Fueling problem after cleaning Evap Vent Valve Filter,,,

fallvitals · Post by **fallvitals** » Fri Mar 27, 2009 11:49 pm

I hate to post this, but im having the same problem as detailed in this thread with the exception that I just cleaned the Evap Filter.

Blocked tank vent; evap canister causing overflow at filler?

Full story, in detail. Got my 03 Crew Cab about 20 days ago. (You all know me well by now, lol). I have filled it up 3 times before tonight. Filled up fine. It seemed to not want to auto click off till it was over filling. BUt after doing it the first time I learned Once I hear it getting close to stop, slow down the flow, and let it click off itself, I might not be able to round up to the nearest dollar, but I know my tank is fully full.

Anyways, while changing diff fluid today, I saw the thread about cleaning the Evap Vent Valve Filter. I have the large round looking canister. I took it off, blow it out with a air compressor, then took a wet rag and cleaned it really well, then blew it dry. Also, blew the filter clean. Re-assembled and reinstalled.

I went to get gas tonight, I poured in about 4 oz of Marvel Mystery oil, then started to fill up. Only got 1/3 of a gallon in and it clicked off. Tried again, same thing. Took about 7 minutes to put 12.7 gallons in.

Now in that thread, the guys problem was the Evap Vent Valve. But I just cleaned mine... Is it possible I damaged it with the air compressor somehow?

i searched, that thread I linked to is the best I found, but liek I said, i just cleaned mine?! Seems more then a coincidence thisproblem did start till i cleaned it. so... input?

edit to add, also,,, when I took it off, it sounded like there was a small peeble in there, There was no peeble, When i tooked into the hole where the hose connects to the canister I see a spring and the noise I was hearing was something to do with that spring moving up and down. Could that have something to do with it, maybe i was being paranoid but it sounded like it was "louder" once I reinstalled it...

Would a good way to test it to be remove the hose from the canister after i use a few gallons then go back to fill it up to see if it fills correctly?

Also, 2 days ago I had my truck checked for any codes (No SES light on, just making sure there wasnt any 'hidden' codes) and there were none.

Post by **HenryJ** » Sat Mar 28, 2009 5:42 am

Did you test it before you reinstalled it? Blow through it to make sure it flows freely. A 9V battery works great to test its function and make sure it seals shut too.

Make sure the little rubber seal does not get dislodged, when you use an air compressor to clean it out.

If the valve is ok and the vent tube to the tank clear, then look to the filler neck problem.

fallvitals · Post by **fallvitals** » Sat Mar 28, 2009 10:17 am

Okay, when I blow through it, with no power, there is some resistance.

When i put a 9v to it, theres a white plunger that isnt setting flush with the bottom of the housing, its setting about 1/8" off if it, with a white rod going into the hole below it.

When i shine my 200 luman flash light through the canister. I can see a pin prick hole of light at the bottom of that plunger.

When I apply a 9v to it, you can have the plunger move up. But it only does so about 1/8"

When i shine my light through it in the same manner I might be able to see just a hair more light, but it could be an optical illusion since I have to hold the part at an extreme angle to see it....

So im not sure if its fine or not? Liek i said when I blow on it,, theres resistance, it doesnt flow easily, but air does pass through.

Still, If i fill up without the canister installed, can it still does it, its ntt he problem?

edit- Also, i decided to blow through it while using the 9v to open the valve,,, there was no differane in air flow when i blew on it, still had the same ammount of resistance open or closed.

Post by **HenryJ** » Sat Mar 28, 2009 2:02 pm

You have a problem. Air should flow easily. The tank needs to be vented to fill properly. When it is closed it should seal and hold vacuum.

fallvitals · Post by **fallvitals** » Sat Mar 28, 2009 2:08 pm

lol, I can never win. Do some preventative maintenance and screw the part up,, oh well, better a $17 part then the filler tube/neck. I unplugged it after driving around some, and filled it, it filled no problem. Any idea what I did? Blew it apart with the air compressor perhaps?

And somehow,,, i drove 38 miles, and it took 1.9 gallons to fill it. 19mpg.

Not sure How i did that. (maybe 10 miles of interstate, 5 miles of country roads, and the rest main roads with stop lights 40-50mpg limits, lol. im just thirlled with tat, hopefully it stays high ,lol, but I doubt it) That evep canister doesnt have a thing to do with it right?

