water contamination

[Dru]

I've been having a fair bit of water in the petrol lately; the weather doesn't help, I suppose, but even so.... cleaned up the carb on the weekend while up in Wales, drove back to Bristol through the snow, and next time I started up there it was again; loads of water in the carb float bowl. Am I alone in having this prob? Should I be looking at the top of the tank to see if the fuel gauge sender is sealed on nicely?

[Jefftav]

New one to me.

If water was entering the fuel system the car wouldn't run - would it?

Have a look for potential points of corrosiion in the fuel tank that may allow water to enter the system

[bmcecosse]

Long time no hear from you!! You can indeed look at the top of the fuel tank - but hard to see how the water would get up there to then seep into the tank. Look also at the filler tube - is there any way water could run down in there. I have to say - it's most likely you got the water in with the petrol - from a petrol station. It could be an idea to drain the tank...but beware in case the drain plug doesn't want to come out... Another option is to add some meths to the tank - this is miscible with the water and will carry it through and it will be burned. Obviously a limit to how much water a small amount of meths will shift!

[Dru]

Hello again! Yes, I somehow got out of the habit of dropping in here. Must get back into it!

Yes, maybe the tank does need flushing out; the misbehaving started when I ran the tank really low, but it seems to be happening more and more. Symptoms; irregular running and conking out at low revs. Short term remedy: pulling on the choke, gunning the throttle and generally going "Oh f*******!" if it's happening in the middle of a very busy roundabout...

Here's this morning's offering: The first syringe of liquid from the float bowl was about equal parts water and petrol, and then I pumped a few pints through; the stuff from the tank came through slightly opaque white. This is what it looked like after about an hour. (Probably tastes less pleasant than the original liquid in this container )


DSC_1290 by Dru Marland, on Flickr

[bmcecosse]

If water is in the tank it will always come through - since it sits in the base of the tank and will be sucked through no matter really how full the tank is. But that looks like a LOT !! Did you fill up anywhere different to normal? A certain amount of water can collect in the tank from condensation - especially in cold weather. But not that much !!

[Dru]

It all started just after I filled up at a garage on Cribbs Causeway in Bristol; ten minutes later, I conked in a Most Unfortunate Place. Yes, I think I must clean the tank out. I've just been under the car, and confirmed my suspicion that there isn't a drain plug. So looks like a syphon is in order

[bmcecosse]

Just pump out all you can with the fuel pump - then try the meths and a new half gallon of fuel. And don't go back there for fuel....

[Dru]

I decided to empty the tank as best I could: took the filling hose off, and syphoned it out. Crikey!

From the left: one demijohn full of water; one demijohn with an inch of water, some flaky rubbery stuff, and then petrol; one demijohn of clean(ish) petrol.


DSC_1292 by Dru Marland, on Flickr

...hopefully that will solve that problem. But what a lot of water!

[LouiseM]

Blimey It's a good thing you had so many empty cider bottles available

[bmcecosse]

That MUST have come in with the last load of petrol - unless someone has been pouring water in your tank...

[Dru]

Proof positive that drinking cider is good for you, Louise! (Though I was saving them for a friend who presses her own...)

I do wonder where it came from; thinking back, I've had this problem before when I've run low on petrol. Maybe someone poured water in, back before I put the locking petrol cap on. But it's been really bad since that filling-up... oh well, I'll never know, but hopefully that's sorted now.

[LouiseM]

Proof positive that drinking cider is good for you, Louise!

Funny - it always seemed to have the opposite effect whenever I drank it. Must have been the wrong sort of cider!

Aside from the water issue, running really low on petrol isn't a good idea as it results in all the crud at the bottom of the tank being sucked up so better to refill before the petrol gets too low.

[bmcecosse]

I've never been able to understand that theory - the pump always sucks from near the bottom of the tank......

[LouiseM]

Well the theory certainly held true on the one occasion I ran a car (Triumph Herald) on 'fumes' so I wouldn't risk it again.

[Dru]

yes, it doesn't seem to make sense, but that's the way it works for me too, apparently; misbehavin' engine after low fuel level. Mind you, I guess there comes a level of water where it will simply conk out however much petrol you put on top of it

Funny thing with cider; go into one of our local cider pubs and you can spot the cider experts by their purple faces, behind which Mr Brain is no longer at home. On the other hand, there was an octogenarian chap on a farm down in Devon who drank nothing else, and worked from dawn to dusk fortified by the occasional swig from his flagon.... bright as three buttons, he was!

[bmcecosse]

Does the Herald not have an 'emergency' system where you twist the pickup round to suck from the very bottom of the tank if you run out - but normally it sucks from some distance up?? So yes - when turned low it will suck up all manner of crud...

[JOWETTJAVELIN]

Now you mention it I recollect that the Herald does indeed have a gallon reserve somewhere.

It would be good practice to remove the petrol tank each year, examine it and clean it and watch for corrosion to save needing a new tank in the future. Not so much of an issue on the Minor but arguably essential on other cars where items aren't available, as I have found out.

[lambrettalad]

last time i saw that much water was when some lovely chap who had a bad relationship with the world and felt unloved etc

p***ed in my cars tank

I'm sure his mother loved him

[mike.perry]

Louise! [/quote]Funny - it always seemed to have the opposite effect whenever I drank it. Must have been the wrong sort of cider![/quote]

I always mix my cider with Guinness

[JOWETTJAVELIN]

I always mix my cider with Guinness

I believe the technical term for this is sump oil.