Priming water-separator fuel filter

[wayneking]

I have a Racor R230 fuel/water separator. The R230 has a manual primer pump which works kind of like the primer pump on a Coleman camp stove. I installed this one a year ago to replace an older version which was leaking. I just replaced the filter element and now have to prime it (yes I filled the filter with fuel as part of the replacement). Priming with the manual primer is really a pain. It takes A LOT of pumping; so much so that I'm wondering if I'm doing something wrong or perhaps should install an electric lift pump. If I go the electric pump route what kind of pump should I be looking at?

 

[Loren Beach]

I have a friend with a sister ship, and his has the factory installed Yanmar 3 cylinder. No electric lift pump like all of the Unverasl's of that era.
Given your situation, I would just put an ordinary electric pump in series with the filter, probably on the intake side. (When I changed from Universal to a Betamarine diesel, I did this just to make priming easier. The Betamarine uses a cam-driven lift pump for fuel.)

 

[Christian Williams]

Yeah, I once counted 100 pumps with an empty filter cannister--ridiculous. But since you already filled the cannister, just try starting the engine. You can bleed off air at the air-bleed knob. I think that's what I used to do.

 

[Prairie Schooner]

I have a Racor R230 fuel/water separator. The R230 has a manual primer pump which works kind of like the primer pump on a Coleman camp stove. I installed this one a year ago to replace an older version which was leaking. I just replaced the filter element and now have to prime it (yes I filled the filter with fuel as part of the replacement). Priming with the manual primer is really a pain. It takes A LOT of pumping; so much so that I'm wondering if I'm doing something wrong or perhaps should install an electric lift pump. If I go the electric pump route what kind of pump should I be looking at?

We replaced our lift pump as part of trying to solve fuel delivery problems. This is what we got and where it lives. It's between the first fuel filter and the injector body. I bought it at NAPA.



The one that came with the boat was the Gold-Flo. This one is the regular, on all the time, model. It works fine.

To prime/bleed I use a hack I learned from Christian. The battery switch is on a short bulkhead next to the chart table, immediately opposite the engine compartment. With the batteries off, I turn on the ignition. Then, squatting back by the engine, I turn on the battery switch to pull/push fuel through the system. It works just dandy.

 

[Pete the Cat]

Yeah, I once counted 100 pumps with an empty filter cannister--ridiculous. But since you already filled the cannister, just try starting the engine. You can bleed off air at the air-bleed knob. I think that's what I used to do.

If you remembered to turn off the fuel to the tank before you changed the filter, this should work--works with my 25XP and my Yanmar 3JH4E. You really can avoid using that pump in most applications. Otherwise it is sometimes a real challenge to fill the line from the tank to the filter if you forget to shut it off. Learned that the hard way.

 

[Alan Gomes]

We replaced our lift pump as part of trying to solve fuel delivery problems. This is what we got and where it lives. It's between the first fuel filter and the injector body. I bought it at NAPA.

View attachment 45216

The one that came with the boat was the Gold-Flo. This one is the regular, on all the time, model. It works fine.

To prime/bleed I use a hack I learned from Christian. The battery switch is on a short bulkhead next to the chart table, immediately opposite the engine compartment. With the batteries off, I turn on the ignition. Then, squatting back by the engine, I turn on the battery switch to pull/push fuel through the system. It works just dandy.

Only downside to this procedure is that you have to listen to the oil pressure buzzer while you are bleeding.

It's quite easy to just mount a SPST switch in the engine bay to just power the pump directly. I installed one with a safety cover that flips up when you want to engage the switch.

 

[wayneking]

I have a friend with a sister ship, and his has the factory installed Yanmar 3 cylinder. No electric lift pump like all of the Unverasl's of that era.
Given your situation, I would just put an ordinary electric pump in series with the filter, probably on the intake side. (When I changed from Universal to a Betamarine diesel, I did this just to make priming easier. The Betamarine uses a cam-driven lift pump for fuel.)

I also have a Betamarine. I gave up on trying to prime the RACOR. I bled the line at the engine filter and tried to start the engine just to see what would happen. Started right up so maybe I didn't need to do all that pumping in the first place. I've let the engine run for about an hour sitting in the slip and it's been fine so far. I cracked the bleed valve on the RACOR (with the engine off) and still did not see any fuel seepage so that makes me nervous that there might still be some air lurking in the line. Basically I want to make sure that fuel is being pulled from the tank and that the engine is not just running off the fuel in the filter. Probably sounds paranoid but that's what was happening (and caused the engine to quit an an inopportune time) prior to replacing the RACOR last year when I finally figured out that the old one had an air leak.

 

[Prairie Schooner]

. . . Probably sounds paranoid but that's what was happening (and caused the engine to quit an an inopportune time) prior to replacing the RACOR last year when I finally figured out that the old one had an air leak.

It doesn't sound paranoid to me.* My limited experience trying to solve fuel problems makes me think it's half Dark Arts and mystery. I think I've solved our fuel starvation problem, but in tinkering with a bunch of things, replacing some, I'm not sure what did it. Or if it's a durable fix. If I'd had time I would have been more scientific, only changing one thing at a time. *Or rather, paranoia sounds like a healthy response to me.

 

[Loren Beach]

I also have a Betamarine. I gave up on trying to prime the RACOR. I bled the line at the engine filter and tried to start the engine just to see what would happen. Started right up so maybe I didn't need to do all that pumping in the first place. I've let the engine run for about an hour sitting in the slip and it's been fine so far. I cracked the bleed valve on the RACOR (with the engine off) and still did not see any fuel seepage so that makes me nervous that there might still be some air lurking in the line. Basically I want to make sure that fuel is being pulled from the tank and that the engine is not just running off the fuel in the filter. Probably sounds paranoid but that's what was happening (and caused the engine to quit an an inopportune time) prior to replacing the RACOR last year when I finally figured out that the old one had an air leak.

Cool. Which model of the Betamarine do you have? And which transmission? Is your engine installed under the galley cabinetry? i.e. midships?
We like our 'new' engine (well, new in 2018).

 

[wayneking]

Cool. Which model of the Betamarine do you have? And which transmission? Is your engine installed under the galley cabinetry? i.e. midships?
We like our 'new' engine (well, new in 2018).

My Betamarine is a 35 with a Technodrive TMC60P transmission. Only 30 hours on it when I bought the boat last year so I have a new engine. Yes, the engine is in the galley. I love that. Makes it pretty easy to work on without being a contortionist