Oil & Fuel Fuel Filter

[McK]

Hello all; my 1st post here, but have been reading the boards for about 6 months. WOW, what a big help this sight has been. Started reading in Mar, bought a tractor in Jun & I am very pleased /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif. I bought a 4210 w/FEL, Backhoe, 72"MMM, & 50" Tiller /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif.

Anyway to my question:

I am coming up on a 50 hour service & the operator's manual is not requiring a change of the fuel filter. However, the guy at the JD store indicated that it was important to change this out. The cost is minimal at less than $5.00 for the filter. I would just like to know if any of you change it out other than what is prescribed by the manual & if so how often do u replace it /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif?

I Love my country live now /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif!
McK

 

[jrlichina]

Replacing it more fequently than what the manual indicates is not a problem, especially for 5 bucks. More frequent replacement is related to the quality of fuel you are getting. The diesel could be old with lots of bacteria, stored in old tanks so may contain more water and other debris. You be the judge, I tend to change filters/fluids more fequently because it is cheaper than repairing the damage that could result from a failed or clogged part.

 

[Crabgrass]

I did the 50 hour service on my 4400 a few months ago. I recall that the manual said to check the "red donut" in the fuel filter and make sure it's not floating. If it was floating it indicated that there was water in the filter.

Sounds reasonable, but I never saw any red anything in the filter. It was fairly clear plastic so there was no debris, but also certainly no donut. Anybody know what it was talking about?

 

[joecdeere]

there should have been a red plastic ring in the fuel bowl.
It starts to float when water is present in the bowl. Many people end up throwing it away as they dump their bowls out.

 

[rmonio]

How do you replace the filter without making a mess? Unscrew the "jar", remove the filter, replace it, and then rescrew the jar back to the unit? Or is there a defined procedure for doing this?

Thanks!

-Bob

 

[Egon]

If possible place a pail under the fuel filter to catch any spills. This may not be possible due to layout.

Wear a pair of light rubber gloves like used for dishwashing to keep the durned stuff off your hands.

Have a rag handy to wipe up.

And know how to bleed the injection system before starting if it is not done automatically.

Egon

 

[rmonio]

Egon -

Thanks for the reply - since the manual doesn't talk about it (other than to say - "replace it"), I'm wondering if there is a documented procedure anywhere for changing the fuel filter on a 4600. Anyone know?

-Bob

 

[BRUSHTAMERS]

My local dealer says if the filter is dark,replace it.Haven't had any fuel related problems in 1380 hours. I live in a wet climate
and always find water in the bowl, but have yet to notice the red ring floating. As far as replacement itself,I have yet to find a way not to make a mess. I park over a weed so that the fuel that misses the bucket will at least kill the weeds. when everything is tightened back up I spray it with degreaser and rinse to cut down on stuck dust.

 

[rmonio]

I picked up a filter a couple of weeks ago and finally got around to replacing it the other evening. The process was straight-forward and simple - word of warning, though... wear rubber gloves as you get a full jar of diesel fuel (off-road, no less, for me) and you need to dispense of it without it getting on your hands. My filter was a bit dirty and I'm glad I changed it out - it was a simple process and I would encourage you to take the time to do it (even at 50 hours). It was about 10 minutes and $5 for the part.

Good luck and thanks for the support/info, folks!

-Bob