Author Topic: could sombody explain the water seperator (Read 3876 times)

superman293 · « **on:** February 08, 2006, 09:52:32 pm »

I have a 2000 TDI and im worried about water being in the system, i know the filter in the engine compartment has a water valve in the bottom, i unscrewed the valve and nothing happin, so i keep un screwing it till it nearly fell out and then some fuel came out, but it didnt appear that any water was present, is there another seperator near the tank? i looked but coudn't find anything, i know there has to be a little water somewhere but i cant find it.

What kind of damage could it do to your car if too much water is collected in the fuel system?
thanks

MacGyver · « **Reply #1 on:** February 09, 2006, 08:55:09 am »

The TDI's do not have a separate 'water separator.
The one on the bottom of the filter is it.
If you opened it & didn't get any water, then drive on, you're fine.
There doesn't have to be free water present in the system if you buy good fuel and/or use an emulsifying additive that absorbs the water & carries it through the system to be burnt off.

There is of course a plethora of debate @ TDI club as to whether it's better to 'emulsify' or 'demulsify', but I'm not gonna get into that...

Edit: Enough water in the system will harm your injection pump, but if you're worried, you did the right thing by checking. Obviously you're getting good fuel since you had no water.
Check it once in a while, when you change your oil or whatever, and no worries.

superman293 · « **Reply #2 on:** February 09, 2006, 07:01:04 pm »

what type of product can i buy for this "emulsify" you speak of??
thanks.

i was worried because i just sold my 1990 diesell to a freind, and it froze up the other day because there was too much water in the system, i get my fuel from the same place every time, so i figured i better check mine TDI out but i got no water for some reason.

RabbitGTDguy · « **Reply #3 on:** February 09, 2006, 09:18:06 pm »

this is the stuff that i use

and have used it for about 5 yrs. I've seen increases in MPG and performance when it comes to the car and I've never had a "gelling" incident either. My dad for years with my rabbit orginally used something called FPPF which is still available. There are SO many out there but this is highly recommended IMO. I get it from my favorite VW dealer in Orchard Park, NY when I'm through the area.

I actually tried another type they had there as well...

by Amsoil but wasn't happy with the results vs. the stanadyne product. However, I did save the cool squirt bottle from the Amsoil version and now use it to make putting the Stanadyne in the tank about TEN TIMES easier

The dealer said the Amsoil version was highly recommended by their TDI owners though. Might want to give either or both a try

One at a time of course...

Here is the info on the Stanadyne product...
http://www.dieselpage.com/add1.htm

And here is info on the Amsoil product...
http://www.amsoil.com/storefront/adm.aspx

With the Stanadyne product you get your cetane booster (5 points in some cases) as well as your anti-gel in one... plus, 1 pint (16oz) will treat 60 gallons vs. the Amsoil that 16oz treats 40gal and you have to buy a cetane booster seperately. Can't argue with Amsoil quality though! Good stuff either way. Comparable in price with Amsoil being slightly more than the Stanadyne...

Joe

hillfolk'r · « **Reply #4 on:** February 10, 2006, 12:53:18 pm »

AT MY SHOP,AFTER ANY FUEL SYSTEMWORK,NEWPUMP OR INJECTIOR oops caps,,,,we always dump in the stanadyne its good stuff, i threw in a whole can on my tdi startup,,on the filter draining thing,,ya gotta get air in the system to drain it at the drain,,,,remove a return line,and itll flow out the drain easier

hillfolk'r · « **Reply #5 on:** February 24, 2006, 12:08:46 am »

redline makes some cetane boosters too,,theymay have other properties too,,,i did like the booster they make for non cat. cars,,,they make 2 ,cat/non cat

GTD. · « **Reply #6 on:** March 15, 2006, 04:27:37 am »

Quote from: "superman293"

could sombody explain the water seperator

Diesel is lighter than water therefore any water that reaches the fuel filter sinks to the bottom and the fuel floats above it, I check mine everytime I do an oil change, and its got very little water in it

hillfolk'r · « **Reply #7 on:** March 15, 2006, 07:28:03 pm »

they have a centrifuge effect also,,besides heavy stuff settling,,"spin" the fuel ,and the "heavy" stuff comes out,,,,lot of people dont know that filter media wont let water pass thru it easy,,ever seen a blown headgasket milkshake oil system cause or make a oil filter burst,,the water cant get thru the paper easily,,pow,,,on the crap at work,,ive seenit a few times,,,low power smoking/missing,,remove fuelfilter for a look see,,and its jammed with water and crap,,the filters allplugged up,and cant pass fuel,,heehee tech is neet!!!