Is 4 year old diesel fuel any good?

[walnutman]

I let my neighbor borrow my backhoe this spring for some septic work.
When he was done he gave it back with a full tank... nice guy.
Started losing power. Ended up the fuel filter was clogged with mud.
Weird part is I drained the whole backhoe tank. The fuel looked fine.
I'm thinking a mud dauber loaded the filler nozzle with a mud nest and it was the first thing pumped into the tank and first thing into the fuel line.

 

[Gord Baker]

Ask a farm supply if any clients would like to take/buy your old fuel. It is very important to possibly remove the tank and have it super cleaned out. There will be rust.

 

[5030]

Diesel, unlike weasel pee gas don't go bad but it dies get contaminated with external stuff like water (condensation) which promotes akgae growth. If it was mine, I'd dose it with a biocide like Powerservice Bio-Kleen and then pump it out (after sitting for a few days) through a diesel filter like a Golden Rod coalescing unit to remove any dead algae and entrained water and then use it..

Don't be fooled by all the supposed algae removing elixirs for sale out there. If the 'elixer' don't have the Federally required MSDS label attached, it's bogus. It has to (by Federal Law) have the MSDS label attached to it. Only one I have found is Powerservice Bio-Kleen and it's not cheap but it works and it don't take a lot to work either, Just follow the dosage instructions on the bottle.

 

[Geodevos]

A process called "fuel polishing" is done on boats. It's easy to find anywhere near the ocean or lakes and maybe where you are. Boats tend to sit for long periods with large amounts of fuel onboard. I would look into that. Fuel polishers should also dispose of fuel for you if you don't want to save it. The gallons versus the charge to polish it should help you decide. I sure wouldn't risk an expensive repair for a few hundred bucks worth of fuel. Just sayin.

 

[jrsavoie]

Makes a lot of sense. Except 75 gals of diesel is a lot more than $300 here.

Separately, I just acquired a 100 gal storage tank and fill-rite pump and meter. Now I need to figure out how to store fuel and cycle it often enough that it doesn't go bad.

Put at least 2 filters inline. A 20 or 30 micro. With a water trap. And finish with a 2 micron going into your equipment.

One tank I have 5 filters on. A starter, 30 micron and then 2 - 20 microns & 2 - 2 microns in parallel.

Add a lubricity additive and a big killer to every fill

 

[BlueBerryFarmer]

I've seen diesel fuel last much longer than four years ---- case in point is my 1966 JD 2510 which runs just fine on 10 yr old plus diesel (off road).........have many other pieces of equipment that don't get used much and I simply add Sta-bil --- JD 410E backhoe has diesel in it that's about 5 yrs old, fires up just fine. Old Betsy my monster oversized CAT excavator has a mix of diesel fuel in her -- probably average age is 6-7 years.

However, with that being said I would not risk using old diesel in modern, emission controlled diesels with extremely high (oil) pressure injector controls--- Powersmoke 6.0, 6.4, 7.3, 6.7Ls..........ditto Cummins (6.7L) and Duramax..........

It's an entirely different story with gasolines (ethanol based) -- two months to one year is about it (depending on how airtight the fuel delivery system is).........

 

[Jstpssng]

My mother's property has (2) 275 gallon oil drums of what I believe is #2 heating oil which is at least 10 years old, probably older. I just dropped an email to a company which tests "furnace oil", asking if they can determine whether it's usable. I will pass on what they say.

 

[Diesel5000]

Well I would compare it to putting a little sand in your motor oil versus a lot at once which would destroy your motor all at once. It does some damage a little at a time. I operated a facility that had a 2,000 KW generator. We had a 10,000 gallon fuel tank. We had to add algaecide regularly and had a moisture detector in bottom of tank with alarm.
We called in a company to pump the whole contents of the tank through a filtration and water removal system repeatedly until it was clean.
Bad fuel will ruin your fuel system and engine. It’s not worth the cost of damage risk to save the fuel.

 

[Hay Dude]

This ^^^^

 

[Hay Dude]

I let my neighbor borrow my backhoe this spring for some septic work.
When he was done he gave it back with a full tank... nice guy.
Started losing power. Ended up the fuel filter was clogged with mud.
Weird part is I drained the whole backhoe tank. The fuel looked fine.
I'm thinking a mud dauber loaded the filler nozzle with a mud nest and it was the first thing pumped into the tank and first thing into the fuel line.

One thing I have observed over the years is that most Caterpillar equipment has a deep strainer at the opening of the tank. It catches junk like that. If you remove the lid and walk away, a small object like a bug or a leaf can’t fall into the tank. It will be caught by the strainer.
For the cost to repair these fuel systems, ALL diesel equipment should be equipped with a small removable basket strainer at the TOP of the tank in the fuel opening.

