Removing Emulsified Water from Diesel Fuel

[PANorth]

I had about four gallons of cloudy diesel in a jug that I did not want to put in the tank but did not want to throw away. I assumed the cloudiness was caused by emulsified water. What to do? In my research of solutions I came across a product that claimed it could remove emulsified water from diesel fuel. I don't recall where I saw mention of this product. It is called Aquafighter. It is made by a Norwegian company and distributed by Conidia Bioscience of the UK. Given the never ending issue of water in diesel I decided to try it. I ordered a single "finger". Below are pictures of a quart of my cloudy diesel initially and in 24 hour intervals for three days. You can see that the finger cleared the cloudiness from the diesel in the jar. I am in the process of trying a second quart to see how far a single finger will go.

I bought the product from Santie Oil Company. Be aware of the way they have their webpage set up. It looked to me like you get a plastic holder and five "fingers" for $62. It turns out they are only selling the holder and a single finger for that price, which with shipping and tax totaled $88. The five fingers shown in the add are available separately. Their original shipment was timely. Initial customer service was friendly and helpful. But they did not call back after I requested the other five parts shown in the add. Mysteriously, the customer service agent was never at his desk when I called.

The Conidia site has information that suggests a "snake" of Aquafighter can keep a 25 to 125 gallon tank clear of water for a year. That is how I interpret the information they provide but don't quote me on that. The snake sells for $40.50 from Santie Oil Company. I am willing to pay that annually to keep my fuel water free and reduce the risk of corrosion in my fuel tank. I certainly don't want to go through repairing a leaky tank again. They warn not to go sailing with the snake in the tank.

 

[Elgyn]

Fight the diesel bug before it can start

 

[Prairie Schooner]

. . . They warn not to go sailing with the snake in the tank.

How would that work, in practice? It would be too much of a pain to take it out for each sail, in season. I could see leaving it in over the winter storage on the hard, Nov-April+ for us. I'd have to open one of the inspection ports to put it in the tank. It would be a royal mess to pull out. Slop it into a bucket? Would the "plastic holder" serve for this purpose? Do they have a plan for how one would use the thing during an active sailing season? It's interesting.
Thanks for documenting the experiment. There's definitely an improvement.

 

[PANorth]

I think the idea of overwintering with this in the tank is the practical one. Starting each season with dry fuel sounds good. In on-line You Tube videos they show the "Snake" or "Finger" going down the filler tube. That would not work in my boat because it's not a straight shot. I thought about adding a more easily removed opening to my tank than the sealed cover. With access I think I could take it out without making a mess. We sail all year as weather permits, so the point of having to remove and add back is well taken. But I could see a couple weeks or month of removing water from the fuel could be worth it once a year. It could certainly prevent short and long term problems.