Merc 75 - Fuel Water Separator Not Working?

[random_guy]

Hey everyone:

I've had trouble keeping my Tracker Targa running and have found quite a bit of water in the carbs. We bought it this spring and it sat quite a bit for the previous owner. We've used it a lot but have started having trouble lately.

So I bought a fuel/water separator and made a small bracket to mount it. (See this pic.) I ran a line from the tank bulkhead fitting to the arrow that would seemingly indicate "in" and then ran a line to the port with an arrow pointing "out" and connected that to the engine. I used the supplied fittings and plugged the two holes on the opposite side of the mounting base. I went to the launch and I primed and primed and tried to get the engine to start, but it just wasn't getting any gas. So no firing.

I came back home and found that the bowl was full of fuel. So I emptied it. I disconnected the line from the tank end and rigged up a small funnel and poured some gas straight into that line (the "in" arrow on the mounting base). It all went straight to the bowl.

So I emptied the bowl and reversed the lines on the mounting base for the separator and did the same thing. All the gas went straight into the bowl.

Am I being stupid here or is this thing defective? I've never actually used one of these before but it seems like it shouldn't be rocket surgery to get it to work. Advice?

Thanks!

 

[dingbat]

The filter is supposed to be full of gas.

The water separates out and lays in the bottom of the filter while the “clean” fuel continues on.

Some units have a drain on the bottom to check and or drain the water from the filter without removing the filter from the bracket

 

[random_guy]

Sorry, I should have been more clear or posted another picture. This one has a clear bowl on the bottom with a petcock type drain on it. My understanding is that only water should be in the lower bowl, right?

 

[dingbat]

This one has a clear bowl on the bottom with a petcock type drain on it. My understanding is that only water should be in the lower bowl, right?

Nope... bowl will be full of fuel until displaced by water.

 

[roscoe]

Then you need to make sure all the hoses are sealed tight with hose clamps, preferably 2 clamps on each connection.

Use the inline fuel primer bulb to draw fuel into the filter and then up into the engine.

 

[Chris1956]

Water separators work via gravity. Fuel floats on water, so water will collect on the bottom. Fuel is drawn off the top of the water Separator, so it must be full with no air pockets.