Am I getting water of of fuel path Properly 150's J150VXCIS 2001 carbed 150'

rothfm

Ensign
Joined
Sep 26, 2006
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914
Been messing with this awhile....

Have main 100 gall tank that was reworked 4 yrs ago. Works great.

I have 2 side Aux tanks 22gal each port/starboard. 1 main tank line pairs with 1 the port for port motor, visa-versa for Stbd tank. I Can run small tanks, big tank or all paths open together.

I pulled Aux tanks this spring, the have new bungs welded, cleaned, new pickups etc. I did my own rinsing (so i thought)

1st time out had idle and stall issues, I thought on 1 motor only due to 1 Aux tank..inspection showed a fair amount if water in seperator. I drained carbs, tank, repl seperator etc....now i seem to have similar on other motor.

However, now keeping the Aux tanks shutoff, running on my proven Main tank...each motor very intermittant will try to die if idling.

I still feel its water, is there another place im missing to drain? Ive tested samples ea h tank-looks ok now...seperators have been done twice.

Once seperators get saturated, do they still flow? Or just bypass water into the fuel path.

I fished 10 yrs like this, more annoying than anything, but want to solve it. Always ran like a top, I do all my own maint
 

airshot

Vice Admiral
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Jul 22, 2008
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5,100
First thing is test the fuel you are buying, some have water in there main tanks....next check your tank vents, have saw many issues with water/ spray cimming in thru tank vents. There should be an upward loop in the vent hose so water can't be fed into the fuel tank. Also check the vent outlet itself, they should not allow any water to be forced into the vent from spray off the hull.
Sorry fir the bold type, have no idea why it changed...
 

jimmbo

Supreme Mariner
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May 24, 2004
Messages
13,447
If there is water in the Tanks, then it needs to be removed. You might have to take the tanks out again, in order to get all the Water to the Pickups. A bit of Ethanol might help diluting the water.
I would not recommend trying to use a Vacuum to suck any water out through the Filler tub, as most Vacuums pass the Air past the Motor, and those Motors often have a real Fireworks Display happening when running.
Water Separator Filters, unlike Oil Filters, generally don't have Bypass Valves allowing flow if plugged.
 

tphoyt

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If your tanks are a pain to remove and you have an air compressor you could make a vacuum with an air gun a T fitting and a length of hose using the venturi effect.
Just a thought
 

dingbat

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Nov 20, 2001
Messages
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Once seperators get saturated, do they still flow? Or just bypass water into the fuel path.
Separators vary from 90 to 99% efficient of removing water from the fuel depending on filtration methodology.

Some simply use gravity to seperate water from fuel. Others use a combination of gravity and a specialty treated filter paper as second stage filtration.

Having said that, once the catch container is full or the paper saturated with water, they will pass water.

I have a very strong preference for using the drainable, clear bowl filters on outboards for monitoring purposes.has a similar situation to your a few years back.

Long story short, a design flaw and all the stars aligned to allowed water to seep into my main tank through the vent built into the bottom of the cap. Mfg. stepped up and sent the "upgrade" kit free of charge. No problems since
 

rothfm

Ensign
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Sep 26, 2006
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914
Thanks for all the above! The side Aux tanks are open and easy to remove. I did them myself with loops, new pickups and were cleaned by me. The vents proper. Due to baffles there may have been a small amount of residule water, not alot.

Its marina fuel, cant be sure of the quality. I keep a T'd vacuum gage setup I can quickly put in line, the motors are not struggling to suck fuel (not tripping the vac switch).

Think, i will move to clear drainable filter bowls to better monitor. I can drain motor sides again, maybe VST too. New filters-and see. What was suspected to be 1 tank and 1 motor...has become 3 tanks and both outboards. Rgggg. So much for twin redundancy. Lol

Thanks
 

flashback

Captain
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Jun 28, 2002
Messages
3,966
Here where I live marina gas at the beginning of summer is iffy.. the tanks sit all winter and tend to collect water..
 

tphoyt

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I have been threatening to get one of the drainable sight bowls for some time now.
I just replace my filter every season but it would be nice to know just how much work it does.
I think the time has come.
Gasoila is great for finding water in gas if you suspect your supplier.
 

jimmbo

Supreme Mariner
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May 24, 2004
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Having that Ethanol Garbage blended to the Fuel, certainly doesn't help in Marine Apps
 

flashback

Captain
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Having that Ethanol Garbage blended to the Fuel, certainly doesn't help in Marine Apps
That's the reason I get pure gas in Jerry cans. I'm fortunate to still have it available. Farmers around here demand it..
 

dingbat

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Nov 20, 2001
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The vents proper.
Mine were too....but vacuuming 2 gallons of water off the bottom of the tank, two days in a row said otherwise...lol

What motor(s) are you running that don't monitor and alarm fuel delivery vacuum internally?
 

jimmbo

Supreme Mariner
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May 24, 2004
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Mine were too....but vacuuming 2 gallons of water off the bottom of the tank, two days in a row said otherwise...lol

What motor(s) are you running that don't monitor and alarm fuel delivery vacuum internally?
My 140 Evinrude didn't, neither did my Merc 115 or 150 FICHT, and, my VP I/O certainly doesn't. The I/O has a Water Filter, but I replaced it 4 yrs ago, after 16 yrs and there wasn't any water in it.
 
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