Pressure gauge question

[SuperBuickGuy]

I had a pressure gauge on my Corvette - it came with the EZ Efi system. It ruptured, and then broke the face and leaked fuel. Fortunately, the only thing destroyed was the gauge; but now I'm worried - do these gauges fail often? I'm not moving the regulator to a safer location, and honestly, I set the pressure and forget it - so I can't imagine the need for a gauge to be on there 24/7....

or am I just worrying too much because I got a bum gauge?

[Bob Holmes]

We have one on the road racing car. Never had a problem. I think its a more violent environment than a street car, so I'm inclined to think that the problem you experienced is rare.

[NewEnglandRaceFan]

bad luck, you just happen to get a faulty one.

[anotheridiot]

I know there were diaphragms for low pressure in chemical pumps I had. The fluid stopped at the diaphragm and a lite oil was on the gauge side so when the pressure raised in the line before the diaphragm it transferred the pressure reading to the gauge. I think this is something along the line where the fuel stays outside the firewall and safe fluid goes inside.

http://www.jegs.com/i/Auto-Meter/105/5282/10002/-1

just an example, not recommending anything, but otherwise you can find an electronic gauge that works with a sending unit.

[Aircooled]

I would never leave a gauge bolted to the engine for any length of time. Too high a risk that at some point in the engine operating range minor gauge shaking will resonate into a high frequency vibration. Anything that spends enough hours vibrating at a high frequency resonance point will fail from fatigue. Some people get lucky and the resonance point is not within their normal driving pattern. Others are unlucky, and the resonance point coincides with their cruise RPM.

[Beagle]

pipe plug, move on. Pressure shouldn't be changing.

hey - you've got an inertia switch on that thing right?

[SuperBuickGuy]

Gauge is on the pressure regulator - attached to the car


this is what the gauge looks like now

[dieselgeek]

Definitely run a fuel pressure gauge, it's the most key diagnostic tool when you have a problem with your EZ-EFI (we sell tons of these systems). I agree that it should be mounted somewhere where the vibes are minimal, and it should stay under the hood. The one that comes with the EZ is very, very cheap so it's possible to get one that slips through quality control.

The reason you need a FP gauge, or quick access to one, is so that when you have problems you can eliminate roughly 50% of the potential causes with a simple pressure check. If not a gauge, then have a schrader valve fitted somewhere so you can check it quickly and easily if there are problems (carry the gauge in the car with you).

We had an EZ-EFI failure on my boss's airboat engine a few weeks ago. It ended up being a bad ECU but I was 80% sure it was a fuel pressure problem initially because that's almost always what goes wrong first in an EFI system. but the gauge on the boat showed good pressure all the time so we had to keep looking.

[TheSilverBuick]

I concur with the rest, it was a rare gauge failure. My Summit one has been mounted to the regulator under the hood of my Skylark since 2009 and in excess of 60,000 miles with no issue.

[squirrel]

The one that comes with the EZ is very, very cheap so it's possible to get one that slips through quality control.

Or it could be that there isn't any quality control....

Thanks for the warning about cheap fuel pressure gages.

[SuperBuickGuy]

I'm convinced to run a gauge - it is true, it makes it so easy to see if you have fuel if the pressure needle has moved so I'll put a gauge back in - but I think I'm going to "invest" in one of known quality (snickering at invest - but it's also not a waste of money as it means my car won't burn to the ground).

recommendations?

[BKBridges]

Weve (F&B) trialed a lot of different fuel pressure gages for our kits. All of them seem to have mfg quality issues eventually and are one of the higher failure rate components. I have a sneaking suspicion that they all come from the same overseas factory and just have different names on them. Ive never seen one go the way yours did though... I recommend splurging on an electronic gage for inside the car. Stewart Warner has the most reasonably priced unit, but the Autometer and etc are all in the same range price wise more or less and of high quality. Even though once you set up your regulator the pressure profile shouldn't change, filters do clog and pumps do fail. Its nice to see it happening before you lean out and hurt something!
BKB

[squirrel]

I suggest getting an autometer mechanical gage and mounting it under the hood somewhere convenient, with a good hose/tube connecting it to the fuel source. Of course that requires careful installation and offers even more opportunities for leaks. But hey, this is never easy.

[JeffMcKC]

I prefer the electric gauge, hoses running around under the hood worry me, screw in the sender and you can log the pressure of the sender too

[dieselgeek]

SBG, as an alternative (and since there's an inner geek in there) - I found the source for the pressure transducers that are identical to Autometer, only they're $35 instead of $120+ and available on Ebay. It minimizes the chance of leaks and fires since there is no tubing to plumb, and you could go as simple as a warning light if the pressure goes out of range, or some radioshack parts (hey, you're a HAM now, this is your thing!) to put together your own display (LEDs?), or you can use a cheap voltmeter or equivalent gauge (many of them are just volt meters) and either way end up with a cheap and safe way to monitor fuel pressure. I know some people don't like idiot lights but I love 'em. Fuel pressure is something I don't want to have to watch, I just want something to squawk at me when there's a problem. Let me know if you want a link to the transducers.