Fuel delivery issue

[pignoble]

I recently installed all new injectors and a Conestoga IP, and the truck has been running great. I'm in Houston and ventured out this morning to check on a friend's house as he's been on vacation and wasn't here for the storm. Had to drive through some water, but not deep - no deeper than a foot, probably. On the way back, the truck surged and stalled on me twice, but I made it home. I haven't had much time to troubleshoot, but I have determined that no fuel is getting pumped from the tanks, regardless of which tank the selector switch is on. This was verified by disconnecting the feed line on the in-line filter where the previous owner removed the water separator.

I have been planning to drop both tanks in order to clean them, check the pickups (truck only takes 7-8 gallons in either tank), and fix the painfully slow filling problem. Now that the need to get the tanks sorted out is pressing, I've been reading about the senders here and on other forums. I keep seeing JC Whitney universal senders referenced but I can't find any actual write-ups, and the part number I've found isn't working. Is it still possible to get universal senders to replace the stock units? Can I use non-diesel senders from the '86 year, if not?

 

[franklin2]

The JCwhitney universal senders are just that, sending units. They do not have the fuel line fittings you need. The article you are referring to I believe just used pieces and parts of the JC Whitney unit.

Whatever you use, it needs to be for a 86-dwn truck, the sending units read differently 87-up. I think the 86 460 unit would be the closest match, but I have never tried it. It has dual fuel lines that the diesel needs, the large diameter sending unit for the 86 tank, and the correct resistance for the 86 guage. The problem is it's made for a in tank electric pump, so you will have to plumb something in it to get rid of the spot for the pump. And of course the wiring plug is not going to match either.

I bet your problem you are having now is with the switching valve on the frame. They are prone to go bad, and running through a bunch of deep water probably didn't help it. If you need to get going, I would get under there and bypass it and run on only one tank.

I also would seriously consider running one of these tanks, and getting rid of the dual tank switching system. You will need to put your spare tire somewhere though.

https://www.amazon.com/Spectra-Premium-F26E-Fuel-Pickup/dp/B000C7TW5K