I've Never Heard Of This Before

JohnS1970 · Mar 9, 2012

Was down parked on the side road this morning checking that a catch basin grate was clear when a neighbour came along and stopped. We got talking about a number of things such as early spring thaw, land prices, etc. etc. In the course of our talk we got talking about diesel fuel. At one time he was running colored diesel in his pickup until someone told him he wouldn't want to get caught with that in his tank so he began using clear diesel in the trucks. He claimed when he switched to clear he would get 15-20% more mileage on a tank of fuel in both of his pickups (both 5.9 Cummins Dodges). I have never owned a diesel pickup and I'm certain this guy is a straight shooter who wouldn't feed me a line. I understand everybody out there are law-abiding citizens who would have no anecdotal experience with this but I always thought the only difference in on and off-road diesel was the dye. Is there somthing I'm missing or don't know?

Roy Ward · Mar 9, 2012

Oil verses Ethanol

bill mart · Mar 9, 2012

I thought they were the same too. bill

CTucker · Mar 9, 2012

The farm pump didn't measure gallons the same as the gas station pump.

Roy Ward · Mar 9, 2012

Try running it in a tractor, the ethanol will dry up every O-Ring in the pump. $1000.00 pump rebuild. Farm diesel or dyed has more oil less ethanol. The newer trucks, they say will handle it (They Say).

RodinNS · Mar 9, 2012

Depends....
The reality in this world is that one really has NO idea what the oil company is selling you for offroad diesel. It might be furnace oil. It might be furnace oil cut with kerosene. It might be diesel fuel that simply has die added.
There is a significant difference between furnace oil and diesel... mainly in the additive package (cetane improvers, etc.) but also the fact that furnace oil does NOT have the sulphur removed while diesle does...
Generally the removal of the sulphur takes with it something like 2% or more of the BTU content of the fuel so you will see a reduction in fuel economy with ULSD.
In this case... your friend may have gotten died furnace oil cut with kerosene or simply a winter grade of fuel and he's been using that up and is comparing that to a heavier grade of summer blend of pump diesel. The summer fuel WILL give better economy.
There are many plausible explanations for the scenario you present...

Rod

barnE · Mar 9, 2012

Run heating oil for 19 cents a gallon in 62 Mercedes Benz 190 diesel years ago. Never seemed to hurt anything. Dave

JohnS1970 · Mar 9, 2012

Yeah, when you start to think about it there can be a lot of variables in the equation. Summer or winter fuel, furnace oil. He did mention an expensive injector pump replacement on one truck, so anything is possible. How do you really know what's in the fuel truck when it enters the yard? Sometimes you have to marvel at how well they do run.

paul · Mar 10, 2012

????????

Ethanol is a gas alterative.

Soybean oil can be mixed with diesel for a bio-diesel.

--->Paul

esfarmer · Mar 10, 2012

It is the exact same diesel just put a dye in the off road fuel as it is loaded on the truck. Thats how it is here on Delmarva. I have been a fuel truck driver for 7 years.

farmerjohn · Mar 10, 2012

That sounds like the most logical explaniation to me.

ericlb · Mar 10, 2012

hes probably right, getting caught with off road diesel on road is a 10,000 fine, right there where they find you , while there is no chemical differance on off road deisel [ if it really is off road diesel] vs on road diesel, a lot of newer trucks have a sight window in the pump which is used as part of the way the amount of fuel flow is regulated, the red dye in off road diesel will make this part go nuts, i had a friend do that, ran off road mexican diesel in his 2010 gm, cost him an injector pump, and chevy would not cover it claiming 'operater abuse' all the red color is is a dye since wherever it was bought the road use taxes were not added to the sale price of the fuel, thats why its cheaper

jim johnson · Mar 10, 2012

esfarmer you can't tell these guys that. I know, I've tried. Remember, the dealer told them different.

Jim

jim johnson · Mar 10, 2012

No you're wrong he's not right. There is NO difference in the diesel other than the dye which does nothing to ANY injector pump. Crap is crap and you have an ample supply.

Jim

jim johnson · Mar 10, 2012

Also getting caught with red diesel is a $1000.00 fine the first time and then it's $10,000 the next time. However if you get caught they will follow you home and check every other vehicle you own which can be determined the second time. So if you get caught be very polite and try and convince them it was a mistake made by someone else because a friend found out all this the hard way. When you're wrong and caught red handed the last thing to do is to tell a bureaucrat what you're going to do. They will consume your whole day even when you tell them how busy you are with harvest, probably especially then.

Jim

Anonymous-0 · Mar 10, 2012

You are right Roy, ethanol is why food prices are high, and why gas prices are high because gas companies aren't selling enough gas, and the reason your car gets poorer mileage and your lawnmower won't start. There is no ethanol in diesel it was the low sulfur that was causing lack of lube in diesel pumps. But you just go ahead and blame all your problems on ethanol I'll keep using it like I have for the last 25 years.

Red Mud · Mar 10, 2012

It is "not" the same diesel, the hiway diesel is a "low sulfur" diesel where the farm diesel went through the refinery without having the sulfur removed. The red dye was added to identify them so the G-men could nail those that misused it. There was talk back when the low sulfur fuel hit the service stations it would trash injector pumps but it never happened. I even ran my diesel truck on jet-A for several years without any pump problems, jet-A is just a better grade of kerosene. Those saying there is no difference in farm diesel and hiway diesel need to do a google search on the difference.

BigMarv1085 · Mar 10, 2012

I too have a diesel pickup. Don't drive it much because of the high fuel prices. Filled up my fuel tank last spring with over the road diesel and put it in my truck and tractors. Both injector pumps on my 2 main tractors started leaking fuel this past fall. I can't explain why, maybe a coincidence.

RodinNS · Mar 10, 2012

I think you need to get with the times... Any product being marketed as diesel today needs to be ULSD (Ultra Low Sulphur Diesel) as it is required for the emission systems on new engines. Offroad engines today mus meet Tier IV Interm and will need to meet the full Tier IV in another year... so everything needs to be ULSD for these engines.
LSD (Low Sulphur Diesel) was a big deal 20 years ago and at that time highway diesel was switched to LSD while ofroad was not required to be switched... although most was.

Rod

Anonymous-0 · Mar 10, 2012

I don't think you can make assumptions as to any of it.

There are so many variables state to state day to day and month to month.

And even at that proving what came from where.

jim johnson · Mar 10, 2012

Red Mud you do not know what you are talking about at all. You believe what you read on the internet all the time I suppose? We haul the fuel and we know what the H is going on.

Jim

to_many_irons · Mar 10, 2012

i was all most 20 years old before i knew gas was not blue .
i all so had friends that did not know ether . lol

oldtanker · Mar 10, 2012

(quoted from post at 17:15:36 03/10/12) Red Mud you do not know what you are talking about at all. You believe what you read on the internet all the time I suppose? We haul the fuel and we know what the H is going on.

Jim

HMMMM, so he isn't suposed to believe what he reads on the internet unless you write it??????

I don't know if there is a difference myself but I think if I really wanted to know I'd try talking to a petrochemical engineer.

Rick

ericlb · Mar 10, 2012

sorry 40 years real life experience with it plus a recipt for 4600 dollars for a new injector pump tell the real story

I've Never Heard Of This Before

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