yes,that's exactly whats its for.at 32 degree's, diesel fuel begins to wax,and this is when the filters can start to plugged up.the fuel heater combats this.
but,these days the stations deliver cut #2 diesel fuel with #1 so it's not much of an issue.iv had it happen with a bad dose of water in the fuel though.
depending on your location i guess is when they start giving ya cut fuel,and cut by so much.around here,iv been told it's more #1 than #2 and they do so around the tail end of October,which clearly shows up in the fuel economy records.......but i guess it beats being broken down lol.

 

Lots of people have been asking for this so I brought it back to the top

 

oh.hey there Josh.
i stumbled on a pic that would be cool for this thread too (if it's not already in here lol) but forgot.here it is.now i can finally delete it from my desktop.

 

thats a helpful pic!!!!

 

The origional fuel heater in my dads 92 is the 1- piece also. And like stated above, Ford is pretty proud of it. If i ever have a problem with mine im going to tap it and plug it. Its not hooked up anyway. I think its to keep gelled fuel from plugging the filter, but ive never had a problem with that, and will deal with it if i ever do i guess.

 

Had tried the JB Weld last summer and it worked out until last week but the leak is back in my 90. Pulled the assembly off of my 88 and trying to locate the correct o rings.
Great diagram of all the parts. Thanks to all who contributed on this. Learned a lot.

 

.............................

 

HOw do you "delete" your fuel heater? Mine's leaking a little fuel from the plug and when I went to bang it on a tighter, it shattered and I can't find a replacement to save my life. Without the plug, fuel's just gushing out.

 

This is the one I used.

f2tz9j294a Ford 6.9 7.3 Diesel Fuel Heater f2tz-9j294a Racor Element RK22010 WVO | eBay

IIRC I offered 70 and they accepted. I put it in over a year ago, and it has not leaked.

Hope this helps,

Mac.

 

Thanks Mac! My issue is actually the electrical part that plugs into the part you posted there. I broke that plug & now it's leaking fuel like crazy.

 

I purchased a new heater from UHAUL TRUCK PARTS on-line.

 

Glad to be of service. It is not a hard fix. Make sure you do the tip I suggested for taking the nut off, earlier in this thread. Mine was a bear to get off!

Good luck,

Mac.

 

I am in the middle of fixing the fuel heater leak on my 91 7.3 IDI. IH now wants $133 for the entire heater, and neither IH nor Ford ($168 for the heater) has the right o-rings or even knows what the correct size would be.
I did some digging, and the closest o-rings (round cross section) I have found are designated 2-014 for the inner (smaller) o-ring under the spade connector. The larger o-ring that seals the plug as it goes through the top of the assembly is designated 2-016. I found a local machine shop that gave me some of the rings for free! Kudos to "Tri C" in West Sacramento.
<O></O>
Alternatively you can look them up at McMaster and order them in square section shape (like the original). The only material they have them in is called Buna-n. That stuff is supposedly good for oil environments. The drawback is they come in 100ea only, but they are only about $10 a pack.<O></O>

 

does anyone know if not having the vaccum sensor hooked up makes a difference? I have a 91 7.3 IDI and I found the plastic push on connector on the engine and a wire hanging off on the valve cover.

Not knowing yet what that was I put it aside and then it dropped on the floor I stepped on it and crushed it. Now i run fine but I am trying to fix it up and wonder what the vaccum sensor does and if I can replace that piece that goes on the end of the dial thing at the back of the filter head?

I also have to do the fuel heater o-ring replacement and I thought whle it was apart I would fix this but not sure if it can be bought or what it is even called?

 

It won't make a difference in the engine running if not hooked up. It's there to let you know that the filter is clogging and the injector pump is having to "pull" fuel through the filter causing a vacuum in the filter.