Cracked Racor bowl

[Fletcher500]

Ok, this is feeling like many other arguments, anchor, single V twins…
One question- I have a new 6.7 qsb Cummins that primes electronically when I hit the ignition switch. Assume that will prime my racor 900’s?
Thanks.

As you stated, the 6.7 will prime itself and it takes about 10 seconds to do it after a Racor filter change if there are no external leaks. There is a manual bleeder screw on top of the secondary filter, but I have never had to use it. Not sure what “priming the racor means”? They should have fuel in the bowls when you change the filter and start it back up.

 

[Steve DAntonio]

Those filters do not meet the ABYC heat shield requiirement which, by the way, I believe is just a "feel good" regulation. And, they are spin-on filters, not cartridges.

Not that I'm advocating for them, because I believe the Racor turbine is superior, but these filters can be made to comply with the ABYC 2.5 minute flame exposure test by installing the aluminum bowl, replacing the plastic one. In doing that you forfeit the see-through advantage, something you get to keep with the Racor turbine and its heat shield. The ABYC Standard doesn't require a heat shield, it requires that the filter, and anything holding fuel, be capable of being exposed to 2.5 minutes of flame without leaking/failing.

Attending the world's largest marine equipment trade show, METS, in Amsterdam.

 

[twistedtree]

Interesting, your preference...

I've only had secondary spin-ons, without drains, but I found those to be almost impossible to change without spilling a little fuel.

Racors, for me, have always been easy enough to change without spilling any fuel. Drain a little first, open, etc.

-Chris

That's been my experience as well, whether fuel, oil, or hydraulics. You need to be able to drain the filter at least to some extend to prevent spilling fuel. This is regardless of whether it's a spin on filter or a lift-out filter. To drain a spin-on, the filter itself needs to have a drain. Some do, but it's not common. The typical Racor has a drain in the bowl with a shutoff valve. I definitely have a higher success rate of drip-less, no-spill filter changes with Racors vs spin-on. But if others prefer spin-ons, knock yourself out. Whatever works for you.

 

[jimdavi]

As you stated, the 6.7 will prime itself and it takes about 10 seconds to do it after a Racor filter change if there are no external leaks. There is a manual bleeder screw on top of the secondary filter, but I have never had to use it. Not sure what “priming the racor means”? They should have fuel in the bowls when you change the filter and start it back up.

What I mean is leave the racor partially filled and close the cap on the racor. ign on and will it fill the racor?

 

[Comodave]

What I mean is leave the racor partially filled and close the cap on the racor. ign on and will it fill the racor?

It may not. In our last boat when I changed an element I would loose a bit of fuel that came out with the old element. I would put the new element in the Racor and carefully crack open the fuel shutoff valve and with the top of the Racor off watch as the Racor would fill up. When the fuel was just below the top of the Racor I would shutoff the valve and put the top back on the Racor. The small bit of air in the top of the Racor never gave me any problems.

 

[Fletcher500]

What I mean is leave the racor partially filled and close the cap on the racor. ign on and will it fill the racor?

Yes, that works if “partially full” is more toward full than empty. The pump will stay energized until the desired rail pressure is met. But I don't push it and try to keep them as full as possible on a change out.

 

[Steve DAntonio]

You can manually fill a Racor Turbine filter, either using a priming pump if it is before the filter, or manually (or by gravity in some applications), but only after the new element is installed.

I wash out and top off Racors using a small 3 gallon outboard tank I have set up for this purpose, which is clearly marked for diesel. I install an inline filter in the hose and a valve on the end, with a dust cap, and use the primer bulb to pump the fuel. This can be used to rinse out a Racor housing that is dirty, and once the filter is installed it can be used to top off the filter, removing all air. I recommend adding a stabilizer to that tank, and "recycling" it into the main tank once a year, and filling with fresh fuel. It can also be used for troubleshooting purpose, as an independent fuel supply.

Note, any air space at the top of the filter effectively removes that part of the filter from capturing dirt, it makes your filter smaller.

