Hello folks - I would appreciate some advice before I change the fuel in a Kubota GR1600-II mower that I have purchased second-hand.
The machine has been used pretty roughly by a commercial garden landscaping company for two years (several cosmetic dings and some rusty spots on the top of the deck) and has 450 hours on the clock. It runs well and was fully serviced according to the two-year checklist immediately before it was transferred to me for domestic use last winter. As a courtesy, the company owner gave me a fill of commercial red diesel before handing it over - about 2/3 of a tank.
The problem for me is that I seem to be pretty sensitive to the exhaust from vehicles using commercial red diesel. I get awful headaches walking alongside a main road with trucks or getting stuck behind one on my motorbike. I used the mower for the first time this week outdoors for one hour and of course it performed perfectly but the next day I was really sick. I had a thumping headache, nausea and upset stomach - all of the symptoms I get from dirty air on the roads.
I mentioned this to the previous owner and he immediately remembered he had given me the red diesel which he called the "rough stuff". Looking up the difference between red diesel and forecourt low sulphur diesel in the UK, it mainly seems to be the sulphur and aromatics that are the issue in the red fuel.
Whatever the substance that is giving me the headaches, the red in the tank has to go. I intend to replace it this time with a quantity of Aspen D (formerly Eco-Par I think?) and see of that makes a difference to my symptoms. I know it is a lot more expensive but the ill effects of using red are just too bad.
I have a suitable fuel container big enough for what remains in the tank and I also have a fuel siphon on the way, arriving this week.
What I would like to do is at least empty the tank as much as the siphon can get to but of course there will be what is remaining in the lines, filter and pump.
This is where I need advice please.
Do I just siphon what I can get out and immediately refill with the clean Aspen diesel?
Should I siphon everything then start the engine outdoors and let it draw all remaining red diesel through until it runs out then refill (and presumably have to bleed)?
I am concerned because although the filter was changed at the service, I don't know the condition of the tank in regards to residual dirt or water. I also don't know how to bleed a GR1600 as it is not really covered in the User Manual.
Thoughts please?
The machine has been used pretty roughly by a commercial garden landscaping company for two years (several cosmetic dings and some rusty spots on the top of the deck) and has 450 hours on the clock. It runs well and was fully serviced according to the two-year checklist immediately before it was transferred to me for domestic use last winter. As a courtesy, the company owner gave me a fill of commercial red diesel before handing it over - about 2/3 of a tank.
The problem for me is that I seem to be pretty sensitive to the exhaust from vehicles using commercial red diesel. I get awful headaches walking alongside a main road with trucks or getting stuck behind one on my motorbike. I used the mower for the first time this week outdoors for one hour and of course it performed perfectly but the next day I was really sick. I had a thumping headache, nausea and upset stomach - all of the symptoms I get from dirty air on the roads.
I mentioned this to the previous owner and he immediately remembered he had given me the red diesel which he called the "rough stuff". Looking up the difference between red diesel and forecourt low sulphur diesel in the UK, it mainly seems to be the sulphur and aromatics that are the issue in the red fuel.
Whatever the substance that is giving me the headaches, the red in the tank has to go. I intend to replace it this time with a quantity of Aspen D (formerly Eco-Par I think?) and see of that makes a difference to my symptoms. I know it is a lot more expensive but the ill effects of using red are just too bad.
I have a suitable fuel container big enough for what remains in the tank and I also have a fuel siphon on the way, arriving this week.
What I would like to do is at least empty the tank as much as the siphon can get to but of course there will be what is remaining in the lines, filter and pump.
This is where I need advice please.
Do I just siphon what I can get out and immediately refill with the clean Aspen diesel?
Should I siphon everything then start the engine outdoors and let it draw all remaining red diesel through until it runs out then refill (and presumably have to bleed)?
I am concerned because although the filter was changed at the service, I don't know the condition of the tank in regards to residual dirt or water. I also don't know how to bleed a GR1600 as it is not really covered in the User Manual.
Thoughts please?