mystery leak

[EGregerson]

I had fuel in the bilge the other day; a great thing to see...and smell. It had me going; checked the hoses and connections; everything seemed fine. cleaned out the bilge; got it shiny; and checked it the next morning; 6 or 8 oz of new fuel. So i put on my thinking cap and thot the hardest thots i could think. The 12' long 1 1/2" dia fuel hose goes thru the starboard locker down and under a partition; then behind the motor /tran assembly, and up to the tank. Crawling into the starboard locker and reaching way down there, I could feel fuel at the bottom of the hose where it turns toward the motor compartment. So I replaced the hose. But i realized in doing this that fuel has sat in the lower portion of that hose for 23 years. It doesn't empty. So over time, that is the point where fuel would permeate the hose (in the deepest darkest most inaccessible spot of course!) And that helps explain why high speed pumps burp the fuel back so fast. Question is; Is the low point in the hose there by design? to help reduce foaming before it flows into the tank? Or is just determined by the practicalities of the hull design?

either way, if your hoses are old, replace them before they develop mystery leaks... or worse. Happy Sailing

 

[mherrcat]

A 12' fuel fill hose sounds very odd to me. Mine is about 4' at the most and runs straight down from the fill fitting in the deck to the tank.

 

[Loren Beach]

Who Knows where the Hose Goes

From the "FWIW" gallery.....
The fill hose on our '88 was about 6 or 7' long from deck fitting to tank. The last foot or so was horizontal.
No leaks but the hose material had permeated and was causing a pronounced diesel odor in a hanging locker it transited.

Modern hose materials, USCG approved with a liner that is impervious to fuel, should no longer have this problem.
I replaced that hose when replacing the tank and whole engine fuel system. Odor free ever since.
I should note that the original hoses met all requirements when installed over 20 years ago, but the technology improved over the decades.

As for routing, all these boats are going to have different routing due to peculiarities in interior design and structure.
In our situation, I was able to completely reformat the engine supply and return hoses when replacing them, but, the fill hose could not be changed without a total "make over" of the whole tank location.


If I had to hazard a guess, the Ericson's in the 80's and later with the TAFG have additional complications in routing of hoses and such.

Cheers,
Loren

 

[u079721]

Also offered up for your consideration is my impression that it is considered standard practice to NEVER have a dip in the fill hose (where fuel can stand or collect) - and the same for the vent hose.

When the boat is level both of these should drain back to the tank with no hold up. This may not always be possible, but I'd be surprised if it came that way from the factory.

 

[Tom Metzger]

The fuel fill hose on my E-34 lasted about 17 years until it split at the U turn before it goes into the tank. The turn is much too tight for the hose. I am very sure that this hose was the starting point for building the boat. It's a real crappy design and a bitch to replace, but I am hoping the new hose outlasts me.

And for the doubters, it is 12 feet long.

 

[cawinter]

Tom's hose

I think about Tom's descriptions at least once every month. No issue yet, but I wish I had taken care of it way back when I redid the plumbing system and tank... The usual: Rush, rush, and I could not find the right 90degree elbow to replace the sharp bend. Keeping fingers crossed.