At Blue Chip Diesel, we get a lot of calls saying, "my truck has no power," or "it falls on its face." When this happens, the first step is to ensure the lift pump function, which can be accomplished by doing a flow or bucket test.
So, how do you complete a flow/bucket test?
First, you need to know what lift pump you have. Some have the dreaded in-tank pump, which usually becomes problematic at some point. Or, others have the original OEM lift pump on the side of the engine. This is referred to as the Carter-style pump. Both of these pumps should be in the 40 gallon an hour range, which should produce 1.42 ounces per second. If you have a 100 gallon an hour pump, it should produce 3.5 ounces per second.
The idea, is to connect a hose at the discharge end of the fuel filter and time the flow to measure the volume produced. Compare your results to these values to help determine the functionality of your lift pump.
As always, we welcome any questions or if you need additional information on procedural information, so give us a call to walk through how to complete your tests.