Also, kinda OT, but where the best place to get AC Delco parts? Any more no one carrys even AC Delco oil filters... I would prefer to not order online, but I can if need be.... And im not buying from a dealer with their 200-400% markup. And is this a part stores would have or would I better better going to like, rock auto, or someplace online?

Post by **HenryJ** » Sat Mar 28, 2009 2:19 pm

You likely blew the little rubber seal off its keeper , or wedged it. I did that to a couple. It can be fixed with some patience and time. Tear it apart. You have nothing to lose. Check the thread : Evap vent valve

It talks about the valve.

That is a picture of where it is and what it should look like. You may have the rubber valve wedged in that spring.

Next. Give your dealer a chance. Know what the part can be bought for , including shipping, and ask them if they can meet that for you. Barring that ask a parts store where to get AC Delco parts. There are independents that handle them. If both of those are not options, you may have to take a chance on aftermarket parts.

fallvitals · Post by **fallvitals** » Sat Mar 28, 2009 11:20 pm

well,,, ill pull it off again tomorrow and see if I can't fix it. I dont think I can... but ill definantly give it a shot. Ordering it online wouldnt be too bad, except shipping is nearly as much as the part

Mine looked different then that inside.. i didnt see a spring like that... i saw a metal rod going verticle in it... ill just have to play with it...

fallvitals · Post by **fallvitals** » Sun Mar 29, 2009 10:45 am

Alright, took it off again, took the valve part off of the canister. Looked in the back side of the valve, (the portion that goes into the canister). And I could see the spring was bent backwards, hanging the plunger up. I pushed it out, andnPONG! the spring and plunger shoot up making it look like the one pictured above.

So fixed right? Im not sure...

I hok it up to a 9v battery, and it does nothing. Then I recall yesterday when I hooked it up,, the plunger wanted to move UP< and the plunger is all thew way UP now. I reverse the polarity, no differance.

I decided to hang the spring back up, hoo kthe battery up to it, and I can see the plunger working again, but its moving UP. Change polarity, same story.

So... I used two different batterys, I got the plunger unstuck, when i blow in it, air flows freely, just when i put a 9v to it, the valve doesnt close... the plunger only goes up. Which im thinking when installed it would work correctly having the correct info sent to it through the wire harness? im just confused by the 9v test right now.. is it broke or right?

Post by **HenryJ** » Sun Mar 29, 2009 10:57 am

Does it move air freely? Does it seal tight? You tell us, is it fixed?

fallvitals · Post by **fallvitals** » Sun Mar 29, 2009 11:09 am

Buddy I dont know. What im saying is the spring was stuck, I unstuck it, it looks as pictured above. Air flows free. But when i do the 9v test nothing happens. nothing moves.

When i did the 9v test yesterday, the plunger went up. trying to OPEN the valve. the valve is fully open now, when i do the 9v test, it cant open any more. So, as for the valve shutting, sealing tight, I dont know. Thats where my question is..

Post by **HenryJ** » Sun Mar 29, 2009 11:19 am

If you can not get the solenoid to function, use a multimeter to check between the contacts for continuity. An open condition would indicate a open circuit in the coil and a bad solenoid.

fallvitals · Post by **fallvitals** » Sun Mar 29, 2009 11:32 am

I grabbed dad's multi meter, which I should really know how to use by now,, googled how to do a continuity test.

Set it to the correct settings, its not open, it tested postive for continuity.

So, the solenoid seems good, just for some reason the 9v test didn't work for me.. So again thanks for the help, im sure i made this harder then it had to be. but this (the 9v test) very much got me confused...

jedthrocornpone · Post by **jedthrocornpone** » Sun Mar 29, 2009 12:33 pm

I'm doing something wrong too as I get continuity both on the truck one (suspect) and the brand new one in the box but no matter how I hook up a 9v I get nothing. my code magicaly went away but I got new issues. (heater controls)

good luck sir

Post by **HenryJ** » Sun Mar 29, 2009 12:42 pm

Having continuity does not guarantee that the coil is not shorted. If it does not operate with voltage applied , then it is not working. Just another step in the trouble shooting.

fallvitals · Post by **fallvitals** » Sun Mar 29, 2009 1:08 pm

jedi, well thats good to know, about the volatge being applied.

Just liek I said, when the spring was hung up, and i applied volatge the plunger went UP, OPENING the valve. After i unstuck it, it did nothing, but it was all the way up, what could it do? I stuck it again on purpose and the plunger went UP again. Im thinking, once its installed and working it works correctly? idk.. my guess, i installed it again, need to disconnect the battery clear the code from when i ran the truck without it installed, and see what happens, i bet it works fine.

