So our fuel tank is not 80 gallons !
- Thread starter Sven
- Start date
mherrcat
Contributing Partner
Not surprised; my "20" gallon tank holds about 14 or 15 gallons I believe. Kinda like motorcycle engine displacement; they always round it up to make it look better. My V-Star 1100 is actually 1063cc. I am surprised that yours was quoted as 80 rather than 60 considering the actual 54 gallon volume; 26 gallons is a considerable difference - almost 33% of the rated capacity!
Sven
Seglare
I'm surprised too, but that's where the evidence points. The fuel fill pipe is pretty narrow so I wonder if it might be backing up when filled at a regular fuel dock ? Maybe the fuel feeder (to the engine) line isn't at the bottom of the tank ?
Another unlikely possibility is that the swells caused us to suck air when the tank was sloshing around but I find it hard to believe that so much air would have gotten into the system that it killed the engine ... BUT
When the engine started speeding up and then stopped I did not try to restart because I suspected we were out of fuel since that's what the gauge had been saying for the 4-5 hours. At the same time, the Racor filter showed no signs of trapped air. The Racor also showed almost no vacuum with the pump running (I actually turned off the fuel cock to make sure the vacuum gauge and pump were both working).
I'd be interested in hearing any other E39B owners' experiences but there aren't that many and most of them have probably not run out of fuel.
I have to sleep on all these inconsistent inputs ... something does not add up at all.
-Sven
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u079721
Contributing Partner
Not the E39 you asked about, but the specs listed our 1989 E38-200 tank capacity at (I think....) 58 gallons, but I found an inscription on the tank that says 54. I never did take it all the way to empty, but I know from frequent fillings that if I assumed 54 gallons, and used the reading on the surprisingly precise gauge (say 7.5/16 full for example) I was usually able to guess what the tank would take to fill up within a half gallon.
When we were looking for our Ericson we didn't have a large tank as a requirement, but I'm sure glad we got the E38 rather than the E34, since we routinely would motor through the night on overnight deliveries using up to 30 gallons or so - and it's hard to do that on a 29 gallon tank!
When we were looking for our Ericson we didn't have a large tank as a requirement, but I'm sure glad we got the E38 rather than the E34, since we routinely would motor through the night on overnight deliveries using up to 30 gallons or so - and it's hard to do that on a 29 gallon tank!
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Sven
Seglare
Did you have a Perkins 4-108 ?
I've been trying to track down where I'd seen the 3/4-1 gallon per hour consumption figure and would really like to find a GPH/RPM table. At 54 gallons I don't feel quite as well-tanked as I did at 80 and may even have to start considering carrying extra fuel.
-Sven
u079721
Contributing Partner
If you mean us on the E38-200, we had the typical Universal M40 (M5432). If interested I can look up what mileage I got, but I do remember that if I pushed it to say 2450 or 2500 rpm it was over 1 gallon/hr, while at 2200 it was considerably less, perhaps 0.75. Since I was only going 180 miles on my Lake Huron deliveries I never worried about trying to conserve fuel, since the first thing I did when I got up to Canada was top off the fuel and water before heading out to an anchorage for a week to 10 days.
Bob Grenier
Member II
Time to create a fuel log. I always kept a fuel log; especially when on a new boat, or new to me boat. I always wanted a log that would relate to the fuel gauge, so I kept a log with entry’s every hour. This will also tell you how the amount of fuel used will relate to the drop in the tank, as the first half is always different than the last half. This will also let you find the optimum RPM for your best fuel consumption. And it can even alert you to some potential problems with your engine and or fuel system.
Sven
Seglare
I think we probably have the data to do that. We haven't filled up all that many times but I think we've noted how much we've filled up most of the times and we certainly have the engine run-time log.
Thanks for all the suggestions.
-Sven
ER39B Fuel tank
JeffB: we have an E39B #217on Lake Superior and had an unfortunate grounding during 60 kn storm a couple of years ago. Overall, the boat withstood very well ending up in 3 ft of sand and being hauled to deeper water by a 650 HP tug. After haul-out and inspection nothing more than cosmetic damage to keel and paint were seen. I had previously installed a full 1 1/4 x 3/16 thk in SSt "Keel Shoe" and I''m glad I did. Anyway, the next day my wife noticed a slight rocking and sound from the fuel tank area. I ripped up the floor and found my 80 gallon tank was certified as 60 gallons proofed tested to 4 psi. I was also surprised. The tank had no inspection ports and I was concerned about what it would look like inside. I had two 10 inch x 10 inch inspecion ports installed, tank cleaned and pressure checked. Amazingly, there was not a speck of black gunk in the tank and it was really clean. It had obviously never been opened or inspected since 1978.
Navman
Member III
On our recently purchased 1986- E38, the PO was not available to discuss the boat and its intricacies. Not knowing the exact tankage I have put a 5 gallon container of fuel on deck for the summer and am going to run the fuel out. I have plenty of spare filters on board for when it starts getting ugly. I will then pump out the remaining fuel. I am also going to take the opportunity at that time to install inspection/ cleanout ports in the tank, and clean/ polish the interior of the tank. When I refill I will know exactly how much the tank holds, I will have the knowledge and confidence that my fuel system is spotless and will have more peace of mind for my offshore excursions.
Don/ Navman
SV The Optimist II
Don/ Navman
SV The Optimist II
Alan Gomes
Sustaining Partner
Perhaps if you can get the tank close enough to empty (e.g., under 5 gallons) and then pump out or siphon out the rest into a container, that might be preferable. It would save you the hassle of bleeding the engine after refilling the tank.