I used to operate a 12 ton diesel forklift for my job. The lift is no longer at my disposal but I have 5 gallons of fuel sitting in a can that's been around for about 3 years.

It is almost normal diesel fuel color with a very slight green tint to it BUT there is no visible algae growth anywhere and you can see all the way to the bottom of the can.

It also smells fine as though it just came out of the pump.

I want to toss it in my truck ('95) and save myself $20 on my next fill up but wanted to know if I should do anything other maybe run some injector cleaner and maybe some fuel dryer in the can and mix it up good before putting in my tank.

 

Wouldn't hurt. If it shows no signs of algae or water intrusion it should be fine.

A shot of Power Service 911 should do the trick.

 

algae in fuel? How does that happen? We sucked the fuel out of my friends 1945 TD14A that was full of 1980's fuel, looked great. my 12V snapped it right up! The exahust from the 5,000 ppm fuel put me back in time!

 

Thanks guys.

It doesn't appear to have water in it and it's been out of the weather.

I'll probably just put some water remover in it just in case and let it ride.

 

Algae grows in diesel when there is enough water in the fuel to support it. It is a common occurrence and there are many products made to specifically reduce its presence. Many times it is what clogs up a fuel filter in a diesel engine.

Search "algae in diesel fuel" and see what all comes up.

 

wow strange Iv never seen it or had a issue, maybe its because im in a colder area of the USA? My logger friends who all run diesels year around have never seen it either.

 

Yep, more prevalent in tropical weather.

 

And tropical weather it's been down here. No winter to speak of and we've had things blooming since right after Christmas...allergy season has been horrendous.

I work with truck drivers a lot and a couple of the ones I load/unload on a regular basis were having some bad algae issues last year...fuel was turning black with it less than 2 weeks after buying it.

 

If youre prone to getting water in fuel, it might be worth making a fuel polishing setup. A decent electric pump and a water-block filter. They really do strip water out of the fuel.
Otherwise adding some biocide is a good idea. I do this with any diesel / biodiesel I put in storage to keep any bugs from growing in there.

 

Startron diesel treatment works wonders for things growing in fuel. My 85 Mercedes SD wouldn't run & I dumped the Startron in. It ran fine after that. Lots of info on the Mercedes diesel forums.

FWIW, the 617 is the lovely bullet proof engine with the mechanical IP comparable in beauty to our 12V.

 

The old turbocharged 3.0 5 cylinder IIRC?

 

If you live in an area where it gets much below freezing the cold kills the diesel algae spores, it doesn't survive and cause a problem.

I used over 100 gallons of fuel that had been sitting in a tank in my neighbor's boneyard for over 25 years, no problem at all.
Then again it was the old high sulfur diesel, my bet is the new stuff doesn't store as long.

 

Wow! excellent thread, I have been cleaning out an old barn and found a couple of 5 gal cans with old diesel in them that I was tempted to dump in either my 01 or the John Deere that is in the barn, I'll go ahead and give it a try. I wonder if the big tank is full.... be nice if the couple hundred gallons in it were ok.....