Fuel water separator recommendation

[kenfyoozed]

I need to purchase a fuel water separator for my fuel system install on my 26D. I see ebay and amazon have many that are inexpensive, but would they be a good choice? They seem to be Racor knockoffs. What do you use? Which would your recommend for use or to shy away from?

[Russ]

I recently installed this one.
I has "Raycor" stamped on the housing. Some others have poor reviews and are apparently knock-offs.

New out of the box, the filter was torqued on so hard I almost couldn't unscrew it. Had to bolt the thing to a board and attach a filter wrench and apply what felt like way too much torque to remove it. Then I applied a bit of oil to the gasket and screwed it back on.


https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000AXT9M

[kenfyoozed]

I wanted to save a little $$ but i don't think this is the place to skimp. Im looking at the 120R-RAC-01. Its smaller than the version Russ posted as it only rated for 30GPH. But for my 9.8 outboard that should be plenty, if not overkill.

[Russ]

I wanted to save a little $$ but i don't think this is the place to skimp. Im looking at the 120R-RAC-01. Its smaller than the version Russ posted as it only rated for 30GPH. But for my 9.8 outboard that should be plenty, if not overkill.

Agreed. Not a place to skimp.

That one looks nice and a bit cheaper

[kenfyoozed]

Do you think it would be ok to mount in the motor well, open to the elements? I would like to mount in the laz, it will be fully vented with blower, but removing the filter IS going to leak fuel into the laz which I would like not to happen.

[Russ]

I've seen these Raycors mounted externally. That's where mine is.

[Highlander]

Here,s where I installed mine on my










Mine is the smaller one as well & I keep a spare filter on board
BTW I believe it's illegal to install this one internally u have to get the one with the steel fuel drain bowl !
J

[Starscream]

Reactivating a dormant thread:

With my increasing difficulty in finding non-ethanol fuel, my upcoming Bahamas plan and long-term winter storage with a new motor, I decided to add a fuel filter & water separator. While doing so I'm also going to add a three-way selector valve to switch tanks on the fly.

Filter will be mounted on the aft starboard side, just behind the starboard fuel tank.

The existing fuel line and primer bulb from the motor to the tanks will not be touched. I'm going to remove one existing 1/4" threaded male tank fitting, and attach that directly to the outlet of the fuel filter (using fuel-rated teflon tape, the orange one). That way the existing 3/8" barbed female tank fitting that's in the current motor supply line will clip right into the fuel filter outlet.

Then I'll install two new 1/4" threaded male tank fittings, on on each tank. Two hoses, each with a matching 3/8" barbed female tank fitting, will run over to a three-way valve. I'm not thrilled about sourcing this valve on Amazon, but it says its fuel-rated and I am having a hard time finding a true marine-quality one at any CDN marine store. Any recommendations about where to source a real valve would be appreciated.

I'll try to mount the valve inside the port fuel locker with the surface mounting bracket I found on Amazon. Hopefully that will hold the valve solidly so that the tanks can be switched on the fly. The outlet of the three-way valve will go directly to the inlet of the fuel filter, through a 3/8" barbed fitting. The 2nd inlet and outlet of the filter housing will be plugged with the supplied blank plugs.

There will be a run of hose going from the port tank into the starboard locker that I'll try to keep out of the way by running it along the corner-edge of the aft "step". Hopefully the kids'll keep their big feet off it, but if I do it right it should be less of a bother than when I have the current fuel hose and primer bulb attached to the port tank.

Parts list, excluding some stuff that I've already got in "stock", like fuel hose clamps:

[kurz]

I installed my fuel filter separator inside the OB. So it is nowhere in the way.

IT is one of the smallest, and the filters are quite cheap!
It is on the original place like the original one, but a little bit higher. It works perfect for some years now.
Also I change the fuel lines of the mercury 60hp, so I had thicker lines to use real clamps (not yet on the photo).

Works fine for me.
Never had water in the fuel yet.

Se Pic:

[OverEasy]

Hi Kenfyoozed!

Here’s what we use:





It has done great for us over the past several years.
Small, compact, easy to use with more than excess flow capacity.
We currently operate with a Suzuki DF60AV (60hp 4-Stroke) engine and previously with a Tohatsu 50 (50hp 2-Stroke) engine.
More than sufficient fuel filter flow rate (by multiples) for either engine.
An important thing to remember is to change out one’s fuel filter annually.
It’s a standard product and is available from multiple sources such as West Marine (and others.)

Mod to Fuel System (Selector/Filter/Regulator/Primer) for Dual Fuel tank
https://macgregorsailors.com/mods/index ... em&id=2156

Best Regards,
Over Easy

[Starscream]

Mod to Fuel System (Selector/Filter/Regulator/Primer) for Dual Fuel tank
https://macgregorsailors.com/mods/index ... em&id=2156

Best Regards,
Over Easy

Thanks for that O.E. I didn't even know about the fuel demand valve, and had to research it. My tanks are the older style, with vented caps, so I don't believe my system needs one. Would you happen to have more photos of your filter assembly and setup? The one in the mod section gives me a general idea but it's hard to follow exactly what you did in that photo.

