That Diesel Smell

[Vincentc]

After several weeks of not going aboard I noticed a strong diesel smell in the saloon. A check of the ER revealed some diesel below the deck between the engines. Stated removal with a hand transfer pump, graduated to using a shop vac. Probably took out 4 gallons of fuel. Started looking for a source. Found only a drip from the Racor 1000s. Bought seal kits and rebuilt. Problem solved. Amazing that so much could come a little drip.

 

[Pascal]

Are the tanks higher than the racors on the 43? I thought most older hatts had keel tank. With keel tanks I don’t see how so much fuel would be leaking out of a racor

 

[Vincentc]

My 43 has a tank under the double bed in the aft cabin. The Racors are mounted just above the ER decking between the engines. They are above smaller fwd tank I don’t use, and apparently below the fuel level in the aft tank. I wondered how it would continue leaking. It did. Before repairing, I put a pan under the filters and over a quart would accumulate in a day or 2. Since repairing no more diesel accumulated

 

[madhatter1]

If it hasn’t been sitting a long time with diesel fuel in the bilge it shout air out after a while if cleaned up completely. We have had a few leaks over the years and smell always goes away after a bit. It’s the boats that sit for years with spilled fuel that have an odor that’s never going away. Ozone machine might help.

 

[SEVEN]

I ordered a product called (odor gone) and diluted it 4 gallons of water to 1 gallon of the product. I had diesel fuel spill on four cases of brand new ceramic tile. No matter what I did. I could not get the smell out of the tile. I found the odor gone and soaked it for 30 minutes and it completely eliminated the diesel smell. I attaching a photo of the gallon. Just Google odor gone and look for the liquid. It also comes in a powder form as well. The spray bottle is something that might work but I’m not sure. Good luck.