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I have four 6 1/2 gallon Merc, tanks that fit nice & tight & do not come into the cockpit floor of my M & one hose that I switch from tank to tank, also keep a spare fuel hose in the boat incase of a fuel line failure like the prime bulb cracking or leaking

J

I've been wondering about getting four 6½-gallon tanks ... but I keep on coming back to the question:
"When (and why) would I need 26 gallons of fuel? That's - what? All day at full throttle?"

But for those who do need that much fuel, Bass Pro Shops (http://www.basspro.com) have the 6½-gallon "Neptune" tanks, that were mentioned in "Converting to Tempo Valu 6 Fuel Tanks" some years ago, at $30 each:


(These are in ALX357's 26X. Two starboard, one to port - he's got the "rule of thirds" built into his fuel system! )

To me, the advantage of a 6½-gallon tank is that you can remove it easily and carry it to a gas station for filling.
I refilled one tank for the first time this summer, week before last - but I chiefly use the motor to get in and out of Cadle Creek. If I were doing a lot more cruising under power, I'd probably buy the Neptune tanks.

Highlander wrote:I have four 6 1/2 gallon Merc, tanks that fit nice & tight & do not come into the cockpit floor of my M & one hose that I switch from tank to tank, also keep a spare fuel hose in the boat incase of a fuel line failure like the prime bulb cracking or leaking

J

I agree Rick .... for day to day sailing 24 let alone 30 is over kill. But hopefully someday, you'll be making that long awaited cruise and 24 to 30 gallons will be all the rage!! I can cruise ( 5 to 8 knots)for 5 hours towing my 9.9 inflatable on about 5 gallons btw.
I do think its foolish not to have a back up tank of some size though.....jsyk.

Divecoz wrote:I agree Rick .... for day to day sailing 24 let alone 30 is over kill. But hopefully someday, you'll be making that long awaited cruise and 24 to 30 gallons will be all the rage!! I can cruise ( 5 to 8 knots)for 5 hours towing my 9.9 inflatable on about 5 gallons btw.
I do think its foolish not to have a back up tank of some size though.....jsyk.

I'm absolutely with you on backup fuel - something I learned in 25 years flying light planes.

Bossa Nova has two 6½-gallon tanks - one port, one starboard. The rest of the fuel-tank area is for open-air storage of things I want abovedecks, such as docklines - or don't want belowdecks, such as butane bottles for my stove.

I hope they'll still have the Neptune tanks when-and-if I decide I need them....

Why such big tanks? You guys heading for Cancun? "They" tell me this 10% type gas goes to crap after a few months. I've got the normal arrangement with a couple 6 gal tanks in the fuel lockers. I put an ounce of seafoam in for every gallon. It's supposed to act as a stabalizer. Nonetheless, it has been sitting for a couple months and I'll empty the tanks to have it transferred to the Deere. I wouldn't want to screw with a 12 gallon tank. Gas is too expensive to toss. After you get out of the marina get those sails up and turn off that motor. If you have a girlfriend 40 miles up the beach, use your car!

Sloop John B wrote:Why such big tanks? You guys heading for Cancun? "They" tell me this 10% type gas goes to crap after a few months. I've got the normal arrangement with a couple 6 gal tanks in the fuel lockers. I put an ounce of seafoam in for every gallon. It's supposed to act as a stabalizer. Nonetheless, it has been sitting for a couple months and I'll empty the tanks to have it transferred to the Deere. I wouldn't want to screw with a 12 gallon tank. Gas is too expensive to toss. After you get out of the marina get those sails up and turn off that motor. If you have a girlfriend 40 miles up the beach, use your car!

I understand John . My desire last winter was to have run sailed whatever from Port Charlotte to Sanibel to Marco to 10,000 Islands to the Keys . Weather never permitted that run. But there is very little fuel available south of Marco. My brother spearfishes off a 30' Shamrock regularly, often going 100 miles off shore and insist it's better to haul 10 extra gallons than be wishing you had just one more to make it to safe harbor ....
As for My Marina as is the case with most... it does not allow the personal transfer of gas from containers to vessel outside the fuel dock. I put 10 or so in the 12 and 4 or 5 in my 6 and I am ready for the season on Lake Michigan. If I really need to I can tote a 6 to the Quick-mart.... Any gas left over at the end of the season is put to good use in my tractor for the last mowing and leaf grinding and then in the Snow blower ( see link attached for description of snow blower for you southern boys) Link: www.jimsrepairjimstractors.com/snowblower.htm

Sloop John B wrote:If you have a girlfriend 40 miles up the beach, use your car!

