Does diesel go off?
- Thread starter Mith
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MikePA
Super Moderator
<font color="blue"> Anything wrong with my tractor having stood for a month unused with half a tank? </font>
Should not be a problem. However, what I usually do is fill the tank after each use so there's less chance for water to condense in the tank, which can happen if diesel sits for a long time.
Should not be a problem. However, what I usually do is fill the tank after each use so there's less chance for water to condense in the tank, which can happen if diesel sits for a long time.
Bird
Rest in Peace
<font color="blue">( I know petrol goes off but does diesel. </font>
Yes, but not nearly as quickly as petrol.
<font color="blue">( Anything wrong with my tractor having stood for a month unused with half a tank? </font>
No.
<font color="blue">( Should it start straight back up? )</font>
Yes.
DISCLAIMER: I'm not a petroleum engineer or any other kind of engineer, so the above is just my personal experience and opinion. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif
Yes, but not nearly as quickly as petrol.
<font color="blue">( Anything wrong with my tractor having stood for a month unused with half a tank? </font>
No.
<font color="blue">( Should it start straight back up? )</font>
Yes.
DISCLAIMER: I'm not a petroleum engineer or any other kind of engineer, so the above is just my personal experience and opinion. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif
RalphVa
Super Member
- Joined
- Dec 19, 2003
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- 7,885
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- Charlottesville, VA, USA
- Tractor
- JD 2025R, previously Gravely 5650 & JD 4010 & JD 1025R
Try lighting a puddle of diesel with a match. Bet you'll have a lot of trouble. Probably can't. Doubt you can even light it if you put a wick in it. Something like a propane torch would likely light it, but not right away.
I once had a diesel sit for 9 months while I was working in Singapore. Took the battery out and stored it in the basement connected to 2 timers in series to only charge the battery rarely.
Came back, put the battery in the car, glowed the glow plugs for a few seconds. The diesel fired right up. That's one thing I really like about a diesel. They start immediately either hot or cold. When cold, after running the glow plugs the required amount. Both my Benzes with near 200,000 on both did this. My JD 4010 does this.
Don't even think I worried over the fuel tank level in the Benz that sat for 9 months in the garage. If sitting for a long time, you're better off having less fuel to get oxidized and turn brown like it did in the second Benz with a full tank but stored for 4 1/2 years during another stay in Singapore. A little Chevron Techron fixed the carbonization from the brown diesel fuel. Had to have a valve job a couple years later. From the fuel? Doubt it.
Ralph
I once had a diesel sit for 9 months while I was working in Singapore. Took the battery out and stored it in the basement connected to 2 timers in series to only charge the battery rarely.
Came back, put the battery in the car, glowed the glow plugs for a few seconds. The diesel fired right up. That's one thing I really like about a diesel. They start immediately either hot or cold. When cold, after running the glow plugs the required amount. Both my Benzes with near 200,000 on both did this. My JD 4010 does this.
Don't even think I worried over the fuel tank level in the Benz that sat for 9 months in the garage. If sitting for a long time, you're better off having less fuel to get oxidized and turn brown like it did in the second Benz with a full tank but stored for 4 1/2 years during another stay in Singapore. A little Chevron Techron fixed the carbonization from the brown diesel fuel. Had to have a valve job a couple years later. From the fuel? Doubt it.
Ralph
Bird
Rest in Peace
Yep, Mith, that's what I get for not taking more time to preview my post. /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif I edited it to add the word "not".
DmansPadge
Veteran Member
- Joined
- Oct 3, 2004
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- 1,698
- Location
- Orange, TX
- Tractor
- Kubota B2620, Toro 2000 Series Z Master
We had a dozer at work that sat up for about 9 years. We sold it in an auction and had to get it cranked up for the buyer to haul off. With the 9 year old diesel, a jump start, and one shot of starting fluid she was purring like a kitten. I definately don't recommend letting something set up like that but I figured that might interest you.
SnowRidge
Elite Member
<font color="blue"> I know petrol goes off but does diesel. </font>
Sort of, but in a ways that might surprise you.
Very fresh diesel fuel will precipitate out a sludge that drops to the bottom of the tank, where it can build up. If the tank's pickup is too low, some of this sludge can be sucked up and may clog the filter. If any of it gets to the engine, it can damage it.
Water may find its way into the tank, either directly from the fuel source or through condensation over time. If any of the water gets past the filter and/or water separator, it can do a lot of damage. Water and diesel engines do not mix.
If there is any water in the diesel tank, microbes can grow at the fuel water interface, given enough time. The growth is frequently, but improperly called algae. Sloshing can cause the microbial material to mix with the diesel fuel, and it can really clog a filter in a hurry.
Once you get a tank with "algae" in it, short of draining the tank completely, the only way to get rid of it is to treat the tank with a biocide and buy a large supply of filters. The best source for a tank full of this stuff is a gas station with a diesel pump that gets used infrequently.
A lot of people who depend on diesels with large tanks routinely add a biocide to their fuel. One biocide that I have had good results with in the past is BioBor JF.
Biocide added to a fresh tank of fuel will prevent any growth from occurring. Biocide added after the growth has begun will kill whatever is there, but it will still clog filters if it isn't drained from the tank.
I can't match the nine year story, but I have seen a diesel run on a tank that hadn't been refilled for at least seven years. The tank had been treated with BioBor JF.
Sort of, but in a ways that might surprise you.
Very fresh diesel fuel will precipitate out a sludge that drops to the bottom of the tank, where it can build up. If the tank's pickup is too low, some of this sludge can be sucked up and may clog the filter. If any of it gets to the engine, it can damage it.
Water may find its way into the tank, either directly from the fuel source or through condensation over time. If any of the water gets past the filter and/or water separator, it can do a lot of damage. Water and diesel engines do not mix.
If there is any water in the diesel tank, microbes can grow at the fuel water interface, given enough time. The growth is frequently, but improperly called algae. Sloshing can cause the microbial material to mix with the diesel fuel, and it can really clog a filter in a hurry.
Once you get a tank with "algae" in it, short of draining the tank completely, the only way to get rid of it is to treat the tank with a biocide and buy a large supply of filters. The best source for a tank full of this stuff is a gas station with a diesel pump that gets used infrequently.
A lot of people who depend on diesels with large tanks routinely add a biocide to their fuel. One biocide that I have had good results with in the past is BioBor JF.
Biocide added to a fresh tank of fuel will prevent any growth from occurring. Biocide added after the growth has begun will kill whatever is there, but it will still clog filters if it isn't drained from the tank.
I can't match the nine year story, but I have seen a diesel run on a tank that hadn't been refilled for at least seven years. The tank had been treated with BioBor JF.
