Moving to Fl.

[chester613]

WE down sized from a 38' sail boat to a 27 Tug. Now we are 2 years away from moving to SW Fl. and, hopefully, a nice long retirement. I know the cruising grounds are super duper in Charlotte Harbor and we are looking forward to it. Presently I do not have a Racor filter in my boat. The New York weather is quite a bit cooler than Fl. How much does the hot weather effect growth in your diesel fuel? I'm assuming, I should have a Racor filter before I make that move? I do use Biocide every time I get fuel, is that enough?

 

[Sailor of Fortune]

You don't necessarily need a "Racor", but you should have an off engine primary filter of some sort.

 

[FF]

How much does the hot weather effect growth in your diesel fuel?

Not a bit.

WATER in the fuel is where the bugs live.

Use the boat and bugs are seldom a hassle.

Use different brand bug killers each time the can runs dry.

If the fuel use is minor a Baja Filter as you refill, and new O rings on the deck fills is a good help.

Come on down !

 

[HopCar]

Any filter will stop the bio gunk from getting to the engine. What the Racor does that most others don't, is remove water from the fuel before it gets to the engine. To prevent the bio gunk from growing, follow FF's advise including the "Come on down" part.

 

[bayview]

After 18 years in FL I don't think fuel problems are significant if you use the boat and don't allow water to get into the tanks.


I would always want an off engine filter and like racors because of the clear plastic bowl allows me to see the fuel color. OTOH if you just use the boat as is and don't get any bad fuel somewhere you will likely never have a problem unique to FL.

 

[Marlinmike]

If your plan is to cruise the tug on its own hull down to Florida I would highly recommend a very good filtration system and bring plenty of spare filter elements.