I ordered my 3 way valve from Amazon, which always makes me nervous about quality and longevity. Can you share details about your selector valve?

[OverEasy]

Hi StarScream!

Glad you found it useful!

The fuel selector was ordered from Wholesale Marine but is available from other suppliers as well.
The one we selected has two holes for mounting which simplified our system as it was wanted just one valve to contend with and for it to be above the rear gunwale to be visible and easily accessed from the helm seat. (Comes in handy when one is running one tank dry to make the change over quickly.) The valve handle is set up so it points to the tank in use (Port side or Starboard side).
This fuel selector has a third port ( currently plugged) that provides a centered ‘shut-off’ position which is handy to prevent any chance of having a tank attempting to send fuel to the engine due to thermal expansion when the vent is closed.
It also provides us a simple means to retrofit in an additional fuel line for a third auxiliary fuel tank(s) for extended trips (such as a extended ICW trips or to the Bahamas maybe? ).

I’ll try and get a better photo of our fuel panel when I get back to the boat this week.
I’ll also make up a schematic to add to this post.

Meanwhile here’s a description of our fuel system routing: ( correction 05/10/2024 )
> Basically each tank supply line runs to the fuel selector valve to the FPV
> From the Fuel Pressure (Limiter) Valve (FPV) or demand valve the fuel is then routed to the fuel filter
> from the fuel filter/separator then routes through the common primer bulb.
> Output from the primer bulb then routes to the engine

We did away with any quick disconnects (QD) on our current system for a couple of reasons.
1st is our system is relatively permanent as I’m not schlepping 12 gallon fuel tanks (at roughly 72 lbs each) in/out of the boat.
2nd is the QDs act as a flow restriction and add a potential point of leakage (something else to go awry, especially over time)
3rd is double ended shut off QDs (so fuel doesn’t leak from either the tank side or the engine side when disconnected) are hard to find that are large enough to avoid a restriction which also adds complexity and cost to the system for very little practical benefit in our application (other individuals have different needs and/or considerations they want to address).
4th is we are fortunate in that we have the options of refueling not only at the marinas but have several gas stations (on land) to choose from where they are set-up to handle our on-board refueling needs.

We chose to mount the system on its own PVC board to make putting it all together easier (on a work bench) allowing for a more compact layout while also simplifying installation to the boat (considerably fewer boat holes) while also allowing it all to be more robust.

Best Regards
Over Easy

[Starscream]

Meanwhile here’s a description of our fuel system routing:
> Basically each tank supply line runs to the fuel selector valve.
> The output from the fuel selector then routes through the common primer bulb.
> Output from the primer bulb then routes through the Fuel Pressure (Limiter) Valve (FPV) or demand valve.
> From the FPV the fuel is then routed to the fuel filter and then to the engine.

Question on the primer bulb location: does it make a difference that it's on the tank side of the demand valve? Wouldn't the demand valve stop the primer bulb from getting gas all the way to the motor, or does that not matter?

I hate those quick disconnects too. I wouldn't use them either, except I like that the tanks are removable. My current system of changing tanks manually involves spattering some gas from the quick connect as I move it from side to side, which I absolutely hate. The 3-way valve will be a nice add, especially when changing tanks in rough conditions.

Always interesting to see what influences everyone's design decisions.

[C Buchs]

I hate my quick disconnects also. The ones I have leak a little fuel when you remove them, too. They are also really hard to get on and hard to tell if you have them all the way on. It sucks to have the engine quit, struggle with swapping, pump the bulb, crank the engine, and not have it start. Then check everything to find that the quick connect isn't all the way on. So far we have been drifting in places where we haven't hit anything, but if this happens while we're docking, we're screwed. My other fear is that this happens when I'm not available. I know the struggle and my wife is starting to figure it out, but she always gives me the "this needs to be fixed" look.

This https://www.westmarine.com/west-marine- ... cts__en_US 1/4 inch valve from West Marine is only $37, but I think my fuel lines are 3/8 inch. This https://www.westmarine.com/moeller-3-8i ... cts__en_US 3/8 inch valve is $57. See how easy it is to start putting together another parts list for another boat project!

Jeff

[Be Free]

Permanent tanks and a fuel switch are on my mid-range mods list as well. My first overnight and first tank swap resulted in the quick disconnect disintegrating in my hand about 3 miles offshore. I was able to find all of the parts and put it back together well enough to get through the next couple of days. The tanks and connectors went through a major redesign when I returned.

Absent a quick and reliable way to switch tanks you could swap tanks early to make sure you are already on the full(est) tank before you get into an area where running out of fuel may be dangerous (or just embarrassing).