Posted by Jay Glen (svfantasy@…>)
I’ve been getting a little residue in my Racor fuel filter in my 1981
Freedom 40 CK. The tank is approx 107 gallons, and is located beneath
the galley sink and dinnette seat. The tank has an approx 6 to 8 "
access on the top of the tank, and I plan to try and suck the alge
residue and any water from the tank bottom. My question is, does the
tank have baffles, and if so, do they run for & aft or athwartship?
How many are there, and, do they extend all the way to the tank bottom?
My tank also has a small sump on the tank bottom near centerline. I’ve
drained some fuel from this tank and found little residue and no
water. I thought the water and alge may be settled in another area of
the tank bottom. My mechanic suggested using a cheap 12 volt
automotive fuel pump and flex hose to vacuum the tank bottom. The
water and alge will be puddled together. Any thoughts?
Jay
Posted by michel.capel (michel.capel@…>)
Jay,
I used the small hand pump that is supplied to change oil. On the
F33 I had, the diesel tank bottom sloped down along the hull towards
the centreline, so there was a good sump. There were no baffles. I
removed the fuel suction pipe from its connection on the top of the
tank and put the plastic pump hose through it. That worked okay.
good luck,
Michel
— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “Jay Glen” <svfantasy@…>
wrote:
I’ve been getting a little residue in my Racor fuel filter in my
1981
Freedom 40 CK. The tank is approx 107 gallons, and is located
beneath
the galley sink and dinnette seat. The tank has an approx 6 to 8 "
access on the top of the tank, and I plan to try and suck the alge
residue and any water from the tank bottom. My question is, does
the
tank have baffles, and if so, do they run for & aft or
athwartship?
How many are there, and, do they extend all the way to the tank
bottom?
My tank also has a small sump on the tank bottom near centerline.
I’ve
drained some fuel from this tank and found little residue and no
water. I thought the water and alge may be settled in another area
of
the tank bottom. My mechanic suggested using a cheap 12 volt
automotive fuel pump and flex hose to vacuum the tank bottom. The
water and alge will be puddled together. Any thoughts?
Jay
Posted by svfantasy@… (svfantasy@…>)
Thanks Michel,
On the F-40 the fuel tank is rectangular, so the bottom is flat. I just assumed it has baffles, maybe not. Thanks again.
Jay
Posted by andre laviolette (andrelaviolette@…>)
Professional fuel polishers remove the fuel from your fuel tank, filter it and put it a reservoir on the dock. They then, using a wand, blast flush the algea off the 6 sides of the tank as best they can and then pump back your filtered fuel.Jay Glen <svfantasy@…> wrote: I’ve been getting a little residue in my Racor fuel filter in my 1981 Freedom 40 CK. The tank is approx 107 gallons, and is located beneath the galley sink and dinnette seat. The tank has an approx 6 to 8 " access on the
top of the tank, and I plan to try and suck the alge residue and any water from the tank bottom. My question is, does the tank have baffles, and if so, do they run for & aft or athwartship? How many are there, and, do they extend all the way to the tank bottom?My tank also has a small sump on the tank bottom near centerline. I’ve drained some fuel from this tank and found little residue and no water. I thought the water and alge may be settled in another area of the tank bottom. My mechanic suggested using a cheap 12 volt automotive fuel pump and flex hose to vacuum the tank bottom. The water and alge will be puddled together. Any thoughts?Jay
Now you can have a huge leap forward in email: get the new Yahoo! Mail.
Posted by svfantasy@… (svfantasy@…>)
Andre,
Thank you for the response, however, it has been my experience (and of others here on the left coast) that most so-called fuel polishers just do not do a proper job. Most simply cycle the fuel through filters and return it to the tank with no agitation whatsoever. If a tank is seriously gunked-up then I would try and locate and professional fuel polisher, however, I do not have a serious problem. I just want to remove what little alge residue and water that exists in my tank. I’ve used this procedure on previously owned boats and it does work very well. By moving a suction tube around the bottom of the tank until you find the puddle of water (which is where the alge is located) you simply suck it out with a small electric or manual pump. I was hoping someone knew if the F-40 CK tank had baffles, and, if so, how many, and do they extend all the way to the tank bottom.
