Old fuel

[Alan N]

I just bought another bus, for parts I guess.
1970 Gillig skoolie. 1160 Cat.5 speed trans.
It has been sitting for at least 12 years. Checked the fluids stuck a battery in and it fired right up. Ran it for 30-40 minutes it would rev all the way up but I didn't drive it right away, tires.
Today it didn't hardly want to run. Changed fuel filter, the old one was full of brown gunk. Drove it a bit, changed filters again more brown gunk.
Drained the old fuel, blew out the fuel line, raised the intake line an inch.
Put in new fuel, still brown gunk. Ran out of new filters and it was getting dark,so we quit.
It is running now with a used filter. It seems to be running fine.
Will try again Monday with new filters.
I only need to drive it 60 miles but it is 60 miles through the city I really want it to work right.
So how do I get rid of the brown gunk?
Is it algae? Is one kind of additive better than the other for brown gunk?
Any other thoughts?
I really appreciate the combined wisdom on this forum.
Thanks.
Alan.

[Paso One]

Since no one has jumped in ....... I once moved a bus that was sitting for years thru the city as you are planning by have two 5 gallon pails inside the bus with a hose going to the engine sucking fuel only from the jugs in the bus as it got low I just moved the hose to the other jug while driving...... worked good nice clean fuel in the jugs.  good luck.

[bobofthenorth]

Dunno where you are but in the marine world fuel "polishing" is common.  For most boaters its complete BS but it might be useful in your situation.  Its a 64 dollar word for pumping all your fuel through a filter.  You need a pump, an external filter and a tank big enough to hold your fuel in order to DIY.  Or if you're close to water there may be someone set up to do it for the boaters.  Expect to pay big $$$ if you hire a marine contractor.

[ol713]

   Hi;
      More than likley, you have algae growing in your tank.  You can use an addative to kill
      it, but you will still have the "gunk" still floating around in your tank.  The only way
      to permanatly get rid of the stuff is to remove the tank and have it cleaned out.
      Or you can use the additive and have a lot of filters on hand.  
                                                                 Good luck,   Merle.

[daddyoften]

If it's algae you can use "eco-clean" We use it here for coke-ing problems, works good
Eric

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[buswarrior]

Since this is a parts bus, using a temporary fuel supply to move it might be the best use of time?

I don't know the fuel return rate for that engine, remember you may need to manage the return fuel as well as supplying fresh on your journey. You don't want to be filling the tank via the engine while underway....

If you are keen, the volume of fuel warrants the expense, or you want to have fun....you could make up your own fuel polishing rig, a suitable pump, and a filter rig comprised of the biggest/cheapest engine oil filter you can readily access, followed with a fuel filter.

The big oil filter is the sacrificial mud catcher, you'll change it the most, the fuel filter will be protected from the big stuff, and concentrate on the finer junk.

Dose the tank properly with algaecide and decide what you want to do with the fuel. You can just cycle it around and around in its own tank, stirring occasionally, or use the rig to empty the old fuel in a rationed amount into another vehicle so you can get some value back out?

happy coaching!
buswarrior

[Alan N]

Thanks for the ideas.
I like the temporary fuel supply idea. Cheap and easy.

[bobofthenorth]

Google "toilet paper fuel filter" - put a TP or paper towel filter in front of your real filter.  All you need is something to stop the big chunks before they get to the filter.  Probably wouldn't hurt to set up a sediment bowl/water trap somewhere too.

[Van]

Baby diapers comes to mind, good for catching the chunks

[Alan N]

Google "toilet paper fuel filter" - put a TP or paper towel filter in front of your real filter.  All you need is something to stop the big chunks before they get to the filter.  Probably wouldn't hurt to set up a sediment bowl/water trap somewhere too.

I have one of those tp filter housings on a shelf somewhere.
Thanks.
Now we just have to find it.

[Alan N]

The TP filter did the job.
Thanks to all.