Never add fuel to a Racor turbine without the filter element in place, doing so can allow unfiltered fuel to leave the filter housing.

I'm at METS Amsterdam at the moment but I'll dig out a photo of the fuel priming tank set up and share shortly.

 

[catalinajack]

When you wrote:







I assumed no tools. But then you didn't mention draining it either. Probably not a 3 minute job, start to finish either.



Ted

Ted, why are you fighting me on this? No tools? Why would you assume that? Why would you doubt my representations? I haven't doubted anything you have ever had to say.

Three minutes? Yes. Turn off fuel supply, maybe 10 seconds. Drain a few ounces of fuel, maybe 20 seconds. Loosen with a strap wrench, maybe 10 seconds. Spin off, maybe five seconds. Move filter to 5-gallon pail to drain upside down, maybe 30 seconds. Spin on new filter, maybe 10 seconds. Turn on fuel supply, open bleeder, bleed, maybe 60 seconds. Pretty close to three minutes. What could be easier?

 

[catalinajack]

You can manually fill a Racor Turbine filter, either using a priming pump if it is before the filter, or manually (or by gravity in some applications), but only after the new element is installed.



I wash out and top off Racors using a small 3 gallon outboard tank I have set up for this purpose, which is clearly marked for diesel. I install an inline filter in the hose and a valve on the end, with a dust cap, and use the primer bulb to pump the fuel. This can be used to rinse out a Racor housing that is dirty, and once the filter is installed it can be used to top off the filter, removing all air. I recommend adding a stabilizer to that tank, and "recycling" it into the main tank once a year, and filling with fresh fuel. It can also be used for troubleshooting purpose, as an independent fuel supply.



Note, any air space at the top of the filter effectively removes that part of the filter from capturing dirt, it makes your filter smaller.



Never add fuel to a Racor turbine without the filter element in place, doing so can allow unfiltered fuel to leave the filter housing.



I'm at METS Amsterdam at the moment but I'll dig out a photo of the fuel priming tank set up and share shortly.

Well, Steve, you have made the case that spin-on filters are far easier to change. It takes me less than three minutes to swap in a new filter.

 

[catalinajack]

That's been my experience as well, whether fuel, oil, or hydraulics. You need to be able to drain the filter at least to some extend to prevent spilling fuel. This is regardless of whether it's a spin on filter or a lift-out filter. To drain a spin-on, the filter itself needs to have a drain. Some do, but it's not common. The typical Racor has a drain in the bowl with a shutoff valve. I definitely have a higher success rate of drip-less, no-spill filter changes with Racors vs spin-on. But if others prefer spin-ons, knock yourself out. Whatever works for you.

A drain? Actually, they are quite common. Mine do. Donaldson, Fleetguard, and Baldwin all have models with drains. Takes me less than 3 minutes to swap a filter. I do drain a few ounces before spinning it off so none spills. The process is no fuss, no muss. While I do understand the groupthink that Racors are the "only" solution but I do not understand the pushback I have received asserting how easy it is to change a spin-on compared to Racors. My goodness. Just look at the picture and imagine for a moment. By the way, while you cannot see it in the picture, I installed a bleeder valve which makes getting all of the air out quite simple.

 

[mvweebles]

A drain? Actually, they are quite common. Mine do. Donaldson, Fleetguard, and Baldwin all have models with drains. Takes me less than 3 minutes to swap a filter. I do drain a few ounces before spinning it off so none spills. The process is no fuss, no muss. While I do understand the groupthink that Racors are the "only" solution but I do not understand the pushback I have received asserting how easy it is to change a spin-on compared to Racors. My goodness. Just look at the picture and imagine for a moment. By the way, while you cannot see it in the picture, I installed a bleeder valve which makes getting all of the air out quite simple.View attachment 133721

Hey CatalinaJack - how about some links for the filter housing? I am one of the folks who has only ever known Racor. I run a dual filter setup which I had to replace a few years ago because the 20-year old predecessor seized. Not cheap. While I will hopefully not have to do it again, I am curious about options. I do like the see-through bowl on Racors, and am a bit dubious on turbine action for my low-consumption 75hp engine.

