Thread: Back to basics

Ok i thought the Isuzu was a bit down on power as well as rolling a bit of coal, just didn’t feel like it wanted to rev much, just a feeling.
we went to one of our regular beach spots, up the same hill as before at about 10klm slower than usually, at the time I put it down to the heat of the day and we had a bit more on board than usually.

anyway I know my fuel tank gauge is way out and as the tank was getting low as well as still not back at work yet, I chucked a jerry can in the back along with my small toolbox ( that should have had some spanners in it). The idea was to run the tank out, top off then run it out again.
well I run the tank out in the middle of a roundabout, then burnt the starter motor out getting out of the way, then after dumping 20ltrs of fuel in to fined that I had no spanner. in short a wonderful day.

NB 1064 klm on 126 ltrs, 300 klms before the fuel gauge moves and I run out when its showing 1/8th

Ok back to the story, after toping off with bio from staff and now fitted with a new starter motor $650, RCC towage was free. I thought she had picked up a bit more go.
Next day we were on our way back to our beach, same hill but now 10klm an hour faster, cool.

So now im thinking, its only 4000 klm since last service, but what the hell.
the fuel filter had a stringy mass in the bottom of it, about 6mm of the stuff.
Now when I go up my hill im 15klm an hour faster or there about its an 80klm zone so I am now backing off, she also revs smother to the governor.

now I don’t think this stuff will live in Bio, so just to be sure when I got to 1010 klms I drained the tank, and sure enough there was more of the stuff. So I dropped in 5lrs of petrol to sit over night, will drain that and top off tomorrow.

anyway a simple thing but one that is often over looked.

ahhh the beloved diesel snot....

if youve got it there is only 2 ways of completely getting rid of it.

1. the proper diesel snot treatment juice. petrol, meths anything else just doent work it only sort of slows it down by removing the water or the interface in which the snot starts out. Once youve circulated the snot jiuce round drain the tank replace the filters re dose and refill.

2. pull down the entire fuel system and blow the lot out then flush it with a strong antibacterical cleaner, flush with kero then reassemble and rebleed.


The snot is a bacterial/fungal growth that thrives in the fuel/water interface but once established survives in either medium. It generally doesnt get past the filters and kills your engine by blocking up the filters.