Gel in diesel??

FordNewbie · Feb 24, 2016

I was playing around with the 5000 today and I took the fuel filter out to replace it. There was a lot of clear gel. Almost like small gel beads in the fuel. What is it? It's currently 63F outside and I don't think it's a freezing issue.

Bob · Feb 24, 2016

If it has been operated in colder weather and any "wax" built up that is what you are seeing. It takes a long/warm time for that stuff to dissolve, if it ever does, so replacing the filter was a good plan.

RayP(MI) · Feb 24, 2016

Last time I dealt with gelled fuel it was like slush in the filter. Got it inside, added kero, gasoline, and anti-gel. Was able to drive it to gas station, fillef up with half kero snd half diesel. No problems after that.

FordNewbie · Feb 24, 2016

It's been a very nice spring this winter so far. We haven't seen freezing temps since early December. It's been a pretty strange year. It got down to 37F this morning. I'm not sure, it might be wax? Anyway, here's a picture of what I took out of the filter. There was maybe a tablespoons worth of it all on the top. It's pink appearance I'm guessing is because of the off road diesel I just put in it.

Mike M · Feb 24, 2016

Anyway to drain the tank on that machine ? I'd drain some off the bottom if you can. Keep some extra fuel filters on hand.

FordNewbie · Feb 24, 2016

Yes I can take the fuel line off of the hand prime pump and drain it that way. I just put 10 gallons in it this morning. But I haven't fired it up in a couple days. So I don't think it was anything I filled it with today that has caused the issue. The balls look hard but when pressed between my fingers they turn into a liquid. I was wondering if water or something would do that.

D beatty · Feb 24, 2016

We use to carried a Power Service ant-gel product and also Iso-Heet. We used the Iso-Heet if we didn't have power Service.We would use 4 or 5 bottles of Iso-Heet in tanks and it would get us home and at night they would change filters.

jacksun65 · Feb 24, 2016

When I had diesel gel it definately didnt look like that. looked more like snot. at 63 it definatly is not from cold weather. looks more like water

FordNewbie · Feb 24, 2016

Ok, update. Took the fuel line loose and emptied all 10+ gallons of diesel out into a large fluid catch. It has a built in screen on the pump. Long story short, the filter was full of these. I had my neighbor come over to ask him what it was since he has a large farming operation and he brought over his mechanic too. The mechanic said to him, it looks like someone opened up a dozen of those "do not eat" silica packages and dumped them into the fuel tank. I'll be having some words with the guy I bought this tractor from. My neighbor gave me 3 extra filters and his mechanic came and loaded up my tractor to take to their shop. He's going to let me know if there is anything seriously wrong with it. He told me that if the seller did this, then there's no telling what is in the hydraulic tank and that he could have done the same thing to it.

Mike M · Feb 24, 2016

I wonder if say the fuel was gelled up before you bought it and someone put some of that heet stuff in there if it would cause that ?
Can you contact the previous owner ?
I bought a tractor and it had a lot of water in the fuel before.

hd6gtom · Feb 24, 2016

What does the gasket under the fuel cap look like? If you still have some of it, take it to a local farm fuel supplier and ask them about it. They should be the best qualified to tell you what it is, If their company has a fuel specialist ask him to look at it, he may take some to a lab. I've done that quite a few times for guys when strange stuff shows up in their fuel.

brutus49DC · Feb 24, 2016

Why would the seller do that? Don't you think it would be in his best interest that it ran at the time of the sale. If you bought it "as is" what part of "as is" don't you understand? What's he supposed to do? Or you one of those that think you can use this to get some money out of the deal?

RodinNS · Feb 24, 2016

I would say you probably have a mixture of water and some form of antigel agent that has precipitated the mess to the filter bowl. If I were you I think I'd thank my lucky stars that it ended up there, change the filter and get on with life. Keep an eye on it over the next month or so and dump it out again if necessary. If it continues I'd remove the shutoff from the tank and drain it out...

Rod

FordNewbie · Feb 24, 2016

(quoted from post at 15:39:52 02/24/16) Why would the seller do that? Don't you think it would be in his best interest that it ran at the time of the sale. If you bought it "as is" what part of "as is" don't you understand? What's he supposed to do? Or you one of those that think you can use this to get some money out of the deal?

Im not one of those people and I understand what "as is" means. But IF it was added by the seller, then he did it with out the best of intentions. "As is" means general wear and tear, ect. Not intentionally possibly sabotaging equipment.

notjustair · Feb 24, 2016

That reminds me of the absorbent material they put
in baby diapers. Bizarre.

markct · Feb 24, 2016

At work in the storeroom once I found a
bunch of these plastic mesh screen things
about 8 inch long and inch in diameter full
of little beads like that and a long string
attached. The packaging explained that they
were for fuel tanks, tie string to fuel cap
chain and drop in tank and would absorb the
moisture at the bottom of the tank. I bet
something like this was in the tank at one
time and broke open. The beads looked just
like the do not eat packages, likely the
same thing as those are to absorb moisture.
I wouldn't worry, they won't make it past
the fuel filter

markct · Feb 24, 2016

Just curious why you would think he would
sabotage your tractor? Unless your check
bounces or you had traded in a lemon I
would think the seller would want you to
have good luck with it

FordNewbie · Feb 24, 2016

(quoted from post at 18:49:49 02/24/16) Just curious why you would think he would
sabotage your tractor? Unless your check
bounces or you had traded in a lemon I
would think the seller would want you to
have good luck with it

I'm not entirely sure he did it intentionally. But, all I know is that I didn't add it. Which means it must have been sold to me that way, right? Or am I completely off base here. But, something was added to the tank, and from the way the mechanic was talking that if it got past the filter it could cost me more than I paid for the tractor to fix it. That's a fuel pump, $2k, and possibly injectors. He didn't tell me a price on those but I'm betting it's pretty expensive. I think I have a right to be upset. I gave him $2500 cash.

markct · Feb 24, 2016

As I said in my other post, I would bet
they been floating around for a while and
were from a fuel tank drying device, either
way that's what filters are for. And good
deal indeed for that price!

john in la · Feb 24, 2016

Like markct said it sounds like someone put a "diesel tank snake" in your fuel tank and it busted open or some of the beads leaked out threw a cut in the bag.

I think I would be more ------ about why did these pieces make it all the way to the filter.
I would think there should be a screen in the bottom of the fuel tank that prevents stuff like this from ever leavening the fuel tank.

Gel in diesel??

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