fuel issue??

204Angler · **Posted:** Tue Jul 22, 2014 9:15 pm

Ok, I think I already know the answer but I need to ask (yes, I need confirmation!).

So, my fuel tank is about 1/2 full of 3+ year old gas. I put a bunch of treatment stuff in it every so often. It sat because I was waiting to sell my other boat (problem child boat with a 3.7 mercruiser) , then buy a new engine (block was cracked) which I have in there now.
I removed sending unit from tank and visually inspected. It LOOKED fine :roll:

I had freshly rebuilt the quadrajet, new electric fuel pump, timing good...Engine is gtg.

The engine will not start. However, if I poor some fresh gas down the carb from a gas can, it will run for a few seconds and then quit. It will restart if I dump more fresh gas down there.

I need to drain the tank and fill it with fresh gas with some seafoam, don't I.... :oops:

?

jayjay4735 · **Posted:** Tue Jul 22, 2014 10:06 pm

Probably a good idea to drain all the gas, but in the meantime, do you have any way of running fresh gas directly into the engine from a portable tank?

crossram · **Posted:** Tue Jul 22, 2014 11:41 pm

are you getting fuel to the carb and do you get a squirt when you hit the throttle? it will fire on old gas but it will run like crap .like jayjay said run a line into a gas can from your pump and try fresh fuel. does it fire at all on tank gas or only with fresh in carb?

204Angler · **Posted:** Wed Jul 23, 2014 8:36 am

jayjay4735 wrote:

Probably a good idea to drain all the gas, but in the meantime, do you have any way of running fresh gas directly into the engine from a portable tank?

Yes....I do, it'll just be a hassle but, so is trouble shooting.

crossram wrote:

are you getting fuel to the carb and do you get a squirt when you hit the throttle? it will fire on old gas but it will run like crap .like jayjay said run a line into a gas can from your pump and try fresh fuel. does it fire at all on tank gas or only with fresh in carb?

Yeah sorry forget to say that. I am getting plenty of gas to the carb and when I hit the throttle I get two good squirts (one in each primary).
It will act like it wants to start but I just won't. It'll be turning over and start to catch and sounds like it will but as soon as I let off the starter it won't keep on. As soon as I put fresh in the carb, it will fire right up and run (albeit a little rough) for a few seconds and seems to correlate with how much gas I dump in the carb.

kd4pbs · **Joined:** Thu Sep 05, 2013 10:34 am **Posts:** 350

Did you change the water separating fuel filter? It could be that there's a fair amount of water that separated and fouled up the fuel directly in the filter, but the gas in the tank is just not in the carb yet.

204Angler · **Posted:** Wed Jul 23, 2014 10:49 am

kd4pbs wrote:

Did you change the water separating fuel filter? It could be that there's a fair amount of water that separated and fouled up the fuel directly in the filter, but the gas in the tank is just not in the carb yet.

I don't have a fuel/water sep. I removed it from the equation until I get things dialed in. Then before I put her into operation Ill reinstall it.

ric · **Posted:** Wed Jul 23, 2014 11:46 am

Drain it all out

204Angler · **Posted:** Wed Jul 23, 2014 1:43 pm

ric wrote:

Drain it all out

Roger, you think I can use the existing electric fuel pump to get it out or should I get an external source? You think that gas is the issue?

ric · **Posted:** Wed Jul 23, 2014 1:48 pm

204Angler wrote:

ric wrote:

Drain it all out

Roger, you think I can use the existing electric fuel pump to get it out or should I get an external source? You think that gas is the issue?

I think the issue is the carb is gummed up, but that gas isn't going to work either. Don't use the onboard pump unless there's a filter in front of it.

rpengr · **Posted:** Wed Jul 23, 2014 3:02 pm

204Angler wrote:

ric wrote:

Drain it all out

Roger, you think I can use the existing electric fuel pump to get it out or should I get an external source? You think that gas is the issue?

I hate to state the obvious, except in the case of safety. MUST BE A PUMP RATED FOR FUEL/FLAMABLE LIQUIDS.

There is a thread on here about a guy who blew up his garage by pumping gas using a Harbor Freight "Marine Pump" (although it was not recommended for fuel).

ps: Don't do it in your garage or confined space.
ps2: Don't have ignition sources running nearby like a $15 box fan, electric drill, etc.

204Angler · **Posted:** Wed Jul 23, 2014 6:27 pm

rpengr wrote:

204Angler wrote:

ric wrote:

Drain it all out

Roger, you think I can use the existing electric fuel pump to get it out or should I get an external source? You think that gas is the issue?

I hate to state the obvious, except in the case of safety. MUST BE A PUMP RATED FOR FUEL/FLAMABLE LIQUIDS.

There is a thread on here about a guy who blew up his garage by pumping gas using a Harbor Freight "Marine Pump" (although it was not recommended for fuel).

ps: Don't do it in your garage or confined space.
ps2: Don't have ignition sources running nearby like a $15 box fan, electric drill, etc.

Gotcha. Just for that reason, I decided to use to fuel pump already installed. It'll be a little more messing around with stuff but much safer and probably not as messy.
I did shoot some of the fuel into a clear jar and it looked darker colored than normal and it didn't have that same odor. I am wondering if it is really that sour or if that is from all the additives given to it over time. Really only like 3 different occasions I added something to it.
Going to try running it on an external gas can like suggested....then if it starts and runs, I know my issue and what I need to do.

204Angler · **Posted:** Wed Jul 23, 2014 8:28 pm

Ok. So I had the carb yesterday and put another can of carb cleaner in and through it and gave it another overnight soak. Put it back on just to see if that'd do the trick. It started right up and stayed running.

I can tell the gas in the tank is a LITTLE stale and so I will still take the advice to get it all out of the tank and refresh with some high octane and seafoam.

Moral of the story. If a carb has been sitting for a long time, it may need MORE than a thorough cleaning--may need two of them! If I knew of someone around here that did the sound wave cleaning, I forget what it's called, I would do that just make sure Ill be gtg.

Thanks for the help all. Sorry it was my fault for not cleaning the carb good enough.

ric · **Posted:** Wed Jul 23, 2014 11:36 pm

Ultrasonic cleaning. Next time you store for 3 years just drain the system totally. Gas (e10 or ethanol free) dries up to a gummy mess when it sits. The only way to avoid is to just not have any in there.

deafwish · **Posted:** Thu Jul 24, 2014 2:53 am

ric wrote:

Ultrasonic cleaning. Next time you store for 3 years just drain the system totally. Gas (e10 or ethanol free) dries up to a gummy mess when it sits. The only way to avoid is to just not have any in there.

Leaving it dry will then degrade internal seals, gaskets & diaphragms.
You can't win! :lol:

Use a fuel storage product (like STA-BIL), to reduce the risk of gumming.

204Angler · **Posted:** Thu Jul 24, 2014 8:11 am

ric wrote:

Ultrasonic cleaning. Next time you store for 3 years just drain the system totally. Gas (e10 or ethanol free) dries up to a gummy mess when it sits. The only way to avoid is to just not have any in there.

Yeah, ultrasonic...that's the one

I never plan on storing it for anymore than a couple months. It was sitting for 3 years because I bought it and was waiting to replace the engine. I got caught up doing a bunch of fiberglass work on other boats.
There is an ethanol free gas station on my way to the two lakes I go to most so Ill use that, and probably high octane since I think that is what is called for in a vortec.
Ethanol is one of the biggest scams the gov't has put on, to date....IMHO

www.iFourWinns.com

fuel issue??

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