2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission Learn by my mistake!

[Whitmore]

I have a auxillary fuel tank in the bed of my truck under the toolbox, it holds 52 gallons of fuel and I have a spin on filter to a small transfer pump and a solinoid valve, this ties into the vent at the fillneck. Whenever I get low on fuel I flip a switch and fill the main tank, all is good and all is well right??? I have always used te half tank and 15 minute rule, so when I get 15 minutes from home and down to a half tank I flip the switch, well beings that I am so smart I knew when I set this system up that I would forget I was filling and leave the switch on then the next morning I would drive the truck and over fill the tank but guess what I am a very smart guy so I knew this would happen and me mr. Intellegent said to self... ... ... ..... self why dont you wire that pump and soilnoid switsh always hot then when you do the 15 minute half tank trick and you get home and shut down the truck you will hear the pump running and S/D the pump.

OH NO the kid was mowing the lawn and I heard nothing and over filled thru the night I figger 32 gals of fuel on the ground, I have a gravel drive and a big stain, guess its time to fire the backhoe and change my gravel out:{

I have 2 different fixes in mind

1) put a 15 minute timer in???

2) install a line out the main tank vent back to the auxillary fillneck ???





what have you guys done Kevin

 

[shendren]

wow, maybe i don't follow. sounds like an easy job made complicated. i just get fuel when i get down to say 1/4 tank. i don't understand the 15 minutes from home thing. oh well.



scott.

 

[DRR-24V]

Tank Switch Wiring !

Kevin,

Can't you just wire it so it only works when the ignition switch is on? Or does it pull too much power?

 

[Whitmore]

Yes , I could wire it so its hot only to the ignition but then if I forgot to turn it off, the next time I ran the truck the aux pump would be on again,



I wired it always hot so if I did forget I was pumping then when I S/D the truck I would hear the pump and then S/D the pump.



What I really need is a high level soft switch from the trucks ECM to set an alarm off as a reminder that I am transfering fuel. Or evan better yet have that high level soft switch S/D the pump.

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

I use exactly the SAME setup you do in regards to tank and pump - but like the fella above, I wired my power off a keyed voltage source so that with the engine off, no fuel flow. In addition, I found a bright LED flasher that I mounted at the top of my steering wheel between it and the lower section of the instrument panel that continuously flashes during fuel transfer - that helps me to NOT forget that fuel is flowing on longer drives...



Wonder what Transfer-Flow uses as a signal source in THEIR systems to control fuel flow? Theirs actually automatically transfers fuel without any operator action whatsoever...

 

[Whitmore]

What I should do and want to do is to installe a solinoid tank switching valve and run 2 seperate fuel tanks, this would be excellent set up and the head pressure from the aux tank would give a possitive pressure to the weak link transfer pump. I only have one problem with this set up ... I have no level indication in my aux tank, when I had it built I didnt thinkn it was an issue because I was planning to only transfer fuel at that time. If I was to do this I think I would also set it up with its own seperate fuel pump ... ... ... ... ... ... ..... that way I would have 2 seperate tanks and 2 seperate pumps ... ... ... ... in-case one fails:{

 

[illflem]

Kevin, what I would do is wire it though the ignition with a nice bright pilot light. Another option is a spring wound timer switch, the type you see in bathrooms, under $15.

 

[Extreme1]

I would wire arelay to power the solonoid off the key with a momentary contact switch. (Radio Shack sells 1 that works) So that when you push the button, the relay establishes the circuit and holds it until the key is turned off. I have my TC lock set up this way.

 

[jmcwhorter]

I put a light on the dash, which is on when the pump is on. Keeps me from overpumpin Most of the time!!

