TheSamba.com :: View topic - Up in smoke... Bus fires... don't let it happen to you!

Thu Jul 14, 2011 4:14 pm

EverettB wrote: busdaddy wrote: Carb VW's came with clamps from Germany, originally the squeezed ring Ottiker (sp?) style.
I agree.

It's true that some of the earlier Split Buses came with no clamps. From memory, factory clamps started around 1967. Maybe this was not true in Mexico.

I have seen a dealer bulletin to start using clamps on the outlet side of the fuel pump for earlier carbureted vehicles.

One issue now is that, at least in the USA, our fuel eats the "German" hoses so without clamps you are at a high risk of the fuel lines breaking down and not holding their grip. Assuming you are lazy and don't check your lines for years on end.

Not the best photo but here's a picture from the '68 bus owner's manual and you can see the clamps:

Both North and South America use a high level of E85 as standard fuel. We have'nt gone so mad in Europe over that one yet due to concerns over the environment, with global warming being a myth and all, so we find that EU spec hoses are fine with EU spec fuels. I've heard that the Brasilian bays which come over here have fuel lines rotting out in a very short space of time
:D

Fri Jul 15, 2011 8:36 pm

Decided to finally get a fire extinguisher to carry in my bus. The last engine I had was actually very leaky and I was lucky to not have started a engine fire. I'll have the little safety on me now.

Mon Aug 01, 2011 1:42 am

I need to put new fuel lines in my bus! noob question, how many feet of them do i need to buy to replace all of them? I've been freaking about about all of the videos :shock: and where to get them (without paying an arm and a leg.

Mon Aug 01, 2011 7:04 am

VWgea wrote: I need to put new fuel lines in my bus! noob question, how many feet of them do i need to buy to replace all of them? I've been freaking about about all of the videos :shock: and where to get them (without paying an arm and a leg.

What year is your bus, what engine, and is it fuel injected or...? We need to know these things to answer those kinds of questions!

Mon Aug 01, 2011 9:19 am

VWgea wrote: I need to put new fuel lines in my bus! noob question, how many feet of them do i need to buy to replace all of them? I've been freaking about about all of the videos :shock: and where to get them (without paying an arm and a leg. I am sorely tempted to write "40 feet oughta do it", but more helpfully, just go to http://busdepot.com/ and their handy interface will guide you to whatever you need for your particular model.

Mon Aug 01, 2011 12:23 pm

I found that a tape measure is the quickest method.

Mon Aug 01, 2011 7:05 pm

BusterBrown wrote: VWgea wrote: I need to put new fuel lines in my bus! noob question, how many feet of them do i need to buy to replace all of them? I've been freaking about about all of the videos :shock: and where to get them (without paying an arm and a leg.

What year is your bus, what engine, and is it fuel injected or...? We need to know these things to answer those kinds of questions!

can't you tell i'm new at this? :x anyways, i just got the thing and and he told me the owner before me had put a later model engine in it.
While i was going through it the fuel lines aren't cracked or anything, but its sitting right next to the engine. where is it supposed to be precisely?

Mon Aug 01, 2011 7:27 pm

Since yours has non-stock aftermarket carburation there are no original stock methods to really follow. You'll have to rely on what others might have done and then just good wise practice.

Tue Aug 02, 2011 10:19 am

Just buy a little extra anyway. Comes in very handy for making beer bongs.

Fri Aug 26, 2011 4:33 pm

Whenever I buy new hose I always get six feet of High pressure and reg braided. It always comes in handy. I would buy 5 or 6 feet and change them all if they are cracked or not. I have a heater blower fan for those open holes!

Thu Sep 08, 2011 8:31 am

Ok..well I have read this whole thing and am still confused.

1969 Weekender with stock carburated engine

What kind of hose do I need?? I have read to use cloth braided and some people are totally against that hose as well.

What ID do I need?

Can anyone recommend a hose and where to purchase. I have seen the ones at German Supply, but those are braided and as a new guy to these I just want to get the best.

Please let a confused new owner know :)

Tue Sep 20, 2011 7:47 pm

Well, better late than never right. Maybe this will help you.
http://www.ratwell.com/technical/FuelHoses.html

Tue Oct 25, 2011 11:59 pm

I first posted this in the regular, non-sticky forum, then thought that for posterity I should put it here.

Warning - Graphic photos below!

About six years ago I got out of the VW bus scene when I sold a fully restored Green 1978 Westy to a couple in Ann Arbor, MI. But in the years since I’ve secretly wished that somebody in my small (pop. 250) remote town in Southern Utah would own and drive a bus of any vintage.

About a month ago a couple currently living next door showed up in town with a nice 1977 Chrome Yellow Westy. I was pretty excited. Zero rust, mostly original paint, great interior, as good as a bus gets without a full restoration.

We’ve all been pretty busy so I had not really been able to sit down and talk to them much about their new purchase. Now, I wish I would have found the time. They are near their retirement years and this is their first bus of any vintage.

A few days ago it caught fire a block from our volunteer fire station, they had yet to even register it or get insurance. And this bus he drove about 5-6 hours to get here. He had a fire extinguisher within reach but it was not fully charged and did not put the fire out.

