How do I bleed and tune this?

[OverkillYJ]

Couple of questions here about this torpedo heater I have been using for years. When I bought it it had a clogged nozzle and broken ignitor. I fixed those, and it has worked like new for 7 or 8 years now. I have never had to do anything to it, it fires up every year for me.

This year I pulled an old oil tank out of my basement. Since this thing says right on the top it burns heating oil #1 and #2 I filled it with that oil which was not too dirty, because it was the first cans I filled out of the tank before I got to sludge. It was clear and red. It tried to fire, but it smoked, then went out, and gave me ****. I opened the rear and attempted to tune the air/fuel ratio, but had no joy. So since I then assumed it was too dirty to burn in my shop even if I got it going, I gave it all away to a guy with a diesel VW who runs cooking oil and stuff.

Problem now is I put fresh kerosene in it, and I get zero ignition. I do not know how this fuel pump works, and I messed with the dials without first noting how many turns out they were. I probably should have taken note of that like working on a carb. So I m not sure how to dial it back in because I was not thinking.

Other problem I have is also fuel related. I put kerosene in, and I am not getting any fuel to the nozzle. I removed the nozzle thinking it may be clogged, and stuck the end of the fuel line into a bottle and started it up, I didnt get a drop of fuel. I turned the fuel pump thing so see if that gave me fuel and tried again, but get nothing. So I am not sure if I turned a dial on this pump the wrong way, or if sediment clogged a line in the tank. I am not sure how to clear the line on this so I get fuel again, then dial it in. The lines are glued on, not clamped, so I would really like to NOT have to cut them off and create another thing to fix.

For dialing it in, I figured I would use my O2 meters, look at how much smoke I get, and the smell. Any pointers on this stuff would be appreciated.

I dont hire people to fix things. I know this is fuel related and can kill me. I am good and follow safety procedures and stuff, I also have a giant exhaust fan for running engines in my shop roof. I just would like to get ignition at this point. Right now I am kind of flying blind on why I have no fuel.

I also have a large compressor and can blow air through if that's in any way a good idea. I didn't want to try and find out its a bad idea.

Any help you guys can offer will be much appreciated. Thank you in advance. I am going back out to my shop now, and will look at this thread again in an hour or so, then I will try your suggestions and let you know if it fixed my problem so it may help the next guy too.

 

[OverkillYJ]

I went deeper into it. I found the fuel line that feeds the nozzle was broken, but I am still confused as to how this thing actually functions, and I have not had time to look it up. The filter which I never knew was in there is dirty, but I dont think it is stopping it from flowing any fuel at all. There is the one fuel line from the tank to the back of the nozzle, then another line on the nozzle goes back to the fan and thing that does something with the fuel. I am guessing there is a venturi effect that draws fuel in and it blows through the blades of the fan for more even combustion, but thats a guess. Does that also draw the fuel out of the tank?

I am going to order new filters for both the fuel line and the air. I did replace the fuel line with a good automotive one, but still had no fuel at the nozzle. I do not know if there is any type of fuel pump in this thing. Since it does not have an access panel for the fuel tank that I see, I am assuming it does not.

If this was a vehicle I would be checking the fuel pump, or seeing if I was getting fuel to the carb, but on this I am confused what my next step should be. I can figure it out, but I am 100% sure someone on here knows all about these torpedo heaters and can help me a lot.

If I get no help I will update the thread just to help people Googling how to fix these things. Its going to be a week or more before I have the parts to go further.