fuel tank pick up screen

carl s · **Joined:** 31 Dec 2006 13:33 **Posts:** 90

How does one get the fuel feed stand pipe out of the the tank? I want to remove the screen. My tank has the feed line connected to a shutoff valve and when I remove it from the nipple going to the tank there is no nut left on the nipple to unscrew it from the tank. Hate to get too tough on the nipple and bugger it up with a vise grip or pipe wrench. Maybe thats what it takes and then just replace it. Seems like a crappy setup to just take out the standpipe just to remove the screen. Am I missing something here?

Tortuga's Lie · **Joined:** 27 Oct 2006 10:32 **Posts:** 827

I believe mine was a little different, but close to what you have. Mine had a 90 degree fitting screwed into the tank with a flared end for the copper tubing going to the engine with a shut of fitting in line. When I unscrewed the 90 degree fitting going into the tank, the pick up tube was connected directly to this fitting using solder and the screen is at the very bottom of this tube. When I replaced the tank years ago, the new tank came with it's own pick up tube. This new tube was a slightly larger diameter and I found out that this difference in diameter creates a little trouble starting the engine. Apparently, the larger tube looses prime making for hard starts, so I switch back to the old tube (thank God I saved it) and haven't had an issue starting since!

puffcard · **Posted:** 02 Aug 2014 22:58

Doesn't have a pickup screen, it's just straight copper tube (no flare). It comes out easy enough. You can blow back through it to verify it's clear. Then pull the sender unit and suck the sentiments/water from the tank bottom. If you have something clogging the pickup, you got problems in the tank.

Velera · **Joined:** 29 Dec 2006 09:38 **Posts:** 656

My 1982 T37 with a W50 came with a pickup screen and it was a problem---engine stopped at one point off a California lee shore. On the advice of my mechanic I removed it and never had another problem. Mechanic said that a lot of 1980's production boats had screens on the pick up tubes, but that this is rarely done any more. I am thinking that most of the boats may have already found this problem and removed it. I seem to recall I just rammed a coat hangar down the tube.

Ray

Tartan37.com

fuel tank pick up screen

Who is online