Fuel system questions. Clear sticky residue? Plus line fabrication q’s

[Alan]

Hello to all;

Carb interior and bowl filter had a layer of clearish, sticky residue when I opened them up. Float wasn’t operating freely, and the mesh screen in the clear sight glass had enough gunk to partially restrict fuel flow. ’67 80 HP OMC V-4 w/ model E type II carb.

If anyone knows where that came from, and how best to avoid it, please let me know.

Things I will not do anymore.
1. The gas mix was almost a year old, (but was stored in clean, sealed cans). I think I put Sea Foam in when mixed, but am not sure. I’ll only use fresh fuel from now on.
2. The gray fuel lines failed, and the plastic liner from the tank fitting to the primer bulb was collapsed and completely flat when I cut it open for autopsy. One year old.

I did drain the carb after each use last year, pulling both float bowl drain screws. All local fuel has ethanol.

Now, I’m getting ready to fabricate new lines w/ CG approved type A low permeation fuel lines. Do I need to keep those as short as possible, or does length matter that much? I’ll use new fittings, new BRP primer bulbs. Standard lines seem to be about 6′; I’d like to go to about 8′.

Do I need yet another filter? There’s the filter on the tank pickup which I’ve cleaned, and it has the mesh filter in the sight glass.

All suggestions, comments, and advice welcome.
Many thanks;
Alan
Central CA

[bill-m]

I also have one of those grey fuel lines that I got with the Clinton motor I bought. The motor hasn’t been run for 12 years before I started it yesterday. The guy I got it from replaced the original line with one of those grey ones and only ran it a couple of times before putting it away. How often did you use your grey hose before this problem started and what kind of gas were you using? I am very curious to see the responces to your questions as I would like to avoid any such problems.

[chris-p]

Most of that grey fuel line is known to be junk. Most boaters tossed it in the garbage years ago. If you still have some laying around, do yourself a favour and replace it before you get stuck on the water. Not all types, but if you are unsure, better safe than sorry.

I never rely on the tank pickup screen alone, that only stops larger debris. PUt another near the motor, even an inline one in the fuel line. Another 2′ would not be a problem there.

[Alan]

Thanks gents;
I only used the gray line 5 or 6 times.
When I moved it around, I could hear the clear liner crackling inside due to movement.
In an earlier post, a member reported that his friend had purchased the same line, (Atwood, and Wal-Mart) recently, and that he saw no clear liner when he cut into it, to replace the fitting.
I’m not gambling, though, and won’t trust that brand again.
The gas was Chevron regular, (containing whatever additives required by CA, in the summer months).
I went with Shields Marine hose, which looks great, and got good reviews online, (for whatever that’s worth). $4.50 a foot at my local boat store, $30 for 10′ on Amazon.
I’ll go ahead and put inline filters in both of the lines I’ll make. Anyone have any filter types to recommend? Placement; near the motor, or does it matter? There seems to be a lot of debate on fuel filters. Paper vs. plastic mesh elements, etc. All opinions welcome on this.
Very much appreciated;
Alan

[bill-m]

I was wondering if there was any difference between automotive fuel hose and marine fuel hose. Could I use automotive fuel hose or is that a big NO NO?

[dan-in-tn]

That is all I use! Gates hose if I can find it. Just black fuel hose. It won’t last as long in the sun, but when it cracks you will know it’s time to change it anyway.
Anywhere below decks is suppose to be burn proof (certain amount of time) before it burns thru. Coast Guard approved. This is a larger bulky hose. Most of us run open boats that don’t require this, hopefully? I use an OEM primer bulb BRP, Mercury, or Yamaha only. The after markets bulbs are junk! This after market inner liner hose has been around for a long time. It isn’t getting any better from what I can tell. It causes a lot of problems in all applications. If you buy some take the time to take it back! Demand warranty! The manufacter knows it’s junk. They will warranty it. It has been recalled more than once. Just took back 100′ roll where I fell for it again. New & improved! It’s still junk! Silver, blue, all junk! Just my opinion I may be wrong?

Dan in TN

[bill-m]

Thanks Dan, I will pick up some fuel hose from the auto parts store. I would rather replace hose occasionally rather than clean out an entire fuel system. For now I will reuse the primer bulb from the grey hose after making it is clean inside and replace it with a better one when it fails. Thanks again!

[amuller]

For a large motor like that, with multiple complicated carbs, I’d suggest something like this if you have a place to mount it:

https://www.walmart.com/ip/SeaChoice-20 … SellerId=0

You need the bracket, and there are various spin-on canisters. The ones with the clear bowl and drain valve are the best because you can see what’s going on. You might put an inline paper element filter on the engine, preferably after the pump and just before the carbs. Of course, none of this will help if solids or semi-solids polymerize out of the fuel in the carbs, but I don’t think that happens very often.

Not too long ago I went through the carb of a Big Twin. The residue in it I could only identify as sand. It was granular and insoluble in everything I tried. Still puzzled…..

[Author]

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