Yikes!! I need help - gallons of fuel in the bilge.

[goinfiishin]

Yikes! I have a '97 26x. I store it mast up at the lake. I took a new friend to go sailing yesterday and the carbon monoxide / air quality alarm was going off. I opened the hatch and smelled gas vapors. I looked in the bilge and found gasoline in the bottom, and a lot of it. A week ago I had just filled the port side 13 gallon tank. I motored for about an hour to the storage port and put it away on its trailer. I couldn't figure how gasoline had gotten into the bottom of the boat since both 13 gal tanks are in lazarettes on each side of the cockpit. If they leak they would just run into the cockpit, down the engine well drain and onto the ground, or so I thought. The fumes were terrible! Further investigation revealed a crack in the fuel line between the tank and the fuel filter/water separator which is mounted on the stern of the engine well. Still, I thought, any leaking gasoline should just go down the drain in the engine well and out the back onto the ground. Long story short, I crawled back under the cockpit and removed the decorative cover on the inside rear of the transom. There I discovered, to my amazement, that the drain consists of clear tubing, hose clamps and PVC elbows. The hose was sagging below the drain hole so that any fluid would puddle in the center of the hose. I had (unthinkingly) left the connector hooked to the fuel tank and it acted like a syphon which drained a lot of what was left in the tank into the hose, out the crack, down the engine well, down the drain and consequently into the cabin. I just closed it up with the hatch cover cracked till I could think about it a little. I have a potential bomb! Should I use the bilge pump to pump it out and flush it with water and soap and scrub it as best I can and flush it again. I definitely don't want to be inside if something should ignite the air mixture (I'm thinking bilge pump, power switch - whatever). Is this something that should be handled by "experts"?

Any advice would be enormously appreciated.


1997 26x

[Hamin' X]

I have a manual bilge pump that would be ideal for your situation. I think that Wal-Mart has them. It is made by Attwood.



~Rich

[Trouts Dream]

I would use the bilge pump HaminX suggests...I have one and it can be very useful to have on board anyway.

If you are at Ghost lake, I'm sure Mike will allow you to use a hose to flush the bilge a few times. Some people add a little dishwashing soap as a surfactant to help get all the gas out. You could probably put a few gallons of water and some dishwashing soap in the bilge then drive around a bit, stooping and starting , to swish the water around and then pump it out of the bilge. Might have to do it 2 - 3 times.....and don't stop for a cigarette.

Best of luck

[Russ]

Interesting story. I wonder if the motor well drain hose should be made of something more substantial that would withstand gasoline/ethanol from dissolving it.

Yes, you have a potential bomb. DON'T use ANYTHING electrical. No bilge pumps, no fans, nothing. Hopefully all your electrical switches are turned off. Don't touch them.

Your best bet is to open it up carefully and let it air out a bit first. Gasoline fumes are the most explosive. Gasoline in and of itself is not that volatile. Maybe even get a big piece of cardboard or something to direct the wind down the hatch. Then I'd use the hand pump shown above. Pump it into a container/bucket or something. A red fuel container would be ideal. Once most of it is pumped out, I would mop it up with paper towels and let them air outside to evaporate. Then use lots of soap and water and pump that out and mop with paper towels.

[bscott]

Wear rubber gloves and try not to breath the fumes---I spilled a small amount of gas in the hatch of my Jeep GC and could not get the smell out for 6 weeks. I drove it with the rear windows open. I now suffer from a mild case of Parkinson's. Not sure if it was the gas fumes but it sure didn't help. Sorry for the bad news.

Bob

[Russ]

Oh yea, and don't forget to fix that engine well drain and whatever is wrong with it to allow fuel and liquid into the cabin. Otherwise you'll end up with tons of water in the bilge when it rains.

[phiggy]

I just replaced that engine well drain hose arrangement with a single more rigid sanitary hose as it was always plugging up when the centre hose pinched off and I could'nt get water preasure or a wire auger to clear it. Now I have a single piece of 2 foot hose with no elbows that is more rigid and just curves nicely to fit the engine well drain and the aft drain outlet. It was a bugger to get the hose over the fiberglass extrutions though I had to put the sanitary hose in near boiling water to get it soft enough to fit over the extrutions and then clamp them. Based on your story if might be better to use a fuel grade hose instead...