My questions are:

Is is rebuildable? Or worth doing so? The left rear side panel is warped from the heat and everything plastic or rubber is melted from the CV’s back.

Would the heat do anything structurally to the bus?
Smoke damage to the interior. Any suggestions on how to deal with that? The seats, canvas, poptop, ect.

Any “I brought my bus back to life after a fire” threads?

I should add that about three weeks ago I became owner of a 1978 Westy. I’ve yet to get it to run but close, semi-rough body with good green interior. Then two weeks ago the stars were aligned and I was gifted another 1978 Westy in better shape. So there is the potential for a donor bus here.

Thanks,
Brandt

Wed Oct 26, 2011 8:37 am

Would a cut-off valve at the tank attenuate the severity of the above fire (even if the lines and extinguisher fail)?

Of course you change the fuel + vapor lines and maintain adequate fire suppression, but this whole situation is kinda scary.

Thu Oct 27, 2011 9:25 pm

For my '68 single cab I did the following.
I tapped the fuel oulet in the tank to 1/4" npt, and installed a 1/4" npt to 5/16" 90°
flare fitting. I then hard lined the outlet fuel line from the tank to filter, then pump
which are both mounted beside the tank. Small pieces of rubber fuel line connect the pump and filter. From the pump the line run's up to the
bottom of the bed floor which is above the top of the tank so fuel cannot
syphon feed out of the tank. I drilled a small hole in the engine compartment
wall where the steel line passes through into the engine compartment.
Where the steel line passes through steel I use pass through rubber grommets to
keep the line from chaffing.
For the rubber parts of the fuel line, I use 5/16" multi fuel E85 friendly gasoline hose, my engine is dual carbureted so 5/16" is the correct size for all my fittings.
FWIW I have used more than my share of the stock braided line in my day, as well as every other type of fuel line. Honestly with today's fuel that braided line is not worth it's
it's weight in chicken feathers, and I feel the reason for many of the fires we see these days. With the braided line you can not tell if the rubber liner within is cracked or cracking before you have a leak or go up in smoke. Also with today's ethanol fuel it's seems to have a very short use life, not good.
The fuel injection multi fuel hose is not cheap, but niether is a fire, safety first!
I hope this little blurb helps save a bus if not more, be safe people, and check your fuel lines regularly.

Thu Oct 27, 2011 9:55 pm

SRP1 wrote: For my '68 single cab I did the following.
I tapped the fuel oulet in the tank to 1/4" npt, and installed a 1/4" npt to 5/16" 90°
flare fitting. I then hard lined the outlet fuel line from the tank to filter, then pump
which are both mounted beside the tank. Small pieces of rubber fuel line connect the pump and filter. From the pump the line run's up to the
bottom of the bed floor which is above the top of the tank so fuel cannot
syphon feed out of the tank. I drilled a small hole in the engine compartment
wall where the steel line passes through into the engine compartment.
Where the steel line passes through steel I use pass through rubber grommets to
keep the line from chaffing.
For the rubber parts of the fuel line, I use 5/16" multi fuel E85 friendly gasoline hose, my engine is dual carbureted so 5/16" is the correct size for all my fittings.
FWIW I have used more than my share of the stock braided line in my day, as well as every other type of fuel line. Honestly with today's fuel that braided line is not worth it's
it's weight in chicken feathers, and I feel the reason for many of the fires we see these days. With the braided line you can not tell if the rubber liner within is cracked or cracking before you have a leak or go up in smoke. Also with today's ethanol fuel it's seems to have a very short use life, not good.
The fuel injection multi fuel hose is not cheap, but niether is a fire, safety first!
I hope this little blurb helps save a bus if not more, be safe people, and check your fuel lines regularly.

Well presented, and good input. Thanks for sharing. With the problems we've seen with the stock fuel system set ups, we all know there has to be better ways to go about this.

Fri Oct 28, 2011 4:10 am

This was my solution on my '74. It is steel line right from the tank to the fuel filter and pump mounted in the engine compartment above the level of the tank. The system on my '77 is similar, but there is a bit of hose right at the bottom of the tank.

Mon Oct 31, 2011 11:38 am

zaakystyles wrote: Decided to finally get a fire extinguisher to carry in my bus. The last engine I had was actually very leaky and I was lucky to not have started a engine fire. I'll have the little safety on me now.

Mounted the Fire Extinguisher behind the driver's seat in the Double Cab.

Rolled up on a car with a small battery fire this morning. One quick spritz saved it from getting uglier. Nice to know it was there and ready to go. Going to pick up a replacement after work tonight!

Wed Nov 16, 2011 1:38 pm

working late on a rebuild with a friend... really late... and it was cold... so mind was wandering at almost completion...(excuses)....

Test run on the carbs/turning a new engine over...and didn't fully tighten the mounts down...

FOOOM! Big bright fireball lit up the night sky with my head in the compartment... (stupid stupid stupid). Gas leakdown between the mounts... Scared the crap out of me.

Nothing permanent, knock wood.

Careful out there folks..

Mon Feb 20, 2012 9:06 pm

one day it looked like this:

then this:

buy new one with insurance and start all over:

do everything better than the first time:

INCLUDING ALL FUEL SYSTEM TOTALLY NEW!!!!