[Diesel Power]

This article is from the October 2003 issue of "Heavy Duty Trucking". It is written by our own George Morrison. It is excellent reading for any diesel owner!


http://www.nicktane.com/images/HDT_article_10-10-03.pdf


Thanks again George!

 

[hoot]

I pulled out a few stand out points....
Read the article fully to get the whole picture.




Testing showed 7 microns as the most dangerous particle size because it fits between many tolerenced moving parts.

Refinery fuel is filtered to 30 microns.

The delivery process introduces more contaminants.

Encourages secondary filtration and water removal including the emulsification of water.

Interesting note.... Cummins believes their fuel system is capable a passing 15 microns reliably.

Water is more dangerous than some of us realized. It can severly damage injector nozzles if passed in quantity.



Thank you George for the article and your unending willingness to help us all. Edited by: hoot

 

[4x4man]

Good reading...only thing is alcohol is touted as a good water absorber that in their experience doesn't harm anything(thought I read that was a no no)....even though this wasn't written for our DMAX's, I guess it is one person's opinion...right, wrong or otherwise??
"When it comes to water in fuel, he says he is still a firm believer of
adding a pint or more of isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol) to truck
fuel tanks at each PM service and more frequently during extremely
cold temperatures where fuel line freeze-ups may be a problem.
Alcohol absorbs water."

Either way I am glad I put my Cat filter on, at least my injectors aren't getting sand blasted anymore. Now to just hope my idle knock and rough idle go away....
Bob

 

[Roscoe]

I should take delivery of my truck within two weeks. I am feeling so overwhelmed with all of the fuel filtration info, pre, post, what type of fuel additive. I have read and reread most of the posts. My brain hurts! The only thing I am sure of is I will use some kind of after market fuel filtration. Any help for the diesel challenged would be appreciated. The Webb Vor Max filter looks nice but pricey, does anybody use one?


My main question is what filter setup either pre or post has the best water seperator? It sounds like we need to eliminate both water and particles.


Roscoe

 

[Diesel Power]

Roscoe,


i don't think the water seperator location matter much, as you still have a given amount of water passing through 2 filters. I don't think anyone has compared the water #'s from fuel samples based on location. All i think we could do is speculate. I wouldn't worry so much about water. you have at least 1 seperator already. Run a good additive and don't worry about the water.


I honestly think location of the filter is a big personal preference. They all seem to work and each has their pro's and con's. i doubt you ever find a consensus on that

Enjoy that truck, you will sure love it when you get it! What part of CA are you from? I live in gold country!

 

[Roscoe]

Hey Nick ,


I live near Sonora.


I might have made it to the last get-together, but alas , no truck.


Thanks for the great site.


Roscoe

 

[Ray403Dmax]

The article mentions water contamination as a cause for blasting the injector tips but I'm not clear whether emulsification solves the problem.

 

[Notsdale]

http://www.itpdiesel.com/VorMax.shtm


The above link sells the Webb VorMax filter for $250. I was going to copy/paste info from their web site but they do not allow this. Viewing the source code of their web side one finds this nice little copyright notice:

C O P Y R I G H T N O T I C E

DO NOT COPY ANY PART OF THIS WEBSITE FOR ANY PURPOSE!!!!!
Doing so is in direct violation of Federal Copyright Laws
We are aware of several of our competitors that have been
copying text, sound files and even page formatting from
our website. We will not hesitate to pursue violators in
any manner necessary to protect our intellectual property

If you are reading this, you are viewing the SOURCE code
of a COPYRIGHTED website. Our website does not require
viewing of the source code to function properly so it may
be assumed that you are attempting to steal information
from Innovative Truck Products and violating federal law

C O P Y R I G H T N O T I C E


I guess I'm in violation of their copyright notice since I copied it from their web side.


Anyway, they comment that due to it's large size and large inlet and outlet ports, the Webb VorMax may not be the best filter option for everyone. They only recommend its use on trucks with heavily modified fuel systems with larger fuel pump and feed lines.


There, I only used part of their words.

 

[Notsdale]

I spoke to Dallas at Webb today http://www.webb-sales.com/ 1-800-728-9322 and he stated that there was no problem installing the filter on a regular pickup truck. In fact he is running the setup on this Dodge pickup. The only major issue is that due to its size, 11 inches tall, it has to set in the cavity between the frame rail and the truck bed. This is in front of the left rear wheel. Several people already mount their filters there anyway. I believe he said the filter is rated at 100 GPH but don't quote me on that. Give Dallas a call if you need additional info.