Originally posted by Whitmore

I have a auxillary fuel tank in the bed of my truck under the toolbox, it holds 52 gallons of fuel and I have a spin on filter to a small transfer pump and a solinoid valve, this ties into the vent at the fillneck. Whenever I get low on fuel I flip a switch and fill the main tank, all is good and all is well right??? I have always used te half tank and 15 minute rule, so when I get 15 minutes from home and down to a half tank I flip the switch, well beings that I am so smart I knew when I set this system up that I would forget I was filling and leave the switch on then the next morning I would drive the truck and over fill the tank but guess what I am a very smart guy so I knew this would happen and me mr. Intellegent said to self... ... ... ..... self why dont you wire that pump and soilnoid switsh always hot then when you do the 15 minute half tank trick and you get home and shut down the truck you will hear the pump running and S/D the pump.

OH NO the kid was mowing the lawn and I heard nothing and over filled thru the night I figger 32 gals of fuel on the ground, I have a gravel drive and a big stain, guess its time to fire the backhoe and change my gravel out:{

I have 2 different fixes in mind

1) put a 15 minute timer in???

2) install a line out the main tank vent back to the auxillary fillneck ???





what have you guys done Kevin

 

[HC]

One problem; many solutions to choose from.

The flashing LED sounds like the simplest solution. Another one I kind of like: wire a 15 minute timer so that when you start fuel flow, it only runs for 15 minutes; long enough to partially fill the tank before requiring a reset or "bump" to get another shot of fuel.

 

[rrausch]

I have a triple gauge pod sitting on the left side of the dash, and mounted my switch and bright green led on the pod right at eye level. I wired it so it is only on when the key is on. I used the bright green to remind me of the green color most Diesel pump handles/gas cans are. I too, switch mine on about 15 min from home. It works for me, but I thought of a timer switch too, I just haven't "oiled" my driveway yet, so am not properly motivated enough yet. If you find a good 12-Volt timer switch, perhaps you could post about it here.

 

[WadePatton]

See what happens when you don't cut your own grass.

 

[CJBoggs]

This is one of my favorite subjects. Let me propose a possible solution as there are many of us running "home brew" systems that could use some automated control.



I think what we could use here is a reasonably simple chip that would monitor the resistance through the stock sending unit (I believe it is 240/70 Ohms) by means of wire tap so that when the stock sending unit reached 90 Ohms, it would turn the transfer pump on until the sending unit registered ~200 Ohms. That way the level in the main tank would reach approx. 1/8 tank and then the transfer pump would replenish until 7/8 tank, until depletion of the secondary tank (monitored through a second chip and sending unit and set to shut down the whole system when the secondary tank reaches 1/8). I believe that this is how the Transfer Flow system works, but probably with a custom chip and some custom logic that would filter out excessive sloshing induced sender fluctuation.



It seems simple, but I don't have the intimate knowledge of common chips on the market that could do such a thing. If there are any electrical guru's out there who have a lightbulb go off over their head over this idea, please post some possible solutions. I feel reasonably certain that there is some sort of device that is commercially available to anyone (digikey, mouser, worst case: radio shack) that would control this fuel transfer easily.



This would be the cleanest/most automated method of pump control, if you were simply looking to transfer the fuel from the secondary to primary tank.



If you wanted to have the two tank system, along with two pumps and filters controlled by a tank selector switch/valve, the chip could also automate the actual control of the selector switch. When the first tank reaches 1/8, the chip would send a signal to the selector switch to change poles for a period of time (most motor driven valves only need a second to deploy) and switch tanks. This would be a nice failsafe for our diesels as their fuel flow is more critical than a gas Ford when one tank goes dry.



Let me know what you guys think of this, as I could do some testing. I currently have a bulk tank in the bed that has a 5 GPM pump and filter that transfers to the primary tank thru the filler neck. I originally wanted the dual tank system and built the tank for that, but this was easier for the near term. And if anyone can lend some help on chip selection, it would be appreciated.



Chris

 

[Matt42]

Can you get a magnetic switch that comes on, and stays on, when the "ignition" switch is on? That sort of magnetic switch would disconnect itself when it's power feed turned off, and require you to push the button again to make it work. If I recall correctly, I had a full size Wagoneer (FSJ!!) that used that kind of switch for the rear defogger. They are also very common in 120V, 220V & 3 phase for power equipment.