Hi All,

I have a 1980 300TD with a single tank conversion running filtered WVO from a local Co-Op. I live in Colorado and it's getting cold here so I really need to finish adding the 12V heaters I have to the car so the WVO can actually get in the engine.

I already have a rear heater, rear boost pump and am installing a rear FPHE. In the engine compartment I have 12V injection line heaters and a small fluid heat exchanger from Elsbett. I also have the Elsbett injector nozzles which are "meant for SVO/WVO"

Until recently I had a 12V band clamp heater on a small housing I bought which contained an extra filter. It decided to clog a lot so I removed it. Now I want to take that 12V band clamp heater and put it directly on the stock fuel filter and use a thermocouple to make a control loop to heat the fuel in the filter (I already have an Arduino to run the control logic). The attached photo shows the parts I want to modify/add. I want to do this to make sure there is nice hot oil before I start in the morning.

My questions/concerns are:
- Will the repeated cycling of the fuel filter damage it or reduce its life? I am fine with buying filters more often.
- What temperature would you recommend setting the control loop at? 180F is a popular number for SVO/WVO.
- Do you think a snug fit "viton shoulder washer" (see attached) will be enough to maintain fuel system pressure? Alternately I could add some adhesive or sealant in between the "viton shoulder washers".

Any other thoughts and ideas are appreciated

Thanks!

-matto-

Attached Thumbnails