Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

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krkratina

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Jun 22, 2012
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Recently purchased a '93 22' Sea Ray bowrider (220 BR) with 5.7 liter Merc (labelled 260 HP). The old owner stated it took 27 gals of fuel. I thought that was low, but when I filled it (the gauge was very close to "E"), it took just under 30 gals, after which the gauge was at "F". However, when I got into some overdue maintenance, I cleaned the tag on the fuel tank and noticed it clearly states 45 gals.

Any idea on why it only takes 30 gals? The boat has two fill points - one forward, one aft. It was filled only on the aft fill point. I have yet to try and top off both fill points, though unless I have two tanks that seems pointless.

Thanks
 
Philster

Philster

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Re: Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

Guess what? Fill up via both fill points and report back. :D
 
Aquaman-PSD

Aquaman-PSD

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Re: Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

I have seen two tanks in a few bass boats. They function as a reserve. You run the main tank until its empty and then switch it over. it gives you enough gas to make it to the marina or ramp. This is usually in older bass boats though. Also you would have a switch to move between both tanks.
 
dingbat

dingbat

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Re: Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

Philster said:
Guess what? Fill up via both fill points and report back. :D
Click to expand...

Yep, not to mention gas expands at a pretty good rate. With a 45 gallon tank, you could lose 4-5 gallons of capacity with thermal expansion alone.
 
Bondo

Bondo

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Re: Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

krkratina said:
Recently purchased a '93 22' Sea Ray bowrider (220 BR) with 5.7 liter Merc (labelled 260 HP). The old owner stated it took 27 gals of fuel. I thought that was low, but when I filled it (the gauge was very close to "E"), it took just under 30 gals, after which the gauge was at "F". However, when I got into some overdue maintenance, I cleaned the tag on the fuel tank and noticed it clearly states 45 gals.

Any idea on why it only takes 30 gals? The boat has two fill points - one forward, one aft. It was filled only on the aft fill point. I have yet to try and top off both fill points, though unless I have two tanks that seems pointless.

Thanks
Click to expand...

Ayuh,... Welcome Aboard,... If it's only 1 tank, it's Waayyy more than just abit Odd....

Never heard of such a thing, 'n find it hard to believe Sea Ray did such a thing...
 
H

haulnazz15

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Re: Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

I sure hope the "forward tank" isn't a fresh water or grey water tank, lol.
 
QC

QC

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Re: Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

Roger that ^^^^^^ Guys, I think the OP is saying he used the gauge as "Empty". I don't think we know if there is 15 gallons still in there. ;)
 
Scott Danforth

Scott Danforth

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Re: Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

my 2002 SeaRay had a 37 gallon tank. when the gauge was on empty, I could always put about 32 gallons in the tank. I figured the rest was expansion volume and residual.

I suspect that the boat inclination and a faulty fuel gauge are two of the issues.
 
Philster

Philster

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Re: Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

Boat fuel gauges are extremely accurate.

I mean, if you measure accuracy as +/- 20 gallons.
 
Don S

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Re: Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

I doubt you have 2 fuel fills, but the most common reason for your problem is the tank manufacturers putting the vent on the back of the tank instead of the front. Since the tank is probably bow high when at rest, the vent is covered by fuel and you have a 15 gallon air bubble in the front of the tank.
 
oldjeep

oldjeep

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Re: Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

haulnazz15 said:
That doesn't mean that the PO didn't already fill it full of gasoline despite it being difficult to get a fill nozzle in there.
Click to expand...

Might be a good idea to put a siphon in there and see if anything comes out ;)
 
QC

QC

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Re: Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

Cool brochure OJ. Anybody else notice that it has the crankshaft and propshaft power differences. :cool: Merc transitioned that in 1990, but looks like they maintained it on that SeaRay brochure. Indicates 30 bhp loss through the drive ;) I never understood why they act like the 4.3 cost hem 35 though :confused:
 
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krkratina

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Re: Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

Thanks. A lot of good suggestions. There is no freshwater uses on the boat (sink/shower), so I don't think the missing quantity is for freshwater. The bubble theory sounds promising. I will fill up both and see how much she takes. Will report back to all.
 
QC

QC

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Re: Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

How do you know that there is not more fuel in the tank than the gauge says?
 
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Home Cookin'

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Re: Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

on boat's fuel guage, E stands for Enough.

not really. But when you get a new boat, run it to empty (carry a 5 gallon can) so you'll know. Then as you fill it may attention to the marks on the guage that you assume--incorrectly--mean 1/4, 1/2 and 3/4, then you'll know what they really mean.

Also keep in mind a boat on a trailer often sits differently than one in the water, messing up your levels. Fill the tank on the trailer (I'm assuming you're a trailer boater) then add from the 5 gallon can to see what happens.
 
T

TilliamWe

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Re: Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

Home Cookin' said:
But when you get a new boat, run it to empty (carry a 5 gallon can) so you'll know...

Also keep in mind a boat on a trailer often sits differently than one in the water, messing up your levels...
Click to expand...

Agree and agree.
 
oldjeep

oldjeep

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Re: Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

krkratina said:
Thanks. A lot of good suggestions. There is no freshwater uses on the boat (sink/shower), so I don't think the missing quantity is for freshwater. The bubble theory sounds promising. I will fill up both and see how much she takes. Will report back to all.
Click to expand...

There wouldn't be a missing quanity - brochure says 45 gal fuel with optional 8 gallon fresh water. The front fill should be for water, not a second fuel fill. The point is - don't put gas in the front fill, and you might want to check if there is anything in there.
 
04fxdwgi

04fxdwgi

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Re: Why does my 45 gal fuel tank only take 30 gals? '93 220 BR Sea Ray.

Ahhh, only took 30 gallons because it still had 15 gallons in there that the inaccurate gauge / sender didn't register. Fuel gauges, as a general rule, aren't really all that accurate, unless setup properly and even then, the attitude of the hull greatly effects what the gauge reads when the hull attitude changes, since the sender is usually at one end or the other of the tank, and rarely in the middle. Gauge will read different when sitting on the trailer, vs: in the water with a dead rise of 20 degrees.
 
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