Diesel fuel filter advice

[Deng43]

wasn't sure which forum to go to - will try here. i am in the process of cleaning up a perkins 4-107 which has sat for some time -?. this ran off a big fuel oil tank and has no filter in the system before the lift pump. i would like to add something that will really clean up the fuel. i have noted that larger micron filters seem to be pretty useless. what about this oufit?

http://www.gulfcoastfilters.com/

i am guessing they come with a hefty price. question is: what kind of filter system can i put on that will be reeeallllyy good and not break my back? or is that possible? thanks, don e.

i understand the finest filter should go in ahead of the lift pump before condensate had get broken up into smaller particles....

[BDMelon]

with this engine here i would try jeg's or summit racing equipment summit # is 1-800-230-3030 or SummitRacing.com they have many different filters & mounting harware that may help you , also Gm use a filter for dura-max diesel that does a good job

[oldironcollector]

Have a look here

http://www.fleetguard.com/fleet/en/index.jsp

They are pretty much the diesel fuel filteration experts

Denny

[KidDynamo]

I cruised that Fleetguard sight and it looks like they have some fine looking setups. Funny how they and numerous others now offer the kind of fuel filters that the Racor company has had for years, but a good thing deserves to be copied, no matter who comes up with it.

Details on your engine, installation, and intended service are sketchy. I would expect the engine to have some sort of final fuel filter as a factory unit and maybe a little water trap bowl too. A good commercial installation would filter the fuel oil so well that these on-engine filters would essentially see no contaminants and would be changed only rarely.

I would use a Racor unit with the watercoalescing lower chamber and the "paper" top element. Its no exaggeration to say that I have run millions of gallons of fuel oil through this brand of filter without failure. It has been proven to me that their water coalescing section is very effective. The elements can be obtained in varying micron particle size and I forget the numbers but whatever the 2020 SM and the 2040SM elements are could be the ticket. I believe it may be 2 micron. The usual assembly uses 1 element per but some of the bigger units used a dozen at a whack....$$$$$$$$$


These newer, better filter systems are correctly installed on the engine transfer or lift pump suction side so that the coalscer is operating within its proper pressure range. If you need "service on the run" capabilities, use a parallel manifolded filter assemblies with two or more assemblies and you can hardly go wrong.

Add a pressure differential gauge in the low inches of water range with sensing ports on filter assembly inlet and outlet and you can tell exactly when to flip over to the other element and service the dirty one.

It sounds like you have a pretty small engine and if you have no problem shutting down to service the filter, a single filter assembly would probably be enough. If you put a small vacuum gauge on the engine side of the filter and learn how a clean filter reads, you can tell enough about your element to know when to change it.

If you take your engines final fuel filter number to a reputable fuel and filter supplier, they can tell you how many microns you're already filtering. Don't worry that your "new" Racor or other brand filters are just as fine or finer and that someone will tell you it is a waste. They won't be paying for your fuel system repairs if something goes wrong!!! LOL

Now if you have really, really dirty fuel, it can sometimes behoove to put a coarser filter system in and follow that with the extra fine filter Racor or whatever.

That's the basics as I know it from running more diesels large and small than I can remember, but there is always room for improvement, correction, and difference of opinion, until you get dirty fuel in your fuel system, that is. Or so I am told.....

[DanR]

I agree completely. Racor is the only way to go. I have a two filter system and it is worth every penny. I have a new racor gauge if you need one. The 4-107 had a small canister filter on the right side of the engine. It may have been removed since it was pretty useless with less than perfect fuel. DanR

[Billy J Shafer]

I would use the Racor System. Iam starting to see more of them added to units already in place. Very good system and easy to change filters.

[ListerDiesel]

Original equipment option for the Perkins range was the CAV agglomerator filter, which includes a water trap with a large glass bowl at the bottom and a standard paper filter at the top. Marine engines had the option of a double unit with change-over taps to allow changing/cleaning of the filter while the engine was running.

You shouldn't need anything better than that, but also look to keep your fuel source clean and don't allow condensation (keep tanks/cans full up)

These are still available, and come up on ebay quite often.

Peter

[oldtool53]

Install a Racor between your tank and the engine fuul pump with a 30 to 10 micron element. Also take original C.A.V. #296 fuel filter element off that is mounted on the engine and throw it as far as possible. Leave the mounting plate. There is an adapter kit that you can buy that bolts right to the mounting plate and lets you install a spin-on fuel filter. Easier to change and with much less mess.

Mark

[BTPost]

RaCor makes a variety of Fuel Filters for Diesel Engine Systems. We use
them, exclusivly around here. My Powerhouse has a RaCor 2020 on the
Output of the Fuel Tank that feeds a Main Distribution Manifold. This
Manifold then feeds each of the 20Kw Gensets thru individual RaCor 24S
Spin-On Filters. These then feed the Engine Driven Lift Pump, and then
thru a Secondary Baldwin BF909 Water Seperator Filter, which then feeds the
Injection Pump. I have a 50 USG Emergency Fuel Tank that is plumbed
into the Fuel Return Line and has an Overflow Back to the Main Fuel Tank.
The Emergency Fuel Tank Output is connected to the Main Distribution
Manifold via a Isolation Valve, which allows the Emergency Fuel Tank
to supply "Polished Fuel" to the Gensets, should the Main fuel Tank become
contaminated with water, or other contaminantes. Because the Emergency
Fuel Tank is in the Return Line, all fuel in it has been thru the Filter System,
at least once, and therefor is "Polished" and contaminant free. 50 USG
gives me about 36 hours to fix any problem with the Main Fuel Tank, or
Primary RaCor 2020 Fuel Filter Setup. Since I generate all my own power,
powerhouse operation is of Primary Concern around here.

Bruce in alaska