Thanks in advance.

Peter

 

[twistedtree]

A drain? Actually, they are quite common. Mine do. Donaldson, Fleetguard, and Baldwin all have models with drains. Takes me less than 3 minutes to swap a filter. I do drain a few ounces before spinning it off so none spills. The process is no fuss, no muss. While I do understand the groupthink that Racors are the "only" solution but I do not understand the pushback I have received asserting how easy it is to change a spin-on compared to Racors. My goodness. Just look at the picture and imagine for a moment. By the way, while you cannot see it in the picture, I installed a bleeder valve which makes getting all of the air out quite simple.View attachment 133721

I don’t think Racors are the only solution. But I also don’t think there is an appreciable difference in effort or mess to change a spin on filter canister vs a lift out filter element. The only thing different in your step by step description is that the Racor filter lifts out of the housing rather than dropping down a cartridge. I have racors and spin on filters on our boat and think it’s 6 or 1/2 dozen between the two.

 

[O C Diver]

Three minutes? Yes. Turn off fuel supply, maybe 10 seconds. Drain a few ounces of fuel, maybe 20 seconds. Loosen with a strap wrench, maybe 10 seconds. Spin off, maybe five seconds. Move filter to 5-gallon pail to drain upside down, maybe 30 seconds. Spin on new filter, maybe 10 seconds. Turn on fuel supply, open bleeder, bleed, maybe 60 seconds. Pretty close to three minutes. What could be easier?

A Racor, only one filter to change.

Whether I can do one filter in half the time it takes you to do two, whether it takes the same time, or whether it takes twice the time, that doesn't make the Tony system better. It's a safe bet that millions of Racor elements have been changed without issue in a timely manner. So clearly the problem of making a mess, dropping things accidentally into the housing, or just not following the simple directions, is a service person's fault, not a design problem or inferior product.

Ted

 

[RickyD]

I think that Racors are pretty easy to change the elements l. I never spilled any diesel either. I do like the bowl to see what is in there. I mounted a small LED behind the bowl to see easier. No need for a flashlight. The LEDs would come on with the engine room lights so it was simple to see. Can’t do that with a spin on filter…

That's cool

 

[diver dave]

you guys need a better hate target than Racor. This one is my he}} today.

lets see, where do I begin. Oh, I know, gotta find filter elements. And, the square seal is over $10 and falls off the top, since its upside down when you do find one. no, the filter doesn't come with a new seal...The top is held by longish M4 or M5 machine screws, that take a lot of turns. Two are at the back, good luck if it bolted to noise foam like mine. My bowl has crud; good luck in that exercise of bowl removal. More bolts and hidden mystery seals.
Spilling fuel is the least of the issues.

 

[RickyD]

My Racors work for me but I'd rather have spin ons if I had to change filters in a sea way. I clogged filters twice right after I bought the boat. It hadn't been out to sea for a couple years and when I was bringing it home from San Diego to Long Beach that sloshing around clogged the port engine filter. I was only an hour out of Long Beach so I continued in on one engine. Dangerous I know but I do have an anchor. I don't remember when I clogged the starboard engine and yes I changed both filters when the port engine clogged first. Later I had to replace my centerline fuel tank and I installed access ports in my aft lazzarette tank and had the tank cleaned and fuel polished. I installed the three needle Parker T-Handle vac gauges and never had a problem since. Check the gauge, change when indicated. I don't spill much if any fuel with a change. By the way, when I first bought the boat I bought a case of primary filters. I still have most of them. I put a plastic bowl under the Racor, open the drain, spin off the top, close the drain, pull the filter, let it drain a bit, put it in a bucket, press in a new filter, change the supplied seals, pour some clean diesel on top, seal the top, start the engine and let her run. Easy at the dock, not so much in a hot engine room while bouncing at sea. And...who is driving the boat while I do that? I kinda like the idea of draining a little fuel, spin off the filter, put it in the bucket, pore some clean fuel in the filter, spin on the filter, start the engine.