No, John, you have it wrong - - - if you have a girlfriend 40 miles up the beach have HER drive down to the boat in her car and go from there

Rick less in Las Vegas

Here is our last outing of 13 days with 4 on board loaded heavily for the extended trip. It is a perfect example of why having 24 gallons on board is necessary. It's not a really long trip like our 500+ mile trip a few years back, but doing it with only 12 gallons on board would be running at the ragged edge by the end of each segment.

Start in Lake Washington at the Newport Shores ramp, all 4 of the 6 gallon tanks full.

Day 1 - Across the lake, out the locks, across the Sound to Kingston, 20.5 Nm (plus idling time at the locks) at 8 knots.

Day 2 - From Kingston to Point Hudson Marina in Port Townsend via the outside of Morrowstone Island, 24.5 Nm at 8 knots.

GAS - Fill up two tanks in Port Townsend with 10.5 gallons, 45.0 Nm traveled.

Day 5 - Cross the Bay to Fort Flaggler State Park, 4.65 Nm at 7 knots.

Day 7 - Head South through the Port Townsend Canal, under the Hood Canal floating bridge and down Hood Canal to Pleasant Harbor, 36.2 Nm at 14 knots.

GAS - Fill up two tanks in Pleasant Harbor with 12.0 gallons, 40.85 Nm traveled.

Day 10 - Back north up Hood Canal past the subs at Bangor and into Port Ludlow, 25.8 Nm at 7 knots.

Day 12 - Cross Admiralty Inlet and Puget Sound to Edmonds, 16.1 Nm at 7 knots.

Day 13 - Go South into 25 knot headwind to ShilShole Bay and the locks, circle for 45 minutes waiting for the locks, go through the locks, Lake Union, and across Lake Washington above SR520 floating bridge then south to Newport Shores, 22.1 Nm at 7 knots.

Fuel left on board is 9 gallons for 15 gallons used, 64.0 Nm traveled.

Total trip, 149.85 Nm traveled, using 37.5 gallons of fuel.



Read about it and see the pictures here
http://home.comcast.net/~duane.dunn/LogBook126.htm

By the way I am a major fan of having 4 - 6 gallon tanks instead of 2 - 12 gallon tanks. Filling up before the trip I took the three empty ones to the gas station in the back of the Jeep. In Pleasant Harbor rather than leave the slip, motor to the fuel dock, then return to the slip I just took the two empty tanks in a dock cart over to the fuel dock and filled them up. I've also had one time where a fuel dock refused to fill portable tanks (which the red 12 gallon ones count as) while they were in the boat. I had to remove my tanks and place them on the dock to be filled.

I find I can easily switch my fuel hose from tank to tank without the motor dying or having to prime the line. I just throttle back to idle and move the hose. My style tanks with the fittings fully exposed make this very easy, no fumbling in the dark fuel locker. I usually start with the aft tank which is back a bit under the helm seat as it is easiest to pull it off that one and place it it on the more exposed forward one. I also will swap tanks before they run dry if I am approaching a critical time in the trip such as docking or passing through the locks. At the end of the trip above I had one tank still full, one with 1 gallon (the one we were running on at the end), and one with 2 gallons that I had switched from before it ran out.

HI Y'all: our "THE RESTLESS TWO", has 4 6gal. tanks. She has a selector switch mounted on the port side of the motor bay, under the helmsman seat. A quick disconnect fuel line goes to each bay, and a line from the selector valve to the motor. I have a very contemporary fuel indicator, a 12" ruler. Each tank is measured before leaving the dock, and I know just about how long I can use the selected tank at hull speed, and still have approx. a gallon left in it, when I select a full tank on the opposite side, keeping a measure of balance. As mentioned above, I too am a pilot, and one can never have enough fuel; just a safety factor. BTY, I shift tanks while the motor is running; never have had the problem of continuity of fuel flow. I will try to get some pics soon. stew

I was p***** at myself for this boo-boo on my last trip on the Cape.

