---

I need a little advise from the pro's. I have fuel in my tank from last year (with ethanol) and it is causing problems with my fuel flow. The primer bulb is losing prime and I believe it is due to trash thanks to the ethanol cleaning the old sediment in the tank.This happened couple weeks ago and I replaced the fuel/water separator and the fuel filter on the motor (1996 150 Mariner). I was able to run about 2 hrs, then it lost prime again. I was ready this time and hooked up an external tank and made it back in with no issues. I am getting away from the ethanol altogether but my question is;

1.) Keep replacing the fuel/water separator until I have run out the old gas? I have around 30 gallons remaining.
2.) Drain the tank and refill?

I have all quicksilver filters and bulbs, no aftermarket. So I do not think my problem is in the lines as I did replace these also.
*One more note; when I replaced the water separator and drained it there was some sediment in it. Does water separators's also catch trash? It appears they do.

Thanks, any comments would be greatly appreciated!
~SG

---

Your problem likely has nothing at all to do with ethanol.

If you are "losing prime", I would look at replacing all of your fuel supply lines from the tank to the motor, replace all of the hose clamps and also put in a new primer bulb. It sounds like you are drawing air into the line from somewhere.

Now if the primer bulb is going flat and the motor is dieing, that is another story.

---

I have replaced all fuel lines and used stainless hose clamps for the connections. The problem (I am guessing) is that the ethanol has broken lose old sediment in the tank and it is clogging up the fuel line at the water separator. The primer bulb is losing prime and the motor is slowly dying out due to no fuel.

~SG

---

Are you finding copious amounts of debris in the fuel water separator, or in the filter on the motor?

---

I would not say an abundant amount, but maybe a 1/4 teaspoon of sediment that looks like sand in texture. It is in the water separator, not the fuel filter on the motor.

---

Several things to rule out-been through this with mine and this was after I replaced the original tank in my V20 with a new old-stock poly tank this spring. My pickup was picking up small sediment that the fuel/ethanol was discovering in the tank-while I cleaned it best I could, it doesn't take much to plug the screens in fuel pickup tubes. I've been running top tanks and decided to remove the screen from my pickup and am using a 10 micron fuel/water sep. filter, which I'm changing after every use and have a smaller in-line filter between the primer and my Yamaha(since there are 3 more filters inside HPDI's) to go thru as well. I just did this for the first time on Thursday and had no issues. Start with your fuel lines-if you're saying that you're not losing prime with running a top tank, my guess is it's between the fuel pickup in the belly tank to the fuel hose. Your fuel pickup should have a check valve in the elbow fitting that the fuel hose is connected to. Could be getting plugged there. It doesn't take much debris or sand sediment as you say to plug a pickup. Does your motor seem to run well then fall on its face losing rpms and spike up and down (fuel starvation)? And if this happens, does the primer bulb go from firm to flat? If you open your tank fill cap, does the primer ball return to normal? If it's the original tank, you've approached that decision point-take it out and replace or empty and run top tanks. After doing the project, it's the getting everything off and out that's time consuming. Putting it back together isn't bad. I had never done it before. Did my reading and took my time. Happy to help you further-just email me and we can take it offline.

---

Try switching to a 2 micron filter. the material a 10 will allow to pass can, and will, wreck a carb.

---

Check for water in the fuel after the fuel/water separator. Due to phase separation the ethanol will split from the gasoline and settle at the bottom of the tank with water. It overwhelms the filter and gets pumped right into the engine.

4 Stroke zuke had very similar issues a couple months back after a brief period of non-operation (4 months). Engine sputtering till it died, bulb wouldn't stay primed, eventually lost a cylinder. Checked the spark plug and it had rust on it, pulled the injectors and they emptied watered down gas. I had to replace all the new filters I had just finished replacing and the high presure fuel pump, not to mention clean out the vst.