On this week's episode of DIY's Shipshape Boating, host John Greviskis will show you how to protect a marine engine from contaminated fuel by installing a fuel filter and a bilge pump.
The craft that Greviskis and his crew will be working on this episode is a restored 1976, 21-foot Seabird project boat, which was rebuilt from the keel up. One of the biggest projects during the rebuild was that the vessel's fiberglass inner liner was cut out to increase the interior space for the boat.
The below-deck fuel tank (figure A) that was installed was made from marine-grade aluminum and holds 55 gallons of fuel. A metal fabricator custom-made the tank in order to supply as much fuel capacity as possible yet still fit inside the boat compartment.
Note: A fuel tank that's located below deck needs either to be strapped in or foamed in for safety reasons.
Greviskis pre-rigged all the fuel hoses on the tank -- a fuel-fill hose, a 5/8" vent hose and a 3/8" diameter fuel line (figure B -- the line is taped off due to the construction on the boat), which is the hose that will be used to run gasoline from the tank back to the outboard motor.
Before starting the fuel-filter installation, it's important to know, strangely enough, that fuel tanks can actually produce condensation in the fuel on its own accord. Water, without a doubt, will stop a motor from running. This happens because when fuel tanks are low, the air inside the tank heats up and expands during the day, and then at night the air inside the tank rapidly cools back down -- thus causing condensation.
Most likely inside your engine cowling, you have what's called an "inline fuel filter" (figure C) that catches any water particles or debris. If this filter gets clogged for any reason, you could be stranded out on the water, so what prudent boat owners do is install a second fuel filter, which also doubles as a water separator.
This second canister-style filter (figure D) has a plastic bottom part that gives water a place to collect. Water is heavier than fuel and will settle in the bottom. Once the water is trapped, the filter has a valve that you can open to release the water (figure E).
In the next segment, Greviskis will show you how to install the water-separator fuel filter.
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