I stole this from CF, a member named Hawk62cj5 posted this. I think it is very good and important info.
I work on gas stations for a living so I wanted to give yall some tips to help yall get the cleanest fuel in your trucks.
Ill be updating this as I get pics and think of things .
1. Do not use the ultra high flow pumps like the pumps on the big rig fuel island . Most are not filtered and there meters do a great job grinding up rust flakes and line gunk. I had some pics I took showing the different high flow pumps vs standard flow . As soon as I find them Ill get them up on this thread . Standard flow pumps normally have 30 micron filters on them for diesel . If the filters are mounted externally see if the are hydrosorb filters . If they are they have a chemical that solidifies over the element if water contacts it severely limiting flow there for warning of water in the fuel .So a quick break down of pumps by flow . This is a rough guide there are alot of varibles
6-12 gallons a minute; Standard pump Filters very likly
10-25 Gallons a minute ; High flow Most newer dispensers are filtered and older models are hit and miss
20-65 gals a minute ; Ultra high flow Very low chance of it being filtered or even strained.
Ok took some quick pics today not the best but they were near where I was working
A high flow diesel pump on the right and a standard flow gas pump on the left This isnt a perfect exsample because someone jerry rigged a standard flow nozzle on the diesel for the RV lane. But note the hose size difference .
Here is your typical high flow or ultra high flow pump .
Which is it you ask ? Theres no way to tell , this chassis design is been in production for over 20 years with standard flow,high flow and ultra high flow meters in them. So how do I know its a high flow or ultra high? The large diameter hose and large nozzle , its a opw 7H nozzle which is a common brand name the 7H is stamped where you hold it at and is used only in high and ultra high pumps. I do not normally fill up on this type pump because of the likely hood of it being nonfiltered . Now if it has a small nozzle and hose on it it is a standard flow and is most likely filtered.
2.Stay away from low volume stations because most have some water in there tanks and more gunk in the lines. Look for stations that are mini truck stops that have diesel in there auto island . This can be tricky because some stations have a separate auto tank from the truck island tank . I will update with pics later showing what to look for when you pull up to give you an idea if it is a shared tank or not.
Typical low volume station , a single diesel pump for the whole station which is in bad condition .
This station may do 100-200 gals a day so fuel in there 10K tank sets a while causing stuff like this to build up especially since the USLD switch. For ref those floats are 4" dia.
3. If you see a tanker dropping fuel keep on rolling . It really churns up the trash in the tank and normally tanks it 8 to 12 hours to start to settle .
4. Tank fields .....place holder, details coming soon.
Updates and more coming later.