Hi Damian I have the w33 and this just happens to me on a sail to jewel island after delivery of 35 hours no issues. But let my fuel drop to 1/3 and it clogged with. A 2 micron.
I just filled the racor w fuel and it self primed no issues getting back to mooring but I am pulling he tank and cleaning it saw sludge in bottom of tank when I pulled the sending unit Peter Goonie island C&c 40 1983 aft Sent from my iPhone > On Jun 30, 2017, at 11:03 AM, Josh Muckley via CnC-List > <cnc-list@cnc-list.com> wrote: > > I haven't actually re-checked my engine manual but IIRC the stock engine > filter (primary? ) for a Yanmar 3HM35F is 2 micron. The boat came with a > Racor 200FG installed between the tank and the engine which I believe makes > this the (secondary?). Recent discussions on this list have led me to > reconsider running a 2 micron in the Racor but aside from needing to > occasionally vent air from the Racor I have had no other adverse effects and > haven't changed either of the filters in about 4 years. > > After closing on the boat I chased what I thought was an air leak in the fuel > system for months. I got pretty good at venting the system and learned what > worked and what didn't. What was needed and what wasn't. The mechanic > advised me to avoid operating the vent screw on the filter housing since he > had seen his share of stripped vent screws. Heeding his advice, I resorted > to primarily venting from the vent port on the outlet of the Racor and the > vent screw built into the banjo fitting on the high pressure fuel pump. I > soon learned that the vent screw on the HP pump was prone to stripping too! > Ugh! In my time of need I simply JB Welded the screw in place. Now I was > forced to vent from nothing but the outlet of the racor. I noticed quite > quickly that the vent port was poorly located and provided ineffective > removal of the air since it wasn't close enough to the high point. The only > other places to vent wer actually loosening banjo fittings along the fuel > circuit but unfortunately they use copper gaskets which are really designed > to be a one time use item otherwise they leak. Another problem that I > encountered was that bleeding the engine required a considerable amount of > fuel - upwards of a gallon to flush out all the air. None of the bleed > screws or banjo fittings were designed to catch the spilt fuel. Finally I > installed a bleed system which you can see in my video. Maybe I'm just lucky > but since having installed this system I have had the engine shut down due to > air but have NEVER had to vent from anywhere except through this system. > If/when I change the engine filter I will simply keep the bowl slightly loose > and then prime until fuel leaks out of the threads. > > https://youtu.be/H-GI38vE4hQ?t=2m13s > > Now to answer your questions: > 1) What micron rating filter? > - I'd refer you to the owners manual. The majority of bearing were comes > from particals smaller than 5 microns and those parts don't have exacting > tolerances like the HP pump and Injectors. As stated above, IIRC the yanmar > primary filter part is 2 micron. > > 2) Are there better new designs? I see Racor have spin-off models. Are these > easier to change and bleed on the fly? > - I don't know any of the marketing reasons but I like the Racor 200 or 500 > series that have a clear bowl. This allows tou to see if air/water/dirt is > accumulating. > > 3) Should I have primary and secondary filters? > - IMO yes. If you have room you can go one step further and have a standby > filter in parallel. If it looks like a clogged filter is the problem for > your shutdown then you simply shift filters. You can change the dirty one > later, at the dock, in calw seas. > > 4) How best to bleed the air? > - Do what you can to fill the filter media and bowl most of the way even if > that is just simply pouring fuel in the bowl and then attaching the bowl. > > 5) The Westerbeke W33 manual says it's self bleeding and essentially not to > mess with the pump. What do you know of this? > - It would seem that while I have manufacturers recommended vent points, > they are not needed. In my case, more vents and better venting just means > less cranking. To that end, if you simply placed a dry filter in the housing > and hoped that the engine would self vent you'd probably find yourself > cranking for a considerable amount of time. Besides just because the engine > is self venting doesn't mean that the filter is. > > Josh Muckley > S/V Sea Hawk > 1989 C&C 37+ > Solomons, MD > > > On Jun 30, 2017 7:54 AM, "Damian Greene via CnC-List" <cnc-list@cnc-list.com> > wrote: > I have some questions for your collective wisdom: what is the best fuel > filter setup? > > First of all, I have to admit I just bought a Sabre 38 (1986). We are en > route home from Essex CT to Bass Harbor ME. We were going through fairly > rough seas yesterday entering Buzzards Bay and the engine died - backed off > on revs over a minute or so, then stopped. Restart would not go to high revs, > and died. I figured it was the fuel filter, but we took a TowBoat US tow > into New Bedford rather than mess around. I changed the filter and all seems > fine. > > The filter is a Racor 2010. Engine is a Westerbeke 33. Diesel tank was half > full. > > It turns out the PO had installed a 2 micron primary (there is no secondary). > It looked fine - so no major crud. I have a 10 micron installed now, as I had > a couple of these as spares. The local yard recommend 30 micron. > > I could not figure out how to bleed the air, so I filled the housing to the > top with diesel, and poured more in the top before inserting and tightening > the top screw. I would not fancy doing that in rough seas. > > So questions: > > 1) What micron rating filter? > > 2) Are there better new designs? I see Racor have spin-off models. Are these > easier to change and bleed on the fly? > > 3) Should I have primary and secondary filters? > > 4) How best to bleed the air? > > 5) The Westerbeke W33 manual says it's self bleeding and essentially not to > mess with the pump. What do you know of this? > > Thanks, > > Damian > > Damian Greene > 1982 C&C 34 Ghost (for sale) > 1986 Sabre 38 Serenity (new name TBD) > Bass Harbor ME > > > _______________________________________________ > > This list is supported by the generous donations of our members. If you wish > to make a contribution to offset our costs, please go to: > https://www.paypal.me/stumurray > > All Contributions are greatly appreciated! > > > _______________________________________________ > > This list is supported by the generous donations of our members. If you wish > to make a contribution to offset our costs, please go to: > https://www.paypal.me/stumurray > > All Contributions are greatly appreciated!
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