electrical alarm for water in fuel?

[Alpheus]

Re: electrical alarm for water in fuel?

Trust me, their are some pretty smart people working on this very same project in the aircraft industry. Its not as simple as you might think...

 

[109jb]

Re: electrical alarm for water in fuel?

I don't think it is necessary to have one "in tank". One in the water separator is sufficient.

 

[dingbat]

Re: electrical alarm for water in fuel?

I have a very simple water detection device on my Racor. It is safe, effective and the chance of failure is next to nothing. It has called an eyeball.

The first thing I do every time I get on the boat is to visually check for water in the bottom of the filter. I have a hose attached to the drain on the bottom of the filter so I can drain the water off to a jar I keep on board for just such an occasion.

I?ve been using this type of sensor going on 15 years now. The sensor has been very reliable. Never once, have I experienced a failure.

 

[109jb]

Re: electrical alarm for water in fuel?

I decided to do a little experiment with the $12 home depot water detector. You can see it below. I personally wouldn't bother installing anything on the boat itself. Like Dingbat said, just check it by eye every now and then. But for those who may want to go further my experiment is below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmG88mrEsJs

 

[ufm82]

Re: electrical alarm for water in fuel?

Am I missing something here? My '93 Merc 150 has a water alarm on it. There is a water separating filter under the cowling that is wired to a module mounted on the front of the engine. It will sound the buzzer and illuminate a red LED on the module under the cowling if water is detected in the filter on the engine. I also have a water separator in my bilge area that filters the fuel before it gets to the engine and that unit has no sensor. However, the one under the cowling will sound the alarm if water gets to that point. Is there nothing out there aftermarket that does the same thing? Maybe I am missing something in this thread.

UFM82

 

[Beefer]

Re: electrical alarm for water in fuel?

Problem with the eyeball sensor, is that on an I/O, it is not a visible bowl, it's an aluminum bowl. Not to mention that there isn't enough room to get your head in there to see the bottom. A sensor like ufm82 has would be great for us I/O guys.

 

[109jb]

Re: electrical alarm for water in fuel?

Am I missing something here? My '93 Merc 150 has a water alarm on it. There is a water separating filter under the cowling that is wired to a module mounted on the front of the engine. It will sound the buzzer and illuminate a red LED on the module under the cowling if water is detected in the filter on the engine. I also have a water separator in my bilge area that filters the fuel before it gets to the engine and that unit has no sensor. However, the one under the cowling will sound the alarm if water gets to that point. Is there nothing out there aftermarket that does the same thing? Maybe I am missing something in this thread.

UFM82

You aren't missing anything but not all engines have water detectors built into them.

 

[Fireman431]

Re: electrical alarm for water in fuel?

I decided to do a little experiment with the $12 home depot water detector. You can see it below. I personally wouldn't bother installing anything on the boat itself. Like Dingbat said, just check it by eye every now and then. But for those who may want to go further my experiment is below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmG88mrEsJs

1) Why does the water detector alarm signal SOS?!?
2) I would have been shaking like a little girl the first time I stuck two energized wires into a open container of gasoline!

 

[dingbat]

Re: electrical alarm for water in fuel?

Problem with the eyeball sensor, is that on an I/O, it is not a visible bowl, it's an aluminum bowl. Not to mention that there isn't enough room to get your head in there to see the bottom. A sensor like ufm82 has would be great for us I/O guys.

There is absolutely nothing preventing you from using a clear bowl on an I/O except where you choose to mount the filter.

Move the filter to a location outside the motor box, mine was mounted under the rear seat, and there is no reason why you too can't use the visual sensor.

 

[109jb]

Re: electrical alarm for water in fuel?

1) Why does the water detector alarm signal SOS?!?

I have no idea. I didn't design it.

2) I would have been shaking like a little girl the first time I stuck two energized wires into a open container of gasoline!

The video wasn't the first time I stuck it in there. The first time I did it I was wearing a face shield and only used about a teaspoon of gas to test if the sensor would trigger or do anything bad in the gasoline.