Dual Small Gas Tanks?

[Piddle and Futz]

I'm rethinking the large under-seat gas tanks on our 26M.

We don't do much long range cruising so our fuel needs aren't great. I have already converted one side bench to storage and have just one of the large tanks aboard. It is a bit of a hassle to lug the full tank aboard or to full it from a gas can (could be messy). Also some concern of no backup in an out of gas or contaminated gas situation.

I'm thinking the solution might be 2 smaller portable tanks that would fit in the same space under the seat. Easy to fill and carry. Built-in backup in the inevitable case where we are having touch fun to check our fuel supply.

Has anyone else done this?
Did you find good tanks that work well?

Am I just being odd?

[Piddle and Futz]

Maybe 2 of these?

https://www.vevor.com/portable-fuel-tan ... 0463213609

[TonyHouk]

On my X I have two of the twelve gallon tanks Blue Water Yachts used to sell. I think someone fitted two six gallon tanks where the one twelve fits. Just a thought.

[Tsatzsue]

I too have the large tanks. PIA. I just regasketted them with the kits from BWY. Most fuel docks will not let you fill a portable tank while it is in the boat. 12 gallons are not going to be moved around by me. There are great posts on this forum about what tanks to use. I will be getting couple this year since I will be on a slip. They do not allow for at the dock refueling of your boat. 6 gallons is manageable enough. I'll post what I end up getting. Please do the same.
KB

[dlandersson]

On my X I have two 6 gallon tanks. Works pretty well. When I add gas I use a 2 gall gas can.

I'm rethinking the large under-seat gas tanks on our 26M.

We don't do much long range cruising so our fuel needs aren't great. I have already converted one side bench to storage and have just one of the large tanks aboard. It is a bit of a hassle to lug the full tank aboard or to full it from a gas can (could be messy). Also some concern of no backup in an out of gas or contaminated gas situation.

I'm thinking the solution might be 2 smaller portable tanks that would fit in the same space under the seat. Easy to fill and carry. Built-in backup in the inevitable case where we are having touch fun to check our fuel supply.

Has anyone else done this?
Did you find good tanks that work well?

Am I just being odd?

[TonyHouk]

For my boat I put access ports above the fill ports on the tanks. I have a five gallon tank that isn’t too unmanageable to refill the main tanks if needed. Just a thought.

[ris]

We use a shaker siphon from Amazon to transfer fuel in our boat or dinghy. I got really good at siphoning gas during the gas crisis in the 70's. I kept my motor cycle and 4 of my friends in gas for a year and never went to a gas station. I had some really exciting adventures, like hiding under a car and people came out from a party and got in the car next to the one I was getting gas out of. Much easier to use a shaker siphon saves gas in the mouth.

[NiceAft]

Ris said: “Much easier to use a shaker siphon saves gas in the mouth.”

Are you getting the flow started with a pump

[Russ]

We use a shaker siphon from Amazon to transfer fuel in our boat or dinghy. I got really good at siphoning gas during the gas crisis in the 70's. I kept my motor cycle and 4 of my friends in gas for a year and never went to a gas station. I had some really exciting adventures, like hiding under a car and people came out from a party and got in the car next to the one I was getting gas out of. Much easier to use a shaker siphon saves gas in the mouth.

[45Plus+]

I went to 2 - 6 gallon tanks but retained one of the 12 gallon tanks on my M. For the most part, I only have the 2 6 gallon tanks on board at anytime - one on either side. I image if I go on longer cruises I would add the 12 gallon tank back in. I mainly did it as I like to minimize the number of times I have to move fuel from one place to another. I find the 6 gallon tanks easy to carry or to put on a dock cart. I found the 12 gallon tank heavy and awkward to move around and get into the cubbies.

I suppose if you refuel where you moor/tie up, its not too hard to simply refill your 12 gal tanks with a couple of 5 gallon gas containers. I don't like refueling on the water and always do it on land and preferably at the gas station to minimize spillage risks, exposure to gases, etc. etc..

There is lots on this topic in the forum - largely on great ways to connect multiple tanks to reduce the need to attach and reattach the fuel line to the engine.

[dlandersson]

We use a shaker siphon from Amazon to transfer fuel in our boat or dinghy. I got really good at siphoning gas during the gas crisis in the 70's. I kept my motor cycle and 4 of my friends in gas for a year and never went to a gas station. I had some really exciting adventures, like hiding under a car and people came out from a party and got in the car next to the one I was getting gas out of. Much easier to use a shaker siphon saves gas in the mouth.

[Russ]

I don't like refueling on the water and always do it on land and preferably at the gas station to minimize spillage risks, exposure to gases, etc. etc..

There is lots on this topic in the forum - largely on great ways to connect multiple tanks to reduce the need to attach and reattach the fuel line to the engine.

I also prefer fueling on land. It's much less expensive and I can find e-free gas from pumps that get used frequently. I'm always suspicious of Marina fuel pumps as they might not get "flushed" as often and water is more likely to be present.

BWY installed 2 x 12 gal tanks on my boat with quick disconnects to swap between them. This has worked well for me. It also allows me to remove the fuel line at the end of the season and drain it. Now that I have an external fuel filter/separator, I can't drain all the fuel lines.

[OverEasy]

Hi Russ!

Just a suggestion for what it may or may not be worth…
Have you tried one of those hand piston type fuel siphon pumps?
They pull a pretty good vacuum.
If connected at the engine disconnect interface I suspect that it should be able to pull out the remaining fuel that might be present in the lines.

I generally run the engine dry once on land using the garden hose earmuffs, drain what’s left in the fuel filter/separator and replace the filter in winter prep for the next season so everything stores dry.

Note: (To be entirely honest we didn’t do that this year as we had such a nice extended 2025 boating season and we’re planning to get back on the water in April which is only 2-1/2 months away. Our relatively mild winter here in SC is helping get all the outdoor prep work done a bit sooner this year as well!)

Best Regards,
Over Easy

[Russ]

Hi Russ!

Just a suggestion for what it may or may not be worth…
Have you tried one of those hand piston type fuel siphon pumps?
They pull a pretty good vacuum.
If connected at the engine disconnect interface I suspect that it should be able to pull out the remaining fuel that might be present in the lines.

No, I have not. I'll look into it.

What I have done is siphon MOST of the fuel out of the tanks into my car or jerry cans. Then add a bit of Ethanol Shield. My research finds this is a better winterizer than Staybil.
Then drain the fuel filter/water separater. That gets much out of the intake side. Then run the engine dry with a garden hose. The DF70 has a garden hose port for flushing that works well.


Chicanic is one of my fav youtubers. She works on small engines which are normally more tolerant of bad gas. She claims bad gas is the #1 reason people bring machines into her shop for repair. So this video was convincing.

[Elseamae]

I currently use 4 of these 6 Gallon scepter tanks with good success. Two fit side by side nicely and don’t interfere with the bench.

https://scepter.com/products/marine-pr ... rine-tank/