Diesel in the water tank.. help

[Romolo]

Ok thank you for your suggestions.

I have got crystal simple green on order. So that will be here in a few days I hope.. however going to go cheap coca cola first... Then wash then that stuff.

Hopefully all will be fine from there.

Thanks a million.... I cannot say just how gutted and stupid I feel.
It's my own silly fault for rushing around, moving kids in apartments with a chest infection and then trying to fill up when I was not feeling well . .... Well life's a teacher .. I don't think I will ever do that again .. I have never wrongly filled any vehicle or anything in my life... What a doughnut.

Oh well lesson learned.

Thanks everyone

R

 

[Riverbankannie]

Hope it all goes well for you with the cleaning and that you feel better soon from your chest infection.

 

[carolyn]

Poor you, we all make mistakes, some just don’t have such nasty consequences as others. Very glad our fuel filler is on the opposite side to water and has a different key.

 

[Simon Meadwell]

What about fitting some warning stickers on the caps . Water and Diesel, just as a reminder. Easily done i once brimmed a works van with unleaded into diesel tank. Had to wait half a day to be recovered to a garage to drain then refill with diesel. Must of cost the company a small fortune but mistakes happen.

 

[Podney]

Don’t worry too much about making mistakes,you don’t need to be perfect all the time. The cleverest people learn from their mistakes and the really brilliant ones learn from other peoples mistakes,but there aren’t many in that category.

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[TerryL]

Nobody has yet mentioned the filler pipe, which must also be contaminated, will need just as thorough a clean

 

[Geistguy]

If you've only added 1 ltr of diesel and don't drink from your tank I certainly wouldn't bother replacing the tank. As oil floats fill the tank and let it overflow ( somewhere safe) for some minutes then, if you can get access to the tank, empty it and wipe around inside as much as you can.

I'm sure someone wiser will advise but I would think that the minute percentage of remaining diesel to water should not harm the taps,pump or water heater.

 

[gus-lopez]

I'd be using evertying everyone has suggested, all at once & a few times.

 

[Romolo]

Ok .. I have only tried to fill this water tank once since owning ..and that was a but of an overflow. Everything spews back out ... I've tried hose, funnel all sorts... I cannot get this liquid in .. when I tried with water hose first time that sort of did a bit and something went in at some point with with the force of the water pressure.

Any ideas... I feel dumb i
tried
loosening the plastic nut but seems sealed like a black substance..

Any help pls... Thanks

 

[Pausim]

It might be the breather pipe that is blocked. Try removing the smaller pipe running along the top of the main filler pipe and then blowing through it (don't suck you might get a mouthful of diesel). If this is blocked the air pressure can build up in the tank and cause the water to blow back.

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[gpat]

If you've only added 1 ltr of diesel and don't drink from your tank I certainly wouldn't bother replacing the tank. As oil floats fill the tank and let it overflow ( somewhere safe) for some minutes then, if you can get access to the tank, empty it and wipe around inside as much as you can.

I'm sure someone wiser will advise but I would think that the minute percentage of remaining diesel to water should not harm the taps,pump or water heater.

It's a fair point. I agree if the OP doesn't expect to drink from the tank again, but in my experience diesel has a pervading odour and taste and also becomes adsorbed onto plastic. Might be wrong but I doubt it will ever go away. The human taste is very sensitive

 

[Riverbankannie]

That filler point looks awfully low down. The underneath shot with the pipe - is that the filler pipe? No wonder you are having trouble! On the bright side looks easy to replace.

 

[Romolo]

I have ran the drain tap so I would have thought that it would be ok to fill.. but I'll look at the breather pipe tomorrow.. Thanks

 

[two]

Yes, it was a dumb thing to do but you appear to have reacted exceptionally well by not letting contaminated water go any further.
Bear in mind that no one else on here has probably done the same, so all advice is opinion or hearsay (including mine).
Your tank may have a large inspection cover which may allow you to inspect/sniff the inside of your tank. Wiping with kitchen roll after each flush may speed up the cleansing process but i've heard that, once contaminated, you cannot get rid of the taint.
When emptying the water, I'd collect some and test it to see if it's acceptable for your use. But don't let it go round your piping before you're really happy. You don't want to replace all the piping! If your cleaning/flushing routine is unsuccessful, you'll need to replace the tank and filler.
Welcome to the world of motorhoming! Things should only get better from now on.

 

[autorouter]

Ok .. I have only tried to fill this water tank once since owning ..and that was a but of an overflow. Everything spews back out ... I've tried hose, funnel all sorts... I cannot get this liquid in .. when I tried with water hose first time that sort of did a bit and something went in at some point with with the force of the water pressure.

Any ideas..

If you use a hose with a connector on the end, and push it into the hole, the connector might come off and get stuck in the filler pipe. Is it possible that has already happened? Has it been like that since you got the MH? Can you push a flexible hose/pipe/curtain wire/electrician's fish tape through the filler pipe?

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[gerry mcg]

I understand you don't drink the water into my tank.
As a bit like information, the Taste and odour thresholds for hydrocarbons (except for BTEX compounds, benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene& xylene which are found in petrol but are not present to any extent in diesel) are well below the human health concentrations...

In other words, you will detect an unpleasant taint to taste and smell well below any harmful concentrations