Scrub-a-Dub
09 August 2014 | St. Georges, Grenada
Lynn
While on the dock, another job Ken wanted to tackle was to clean our fuel and the fuel tank. We have done this before at anchor, and it isn't a problem, but since we are on the dock, it is still a good job to do.
Before leaving Toronto, we installed an access port in our diesel tanks (we had installed an extra one before departing that we have since found a new home for.... it was nice to have for the longer passages). We have heard of, and know, people who have had crap agitated up in their tanks at a bad time and bunging up their fuel systems. We decided that the ability to actually clean the tank out would probably be useful.
First part of the job was emptying out the remaining diesel in the tank. Our suction oil pump was good for this. The first couple of litres were sacrificed to clean out the residual oil in the pump. The rest of it was decanted into our jerry cans, keeping one jerry can empty.
The fuel is then poured from one jerry can to the next through a filter to clear out the water and larger bits of stuff. I stuck my hand into the now empty diesel tank with paper towels to thoroughly wipe down and clean the sides and bottom (I get the job as my arms are a little slimmer and longer than Ken's). There wasn't a lot of stuff in there, as this is the fourth time we have done this in 6 years, but it is still well worth doing it, as some stuff comes up that is better found in the paper towel than in the fuel system, or plugging up the filters..
The diesel than gets put back into the tank. Simple.