So what im saying was the plunger moved when i aplied volatge (when the plunger was hung up) it just didnt close. it tried to open. my guessing is somehow when installed the truck makes it work right, idk... im gonna try it.

jedi, good luck with your heater controls. that has to suck.

WileyHunter · Post by **WileyHunter** » Sun Mar 29, 2009 8:58 pm

fallvitals wrote:And somehow,,, i drove 38 miles, and it took 1.9 gallons to fill it. 19mpg. Not sure How i did that.

While that short of distance isn't a good indicator of mileage... My '03 regularly gets 19.5 to 21.5 MPG. So it is possible.

fallvitals · Post by **fallvitals** » Sun Mar 29, 2009 9:26 pm

WileyHunter wrote:
fallvitals wrote:And somehow,,, i drove 38 miles, and it took 1.9 gallons to fill it. 19mpg. Not sure How i did that.
While that short of distance isn't a good indicator of mileage... My '03 regularly gets 19.5 to 21.5 MPG. So it is possible.

Yeah, i figure it has somehting to do with the short distance fill up. so far my 4 tanks have been:
#1 14.5mpg
#2 15.0mpg
#3 15.5mpg
#4 14.4mpg (I rode it a bit hard, plus lost a smidge of gas during fuel fitler change)

But, i rarely drive the interstate either. So, i figure the 19mpg had somehting to do with the interstate and main roads for the majority of the trip..

anywaysss. Maybe if i ever take a interstate trip i can find out what it can do then, lol.

fallvitals · Post by **fallvitals** » Mon Mar 30, 2009 4:41 pm

Thought I would be done with this thread... but apperantly not..

This is concerning the SES light.

I read after the evap canister check fails twice, it throws the SES. Which it happened on the second start when I had it removed over the weekend.

I waited to disconnect the battery till today to clear out the codes (no SES light) becuase i was isntalling my transmission cooler.

Had the battery disconnected for 4 hours. Hooked every thing back up, and SES light is still on!

What the heck? It was even on when I had the ignition on (after all the other lights went out). So it obviously didnt clear... Whats up with that? do i have to have Advance Auto clear it with their scanner?

Disconnecting the battery on my old 97 s-10 cleared the codes for the SES light....

Post by **HenryJ** » Mon Mar 30, 2009 6:03 pm

Did you disconnect both battery cables? Capacitors in the newer systems may retain enough power to retain codes.

fallvitals · Post by **fallvitals** » Mon Mar 30, 2009 6:25 pm

HenryJ wrote:Did you disconnect both battery cables? Capacitors in the newer systems may retain enough power to retain codes.

Yes Sir. I put the bettery in the bed of the truck.

Well,, what am I to do then? Is my only option to have advance clear me off?

Post by **HenryJ** » Mon Mar 30, 2009 6:44 pm

Did you consider that a condition still exists to set the code?

You can try other methods to clear it and see if it is still there.

fallvitals · Post by **fallvitals** » Mon Mar 30, 2009 6:53 pm

HenryJ wrote:Did you consider that a condition still exists to set the code?

You can try other methods to clear it and see if it is still there.

its possible, but i think unlikely. i had it tested for codes days before, nothing was present. the light came on beucase i had the evap canister unplugged. Andf the light was on before I even started the vehicle.

What other methods are there besides disconnecting the battery?

Post by **HenryJ** » Mon Mar 30, 2009 7:00 pm

The light normally comes on before you start the vehicle. This is how the bulb is tested.
If you drove with the solenoid unplugged, it will set a code. Once the solenoid is replaced and the code cleared the MIL should go off after the engine start unless there is a condition for setting the lamp again.

You need to scan the code again. It may not be the same one, or you still have a problem.

You might think about investing in a reader, programmer that includes a reader, or the ScanguageII. I really like the ScanguageII.

fallvitals · Post by **fallvitals** » Tue Mar 31, 2009 12:10 am

I know when you turn the key to the ignition all the dash lights come on, but then they go off, the SES light stayed on before starting. But long story short, I was leaving work, driving home and noticed it was off!

So, I guess it sensed the evep canister was right. I still can hardly believe disconnecting the battery didnt clear it. But I have thought for a while about investing in a scanning tool... I might have to do that...