Our Fuel Transfer and Filtration System

While in the mountains, the nearest airport where we can buy fuel is Tepic, and we needed a closer place to get it. Since this plane is certified to run on auto gas, we were able to buy fuel right there in Santa Teresa. The problem was that fuel came to town in 55 gallon drums which was siphoned into 20-liter jugs as it was needed. Fuel in the mountains is known to be of questionable purity and often contains a small amount of water. Rick came up with a system that would filter fuel and pump it to the airplane. This would ensure that we always had clean fuel and wouldn’t require siphoning.

Rick put Brad and me in charge of gathering all the parts and putting it together. We started with a 12-volt water pump off of an old travel trailer. The next step was to stop by a marine dealer in La Paz and purchase a high capacity fuel filter/water separator. We then went to a plumbing supply store to get the hose and fittings required to connect everything.  Back at camp, we wired the pump so it could be powered by a car. We worked to make good connections that wouldn't be exposed to fumes. We enjoyed putting it together and were anxious to see it work (or explode). The system worked well and we drained a fair bit of water from the bottom of the filter.

Pouring fuel into jugs as we bought it

Our completed system

Miguel's pick-up was used as a ladder as well as to power the pump

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As you can see, technology has come a long way since last year.