This is IMO, the most vulnerable spot for dirt, insects, etc to fall in the tank and cause big problems later.

 

[ray66v]

The quality of diesel fuel varies dramatically.

The fuel I buy, I would not worry. (Premium product from a local trusted agricultural supplier).

The fuel from the average gas station, I would worry.

I had someone once wanting me to fly his airplane, with 65 gallons of 5+ year old fuel in it.

 

[Pecosbill7]

I have about 75 gals of 4 year old diesel fuel and am wondering what I should do with it.

The fuel has been sitting in the fuel tank of a diesel pusher motorhome fuel tank. The fuel tank is 150 gals, or about 1/2 full. The motorhome has been always stored inside an insulated metal building located in a dry climate area.

I don't know if there are any problems with the fuel, and I don't know how I would test it or find out. The motorhome starts and runs fine. But I've read that old diesel fuel can have water or algae in it that clogs filters or does damage. I don't want to do that. Can you help with any ideas?

Here are the options I am considering:

- do nothing and just use it.
- siphon it out, replace with fresh, then slowly use it up/blend it elsewhere by adding small amounts when refueling my tractor.
- siphon it out, use for burn piles (but that's a LOT of fuel for that use!)
- put some additives in it and just use it.

The motorhome engine is a Cummins ISX. It is expensive to work on, even if just buying new filters. So I'd like to avoid causing any maintenance or damage.

Ideas?

Use it for burning brush piles. Maybe for mixing with Remedy to kill mesquite. But don’t put it in an engine and expect it to burn without any issues. It’s just not worth taking a chance.

 

[nyone]

I have been burning home heating oil I bought in march of 2020. My Kubota KH41 dosnt mind and neither does my new holland Tc40. I just changed the fuel filter on my tc40 yesterday because I saw some water at the bottom of the clear bowl. It's been running that fuel and fuel filter for about 200hrs just fine.

You guys are welcome to bring me your few year old diesel fuel.

 

[Hay Dude]

Again, it’s not purely an issue of the age of the fuel.
It’s what may have creeped into the tank while it was sitting (water, algae, rust, etc) that you have to worry about.

It aint the age of the fuel, it’s how & where it was stored.

 

[jd110]

take a sample and have it tested. find out if it is ok.

in 1972 i had 24,000 gal of fuel put in the ground for a generator. it cost 13.5 cents a gallon.
every year it would be tested and once in a while a gallon or two of inhibitor would be poured in the tank.

when i retired in 2003 it was still being used.

Diesel fuel from 1972 was a totally different product than the ultra low sulfur fuel of today. The older fuel was much more stable and had longer shelf life.

 

[Hay Dude]

Diesel fuel from 1972 was a totally different product than the ultra low sulfur fuel of today. The older fuel was much more stable and had longer shelf life.

AND newer injectors are much more sensitive to bad Fuel.

 

[nyone]

Again, it’s not purely an issue of the age of the fuel.
It’s what may have creeped into the tank while it was sitting (water, algae, rust, etc) that you have to worry about.

It aint the age of the fuel, it’s how & where it was stored.

They sell filters for every one of these issues. My fuel is just kept in a heating oil tank outside. I do have a $30 goldenrod filter on my transfer pump. In today's fuel prices $30 is about 6gal of fuel. I have filtered over 70gal per filter.

 

[Hay Dude]

They sell filters for every one of these issues. My fuel is just kept in a heating oil tank outside. I do have a $30 goldenrod filter on my transfer pump. In today's fuel prices $30 is about 6gal of fuel. I have filtered over 70gal per filter.

They do, but would you put a filter in front of old, contaminated fuel, then fuel your expensive tractor up with it?

I wouldn’t.

 

[RjCorazza]

The quality of diesel fuel varies dramatically.

The fuel I buy, I would not worry. (Premium product from a local trusted agricultural supplier).

The fuel from the average gas station, I would worry.

I had someone once wanting me to fly his airplane, with 65 gallons of 5+ year old fuel in it.

So true about potential fuel quality issues from low volume gas stations.
I am just getting over a contamination issue from a local fuel station. Using the same supplier for several years, my tank pump started sucking up dirt, rust, and what appeared to be fine gravel. There was at least 2" of that crap in the bottom of the tank. I got rid of the tank (for other reasons) and started fresh with an aluminum transfer tank, 17u water separating filter followed by a 2u final filter.

 

[nyone]

They do, but would you put a filter in front of old, contaminated fuel, then fuel your expensive tractor up with it?

I wouldn’t.

Old dosnt mean contaminated. This is where a clear fuel filter bowl comes in handy.