Drain diesel

I"m thinking of buying a Ford 861 Diesel Powermaster that has been sitting for 4 years. I"m sure the diesel in the tank has gone bad. How would be the best way to drain all of the diesel, without getting air in the lines? It has a Roosa Master pump, injector.

Diesel doesn't go bad like gas does.
I'll give you ten to one odds that the diesel is still good.
I would change the filter on it and then just run it.

Jay Ultra dog is right you won,t need to drain the disel, just change the filters and go for it. I would be more concrned with water in the engine oil. Might crack the drain plug and see what it looks like there. Also make sure it is in nutrual because the clutch may be stuck.

I'd also say the diesel is still good. Bought a 5000 a few years ago that had sat at least that long, and the diesel in its tank was still good. Might want to open the valve a bit with the filter off, before installing the new filter, to make sure there's no water in the fuel as well. And you'd probably get air in the lines, no matter how you went about draining it.

Probably the easiest way would be to just open the air bleed on the diesel filter housing, and let the old fuel drain out. It might get messy, so you would want to be ready to catch the draining fuel. I would use a clean container, to see what the fuel looks like, and as I am definitely cheap, I would probably use it for something, if not in the tractor.

When it is drained out as much as possible, I would change the diesel filter cartridge. I would also open up the old cartridge to see if it has much mess in it. Before adding fuel to the tank, I would get a small flashlight and look into the tank to see if there is crud in the bottom. If there is, you probably should consider removing the tank and cleaning it out with a solvent like lacquer thinner. When I have cleaned out tanks, I add a bunch of drywall screws and shake them around with the solvent. The sharp edges on the screws seems to help remove the crud in the tank, and then they are fairly easy to get out with a magnet.

With your cleaned tank reinstalled properly, add a couple gallons of diesel to check for leaks. Then open the air bleed on the diesel filter housing and let all the air escape from the new filter and housing until only diesel comes out of the bleeder. While there still might be a tiny amount of air in the system, it shouldn"t be a big problem.

As I typed this, I have been wondering how you know the diesel in the tank is bad? In 4 years gasoline will evaporate a whole bunch, leaving a messy, smelly residue that might very well cause carb problems if you try to use that fuel. But diesel does not evaporate nearly as bad. I have heard of problems from algae in diesel, but have never experienced it myself. I also have never tried to start a diesel that has not been run in nearly as long as 4 years. But I guess I still think that the diesel in your tank might be just fine as is, unless it looks bad or smells a lot different than new diesel.

But, if it really concerns you, draining the tank is probably the safest thing to do. And a new diesel filter is ALWAYS a good precaution in an unknown situation.

Good luck with your 861D. I have enjoyed my 641D for many years and would LOVE to have one with live PTO!

With a tractor not run in that long you should expect some filter plugging when you get started. Most new diesel has soy oil in it which will clean out the tank and lines of any buildup of sludge which may plug your filters. This is very common the first time you run new biodiesel. A tractor that has sat for that long may never have had any in it.

just put a john deere 830 back in service that sat with diesel fuel in its tank for 12 years ,granted it was inside and the fuel had been treated but there have been no issues so far. Bill M.

I agree, but you raise a good question without asking. I use Howes or Power Source all year around in everything. Trucks and tractors. Never don't use it. But, I go through it. I have to wonder if it goes bad, although I personally don't need to worry. I wonder if a fella used it like me, and then for some reason let something set for a couple few years. Maybe got sick and operation comes to a halt, or retires and stuff sets, or whatever. Sure, its small amounts in the overall scheme of things, but it mixes and treats the entire tank. I wonder if it could go bad and maybe contaminate otherwise setting diesel. I never thought about it before, but since old came up, who knows.

Mark

If it were me I would go to John Deere and buy some fuel protect and put 2 times what they recommend in the tank and then run it. I am totally amazed how well that stuff works. It sure made my 4010 and R start and run much better.
Bud

I would like to thank you all for your suggestions, and ideas. This was very helpful, I can always depend on this website to get answers, and I really appreciate it.