Specs:
ISO 9001 CERTIFIED
Height:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11"
Depth: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.75"
Width: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9"
Weight (dry) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.15 lbs.
Fuel Ports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1/2" NPT
Fluid Heat Ports:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3/8" NPT
Mounting hole dimension: . . 5.9"

 

[neverenuf]

A little light reading for those who think alcohol is good to put in your DMax. From the GM Techlink Website.





The use of diesel fuel additives is not required or recommended for the 6.5L diesel or the 6.6L Duramax® Diesel engine under normal conditions. The filtering system is designed to block water and contaminants without the use of additives. However, some customers may desire to use fuel additives to improve the characteristics of available diesel fuels.

Water Emulsifiers and Demulsifiers
Fuel additives must be selected carefully. There are two common methods that fuel additives use to cope with water in the fuel.

Demulsification causes water particles to combine together to form larger particles, which drop out of suspension. This allows the fuel filter/water separator to separate the water from the fuel as it is designed to.

Emulsification keeps water particles suspended in the fuel. Alcohol is frequently used as the emulsifier. Emulsification can allow water to get past the fuel filter/water separator, in most cases causing damage to the fuel system.

IMPORTANT: Only alcohol-free water demulsifiers should be used in General Motors Diesel engines. Both Racor® and Stanadyne® diesel fuel additives are alcohol-free and utilize water demulsifiers to cope with water in the fuel. Other brands may be available in different areas. Before using them, be sure they clearly state that they are alcohol-free demulsifiers.

 

[hoot]

GM also approved the OEM filter that we have all pretty much agreed is hazard to the fuel system.

 

[neverenuf]

Hoot


They did come with a Racor that many believe is not adequate for the application. I never heard GM say that adding a supplemental fuel filter WOULD cause damage to the system. The above is written as a warning about using alcohol as an emulsifier in the fuel. It is obvious that somewhere along the line, whether in testing or in the real word, an alcohol based emulsifier did cause damage to the injectors, and if used has the potential to damage the fuel system. Why would anyone go out on a limb and go specifically against this warning? GM has nothing to gain by putting out false or poorly thought out information. They recommend two different brands of diesel additives they know are safe to use, none of which are produced by GM. Let me ask you this, If GM specifically said not to use Dextron II ATF as it would cause damage to the tranny, would you use it anyway just because you thought it might be better than the C4 ATF that they recommend and is proven safe?

 

[Son of a gun]

I just spoke with Dallas a Vormax. Their filter is set up to catch 10 microns. He thought they could build one that took the Racor or Cat 2 micron filter. He was going to talk to the engineers and get back to me.


I have used vortex systems for years to gatch sediment in water drawn from a lake for irrigation. They absolutely work as advertized on small bits of sand and gravel moving at very high velocity (2" line 3 HP 220V pump). I would assume that one would work to some degree on smaller stuff too as long as the vortex action spun it fast enough to slam it down into the collection bowl.


I like the looks of their unit, the guage for fuel flow, and the bowl. I'll post what he comes back with.


Bob

 

[Son of a gun]

Dallas says they have a 2 micron filter that will fit this unit. I am going to give this filter a try and will post my progress.


Bob

 

[Chalie]

Dear Forum (New member) I'm waiting on my GMC 2004 d/a which I ordered on 9/31/03 dealer says build date is thanksgiving week, and deliverly date is 2nd. week in december. Is there any way I can track this on the computer, my neighbor remembers years ago when you could do such a thing. As you can tell I chomping at the bit to take deliverly, I sold my trouble free 95 suburban to have the deposit ready for the d/a and currently driving a 92 gr.am with 195,000 mi. in which I been nursing along. If no way to track has anyone else been told the wait will be this long??


Thanks





ThanksEdited by: Chalie

 

[flhrciblueice]

Dear Forum (New member) I'm waiting on my GMC 2004 d/a which I ordered on 9/31/03 dealer says build date is thanksgiving week, and deliverly date is 2nd. week in december. Is there any way I can track this on the computer, my neighbor remembers years ago when you could do such a thing. As you can tell I chomping at the bit to take deliverly, I sold my trouble free 95 suburban to have the deposit ready for the d/a and currently driving a 92 gr.am with 195,000 mi. in which I been nursing along. If no way to track has anyone else been told the wait will be this long??


Thanks





Thanks

howard_m18 is the man to track your vehicle for you. He kept me informed on mine as soon they had it assembled. Picked it up 2 days ago. Thanks howard!

He lurks around here quite a bit, so he will probably chime in.

 

[Chalie]

Thanks, flhrciblueice I've seen Howards name mentioned before on some other posts, does he work for G.M.


All the best with your new purchase.