What Is Diesel Bug, What Problems It Causes & How To Treat It
The commonly named ‘Diesel Bug’ is associated with microbial organisms that create slime in diesel fuel. These microbial organisms can be bacteria, viruses, fungi and yeasts and can accelerate at a rapid rate in the right conditions. The conditions they enjoy are water (from condensation), fuel (hydrocarbons) and typically our UK’s milder temperatures. A perfect breeding ground for fuel-related problems.
In the past, we have seen many problems arise due to the diesel bug in many varied applications. Ideally, it is best for our technical team to check if bugs are present in the fuel and then we can advise accordingly on the best course of action to remedy the situation.
Problems associated with bugs…
- Continuous blocking of filters or gauges with a slimy substance that can be black or brown
- Tanks and pipe corrosion – can create stress cracking
- Injectors may be blocked and need replacing, engines lose power
- Fuel discolouration
- Vehicle parts wear or corrode i.e. elastomers
How to Treat it
Ideally, using exocet Anti-Bug to treat the diesel bug is the best option. To ‘kill’ or ‘shock treat’ the infestation thetreat rate is 1 litre treats 5,000 litres of fuel and then it is advised to treat using a maintenance protection dose of 1 litre to treat 20,000 litres of fuel. The best course of ‘kill’ action is to treat the fuel already in the tank and then add more fresh fuel on top to ensure all internal areas of the tank (potential breeding grounds) are coated with the treated fuel and leave for 48 hours. After this time the fuel is usable and you will have to change the fuel filters during the next week regularly as the bugs die.
Cost implications
They always say, ‘prevention is better than cure’ and it is advisable to dose the exocet Anti-Bug product at protection levels to ensure that businesses do not incur any downtime costs or pipe/tank corrosion costs associated with a bug infestation. This cost can be detrimental to businesses relying on vehicles to meet contract deadlines or back-up generators that need to supply the national grid etc…
Prevention dosing of Exocet Anti-Bug is much cheaper than using the shock treat ‘kill’ method and will provide peace of mind.
Product approvals
Exocet Anti-Bug is approved as a fuel additive by Mercedes-Benz, DAF, MAN, NATO, Deutz, Shell, the Swiss army and others.
If you would like to know more exocet’s Anti-Bug get in touch with us today on 01743 761415 or email: info@fastexocet.co.uk to talk to a specialist.