Jay
Posted by jerry weinraub (zayde@…>)

No baffle extends all the way to the tank bottom.
----- Original Message -----
From: svfantasy@…
To: freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Sunday, November 19, 2006 3:15 AM
Subject: Re: [freedomyachts2003] F-40 Cat Ketch fuel tank
Andre,
Thank you for the response, however, it has been my experience (and of others here on the left coast) that most so-called fuel polishers just do not do a proper job. Most simply cycle the fuel through filters and return it to the tank with no agitation whatsoever. If a tank is seriously gunked-up then I would try and locate and professional fuel polisher, however, I do not have a serious problem. I just want to remove what little alge residue and water that exists in my tank. I’ve used this procedure on previously owned boats and it does work very well. By moving a suction tube around the bottom of the tank until you find the puddle of water (which is where the alge is located) you simply suck it out with a small electric or manual pump. I was hoping someone knew if the F-40 CK tank had baffles, and, if so, how many, and do they extend all the way to the tank bottom.
Jay
Posted by svfantasy@… (svfantasy@…>)
Thanks Jerry,
Thats what I figured, just wanted to make sure.
Jay
Posted by Rees Midgley (rmidgley@…>)
Jay, I don’t know re. the 40 CK, but I was told that our 1966 36/38
tank does have baffles. We removed a great deal of water and algae
using a pump that recycled the fuel through a very large filter
unit. We left the recycling on for five hours and every hour or so
rocked the boat seriously by extending the boom at 90 degrees over a
dock and pulling and pushing on the end of the boom. We had no
problems after doing this (and adding a fuel extender/algecide).
On Nov 18, 2006, at 12:36 AM, Jay Glen wrote:
I’ve been getting a little residue in my Racor fuel filter in my 1981
Freedom 40 CK. The tank is approx 107 gallons, and is located beneath
the galley sink and dinnette seat. The tank has an approx 6 to 8 "
access on the top of the tank, and I plan to try and suck the alge
residue and any water from the tank bottom. My question is, does the
tank have baffles, and if so, do they run for & aft or athwartship?
How many are there, and, do they extend all the way to the tank bottom?
My tank also has a small sump on the tank bottom near centerline. I’ve
drained some fuel from this tank and found little residue and no
water. I thought the water and alge may be settled in another area of
the tank bottom. My mechanic suggested using a cheap 12 volt
automotive fuel pump and flex hose to vacuum the tank bottom. The
water and alge will be puddled together. Any thoughts?
Jay
Yahoo! Groups Links
Posted by svfantasy@… (svfantasy@…>)
Thanks for the info Reese.
Jay
Posted by michel.capel (michel.capel@…>)
In stead of rocking the boat, I kept mine as steady as possible when I
removed the sludge from the bottom of the tank. The water/algae mix
separates from the diesel. I did not recycle what I pumped out, just
threw it away. I also took out the few gallons of diesel lying over
the sludge, just to make sure. If you shine into the tank with a lamp
you can see if it’s all clear on the bottom.
— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “svfantasy@…”
<svfantasy@…> wrote:
Thanks for the info Reese.
Jay
Posted by Norm Friberg (nfriberg@…>)
I am also in dire need of having my tank and 35 gals. of fuel cleaned (polished?) over this winter. Does anyone know a company in the NY metro area that does this? A brief internet search was not successful. I will ask around on City Island, where I keep my F40 CK. I have also contacted Reverso Pumps, who make the polishing system. It might actually pay to install one if they’re not too expensive.
Anyway, if any of you know of a tank/fuel cleaning service in this area, please let me know.
