Kerry, despite the present circumstances, Happy Birthday to you. At times like this I like to recall my grandfather's advice:

"Remember, the first hundred years are the hardest."



Small consolation, I know.

__________________
[SIGPIC]
Tom
SE Connecticut
1975 W115 300D

visit my blog:
http://mercedesdieselrebuildingdiederich.blogspot.com/

Ouch.

__________________
[SIGPIC]
Tom
SE Connecticut
1975 W115 300D

visit my blog:
http://mercedesdieselrebuildingdiederich.blogspot.com/

Got it running on the purge bottle. Seems to be ok. I'll probably just have to leave the **** in the tank over the weekend and take the wife's Landcruiser to Santa Fe.

__________________
1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

Get your thoughtful neighbor to drop the tank for you. On second thought....

__________________
80 300SD (129k mi) 82 240D stick (193k mi)77 240D auto - stick to be (153k mi) 85 380SL (145k mi) 89 BMW 535i 82 Diesel Rabbit Pickup (374k mi) 91 Jetta IDI Diesel (155k mi) 81 VW Rabbit Convertible Diesel 70 Triumph Spitfire Mk III (63kmi)66 Triumph TR4a IRS (90k mi)67 Ford F-100 (??)

Kerry,

I have very little useful to share. If it is caustic lye (I don't care much if its sodium or potassium though someone might) it's quite reactive, the speed of the reaction depending on the concentration.

This will only be soluble in water so the diesel fuel is not where most of it is located (unless it was mixed with a surfactant) but in the water-phase (is there an aqueous phase or is it a single-phase?) and/or the foam which is really an emulsion.

You need to remove all of the contaminated fluid, flush, clean, etc.

I can't tell you if you'll want to run a 'mild' acid flush though the IP (vinegar or citric come to mind), then soap and water, then water, then acetone, then alcohol, then diesel but this would be the sequence.

Sorry to hear you are having such difficulties, particularly just-prior to your birthday.

Stuart

This chemical engineer doesn't have too much experience with KOH. What is the fuel tank/strainer/sender made of exactly? Anything aluminum is going to get corroded readily. Stainless and carbon steel should be fine. Not sure if the sender is aluminum or steel. I will look up reactivity rates when I get to work.

A mild vinegar solution followed by water flushes could be used to remove the KOH residue from aluminum parts. The trick is figuring out if the neutralizing agent will cause more problems than the KOH.

__________________
Greg Schwall

1983 300SD - 465,000 miles

What's the magic word that's getting filtered?

Sixto
87 300D

auto haus?? dot com

__________________
08 R320 CDI current

Past
95 E420
87 300D Turbo 5spd
90 300TE
83 300SD
85 300TD
92 400E
85 190D

Wow, easily Post of the Month.
Seems like an insurance agent should chime in.


Very good time for the vacation. Worry about it when you return.

__________________
Southern California English Bulldog Rescue: Make the whole family happier!

Taking Air. SCORE Class 63 closed course.

Dump the fuel system out as quickly as practical now. Stop trying to start the engine as it is not going to run anyways and could increase the damage.

Disconnect the feed line to the lift pump and fill the injection pump with diesel using the hand pump. Change the secondary filter as quick as possible prior to introducing new diesel fuel to the injection pump. No sense pumping the aquious fluid that is present in the filter at this time through as well.

The pump guy was relating to the aquious component tearing up the metal in the element bores plus the pistons in the injection pump I imagine. Hope no permanent damage but time frame is important.

Again do not try to start the engine as this is what may cause additional damage to the injection pump. It may or may not still be fine. The faster you do this the less likely the amount of oxidation of the pistons and bores in that pump will develop.

Years ago three of us got bad fuel. I turned around and drained the whole system out. My other friends tried adding additives to the fuel to enable it to burn. It cost them both their engines. No the oil company squeezed out of paying for them.

I have done some massive boneheaders over the years, but never would I pour ***** into SOMEONE ELSE'S tank without double checking.

And WHAT THE FLYING FARK was he doing driving around with a corrosive solution in a DIESEL CONTAINER in the back of a pickup?

Are all his other brothers named Darryl too???

