3 Reasons Why Your Business Needs Fuel Polishing

FOPCO is a division of California Fuels & Lubricants servicing Southern California. Our customers are businesses and industries such as:

Hospitals
Data Centers
Municipalities
Warehousing
Manufacturing
and many more

FOPCO Technician on the job — If your business relies on emergency backup power, then you expect clean and reliable fuel.

FUEL POLISHING IS NEEDED TO KEEP YOUR STORED DIESEL FUEL PERFORMING WHEN YOU NEED IT.

Three reasons why your business needs fuel polishing are:

FUEL DETERIORATION

Backup power is only used in case of an emergency, and the operations that rely on backup diesel generators need them to be reliable. However, if diesel fuel sits too long it can deteriorate.
Sludge can become a factor in diesel fuel when certain micro-organisms develop where fuel and water meet. These micro-organisms can thicken fuel, speed up deterioration, and clog injectors.

2. WATER

Water enters the tank through condensation. If your tank is 1/2 fuel and 1/2 air, then water can collect in the open space.
Change in outside air temperature causes a steel tank to sweat, and the condensation caused by this will cause water to settle at the bottom of the tank.

3. SEDIMENT

Any time that fuel is added to your tank sediment can be an issue. The possible debris and particulates that can enter the tank will affect the performance of your fuel.
Vent pipes in the tank can also allow sediment into the tank.

THE FOPCO PROCESS

Our technicians come to your location and pull a fuel sample. Then they perform a visual test for clarity and cleanliness and send your fuel off to the laboratory testing.
From the laboratory, you receive a comprehensive service report with our observations and the lab recommendations. If fuel polishing is recommended, then we offer a full-service quote to allow you to make an informed decision.
You then schedule a polishing date and leave the rest to FOPCO.
Our technicians come back to your location self-contained to perform our service. We will not shut down your system while polishing your fuel and your backup power will always remain functional in case of an emergency.

HOW OFTEN DOES FUEL NEED TO BE POLISHED?

It depends. For convenience and reliability of their fuel, some of our customers are on a regular service schedule. For others customers, we pull a sample and only polish their fuel after the test comes back abnormal.