 

[O C Diver]

My Racors work for me but I'd rather have spin ons if I had to change filters in a sea way. I clogged filters twice right after I bought the boat. It hadn't been out to sea for a couple years and when I was bringing it home from San Diego to Long Beach that sloshing around clogged the port engine filter. I was only an hour out of Long Beach so I continued in on one engine. Dangerous I know but I do have an anchor. I don't remember when I clogged the starboard engine and yes I changed both filters when the port engine clogged first. Later I had to replace my centerline fuel tank and I installed access ports in my aft lazzarette tank and had the tank cleaned and fuel polished. I installed the three needle Parker T-Handle vac gauges and never had a problem since. Check the gauge, change when indicated. I don't spill much if any fuel with a change. By the way, when I first bought the boat I bought a case of primary filters. I still have most of them. I put a plastic bowl under the Racor, open the drain, spin off the top, close the drain, pull the filter, let it drain a bit, put it in a bucket, press in a new filter, change the supplied seals, pour some clean diesel on top, seal the top, start the engine and let her run. Easy at the dock, not so much in a hot engine room while bouncing at sea. And...who is driving the boat while I do that? I kinda like the idea of draining a little fuel, spin off the filter, put it in the bucket, pore some clean fuel in the filter, spin on the filter, start the engine.

Have to admit I love my double Racor 1,000s. If you plug a filter up, just flip the level and change the filter when anchored for the evening. Best part, it came with the boat.



Ted

 

[Comodave]

While I have a lot of respect for Tony Athens and I order a lot of things from him for my 6CTAs, i just prefer Racors. And I think this is another anchor like discussion. We can argue our talking points endlessly and we aren’t going to change anyones opinions.

 

[twistedtree]

Have to admit I love my double Racor 1,000s. If you plug a filter up, just flip the level and change the filter when anchored for the evening. Best part, it came with the boat.

View attachment 133739

Ted

I think duplex filters, whether Racor or whatever, is the real thing that makes a difference. Then there is no need to shut down for a filter change. That actually matters.

 

[catalinajack]

A Racor, only one filter to change.



Whether I can do one filter in half the time it takes you to do two, whether it takes the same time, or whether it takes twice the time, that doesn't make the Tony system better. It's a safe bet that millions of Racor elements have been changed without issue in a timely manner. So clearly the problem of making a mess, dropping things accidentally into the housing, or just not following the simple directions, is a service person's fault, not a design problem or inferior product.



Ted

Ted, you are still reaching and digging for ways to denigrate. Yes, I have two filters to change. But not at the same time. I could just as easily use one 10-micron filter, just like a standard Racor setup, so not twice the time. And, at no time did I say the Tony Athens filter head or system was superior (or inferior). A 10-micron Racor filter does not filter any better than a Fleetguard 10-miron filter. All I EVER said was that, comparatively, Racors take more time. To wit: see Steve D'Antonio's earlier posting on his process for changing Racors. And, as I said in an earlier post, I have used both systems and find the spin-ons far easier to change and far less opportunity to create a mess. You, however, do not have my comparative experience somall you have to offer is speculation.

Millions of Racors changed in a timely manner? Why is that meaningful? Just a guess, but I'll bet millions of spin-on filters have been changed timely and without issue.

By the way, Racor makes spin-on filter heads. Are they inferior products? News flash, Ted, filters filter.

 

[catalinajack]

While I have a lot of respect for Tony Athens and I order a lot of things from him for my 6CTAs, i just prefer Racors. And I think this is another anchor like discussion. We can argue our talking points endlessly and we aren’t going to change anyones opinions.

Quite correct.

 

[catalinajack]

I think duplex filters, whether Racor or whatever, is the real thing that makes a difference. Then there is no need to shut down for a filter change. That actually matters.