__________________


Mac
2002 e320 4matic estate│1985 300d│1980 300td
Previous: 1979 & 1982 & 1983 300sd │ 1982 240d

“Let's take a drive into the middle of nowhere with a packet of Marlboro lights and talk about our lives.” ― Joseph Heller, Catch-22

Kerry.
If you are still about, the trick is to drain it out as best you can. The foaming is probably because the hydroxide is probably reacting with the fuel to form a type of soap. The complete mix may not be separating out into water & oil phases because of this. If you have run a gallon of good diesel through the IP by way of a purge system, best keep the tank & lines separate until you have at least double purged them with fresh diesel. Save the cr@p for starting your fire in the winter or killing weeds.

The moral of the story is NEVER USE YOU DIESEL TANK AS A WASTE DISPOSAL UNIT!!!

I often wonder how many WVO users have ended up with residual oven cleaner & other caustic preparations in their tank.

__________________
Grumpy Old Diesel Owners Club group

I no longer question authority, I annoy authority. More effect, less effort....

1967 230-6 auto parts car. rust bucket.
1980 300D now parts car 800k miles
1984 300D 500k miles
1987 250td 160k miles English import
2001 jeep turbo diesel 130k miles
1998 jeep tdi ~ followed me home. Needs a turbo.
1968 Ford F750 truck. 6-354 diesel conversion.
Other toys ~J.D.,Cat & GM ~ mainly earth moving

I am feeling all the pain associated with this malfunction, but "tru dat." I just last week personally filled my own 126/603A tank with 21 gallons of my own sweet 3/27 washed/finished biodiesel and two cups (0.5 liter litre) of water. Who suggests that?

603A, 617, or 617A, why experiment? Rudolf would be chagrined.

Remember that, after you've drained all the t*rds out of your system, the manual suggests the proper towing procedure to save your: sanity, glows, battery, starter.

And of course Happy Birthday, you psychotic Gemini. Just like my mom and half my (sister) siblings.

__________________
James Marriott
2003 Buick Regal
1983 300D (228k, frau Auto)
1996 Suburban K2500 (192k, 6.5 turbo diesel/4WD towmaster 10,000)
www.engineeringworks.biz
1987 300SDL junker 170k
1982 300SD junker, 265k

I'm now in Santa Fe ensconced in the Silver Saddle Motel on Rt 66. Just to be clear, I never tried to repeatedly start it once it shut down. I disconnected the vehicles fuel system, substituting my diesel purge bottle system. I used the primer pump first to just pump diesel purge thru the system with the return line emptying on to the ground and once I had purge coming out of the return line, I pumped it back into the bottle recirculating it. I did try to start it at that point two or three times before loosening the injector lines. After loosening the injector lines and having white foamy **** come out while cranking, it finally started pushing purge thru the lines. I retightened the lines and it started up. I ran it for about 10 minutes on the purge. Seemed to be running fine so we packed up and left for Santa Fe.
While we were driving down here, the neighbor pumped out the tank. Got 11 gallons of diesel and 4 of potassium hydroxide or whatever the **** was. (I'm taking his word for what it was. It definitely felt soapy). When I get back, I'll clamp of all the tank lines except for the fuel feed and pressurize the tank with a shop vac on blow and blow out the tank. Then I'll blow some diesel thru it. I'll probably look for a water separating filter and plumb it into the system for some piece of mind.
Despite my homicidal thoughts earlier today, the neighbor really is a nice guy and thought he was doing me a favor. I can fill in the details on why there was potassium hydroxide involved. It's actually an interesting story.
Anyway, chime in with your opinions on what if any damage was done, whether I successfully mitigated the damage with what I did or any other comments. I'll also change the oil when I get home.

__________________
1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

By the way, thanks to whichever mod changed the thread title. I was not in a rational state of mind when I initially posted.

My neighbor works for and is invested in the following company:

http://www.geohydrogen.net/

If you do a little clicking around the site you will see that it is a diesel/hydrogen scam company despite the very slick website. The Potassium Hydroxide was used in their experiments. The owner of the company has gotten many people to invest hundreds of thousands if not millions of dollars into the venture. Take a guess as to whether they have ever actually sold a functioning diesel/hydrogen system or whether they even have an operational prototype.

__________________
1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13