Fuel/Water Separators

[Heavy Duty]

Due to the high cost of injectors, fuel pumps, and such on the new trucks has anyone considered using a fuel/water separator.



I know that Racor has them and I had considered putting one on my truck. The cost is reasonable (~$200. 00) and I use to run Racors on my semi-trucks when I had them and they did a great job at removing water from the diesel fuel.



Anyone have any experiance with the Racor fuel/water separators on the 3rd gen trucks?



Thanks

 

[ddutil]

Why? There's one already, check the little yellow lever below the fuel filter canister! Dan

 

[rbattelle]

Heavy,



I agree with you, and have already selected a Dahl 2-micron filter for installation upstream of the factory lift pump. However, I will not perform this installation until the factory warranty is up (nightmares about warranty denial due to fuel system tampering!).

 

[Ken F]

I have been thinking of this very same subject. I know our trucks come from the factory with a water separator, but I wonder about how well it works.



There were people in another forum (another brand also) that had put Dahl filter/separators on their trucks. They noted that in 50K miles, the factory unit never caught any water, but the Dahl filter/separator has trapped a fair amount in as little as 2K miles. This made me wonder about the efficiency of the stock unit.



Granted, this was a different brand, but I still wonder about our trucks. I think this has merit.



Prevention is a good thing. It's not to say that they can't, but I don't think a reasonable person would cancel a warranty for taking preventive measures. Once again, your dealer's perspective plays a big role.



Ken.

 

[Heavy Duty]

Ken, rballelle,

I agree. I know that our trucks aready have a fuel/water separator on them with a drain valve. But how effective is it at removing water? Because of its physical properties, #2 collects water big time. IMO water in these injection systems will in the end cost a bunch of money to repair. Waiting to install one after the warranty is up may be to late.

I know the Racor F/W separator worked very well on my semi-trucks. Secondly, the Racor has a site glass that you can check to see if water is present. Our fuel filters do not. So either you trust the water-in-fuel light on the dash, or drain a sample from the OME filter once a week or so and check for water. I do a little flying and to CYA you always take a fuel sample out of both fuel tanks and the carb. strainer before each flight. Of course we do not fly our trucks, but with these new high pressure fuel systems I think that a little insurance would pay off in the long run.

I have one of the Racors on order. I'll let you guys know how it goes with install and how well it preforms.

 

[Ken F]

Heavy Duty,



I agree. I look forward to hearing how your install goes.



Do you plan to put it in between the tank and the lift pump?



Ken.

 

[Heavy Duty]

Ken,

I would like to install the F/W separator up under the hood somewhere so you can check the site glass easy. It will all depend on how much effect it has on fuel pressures since the added fuel filter will act as another restriction in the fuel system. I think putting it between the tank and lift pump would be a good ideal so that the proper fuel pressures can be maintained. But that would mean having to crawl under the truck to check the site glass and figuring a way to protect the filter. I may have to also put a F. A. S. S. on to help with the fuel pressures. Right now I'll just call it a "work in progress".