diesel comsumption, and preservative

[cisco]

Just survived another 6 hours of brush/grass/weed cutting to clear off my property - wife's orders (per Rumpole - "she who must be obeyed"), as guests are coming next weekend. Anyhow, I've wondered if the tractor companies (mine's a Kubota L3410) select the size of the diesel tank for any other reason than it fits the space under the front cowling. My tractor holds about 9 gallons, and if the tractor is pushed hard, as in brush cutting (700 lb plus Woods, 6 feet wide, heavy grass/weed stuff), I run out of diesel at about 6 hours, not what I'd expect, which is a tank sufficient for the traditional 8 hour shift. AND, before you farmers pipe up, I understand that 8 hours is on the low side for you folks.
Anyhow, if I'm doing light stuff, as with the box blade, chipper, rake or such, I could get 8 hours of work out of a tank, but - not if I need a "lead foot" to keep the rpm up, as in brush cutting.
So, how long does a tank last on the average tractor? Anybody getting 8 hours of hard work???
Second query - is it prudent to add diesel preservative to the usual plastic 5 gallon tank that most of us use to fill our tractors, when that tank is going to lie around the garage for a month or 2? I put in a 1/2 dose of Stabil, as I have 4 five gallon tanks, and 1 or 2 don't get used for 4-8 weeks after I refill them at the gas station. Is the Stabil a waste of money for a 2 month interval, and I should only be using it for the winter months (when a plastic tank can sit around for 3-4 months before needed)?

 

[LMTC]

Diesel retains it's properties longer than gasoline, so for a month or two, no big deal.

We use PRI-D in all our diesel, and PRI-G in all our gasoline. Do some searches, plenty of info out there. Introduced to the G years ago with some malfunctioning injectors in my Buick. Cleared the problem up in several tanks. After reading lots of stuff about the product, and then having it clean up a couple rough running diesel tractors, we buy it buy the case. It purports to make gasoline storable something like 5 years, diesel 10.

 

[cisco]

OK, so I don't need to put in any preservative for an interval of 1-2 months between gas station and poring into the tractor. Fine.
Not many on this forum have Ag type tractors. There's no way farmers could tolerate having to stop to fuel their tractors during the working day ---- so the smaller tanks and shorter run times must be limited to us "country squires" with modest-to-small sized tractors, at least as far as Kubota. I have no clue re. the John Deere or Massey fuel tank size and run time philosophy.

 

[Dargo]

You are not the only person to want a larger fuel tank. Apparently the factories simply put in a tank that conveniently fits. I have a 5030 and it will drain the tiny 11.4 gallon tank in about 4 hours or so of hard work. It is annoying to me not only to have to stop and refuel, but most of my "long" work is done at property I own that is not connected to the property where I live. That means carrying fuel with me when I go to work there with my tractor. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif Also, it is possible for me to be more than a mile from my truck when I need fuel. Do you know how heavy a 5 gallon can of diesel gets after carrying it for a mile up and down hills?! I really think my 5030 should have at least a 25 gallon tank at the minimum.

On the smaller CUT's and subCUT's it didn't seem to be as much of an issue. I have moved up in tractor size numerous times over the last couple of decades and I really noticed the fuel consumption increase with the increase of HP. The first tractor I really noticed it on was a JD 4600 I had. It too would fall way short of being to run 8 hours on a tank of fuel.

I hadn't noticed the fuel consumption as much on my mowers until I bought a gas powered model this year. I've had a 21 hp diesel powered Grasshopper mower for about 5 years that has a 8 gallon tank. I can easily get 10 hours or more at full throttle mowing. I got cheap and bought a 25 hp 3 cylinder gas powered Grasshopper this year instead of another diesel model. The gas powered Grasshopper will not make it 4 hours on the 8 gallon tank! /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif I sort of wished I would have paid the extra money to have two diesel Grasshoppers rather than one "Gashopper" and one Grasshopper. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif On both my tractor and my Gashopper, you can count on it being the most inconvient time when they need to be refueled!

 

[Jagmandave]

(per Rumpole - "she who must be obeyed"),

Wasn't that Basil Fawlty, of Fawlty Towers fame?

Coming, my little piranha!

 

[EastTexFrank]

My little B2400 will run close to 8 hours on a "full" tank when bush hogging or mowing although I never run it that close anymore. When I had to have the fuel tank replaced, I discovered that the new sender unit didn't calibrate with the old one. When the gauge read 1/8, it was empty. It only took me one time of running dry at the far end of the pasture to learn that lesson. Usually, it's not too big of an issue for me. After about 4 hours working at the house, I'm ready for a break anyway so filling up when I stop for a cup of coffee or soda isn't really a hardship.

The farm tractors are 38hp JD, 57hp Kubota and 75hp Massey (we're color blind) and when they are full when they go out, they WILL run all day. You can usually get a good 8 to 10 hours easily out of them before refueling.

Out of habit, I stabilize diesel when I bring it home, even though it may not be sitting around too long. It may help emulsify any water present but as I said, it's just something I started doing years ago and just kept on doing. No real reason for it other than it makes me feel good.

 

[rswyan]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( So, how long does a tank last on the average tractor? Anybody getting 8 hours of hard work??? )</font>

Dunno about the average tractor but on my B2910 with it's 6.9 gallon tank I suspect I could get 8 hours without a problem. I filled it up yesterday before I started and then spent the afternoon & evening boxblading to remove the gravel from the old driveway. Ran about 1800 - to 2200 rpm most of the time, logged 6.3 hours on the meter (actual time was probably a little more) and the tank shows 1/4 full this morning.

 

[cisco]

Isn't Fawlty Towers a recent offering? Rumple of the Bailey was a series on British TV in the later '70's, not based on a book, but the screen plays of a Mr. Mortimer, a retired British lawyer. Anyhow, "she who must be obeyed" was named Hilda, and there's no way I'd cross that woman.
Hmm, maybe the old battleax could be useful afterall - like in carrying the extra 5 gallons I need for my "diesel tank challenged" Kubota after 6 hours or so of work.

 

[rswyan]

Correction - when I actually started it this morning (as opposed to just turning on the key) it ended up showing 1/2 full.

 

[LBrown59]

Anybody ever replaced tha tank with a larger one or added and auxiliary tank ?