Fuel is clean and sterile when it leaves the refinery. During transport, fuel could lay on top of water ballast in tanker ships. Fuel may be delivered with a high water content. Water being heavier than fuel will drop to the tank bottom. Fuel tanks are warmed through the day and cool moist air is drawn in to the tank vents at night. As the tanks breathe water is condensed from the air and is pulled by gravity to the tank bottom. Water also enters fuel tanks through leaky fill caps and water filled sumps. In diesel fuel tanks colonies of filter clogging bacteria and fungus will grow at the fuel/water interface. The byproduct of these colonies is acidic sludge which corrode tanks and engine components.

Fuel storage tanks, unless coated on the insides, contain microscopic pores on the tanks inner surface. These pores contain bacteria and moisture from condensation as well as the fuel itself. Pressure cleaning the tanks inner surface may dislodge some bacteria or maybe all bacteria. However, within a few days the bacteria will be back inside the tank. As the fuel tank breathes from hot and cool atmosphere the airborne bacteria will enter the tank to join the bacteria within the fuel. The microscopic pores fill with moisture from condensation and become the perfect residence for the bacteria. The answer is clean fuel to less than 2 MICRONS! The filtration must be smaller than the bacteria.

Diesel fuel starts to degrade in as little as 6 months. Fuel Fix will test for water contamination, fuel oxidation, and sludge. Water is your enemy! Water can accumulate due to condensation from temperature changes from every Florida evening cool off and reheating throughout the day leading to bacterial growth, mold, yeast! This manifests as sludge on the bottom and sides of the fuel tank. When the sludge clogs up your filters, your engine will need more maintenance and parts may fail. Keeping track of your fuel quality may save you thousands.