Return Line Replacement?

[fordviehman]

Hi new to the forum and IDI's.
Just bought a 1990 F-250 with a 7.3 and a ZF-5. It had sat for over 4 years before I bought it. I pumped all the old fuel out of the truck and put new fuel and diesel klean in it and it started in about 5 seconds after turning it once for about 15 the first turn of the key. Fast forward about three weeks after I replaced all the filters I started to get hard to start conditions and white smoke at start up especially when it sits overnight. My thought is the return lines got bumped, I also have a fuel leak while the motor is running that comes down the passenger side exhaust manifold. The return lines need to be replaced anyway because they are dry rotted from sitting and as hard as a rock. Do you guys agree that they are most likely my problem?

Thank you,
Ford V (yes my name actually is Ford)

 

[IDIoit]

hard to tell from your post.
pics would be better,
the lines should be replaced, but that does not mean that the leak is coming from these.
usuallu the return lines will leak into the valley pan, and you will notice fuel coming from the starter area at the back of the block.
if its leaking on the manifold, i would suspect the filter head.
fuel heater, olives, or even the filter.

 

[OLDBULL8]

^^^^^^X2 on that.

Those Olives ( seals from filter line to IP (two 5/16") and lift pump to filter (one 3/8"), they are probably real hard after setting that long, then with the engine shake they let air in, either replace or tighten a 1/4 turn no more than that. That's just one cause for hard start.

Olives and return line kits are available from typ4 (Russ) or Conestogadiesel.com (Agnem).

Oh, and Welcome to the best diesel forum on the web.

Lots of info in the IDI Tech Articles.

Please put you trucks info in your signature for further reference on future posts.

 

[icanfixall]

Welcome as already posted. I will agree with what you posted about hard leaking return lines and the need for a replacement. Please read the Conestoga Diesel Injection web page. These owners will give you all the help required for any injection issues and.. They sell the best parts anywhere. Not one ebay seller can match the quality Mel sells. This fact has been proven many times on this forum. Mel is a founding member here and knows what he is selling & talking about. Another great member here that sells injection parts is Russ aka typ4. Both of these fellas will not cheat or rip you off.
I might feel you could have other fuel leaks but do replace the return lines and probably the line seals called olives. Anyone here can tell you where they are too.

 

[fordviehman]

Thank you for the answers guys. I had a small leak around the filter when I first changed it so I put the fuel heater o rings on and that stopped that. Just took a quick look under the truck and did see the starter was wet and smelt like fuel. I had ordered a return line kit from Conestoga a few weeks back when I first bought the truck and haven't had the time to put it on yet. I also check the olives and at least tighten them if not replace the seals. I absolutely love the truck but hate the fact I'm losing fuel mileage and leaving fuel on my driveway. Thanks again for the help and the quick replies

 

[icanfixall]

Glad to be some help. These are bullet proof engines that give tremendous service with very little maintenance. Keeping the fuel system tight makes for instant starts. I also do the preventative maintenance by tightening up the olives nuts but knowing full well its just a matter of time before they get replaced. Still not sure why we have these in our lines but feel its to eliminate or cut down on vibration transmission...

 

[fordviehman]

Been about a week or so since I did the return lines and I got all of my leaks to stop but I'm still getting air in my system somewhere. I went ahead a replaced the return lines all the way down to the tanks and that didn't help. What next? Is there still a possibility that the fuel pump could be letting air in or the feed line to the pump? If so I should replace both with the truck sitting for so long I'm sure that the diaphragm within the pump is probably shot and if the feed line is anything like the others it probably needs to be replaced anyway. With that how much line do you think id need from the selector valve to the pump like 10 feet to be on the safe side? I get fuel line and parts pretty cheap working at a dealership and a parts store so I'm not to afraid of people throwing out other ideas of where the air could be coming in. Thanks again, Ford