Portable fuel tank

[DeckApe]

I have a Mercruiser 233 in my '77 SeaRay. The boat has a 60 gallon tank that is plumbed with all the filters and what-not. Every year when I dig it out of storage I change out the fuel filters and drain all the old gas if I hadn't done so when I put it away. Then I go to the gas station and spend over $200 to fill it up and usually don't use all the fuel. Then I spend half a day siphoning out gas and trying to find vehicles to put it in. My question is this is it possible to plumb it to have the option of connecting a 6 or 9 gallon portable tank just to test run and maybe run to the lake for a half day?

 

[TyeeMan]

You could but why bother? It's a lot easier to just not totally fill your belly tank.

My boat has a 50 gallon belly tank and I rarely if ever totally fill it. Instead, before I go to the lake I see what the fuel gage says. If it's a little low and I'm going to do more fishing than cruising I'll put in 5 gallons or so. If on the other hand I'm going to cruise for that afternoon I'll put in 20 gallons or so. If you've had the boat long enough you have a feel for how much fuel it uses under certain circumstances. Doing this ensures you always have fresh fuel.

Really the only time I fill the tank is if we're going on a fishing trip up to Leech Lake in northern Minnesota. Most runs to our fishing spots are 20 minutes one way, so in 4 days I'll consume most or all of that 50 gallons.

I got burned on that practice a couple years ago. We were on our fishing trip to Leech Lake, had a full tank of fuel, but the 4 days we were there the wind blew so hard that we basically idled out of the marina and fished right there. So I went home with a full tank of fuel.

No worries tho, it was October, I always treat my fuel so I just burned it over the coarse of the next summer. No problems.

 

[GA_Boater]

Are you saying you fill up once a year or every time you take the boat out?

 

[TyeeMan]

I think the OP says he fills in the beginning of the year and doesn't use the boat enough during the year to burn all the fuel.

Me - I typically add the amount of fuel I think I'm going to burn every time I go out.

 

[QBhoy]

I just put in a little more than I’m going to use. Carrying a full tank about is usually just resulting in using more fuel to carry the extra weight of the fuel.
My old man constantly frustrates me with this. He insists on having at least 3/4 to a full tanks each time he uses his boat. The boat holds 1000 litres of fuel. He is literally carrying a ton of weight he doesn’t need too.

 

[carburated]

All I'll add is that you are better off leaving the tank full with some fuel stabilizer in it over the winter as opposed to draining before storage. Empty tanks attract moisture. No reason that old fuel should be drained in spring, just run it.

 

[HT32BSX115]

Empty tanks attract moisture. No reason that old fuel should be drained in spring, just run it.

Howdy,

It might be helpful to have a look at the following info. Although it keeps cropping up now and then, that "Old Wives Tale" like lead-acid batteries self-discharging on concrete, was debunked many years ago....

https://www.yachtsurvey.com/myth_of_condensation_in_fuel_tanks.htm

Cheers,

Rick

 

[carburated]

Howdy,

It might be helpful to have a look at the following info. Although it keeps cropping up now and then, that "Old Wives Tale" like lead-acid batteries self-discharging on concrete, was debunked many years ago....

https://www.yachtsurvey.com/myth_of_condensation_in_fuel_tanks.htm

Cheers,

Rick

I stand corrected! But it is still a good source of fuel for the generator when the power goes out over the winter.

 

[HT32BSX115]

I stand corrected! But it is still a good source of fuel for the generator when the power goes out over the winter.

I will agree with you about using that fuel too! Fuel that's only 8 or 10 months old is fine to use. I always put my boat away at the end of summer with somewhere less than 1/4 tank and just fill it up in late Spring or early Summer when I'm ready to go!

Been doing this for more than 20 years and I've never used any snake oils either... :thumb: