Remote oil filter as fuel filter?

Might sound dumb but hear me out, slight inebriation going on but its something ive though about before. So my girlfriends 2nd car has a slightly rusty tank, im planning on boiling it out via electrolosis soon but, what if i used a remote oil filter "kit" (basically the mount and a big ass filter as a pre filter prior to normal filter not before the intank pump) to filter out rust and crud in an easily replaceable spin on filter? Growing up around boats with water separators (basically just an oil filter) it makes me wonder if this is viable for a car. Has anyone else though of this or better yet implemented such an idea on a car? This one keeps crudding up a filter every few months. Like i say ill probably "boil" the tank before to long. But hey better filtered than sorry even after the clean tank.

You can get big spin on fuel filters...Search for diesel truck parts. Lots of guys put them on Duramax/Powerstroke/Cummins trucks. Napa has a cheap remote filter mount base and you can get Cat filters cheap, although they are made for diesel, not sure if they work for gasoline or not.

I use one on my truck as a transmission filter. You can buy filters for the Chevy smallblock that have no bypass and no drainback valve in them so they free-flow quite well.

Mine is a Wix filter but I forget the number at the moment.

Depends if your looking for the suction side of the fuel pump a "engine oil filter" will have to much resistance HOWEVER a "fuel oil filter" from a home heating oil burner will work great and hold a crap load of debris before it has resistance.

In reply to 44Dwarf:

I was going to say diesel filter/separator, but your idea is much better.

So it's just a matter of finding a fuel oil filter that matches the remote filter base.

Personally, I'd just get one of the spin on marine filter setups. No concerns about the seals with gasoline at that point, considering it's doing exactly what it's meant to.

This idea has my attention

All great points! It has an in tank pump and would go before the normal fuel filter. Guess i should check to see how small these filters...filter, might not even need the normal fuel filter. 44dwarf ill have to check into those home heater fuel filters.

Glad to see others dont see my idea as dumb as i thought it could have been construed

Fuel oil filter is not made for high pressure suction side only or low psi carb. Fram does sell a unit like this.

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/pfs-10102/overview/

We use one as a surge tank for our racecar.

Go for the fuel filter. It's made for it. Readily available at parts stored too.

doc_speeder said:

You can get big spin on fuel filters...Search for diesel truck parts. Lots of guys put them on Duramax/Powerstroke/Cummins trucks. Napa has a cheap remote filter mount base and you can get Cat filters cheap, although they are made for diesel, not sure if they work for gasoline or not.

Also, Tractor Supply has big spin-on fuel filters intended for gas pump applications, made by Goldenrod. They're pretty cheap and flow enough for, well, filling an entire gas tank in a minute.