Oil & Fuel New Holland Fuel System Maintenance

[john grabowski]

How often do I need to check/empty my water separator on my New Holland T1510 tractor? What is the easiest way to do this?

[sdkubota]

I assume it has a clear bowl that you can visually see if there is any water in the line. Empty it before it gets up to the filter level which may take years. Normally whenever you change filters you can clean it out. Not sure what the manufacturers recommended fuel filter change interval is but that is a good place to start.

[Jerry/MT]

How often do I need to check/empty my water separator on my New Holland T1510 tractor? What is the easiest way to do this?

It depends somewhat where you are located. If you're in a humid climate and you leave the tank partially full for long periods of time you tend to accumulate more condensate in the tank. Drain the contents into glass jar on a weekly basis and see if you have a lot of water. If you do drain it before every start up. It's particularly critical when the temperatures go below freezing.

[MHarryE]

First, is it a clear bowl where you can see separation? It is still tough for me to see on my Kubota but when the engine dies it is time for servicing. I have a water separator on my transfer tank. The instructions on it say change the element when the fuel flow drops to an unacceptable level. That appended quickly - one tank filled fast and the next tank took forever so I replaced the element and was back to normal. I couldn't see visible water in the clear housing. When my tractor has died due to water I couldn't see any visible difference in the bowl but when I removed the bowl I spilled some fuel on a flat shield on the axle and the water puddled separate from the fuel. That was the only way I was sure my problem was water and not dirt. Over 50 years now working on diesels and I have never clearly seen a line in the separator where I could definitely say this on top is the fuel and this on the bottom is water. Yet I have pictures from some injection pumps with rusty internal parts where enough water has made it past the separator to cause the rust. The best separators I have seen have a water sensor but when I wanted to have them added as standard equipment I got vetoed due to cost.