Racor or not to Racor?

[servdiv]

I have a 2015 Jeanneau 409 with a Yanmar 3JH5-CE engine and there is a canister fuel filter in the engine area but there is also a black metal water separator between the fuel tank and the engine next in the compartment in the aft berth which is very hard to get to as I was going to replace it but is a pain to do that but have been told I should.  There is 248 hours on the engine and was serviced last year when I bought it this summer.  I was just going to replace the canister fuel filter for the winter, and think about the whole racor replacement project in the spring...thoughts?

[ForGrinsToo]

Several years ago I bought a RACOR (120R-RAC-01 Spin-On Fuel Filter/Water Separator, 30 GPH, 10 Micron) filter to replace the Volvo system for much the same reason. It was really difficult to access on the 36i, given that we use the aft cabin as a pantry and for other storage. The Volvo also required some level of disassembly in order to assess the amount of water that had been trapped, and I always spilled a little smelly diesel, displeasing the Admiral, as well.

I had the RACOR filter installed professionally mostly because I didn't want to deal with the spilled diesel that I knew would happen if I made the change. Though I would have preferred a more accessible location, the RACOR just replaced the Volvo. Two seasons now, and I just need a mirror to see if there is any water (none yet). I will change out the filter before launch next spring, after about 300 hours.

Geoff

[MalcolmP]

In case you have not seen it yet, good Hints and Tips article here:
www.jeanneau-owners.com/hintsandtips/fuelfilter.html

[Zanshin]

I've got a dual racor assembly aboard - that lets me change fuel from one filter to the other while keeping the engine running and then I've got lots of time to change the old filter. There's also a pressure gauge which helps me see how clogged the filter is.

[servdiv]

Thanks to all, really...Kevin

[Tafika II]

In 2015 we added a dual Racor system to the after engine room upper bulkhead. We also added s fuel shutoff valve as there was none from the factory. We eliminated the factory single stage fuel filter under the aft bed.

[gwilliman]

Brent,
I am thinking about adding the dual Racor as well on  my SO419 with Yanmar 4JH45.  However, I am puzzled about how to then bleed the fuel system since my current pre-filter/water separator has a manual pump which I use to bleed the system when replacing the pre-filter as well as the secondary filter.  It looks like your secondary filter (on the engine) has the type of manual pump that my pre-filter has.  My secondary filter on the engine does not have this. Do you use that to bleed your system if you replace the secondary filter?  Was that pump added when you installed the Racor?

Just confused!

Glenn
Cloud Nine, SO419

[Tafika II]

The filter on the engine is factory installed & has a built-in pump. When I change the Racor filters, there is no need to get any air out as none, so far, has been introduced. When I change the on-engine filter, I do have the get the air out via the built-in pump and a built-in bleeder valve. It's normally a very small amount of air.

[so40gtb]

Voyageur has a pair of Racor R20 filters, switchable, installed when we acquired the boat in 2012. The "B" filter is usually a 2 micron used for fuel polishing via an auxiliary loop, but could be replaced with a 30 micron as a redundant primary filter. With the sludge dredged out of the fuel tank in 2012, annual biocide treatment, annual replacement, and several polishes per season, we've never had any clogs of either primary or secondary filters.