How often does everyone drain the water from their fuel using the little water separator under the hood?? I decided to open mine up yesterday while filling up with fuel. Nothing came out...so I followed the TSB guidelines for a restricted line and turned the key on. As expected this pumped out some diesel onto the ground. After that I left it open for a bit to see if any water would come out but it continued dumping diesel on the ground (key turned off). Is this normal??

 

38K and I've never checked it. Never had the WIF light come on either.

 

I check mine at every oil change. Like Commatoze I also have never had the water in fuel (WIF) light come on in either of the two CTDs I have owned.

 

Hoss<br>If you fill up at high volume fuel stations, you should only need to check at oil change time. I catch what I drain out in a plastic container. That way you can inspect it for water. You don't have to drain out very much ( cupful) as the water will be on bottom.<br>hth

 

How do you crawl under the truck to catch it and turn the little valve at the same time??

 

[quote author=Hoss link=board=20;threadid=15845;start=0#148953 date=1055514595]<br>How do you crawl under the truck to catch it and turn the little valve at the same time??<br>[/quote]<br><br>I just connect an extra piece of clear tube so that it will reach the container on th ground.

 

Well that's smart....<br><br>Another question....my clear tube appears to drain right down on top of...well, whatever that thing is called. Why didn't they make it where it would drain out onto the ground??

 

The tube on mine sticks out the side and I can reach it from the wheel well. Just have to reach out over the front tire. But it is a two person job unless you attach a temporary longer hose.

 

Interesting...

 

A 20 ounce soda bottle works great for catching what comes out.
On mine, it sits perfectly on the front differential with the tube almost to the bottom.
As the bottles are clear (unless you use a sprite bottle : ), you can see if any water seperates out.
I personally prefer the Diet Coke bottles, as that is my drink of choice.

I tried to check at every fillup, per the manual, but gave up after 2-3 attempts, as nothing would ever come out.

Now I just drain it when I change the filter.

Never had the WIF light come on either, and I wipe the sensor clean at every filter change just in case.


phox

 

I've never had the WIF light come on either, but after every 3rd or 4th tank, I just drain it onto the ground. Never done it at home on the driveway though.<br><br>I think of it as preventative maintenance in helping to keep that little light turned off.

 

[quote author=phox_mulder link=board=20;threadid=15845;start=0#149025 date=1055527441]<br>Never had the WIF light come on either...<br>[/quote]<br><br>I've never had the WIF light come on but I did have the WIF code thrown a while back.

 

Just for clarification, how much &quot;liquid&quot; should come out when you open the valve? I was under the impression from the manual that only accumulated water would come out, but when I opened mine it started dumping diesel on the ground and didn't appear to be stopping any time soon when I closed it off.

 

Looking at the size of the fuel bowl, and if you drain it with the key off (fuel pump not running), I would think about a 2 cups.

I think if the key is on and the fuel pump running, maybe 30 gallons or so?

I don't think the valve differentiates between water and fuel, it just drains what ever is in the bowl. And since water is denser than fuel, if its present, it will collect at the bottom and drain before the fuel.

I don't think I've ever drained it completely; I just open it for a bit and close it, figuring if there was any trace amounts of water in there, that would eliminate it.

 

Ahhhh...I see. I was under the impression that only the water would drain out. That makes sense.<br><br>Just out of curiosity...I wonder how long it would take to drain all 30 gallons if you kept cycling the fuel pump.... ???