answer other than what I referred to earlier regarding the API standard for storage - 6 months.
no clue how they derived that but i suspect a result of testing at which they are pretty good.
No, what I do is shut off the fuel valve that is down stream of my primary filter then pump the tank dry. In the spring after I fill it, I use the primer pump on my primary filter to add a little pressure then open the fuel shutoff valve. She starts right up and doesn't hiccup at all. YMMV
I trust what you are saying but is that "storage" time just between refinery, transportation and distribution?
Just an anecdote. Here in Maine I fill my diesel tank in the fall and do nothing else. I don't use stabilizers or biocides. My boat sits in storage for 7 months each year. No problems yet, but I have only had my current sailboat (Allied 36 ketch) for 26 years. I do change the filter element in the Racor 500MA every year although I am sure I could go longer given how the filters look when I change them out.
That's interesting and good to know. I'm in northern VT and the previous owner of my boat is in Quebec and he filled the tank and used Star Tron and Biobor JF and didn't have any problems. Sometimes I think we (myself included) overthink these things.
I'm from Portland, ME and ironically learned to sail in VT. I want to get back and sail the coast before I'm too old.
I'm not sure how that would work here in hot - humid coastal South Carolina and the cost of the Biofor and Startron is peanuts in the long run so I use it with each fill up. My old Aluminum tank did develop pinhole leaks but I don't really know how the fuel was managed by the PO. I also installed a fuel polishing system, also pretty cheap amortized over the remaining time I will own the boat.
I'm allergic to snow shovels and I like to sail in January. 
Go figure.
By the way, stayed in Southwest Harbor in a B&B and it was lovely in July. I think I'll pass on January. Some people up there told me that some people put their houses for sale in the summer months hoping to snag a southerner with the cool days of summer. When I saw wood piles as big as the house
I put that thought out of my mind.
Go figure.By the way, stayed in Southwest Harbor in a B&B and it was lovely in July. I think I'll pass on January. Some people up there told me that some people put their houses for sale in the summer months hoping to snag a southerner with the cool days of summer. When I saw wood piles as big as the house
I put that thought out of my mind.
Yup the climate here at the southern tip of Mount Desert Island is actually pretty mild in the winter. Of course I did move here to get away from cold weather. What I didn't bargain for was the extreme heat in the summer. It actually hit 80 ten times last summer and we had a day where it hit 82. I would die if I couldn't escape that heat by going out on the ocean where 65 is hot.