Coming back into Westport MA harbor, a nasty cut with a lot of tidal flow and a rocky lee shore, I check the fuel about 1/2 mile from the entry to make sure I wont run out as I pass the critical part. I glanced down at the fuel gauge and saw 1/8 tank indicated - about 1.5 gallons of fuel in the 12 gallon main tank.

I got through the cut ok, and then motored slowly (no-wake zone) through the harbor all the way to the ramp (about another 1 nm). Just as I was three boat lengths from the ramp the engine went to slow idle due to fuel starve (the EFI Merc, when it runs out of fuel, will idle for about another 3 minutes before it stops when the fuel runs out, but you cant pull any power from it in this mode)

I probably caught the fuel gauge on a swing up and had less than the 1.5 gallon I thought I had.

Luckily, I had both fuel connectors inboard of (like Duane) where they are easy to access, and I made the tank swap in 15 seconds and got the boat docked.

The time it takes to change our selector valve is about 1 second. Its postion is such that one does not have to raise the seat. Also, when I change tanks from one side to the other, I then change the quick disconnect/connect hose to the full tank on the side switched away from, just in case I have to change to a full tank, before reaching our destination. stew

jaguar496 wrote:The time it takes to change our selector valve is about 1 second. Its position is such that one does not have to raise the seat. Also, when I change tanks from one side to the other, I then change the quick disconnect/connect hose to the full tank on the side switched away from, just in case I have to change to a full tank, before reaching our destination. stew

Post a Picture Please. Allow me to ask, have you installed a Water Separator and Aux Fuel Filter in that system as well?

Kelly Hanson East wrote:I was p***** at myself for this boo-boo on my last trip on the Cape.

Coming back into Westport MA harbor, a nasty cut with a lot of tidal flow and a rocky lee shore, I check the fuel about 1/2 mile from the entry to make sure I wont run out as I pass the critical part. I glanced down at the fuel gauge and saw 1/8 tank indicated - about 1.5 gallons of fuel in the 12 gallon main tank.

I got through the cut ok, and then motored slowly (no-wake zone) through the harbor all the way to the ramp (about another 1 nm). Just as I was three boat lengths from the ramp the engine went to slow idle due to fuel starve (the EFI Merc, when it runs out of fuel, will idle for about another 3 minutes before it stops when the fuel runs out, but you cant pull any power from it in this mode)

I probably caught the fuel gauge on a swing up and had less than the 1.5 gallon I thought I had.

Luckily, I had both fuel connectors inboard of (like Duane) where they are easy to access, and I made the tank swap in 15 seconds and got the boat docked.

Oooops!

The Westport ramp is a really bad place to run out of fuel-especially when the current is trying to hurtle you toward the rip rap near the bridge. Great ramp-terrible approach! Can't imagine any other sailboat than a Mac using that ramp.

Divecoz wrote:

jaguar496 wrote:The time it takes to change our selector valve is about 1 second. Its position is such that one does not have to raise the seat. Also, when I change tanks from one side to the other, I then change the quick disconnect/connect hose to the full tank on the side switched away from, just in case I have to change to a full tank, before reaching our destination. stew

Post a Picture Please. Allow me to ask, have you installed a Water Separator and Aux Fuel Filter in that system as well?

Hi Divecoz: I have a separator and filter. my final redundancy for fuel is STABIL. will get pics soon. stew

Just a heads up for those of you that are relying on Sta-Bil as a fuel preservative - I took my pressure washer into my engine mechanic because it wouldn't start in the spring. He asked me when I last used it, it has a 3.5 Briggs/Stratton and I told him maybe October 08 and took it out to use in April or May 09. I had put Sta-Bil in the gas in the tank and he said that even with Sta-Bil saying good for up to 12 months preserving fuel, it's the UP TO 12 months part you need to be aware of. He told me you can basically depend on 3-4 months of good fuel storage. After that you are taking a chance of gumming up your fuel sytem (tanks,lines,carbs,injectors). So as someone mentioned earlier, it is best to run that fuel out of your engine when you are not going to be using it for more than 3-4 months. Rob