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Water in fuel tank

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coryneil

New member
"I have a mercruiser 350 strai

"I have a mercruiser 350 straight inboard. One of my hundred gallon tanks has water in it. When I try to pump water from my fuel line, I can't get any water. But, when I go to take off on top the water, water goes through my fuel line and fills up my filter. I don't know how much water is in the tank. Any suggestions on how to get it out or treatments to remove the water."
 
Siphon the water off the tank

Siphon the water off the tank bottom thru the fill hose or vent hose openings. Use a 3/8" or 1/2" PVC pipe to get to the bottom; cut the tank end of the pipe at 45 deg. and run a hose over the side to another waste tank. Stop when the water no longer comes out.
 
"what is happening is when you

"what is happening is when you accellerate, the water(heavier than fuel) is running downhill to the rear of the tank, where your fuel pickup is. the pickup is normally off the bottom of the tank a bit, so you won't suck the water out when still. do as Guy suggests to get to the bottom of the tank. if you can lift the front, or sink the rear a little it will help. add a water seperator filter between tank and engine. carry a spare filter, and something to hold used one."
 
"Expanding on what scott says.

"Expanding on what scott says...

Not sure how big your boat is, but you may want to put it on a trailer and use a floor jack to manipulate the angle of the boat on the trailer so the lowest point is the corner where the pickup resides in the tank. You just need to empty the water from the lowest point in the tank. Get creative, but be safe.

With the tank empty and the boat tilted, I might also put a hose on the tank outlet and into a bucket on the pavement outside the boat, plug the vent and blow a little compressed air through the fuel fill to blow out whats left. No pressurizing.

Keep a powder fire extinguisher handy."
 
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