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

 

Total waste of time and parts. The VO in the injectors and IP is still cold. The only way around it is to start on diesel and that means a 2 tank system.

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85 300D turbo pristine w 157k when purchased 161K now
83 300 D turbo 297K runs great. SOLD!
83 240D 4 spd manual- parted out then junked

I realize a single tank system is more complex, but I assure you it works quite well. Two tank is not the only way around it. Do you have an actual answer to my questions?

I do have a manually controlled glow plug relay and injection line heaters that help heat the small amount of fluid between the stock filter and injector nozzles (including the IP, Injector Lines, Injectors, etc). I have noticed these heaters work quite well.

What I typically see is that after heating and starting, it will run a little rougher after say 15 or 30 seconds. I believe this is because the injection line heaters and glow plugs can only effectively heat a small volume of fuel and when the engine is running at any real flow rate, the volume of cold fuel easily overwhelms these two small heaters. Hence the desire to heat the larger volume of fuel in the filter.

Thanks!

-matto-

You think a single tank is more complex? Running rougher 15 sec after starting is not "working quite well". Unless you can figure a way to heat the engine, the injectors, IP and the VO up to operating temp before you start the car, it will never work as well as a 2 tank system.

I am all for experimenting so go for it. Heating the filter may help a little to ease the restriction of cold oil flow through the filter, but it won't help the cold oil to flow from the tank and the cold oil in the fuel line under the car. So heating the filter is kind of a waste since there is a restriction before it.

__________________
85 300D turbo pristine w 157k when purchased 161K now
83 300 D turbo 297K runs great. SOLD!
83 240D 4 spd manual- parted out then junked

If I was in your place (signal tank/electronically controlled) I'd get an adhesive heater designed for heating batteries or oil pans in cold weather and wrap that around the fuel filter housing. Those come in 120v modals so you can plug it in when you plug in your block heater. I know it seems like cheating, but just put a little K-1 in the tank with the SVO and it will thin it right down.

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1975 Mercedes 240d (Daily driver, town)
1980 Toyota HJ45 (diesel) (Daily Driver, Farm Implement)