And it is quite a simple matter to rig a sytem of quick changever with valves that employ spin-on filters. Just wondering, have you ever had to do a quick changeover while at sea? If you did, why didn't your daily engine room check reveal (vacuum gauge) the need to change a filter before an engine stoppage became a possibility? Dual Racors were all the rage pre-ULSD fuel. Now that bad fuel in North America is a rarity, the need for dual Racors is greatly diminished. And, besides, if one is paying attention to his vaccum gauges, there is no need for a clogged filter underway.

 

[catalinajack]

A drain? Actually, they are quite common. Mine do. Donaldson, Fleetguard, and Baldwin all have models with drains. Takes me less than 3 minutes to swap a filter. I do drain a few ounces before spinning it off so none spills. The process is no fuss, no muss. While I do understand the groupthink that Racors are the "only" solution but I do not understand the pushback I have received asserting how easy it is to change a spin-on compared to Racors. My goodness. Just look at the picture and imagine for a moment. By the way, while you cannot see it in the picture, I installed a bleeder valve which makes getting all of the air out quite simple.View attachment 133721

Sbmar.com

 

[twistedtree]

And it is quite a simple matter to rig a sytem of quick changever with valves that employ spin-on filters. Just wondering, have you ever had to do a quick changeover while at sea? If you did, why didn't your daily engine room check reveal (vacuum gauge) the need to change a filter before an engine stoppage became a possibility? Dual Racors were all the rage pre-ULSD fuel. Now that bad fuel in North America is a rarity, the need for dual Racors is greatly diminished. And, besides, if one is paying attention to his vaccum gauges, there is no need for a clogged filter underway.

Not everyone wants or needs duplex filters. No argument there. My point is just that duals offer something concrete, if you think you need it. And I agree you can construct a duple filter with spin-ons. No argument there, though I do think the Racor duplex packing is well done.


I've been very fortunately with fuel and hope I continue to be. I did have a time when I wished I had a duplex filter. Engine started losing power, and had to continue home on reduced power. A duplex would have allowed me to keep running at normal power. But it was a day trip. Even with regular vacuum checks, if it's rising and you still have a couple days to go before shutting down, what do you do?


Also keep in mind that we all likely have experience with spin-ons and drop in filters. We all have on-engine fuel and oil filters, and those are typically spin-ons. So to say someone doesn't know what's involved in changing a spin-on because they haven't tried a spin-on primary fuel filter is pretty silly. I have Racors for all my primary fuel filters, yet still have more than twice as many spin-on filters across the boat. So no lack of experience with them. I prefer the drop-in because I find they are usually less of a mess. And I have had drop in oil filters as well as secondary fuel filters on various engines. But I don't think it's a huge difference as you insist.



I'm not sure why you are so Hell-bent on arguing all of this.

 

[Stabi]

I'm not sure why you are so Hell-bent on arguing all of this.

 

[smitty477]

Not everyone wants or needs duplex filters. No argument there. My point is just that duals offer something concrete, if you think you need it. And I agree you can construct a duple filter with spin-ons. No argument there, though I do think the Racor duplex packing is well done.


I've been very fortunately with fuel and hope I continue to be. I did have a time when I wished I had a duplex filter. Engine started losing power, and had to continue home on reduced power. A duplex would have allowed me to keep running at normal power. But it was a day trip. Even with regular vacuum checks, if it's rising and you still have a couple days to go before shutting down, what do you do?


Also keep in mind that we all likely have experience with spin-ons and drop in filters. We all have on-engine fuel and oil filters, and those are typically spin-ons. So to say someone doesn't know what's involved in changing a spin-on because they haven't tried a spin-on primary fuel filter is pretty silly. I have Racors for all my primary fuel filters, yet still have more than twice as many spin-on filters across the boat. So no lack of experience with them. I prefer the drop-in because I find they are usually less of a mess. And I have had drop in oil filters as well as secondary fuel filters on various engines. But I don't think it's a huge difference as you insist.



