Hey guys, thanks for the replys. I had sort of lost this thread, used the quick reply and did not realize that it operated different. Just found it again.

 

Diesel fuel by nature is an oil vs gasoline which is a solvent, in order for it to flow at different temperatures it also must be thinner just like motor oil. Just like motor oil it also loses some of it's lubricating properties as it gets thinner -aka molecular tightness decreases therefore less power when ignited in a vaporizes form. In Canada fuel is seasonally blended automatically as per average ambient temperature preplanned to prevent gelling. Lower fuel milage is accepted in favor of the problems of roadside breakdowns and worrying about fuel delivery problems. Most oil companies participate in product reciprocity programs due to things like storage, inbound supply(crude oil supplies) and shutdowns-planned or unplanned refinery production problems. Geography also plays a part in this as not every oil company has a refinery or oil supply where needed so they negotiate and buy or trade supply in these regions. Fuels are rated by approximate numbers where they will stop flowing eg; P20-25 summer, P30-35 spring and fall blend, P40 winterfuel and P50 arctic/ stoveoil. Different refineries have different fuel colors Esso Strathcona Edmonton greenish color like anti- freeze, PetroCanada Edmonton yellowy-brown and the old and scrapped Turbo at Balzac came out like the color of water. Water in the fuel comes from temperature changes at the refinery (condensation) hot manufactured fuel entering storage tanks and then fuel being drawn off the bottom of tank to supplier- pipeline or truck. Condensation being formed by high temperature differences in truckloading storage (internal tank condensation/metal tanks) either by major changes in weather or hot fuel from pipeline coming into tank. Condensation can also be created by parking vehicles in heated garages or parking facilities. Gelling or "waxing" is caused by the paraffin (aka wax) in fuel when it can no longer remain in a liquid form (freezing) which happens at a higher temperature than the fuel oil therefore the use of anti-gelling agents and fuel conditioners. The question is there a difference in diesel fuels, YES and it directly relates to the refining process and the technology in the plant. Do you have the abilty to buy from the supplier you want, not normally due to the fuel stock buying and trading programs of the oil companies. In some cases in Canada you would only be buying from one refinery no matter what the name on the pumps due to geographical location, however the additives as per brand are injected at the loading terminal when loading the trucks. Marked fuel is also injected or dipped in case of injection failure at the loading terminal along with any water if tank levels are to low. Fuelling at any station at the time of delivery or just after stirs up water and contaminants and is pumped into your vehicle unless the pump filters catch it all. High volume stations always have better fuel unless poorly maintained and have more recent blends available. Sorry to be so long winded but this is a simple explanation for a complicated problem we all deal with, personally I buy at high volume stations with the best price. I use a fuel conditioner and change filters twice a year. PK

 

Brother, can I get a paragraph? Amen!

I have just one question about fueling just after the tanker drops: When you pull in and see that there is no tanker unloading, do you go in and ask the clerk when the tanker left? It may have just left two minutes ago.

I don't worry about it.

 

Has the quality of No. 2 Diesel gotten worse or is it just me?

 

I've been reading with interest all these posts about No. 2 diesel available at the service station pump. You say above, the additives are added at the distribution site as the trucks are filled. What about the No. 2 diesel that gets put in my heating oil tank? Does it get any additives? I buy No. 2 fuel oil from a BP distributor and during the winter months he adds a small amount of kerosene (at the house site) to reduce winter time waxing/gelling which works well.
For 20 years we've been drawing fuel from the furnace tank to fill the tractor. In 2000 we did a complete engine rebuild and had the tractor tank flushed professionally because it had some "sludge" in the fuel cut-off-valve screen along with the two fuel filters. I replaced the old fuel can with a yellow poly can at that time to avoid adding sludge back into the tank. Last week the tractor broke down when one of the filters became stopped up again more of that black sludge.., resembles thin asphalt. I realize the tractor sits 60% of the time so I don't fill the tank but only half-full and have never needed additives until now. It seems to me and my tractor dealer, and others I've asked, we're having more fuel system problems on farm equip the past couple of years. Is it that way all over the country or are we getting more dirt in our fuel just on the east coast.

 

I talked to a couple of tanker drivers around here. Found a station or two that pump straight #2 and several that are using mix which is up to 40% kerosene. How about that for the injection pump. Some stations add an additive like Flying J does. Kerosene and Number 1 come out of the same tank so around here is the same fuel. Wonder if there is some test kit that you could check the fuel with.

 

The black you're seeing is most likely asphaltines, a normal constituent of all diesel fuel caused by uncracked or damaged molecules left over from the refining process. It's occurrence is impossible to predict, some batches of fuel are worse than others.
More here
http://www.hastingsfilter.com/engineering/tsb_95-1.html

 

Thanks for the link Infidel. Sounds suspicious alright, but why is it happening more often now as opposed to say 5 years ago as we seem to think in my neck of the woods? Perhaps my heating oil distributor has changed his source, I'll ask him. If it all comes out of the same tanks the problem has to be happening downstream of the refinery right?

 

natstayl, I think at times the refiners get lazy, greedy or both and just don't do a good job of cleaning up their fuel. I went though a period last Aug where several guys brought me their trucks with asphaltine plugged filters, all had bought fuel in the same general area but not the same stations.

 

I think it also depends on the type of crude which is refined. My understanding is that some crude is the color and viscosity of honey and other more like asphalt.

jr