Norm Friberg
S/V Freyja
----- Original Message -----
From: Rees Midgley
To: freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Sunday, November 19, 2006 8:50 PM
Subject: Re: [freedomyachts2003] F-40 Cat Ketch fuel tank
Jay, I don’t know re. the 40 CK, but I was told that our 1966 36/38 tank does have baffles. We removed a great deal of water and algae using a pump that recycled the fuel through a very large filter unit. We left the recycling on for five hours and every hour or so rocked the boat seriously by extending the boom at 90 degrees over a dock and pulling and pushing on the end of the boom. We had no problems after doing this (and adding a fuel extender/algecide).- ReesOn Nov 18, 2006, at 12:36 AM, Jay Glen wrote:I’ve been getting a little residue in my Racor fuel filter in my 1981Freedom 40 CK. The tank is approx 107 gallons, and is located beneaththe galley sink and dinnette seat. The tank has an approx 6 to 8 "access on the top of the tank, and I plan to try and suck the algeresidue and any water from the tank bottom. My question is, does thetank have baffles, and if so, do they run for & aft or athwartship?How many are there, and, do they extend all the way to the tank bottom?My tank also has a small sump on the tank bottom near centerline. I’vedrained some fuel from this tank and found little residue and nowater. I thought the water and alge may be settled in another area ofthe tank bottom. My mechanic suggested using a cheap 12 voltautomotive fuel pump and flex hose to vacuum the tank bottom. Thewater and alge will be puddled together. Any thoughts?JayYahoo! Groups Links
Posted by Rees Midgley (rmidgley@…>)
Michael,
The problem with not rocking is the sludge in the other baffled
areas. They need to be agitated to be moved to the pickup tube.
On Nov 20, 2006, at 4:47 AM, michel.capel wrote:
In stead of rocking the boat, I kept mine as steady as possible when I
removed the sludge from the bottom of the tank. The water/algae mix
separates from the diesel. I did not recycle what I pumped out, just
threw it away. I also took out the few gallons of diesel lying over
the sludge, just to make sure. If you shine into the tank with a lamp
you can see if it’s all clear on the bottom.
— In freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com, “svfantasy@…”
<svfantasy@…> wrote:
Thanks for the info Reese.
Jay
Yahoo! Groups Links
Posted by Herman and Gail Schiller (hschiller2@…>)
Norm,
I know of a neighbor with a 42’ trawler yacht that has a
built-in fuel-polishing system. I assume that it’s not
cost-prohibitive; but a large diesel running 100% of the time (along
with a generator) might make it a better deal.
Herm
fAt 08:49 AM 11/20/2006, you wrote:
I am also in dire need of having my tank and 35 gals. of fuel
cleaned (polished?) over this winter. Does anyone know a company in
the NY metro area that does this? A brief internet search was not
successful. I will ask around on City Island, where I keep my F40
CK. I have also contacted Reverso Pumps, who make the polishing
system. It might actually pay to install one if they’re not too expensive.
Anyway, if any of you know of a tank/fuel cleaning service in this
area, please let me know.
Norm Friberg
S/V Freyja
----- Original Message -----
From: mailto:rmidgley@...Rees Midgley
To:
<mailto:freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com>freedomyachts2003@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Sunday, November 19, 2006 8:50 PM
Subject: Re: [freedomyachts2003] F-40 Cat Ketch fuel tank
Jay, I don’t know re. the 40 CK, but I was told that our 1966 36/38
tank does have baffles. We removed a great deal of water and algae
using a pump that recycled the fuel through a very large filter
unit. We left the recycling on for five hours and every hour or so
rocked the boat seriously by extending the boom at 90 degrees over a
dock and pulling and pushing on the end of the boom. We had no
problems after doing this (and adding a fuel extender/algecide).
On Nov 18, 2006, at 12:36 AM, Jay Glen wrote:
I’ve been getting a little residue in my Racor fuel filter in my 1981
Freedom 40 CK. The tank is approx 107 gallons, and is located beneath
the galley sink and dinnette seat. The tank has an approx 6 to 8 "
access on the top of the tank, and I plan to try and suck the alge
residue and any water from the tank bottom. My question is, does the
tank have baffles, and if so, do they run for & aft or athwartship?
How many are there, and, do they extend all the way to the tank bottom?
My tank also has a small sump on the tank bottom near centerline. I’ve
drained some fuel from this tank and found little residue and no
water. I thought the water and alge may be settled in another area of
the tank bottom. My mechanic suggested using a cheap 12 volt
automotive fuel pump and flex hose to vacuum the tank bottom. The
water and alge will be puddled together. Any thoughts?
Jay
Yahoo! Groups Links