Sullivan Palatek D210 fuel leaks into tank

by Joe Z
(Spartanburg, SC )

Sullivan Palatek pull behind D210 Compressor fuel leaks back down into tank.

My compressor uses a John Deer motor.

I have had a problem of it starting for about a month and finally quit. It would always turn over and eventually start, now it just turns over and doesn't start.

Mechanic says it was the fuel pump so we replaced the fuel pump, same problem, now he says its the lifter pump(one you use when you run out of fuel to prime the lines) so we replaced that and same problem.

So I changed the black fuel line from the tank to the lifter pump to a clear one so I could see what was going on. This is what I have found.

After a day or so of sitting the fuel starts to leak back down into the fuel tank leaving the line empty. If I catch it in time and there is some fuel left in the line i can start it but it will take about 10-15 seconds of turning it over to start. at that point the clear fuel line is solid fuel and no air pockets.

I've never had this problem before and I am stuck.

My mechanic is clueless as well.

Any pointers would be great. thank you in advance. I hope someone here has ran into this before.