This will be a long post so for those who want just the reason for this post ----> I am absolutly convinced that all diesel fuel must be treated with a dual phase biocide and that the diesel fuel needs to be retreated every three months. Why some people have never had a problem with diesel bugs is a mystery to me, but I will tell you it can be a problem and will bring equipment to a dead stop at the most inconvenient places and times. Bugs are corrosive and can create holes in your fuel tank, fuel filter and wallet!
Back in 1982, I purchased a Kubota tractor. My intent was to buy American and I was going to purchase a Ford tractor. The dealer took me out back and showed me one in a crate which in big letters stated: Made by Mitsubishi. When I told the dealer I wanted an American tractor, he told me all tractors this size are made overseas. There was no way I was going to spend extra money just for a name so purchased a Kubota tractor.
When people ask me if I have horses, I always respond that I like my horses under the hood. You just park them until you need them. No need to even keep the tank full. So when I developed a hole in my fuel tank and later in my fuel filter, I assumed it was water and started keeping the tank full. As side notes, I could not find a new tank so I repaired the old tank using an epoxy sealer from Caswell Canada. Also, on the Kubota, the fuel leaves the tank and goes directly to the 10 micron spin on fuel filter.
Two things happened which caused me to purchase a "Golden Dragon" dozer. First, I have had my Kubota on two wheels which turned me into a big chicken. Second, I was forced into retirement due to plant shutdowns and now had time to do all those projects I never had the time to start/complete. The dozer with its price, low center of gravity and PTO was a natural fit. After reading all I could about the dozer and emailing owners asking their advice/opinions, I purchased my dozer.
I cannot remember the year but I received a call from our County doing a phone survey about fuel storage and hazardous waste. When asked about storage of diesel fuel, I responded I kept it in a 55 gallon drum. I was told this was a big NO NO. I was sure the County was misinterpreting the law regarding 55 gallons so I offered to fill the drum with some rocks making the drum 54 gallons. This did not fly so I promised I would not store my diesel in a 55 gallon drum. I then purchased a high density polyethylene 30 gallon tank (Norton Performance Plastics 11150-0030) which I have in a 55 gallon drum for secondary containment. Since purchasing this 30 gallon tank, I have always added a product called Diesel Kleen and a biocide I pick up at a local marine store. This was a result of reading the advice of people I respected on blogs. The 30 gallon tank is white and I have always found a small amount of brown sludge in the bottom of this tank. My thinking was the biocide is working.
Due to problems unrelated to this post, I let my diesel fuel sit for over a year. This is when I started to have big problems with plugged/slimed screens/filters. I found that the bugs were also in the diesel fuel where I had always thought they would only be in the water diesel interface. I would see brown swirls in the diesel and a lot of cream colored stuff suspended in the fuel. Friends who have never had a problem with bugs think the problem may be my storage tank but I do not know. I added a filter to my drum pump and filtered all my diesel. I switched to a dual phase biocide, one that also treats the diesel fuel. I also am making sure that the dozer diesel fuel sees a 10 micron filter first in a prefilter.
Just to be safe, I will only use the 30 gallon poly tank during the summer and switch to a five gallon can when I know I will not be empting the 30 gallon tank that year. Lastly, I will retreat all my diesel fuel tanks with a dual phase biocide every three months. After I am convinced I no longer have a bug problem, I will drain, clean my tractor tanks and replace the rubber lines to the 10 micron filters. This may seem like an overkill or unnecessary work to some but for the problems described above, I think are necessary.
Back in 1982, I purchased a Kubota tractor. My intent was to buy American and I was going to purchase a Ford tractor. The dealer took me out back and showed me one in a crate which in big letters stated: Made by Mitsubishi. When I told the dealer I wanted an American tractor, he told me all tractors this size are made overseas. There was no way I was going to spend extra money just for a name so purchased a Kubota tractor.
When people ask me if I have horses, I always respond that I like my horses under the hood. You just park them until you need them. No need to even keep the tank full. So when I developed a hole in my fuel tank and later in my fuel filter, I assumed it was water and started keeping the tank full. As side notes, I could not find a new tank so I repaired the old tank using an epoxy sealer from Caswell Canada. Also, on the Kubota, the fuel leaves the tank and goes directly to the 10 micron spin on fuel filter.
Two things happened which caused me to purchase a "Golden Dragon" dozer. First, I have had my Kubota on two wheels which turned me into a big chicken. Second, I was forced into retirement due to plant shutdowns and now had time to do all those projects I never had the time to start/complete. The dozer with its price, low center of gravity and PTO was a natural fit. After reading all I could about the dozer and emailing owners asking their advice/opinions, I purchased my dozer.
I cannot remember the year but I received a call from our County doing a phone survey about fuel storage and hazardous waste. When asked about storage of diesel fuel, I responded I kept it in a 55 gallon drum. I was told this was a big NO NO. I was sure the County was misinterpreting the law regarding 55 gallons so I offered to fill the drum with some rocks making the drum 54 gallons. This did not fly so I promised I would not store my diesel in a 55 gallon drum. I then purchased a high density polyethylene 30 gallon tank (Norton Performance Plastics 11150-0030) which I have in a 55 gallon drum for secondary containment. Since purchasing this 30 gallon tank, I have always added a product called Diesel Kleen and a biocide I pick up at a local marine store. This was a result of reading the advice of people I respected on blogs. The 30 gallon tank is white and I have always found a small amount of brown sludge in the bottom of this tank. My thinking was the biocide is working.
Due to problems unrelated to this post, I let my diesel fuel sit for over a year. This is when I started to have big problems with plugged/slimed screens/filters. I found that the bugs were also in the diesel fuel where I had always thought they would only be in the water diesel interface. I would see brown swirls in the diesel and a lot of cream colored stuff suspended in the fuel. Friends who have never had a problem with bugs think the problem may be my storage tank but I do not know. I added a filter to my drum pump and filtered all my diesel. I switched to a dual phase biocide, one that also treats the diesel fuel. I also am making sure that the dozer diesel fuel sees a 10 micron filter first in a prefilter.
Just to be safe, I will only use the 30 gallon poly tank during the summer and switch to a five gallon can when I know I will not be empting the 30 gallon tank that year. Lastly, I will retreat all my diesel fuel tanks with a dual phase biocide every three months. After I am convinced I no longer have a bug problem, I will drain, clean my tractor tanks and replace the rubber lines to the 10 micron filters. This may seem like an overkill or unnecessary work to some but for the problems described above, I think are necessary.
