Fuel/Water Separater Question..

[Seafever]

Yamaha, on their site, says that ALL their 4-stroke outboards should have one.

I don't run Yamaha but I do run 4-strokes.

However....mine connect to portable gas tanks (the newer pressurized tanks). The tanks come off the boat when I get home.

Have you personally rigged that type of filter to a portable system with the newer-type tanks?

If so ..what brand? How did you install?

 

[scott craven]

I don't believe a water separator is required on portable tanks.
at least I have never used one.

 

[Seafever]

Makes me wonder why Yamaha would say that.

 

[trophywife]

Makes me wonder why Yamaha would say that.

redundancy

 

[turbomack]

Get yourself a small Racor and mount it inline. I think you would be crazy not to run a water seperator, I have one for my 9.9 and on my main engine the fuel goes through 3 water seperating filters before it hits the injection pump. No engine , with the exception of steam engines , run well on water.

 

[wolf]

YES definitely on any tank for the price of it it can save your butt big time if you get any water in a portable tank in tank etc ,portables sometimes are worse with that little air vent on top in pissing rain water can and will get into it, spraying down boat etc.
we switched out all our lodge boats with portable tanks when we got a bad batch of fuel get a racor with the clear end on it and drain .you can see if water is filling up in it and you can just drain it off.

last thing is motor dieing when your beside rocks and it wont restart , SAFETY first. yes its gonna be about 60 to 80 buck kinda cheap really for the investment of a boat.....

 

[scott craven]

I guess we have 2 completely different opinions here.
my portable tanks store under the well where they are not exposed to rain or slop.
never a problem, but I can see the merit in some instances.

 

[Corey_lax]

I have a Mercury water/fuel separator for my two large portable tanks that power the main (johnson 115 2 stroke). My large tanks are also under cover in the transom. My kicker is Honda 9.9 fourstroke so no mix gas so it just gets fuel straight from a 12L portable tank. No fuel filter for the kicker but that tank gets fresh fuel every trip.

 

[Alex_c]

One thing to keep in mind is that with ethanol mixed fuels, the ethanol is hydrophilic meaning it will mix with water. Over time the ethanol can absorb moisture from the air. Once saturated, something called phase separation happens where the water and the fuel separate with the lighter fuel on top of the water. This is why I run a racor on my boat. Even if you have new gas, there's no guarantee that water hasn't mixed with the ethanol yet. Using fuel stabilizer helps as well as using ethanol-free gas (which you can't get everywhere) but the fuel water filter is pretty cheap insurance.

 

[Rockfish]

New large outboard $25,000 plus, high end full remote kicker $4000. plus, a quality external fuel filter/water separator $100. each. Do the math.

Don't forget the filter separators with the clear plastic bowls are for outboards only.
If you have an inboard and the filter/separators are going in the motor compartment you need the separator with the metal bowl for fire resistance.

 

[ziggy]

I just took my new Yamaha kicker in for servicing and told the mechanic I had some cold starting issues and that it tended to almost stall and then over rev. He asked if I ran marked gas and I replied I did and he said that the dye was likely fouling the carb.
My boat is moored year round so I gas up at the fuel dock. Apparently this isn't the greatest place to get clean fuel. I currently have a fuel filter on the supply to the main but now I'm thinking a fuel water separator for the main and a separate one for the plumbed in kicker may be in order.

 

[bones]

A separator will not remove dye in the fuel tho.....so you would spend time and money and be in the same place. May I ask what you paying a liter for marked fuel? That is the trade off for dyed fuel price.

Separator on a portable why? If there is water or dirt in the tank dont you just tip the last couple liters out? Bang no more water or dirt.

 

[Alex_c]

A separator will not remove dye in the fuel tho.....so you would spend time and money and be in the same place. May I ask what you paying a liter for marked fuel? That is the trade off for dyed fuel price.

Separator on a portable why? If there is water or dirt in the tank dont you just tip the last couple liters out? Bang no more water or dirt.

The pickup tube is located at the bottom of the tank, which is where the water and dirt reside.

 

[ziggy]

A separator will not remove dye in the fuel tho.....so you would spend time and money and be in the same place. May I ask what you paying a liter for marked fuel? That is the trade off for dyed fuel price.

Separator on a portable why? If there is water or dirt in the tank dont you just tip the last couple liters out? Bang no more water or dirt.

Works out to cost about the same as a mid grade gas. The reason I use it is because that's all the Marina sells. It I trailered I would have of course ,other options.

 

[bones]

It's actually cheaper because of the lack of road tax. To stop one from putting in there car every morning its marked. A separator will not remove this. You would be wasting time and money imo putting one on for this reason

 

[bones]

However....mine connect to portable gas tanks (the newer pressurized tanks). The tanks come off the boat when I get home.

Have you personally rigged that type of filter to a portable system with the newer-type tanks?

The pickup tube is located at the bottom of the tank, which is where the water and dirt reside.

But there portable tanks so cant you just keep a liter of gas in it and turn it upside down before putting fresh fuel in?

 

[Rockfish]

I also use only the marina fuel dock gas. As I understand it, it is mid grade, is pure - no ethanol and marked. No choice really as the boat is in a slip and the marina operator does not allow you to bring fuel down to your boat in fuel cans and can't say I blame them. It would be a real pita given the amount of fuel a larger sport boat goes through and subject to small spills, although there are lots who are in marinas without fuel docks who do it. Not sure on the dye issue causing problems with small carbs. Some say it is an issue and some say it is a myth. Clean out your carb/motor with Seafoam now and then. As for cost marina marine gas should be cheaper without the road tax but from what I have seen in recent years in practice not so much and you need to compare mid grade marine to mid grade road gas.

 

[79 Jimmy]

As far as marked gas fouling a carb, I'm in the its a myth camp. If i just ran day tanks and filled them with car gas I wouldnt worry about a water filter. Marine fuel that doesnt turn over as often where condensation/water in the storage tank is more of an issue, I for sure run a water filter. I find that marked or unmarked mid grade is just about the same price so bingo, the road tax becomes profit for the marine fuel docks. Thats the way she goes....

 

[ziggy]

It's actually cheaper because of the lack of road tax. To stop one from putting in there car every morning its marked. A separator will not remove this. You would be wasting time and money imo putting one on for this reason

Well as I understood it it was essentially supposed to be the same cost for marked mid grade as non marked Regular grade. However after the marina markup I don't think you are getting that sweet of a deal. Last fill it was at 1.31, which was more than reg at the pump.
I agree regarding the filtering of the dye which begs the question does it really cause carb problems? That to me would make no sense?

 

[N2013]

Yamaha, on their site, says that ALL their 4-stroke outboards should have one.

I don't run Yamaha but I do run 4-strokes.

However....mine connect to portable gas tanks (the newer pressurized tanks). The tanks come off the boat when I get home.

Have you personally rigged that type of filter to a portable system with the newer-type tanks?

If so ..what brand? How did you install?

Racor filter. I keep my portable, newer pressurized tank, on board while my boat's at home. Have had zero issues except sheering off the filter one time while on the water. Long story but lesson learned. I'll drain a couple times a season, usually just get a little speck of something, zero water. Plan for the "what if's.."