I'm not sure why you are so Hell-bent on arguing all of this.

"So no lack of experience with them. I prefer the drop-in because I find they are usually less of a mess. And I have had drop in oil filters as well as secondary fuel filters on various engines. But I don't think it's a huge difference as you insist."

Very interesting - we have had both cartridge and spin-on's for lube and fuel oil as well in the past 25+ years.
Always have had longer and much messier times with the cartridge filter changes in every case.
Very interesting how we have had such different experiences.

 

[catalinajack]

Not everyone wants or needs duplex filters. No argument there. My point is just that duals offer something concrete, if you think you need it. And I agree you can construct a duple filter with spin-ons. No argument there, though I do think the Racor duplex packing is well done.


I've been very fortunately with fuel and hope I continue to be. I did have a time when I wished I had a duplex filter. Engine started losing power, and had to continue home on reduced power. A duplex would have allowed me to keep running at normal power. But it was a day trip. Even with regular vacuum checks, if it's rising and you still have a couple days to go before shutting down, what do you do?


Also keep in mind that we all likely have experience with spin-ons and drop in filters. We all have on-engine fuel and oil filters, and those are typically spin-ons. So to say someone doesn't know what's involved in changing a spin-on because they haven't tried a spin-on primary fuel filter is pretty silly. I have Racors for all my primary fuel filters, yet still have more than twice as many spin-on filters across the boat. So no lack of experience with them. I prefer the drop-in because I find they are usually less of a mess. And I have had drop in oil filters as well as secondary fuel filters on various engines. But I don't think it's a huge difference as you insist.



I'm not sure why you are so Hell-bent on arguing all of this.

Well, TT, it all started when I stated a simple opinion, an opinion that I find spin-ons much easier. What I got was a lot of push-back by those hell-bent on arguing the point so how is it that I am called out? And, never did I say that "someone doesn't know what's involved in changing a spin-on because they haven't tried a spin-on primary fuel filter". What I did say was how I change a filter and how long it takes. Others in response described their process with Racors including Steve D'Antonio. So, why am I a bad guy here? Oh well, no right or wrong answer, is there? The dual Racors are indeed nice. Please remember, I have had both. I'll just leave it at that.

 

[O C Diver]

Well, TT, it all started when I stated a simple opinion, an opinion that I find spin-ons much easier. What I got was a lot of push-back by those hell-bent on arguing the point so how is it that I am called out? And, never did I say that "someone doesn't know what's involved in changing a spin-on because they haven't tried a spin-on primary fuel filter". What I did say was how I change a filter and how long it takes. Others in response described their process with Racors including Steve D'Antonio. So, why am I a bad guy here? Oh well, no right or wrong answer, is there? The dual Racors are indeed nice. Please remember, I have had both. I'll just leave it at that.

Nobody is saying you're a bad guy. You chose not to follow directions when charging your Racor, so the problems you claim are self induced.

Ted, I have had both Racor and spin-ons. No way is changing Racors is as easy and less messy than spin-ons. For Racors, one must remove the top of the housing exposing the fuel bowl and risking inadvertendly dropping something inside. Then one must transport that dripping old filter somewhere, somehow. Then there is making sure there is not too much fuel left inside such that dropping in a new filter doesn't overflow the vessel. Putting the new filter in requires slowly immersing the filter so that the remaining fuel gets absorbed into the filter media. Yeah, so easy and not messy. With a spin-on, one just puts a can under the filter, spin the old one off, spin the new one on, done. And that clear bowl? The clear viewing doesn't ever last long before one needs to take apart the entire assembly to clean the bowl. You call all this easy? I don't care about seeing crud. The vacuum gauges tell me when to change the filters and will reveal any sudden problems posthaste.

Following the directions to drain the housing completely or at least below the filter elements, eliminates your problems.

As to spin-ons, I've changed hundreds of fuel and oil filters, so plenty of experience with them also.

Ted