Beware HUMbugs!
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From: New Hampshire
Beware HUMbugs!
Hello all,
This was a pretty interesting thread about clogged fuel filters that got moved and buried in a sub-category to general discussion. I found the Cummins statement that bio and USLD to be a more favored environment for microbe growth particularly disconcerting.... and perhaps something we should all be on the lookout for as Bio and USLD become the norm.
There is one other possibility - what used to be known as diesel algae. Actually there are some 27 different varieties of Hydrocarbon Utilizing Micro-organisms (now called humbugs) that thrive without sunlight, without Oxygen, in warm or cold conditions and with a minimal amount of water (i.e a few molecules thick is all that is needed) in diesel fuel. One symptom of a colony is clogging of fuel filters in a short period of time. A little bit of research on gov't sites says anerobic colonies are also a problem in biodiesel.
I would never had believed it possible that live organisms could live in diesel fuel until it happened to me on my boat. Both my Perkins diesels would foul filters in short order and die, no matter how many filters I replaced. It is very hard to get rid of. I had to drain both my 250 gal diesel tanks and have them washed out with a biocide. You would not have believed the green and black crud that came out with it. Once done, new diesel and no problems. Be careful with biocides though. They can't just be added to the fuel without cleaning out the inside of the tank because killing off the colony might create a huge sludge problem in and of itself.
But all you need is one bad load of fuel. All this stuff needs is a petro product, a touch of water and NO oxygen to breed. And the organisms can be transmitted in the liquid or by air. The tanks in my boat were built in under the floor. I would have had to remove the entire superstructure to get them out. Not an option. I had run the tanks down a bit, maybe 100 gallons or so in each. But even back then at .69 a gallon, 500 gallons to refill hurt. But, I always kept my tanks topped off after that to avoid any possibility of condensation in the air in the tanks.
Here's a quote from Cummins filtration:
"Upon initial changeover, there may be some cleaning of the fuel supply system, tank, lines etc with either ULSD or a biodiesel blend. If this occurs, it could temporarily cause premature filter plugging due to the higher amount of particles in the fuel system. This should be a short term condition. In addition to this cleaning effect, the properties of both ULSD and Biodiesel are a more favored environment for microbe growth."
Here's the link. http://www.cumminsfiltration.com/pdf.../PB02-07-2.pdf
regards,
John
This was a pretty interesting thread about clogged fuel filters that got moved and buried in a sub-category to general discussion. I found the Cummins statement that bio and USLD to be a more favored environment for microbe growth particularly disconcerting.... and perhaps something we should all be on the lookout for as Bio and USLD become the norm.
There is one other possibility - what used to be known as diesel algae. Actually there are some 27 different varieties of Hydrocarbon Utilizing Micro-organisms (now called humbugs) that thrive without sunlight, without Oxygen, in warm or cold conditions and with a minimal amount of water (i.e a few molecules thick is all that is needed) in diesel fuel. One symptom of a colony is clogging of fuel filters in a short period of time. A little bit of research on gov't sites says anerobic colonies are also a problem in biodiesel.
I would never had believed it possible that live organisms could live in diesel fuel until it happened to me on my boat. Both my Perkins diesels would foul filters in short order and die, no matter how many filters I replaced. It is very hard to get rid of. I had to drain both my 250 gal diesel tanks and have them washed out with a biocide. You would not have believed the green and black crud that came out with it. Once done, new diesel and no problems. Be careful with biocides though. They can't just be added to the fuel without cleaning out the inside of the tank because killing off the colony might create a huge sludge problem in and of itself.
But all you need is one bad load of fuel. All this stuff needs is a petro product, a touch of water and NO oxygen to breed. And the organisms can be transmitted in the liquid or by air. The tanks in my boat were built in under the floor. I would have had to remove the entire superstructure to get them out. Not an option. I had run the tanks down a bit, maybe 100 gallons or so in each. But even back then at .69 a gallon, 500 gallons to refill hurt. But, I always kept my tanks topped off after that to avoid any possibility of condensation in the air in the tanks.
Here's a quote from Cummins filtration:
"Upon initial changeover, there may be some cleaning of the fuel supply system, tank, lines etc with either ULSD or a biodiesel blend. If this occurs, it could temporarily cause premature filter plugging due to the higher amount of particles in the fuel system. This should be a short term condition. In addition to this cleaning effect, the properties of both ULSD and Biodiesel are a more favored environment for microbe growth."
Here's the link. http://www.cumminsfiltration.com/pdf.../PB02-07-2.pdf
regards,
John
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