One other really important thing about any and ALL of the anti-gel products... you need to add them BEFORE the fuel reaches its cloud point. That's because that is the point at which the wax crystal forms.... and all of the products that do work as an anti-gel... do that by changing the shape of the wax crystal AS IT IS FORMING. Instead of having little fingerlings and sharp points (like a snowflake), it forms in more of a round shape... so they don't "interlock", which keeps them flowing.
There are EMERGENCY treatments that will actually work to "dissolve" the wax that's plugging your filters. PowerService 911, and that Howe's product... Those are kind of "harsh", and not great for the system... but they can work. That's sort of the "easy way" that we'd like to use to unplug them???? supposedly. Your out in the cold, your fuel is gelled and your rig's not running... if I can get her off the road this way, I'm gonna do it (and I would TOO)..... but if they're plugged, your best remedy is to get the rig into a warm area to warm the fuel in the tank up above the cloud point, put in some #1 then (which has a lower cloud point because of less wax... also less lubricating ability then) along with a good anti-gel product, and CHANGE THE FILTERS. If you don't change the filters, they're still likely "half plugged", and you're setting yourself up for another round.
I'm not sure what the deal was with the two samples that had a small layer on top that wasn't "cloudy"... that seemed a bit strange to me, and I'd never seen that in all my years of doing it. Those would be a product that I never saw I assume... but they would also give me some concern. Anytime you've got "separation", you have to ask yourself, WHAT am I separating here? I would tend to suggest, in theory, that whatever those products are, they are the cause of that separation. Now, if it's "water", THAT SHOULD drop to the bottom (heavier specific gravity than oil/fuel), unless it is "dispersed" using a "dispersion agent" which will help to keep those droplets tiny "suspended"... and this will then ONLY allow for a very small amount to remain in suspension, or you're looking at some really expensive repairs. The larger portion of water needs to be settled out... hopefully, your fuel pickup is up above the floor of your tank, so it doesn't get drawn in, and you can drain it off there, till you get clear fuel coming out. And then beyond that, your fuel filters will always be drawing off the top, and the water is supposed to "settle" there in the bowl on the bottom of the filter as well (including in a spin-on).
Water in the fuel is a very bad thing, particularly if it's going through your injector pump and then your injectors. You never want any in there, but you sometimes can get it even just because of condensation on from the air inside the fuel tank. It has a much lower "flash point" (if you will... the temp at which it volatizes) than the fuel... so it turns to steam as it goes through your injectors.... i.e.: rapid expansion... = blown tips on your injectors. And if it's "stored" in your tank for a reasonably long time (depending on temperature, this doesn't have to be terribly long) you can begin to grow an algae at the interface between the water and the oil... a "scum" that is very difficult to fully remove. Fuel jobbers will treat their tanks with a biocide regularly, to prevent this (I sold that too). Most end users don't... but it certainly can happen... not only in your equipment, but in your storage tanks too. If it's a real problem, you first need to do a "shock treatment" of biocide, to kill off all of the algae.... and then you need to pull the "good fuel" off the top, without pulling any of the algae/water in.... and then clean out the tank as best you can... flush... and repeat... to make sure it's now clean and free of all of that scum.
A SMALL amount of this could make it through the system... but it too isn't good (clean, clear fuel ONLY is always best, as has been said), but this will end up plugging up your fuel filters too eventually... which ALSO sets you up for easier gelling... and reduced power, etc.
I SHOULD have put some anti-gel additive in along with it just to be safe. AND... I'm wondering now if I didn't add that #1 after we'd already gotten cold (so below the cloud point).