[Laika 26X]

Do the right thing......

Call your insurance, and call the local Authorities such as the CG/ Police or Fire Dept, period.

Or feel free to take your life into your own hands and risk becoming a statistic.

"Sub" Ed Tordahl
S/V LAIKA
USCG Auxiliary
Qualified Crew
Qualified Aids (Nav) Verifier
Qualified Public Education Instructor
NYS Qualified Safe Boating Instructor

[seahouse]

I would very definitely NOT use a pump like the one pictured. Unless it specifically states that it is intended for use with flammable liquids I would stay away from using it. The back and forth pumping action has the potential to generate static electricity (through triboelectric effect), and then... a spark, and then..... But of course maybe then you (or a family member) will want to get your insurance company involved.

Even the friction created when gasoline is pumped (never mind any plastic being rubbed) creates static electricity within the fluid itself, depending on the handling. That is dealt with by special design features in gas pumps at gas stations.

Even the wrong fan is risky- powerboats use special sparkless fans. Without seeing the situation, but based on your description, I would consult your local fire department to determine your course of action. They have the equipment and knowledge (or access to it) to handle such conditions safely.

There are some old wive's tales passed off as science in forums, and there has been hard science labeled as wive's tales here too. These above facts fall into neither category. Don't take the risk!

[Québec 1]

Boom! I would take the advice of a lot of the guys on this thread and call the fire station.
Q1

[hart]

Agreed. You've paid enough taxes to avail yourself of the local experts. Call the Fire Department.

[vizwhiz]

I agree that the best course of action would likely be to call the fire department...BUT...before you do, ask them if they charge for the service...I know most people will tell you "no way", but if you call the EMT down here and they come to your house, that's $100. If they take you to the hospital, it's $600...period. They MAY charge for this type of non-standard or "special" service for a condition you created...just worth asking first.

And you don't want to just wait and let it evaporate on its own - it will leave a nasty varnishy yucky stain and smell...and it can't be good for your fiberglass hull either.

[goinfiishin]

Well fellow sailors,

I just wanted to write and give you an update on my progress and thanks to the many people who were kind enough to lend me your ear and give me your opinion. It helped me a lot.

I left about 8:30 this morning and went to the marina. It was very windy today so I was lucky in that regard. I opened the hatch and the companion way and took out all the cushions and bedding and anything that would retain the smell.

I was able to use the hand pump and pump the gas out in five gallon buckets with lids. I put soap and water from a spray hose in the bilge area then drove around and pumped that out. I repeated the process two more times. Then I found that after I thought I was done that if I drove some more I had to pump some more as some of the water was trapped in other sections until I moved the boat again. It eventually wound up in the bilge. I think I got most of it out. I wish I could say the same about the smell. I parked the trailer with the hatch and companion way open to the wind. I think I'll have to let it air out a bit and then go back and wash it again.

I brought all the fabric items home and put them on the patio to air out or in the washer if they were washable. I hadn't had the opportunity to read the warnings about gloves and fire department and Coast Guard etc., so I didn't use the gloves or contact the Pros. In retrospect I probably should have worn a mask and gloves, (I can still smell gasoline and probably will for a few hours) but all in all, it all worked out pretty well and I don't think I did any brain damage br br brain dam dam dammmmage. Oh well, it didn’t work very well in the first place.

Now the fun begins, fixing the fuel lines and the engine well drain.

Thank you all for your input - it has been very educational.

[Russ]

Glad you didn't blow yourself up.

Good thread as I didn't realize the fire dept. had equipment like that or would help. Good to know.

Plenty of air should help with the smell. Hopefully that smell is not actual gasoline fumes. My guess is you're gonna need some heavy duty degreaser or something. When you are done, that boat will be cleaner then new.

Good luck.

[Highlander]

Once she's aired out well clean her up a few times with Lavender cented pinesol disinfectant . I clean the inside of my boat every spring with this stuff & its pleasent scent the women like !!

J