Please help with gas tank problem

[rickroc]

Hi all, first post here. Hopefully someone can help out a newbie that really made a dumb mistake. Let me start off with boat info: 1988 Wellcraft 192 Classic with a Mercruiser 3.75 I/O and an Alpha I stern drive (1st gen). The gas tank is molded into the hull. Well, I had the boat out of the water to do some maintainance, and I thought it would be a good idea to top off the gas tank with a 6 gallon can of gas I had in my garage. I was working by myself, and having a hard time holding the gas tank up while not spilling the gas all over the driveway. So, in my infinite wisdom, I took a piece of soft rubbery hose and slipped the funnel spout into it to help get the gas from the can into the boat. Well, as soon as the gas started to flow, the rubber got very slippery, and slipped off the funnel into the boats gas tank. Now the rubber is "melting" and continuously clogging up the fuel line. How the heck do I get the melting rubber hose out and clean out the tank? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I already know I'm an idiot..you can leave that part out, thanks. Rick

 

[Brewman61]

Re: Please help with gas tank problem

I don't know this boat, but is there some type of access plate you can remove to get into the tank? For instance, I can get to my tank by flipping up the back seat bench base, and access the tank that way.

 

[emoney]

Re: Please help with gas tank problem

There should already be an access port somewhere that allows you to do things like check pick-up screen or floats, etc. And, if for some reason there's not one, there should be and I'd install one. You can pick up those plates pretty easy.
Have you looked in every nook & cranny of the boat to know if there is or isn't?

 

[coastalrichard]

Re: Please help with gas tank problem

Your fill hose should be accessible at both the tank and the thru hull fitting. Take the filler hose off, get that bad hose out of there and put it back together. As far as the contaminated fuel, siphon the bad fuel out and refill with clean fuel; add a stabilizer. Good Luck

 

[Pez Vela]

Re: Please help with gas tank problem

If the boat, and your peace of mind, is worth the cost, I would turn this nightmare over to a "fuel polishing" service, at least for a consultation to see what they recommend. Those services appear to be readily available to you in Long Island.

 

[rickroc]

Re: Please help with gas tank problem

There are 2 6-8 inch round access plates, They seem to have an L shaped joint to get into the tank. I will investigate further this weekend, thanks.

 

[Chris1956]

Re: Please help with gas tank problem

Rick, There should be a fuel sender plate screwed into the top of the tank. Remove it, and you should be able to siphon all the gas out of the tank into Jerry cans. (siphon thru the garboard drain plug in the transom). Now fish the piece of hose out and wipe out any dirt that remains. Filter the gas thru a rag and dump it back in.....

 

[dpoff]

Re: Please help with gas tank problem

If it`s an aluminum tank you may have baffles built into the tank that would make getting that hose from the sender opening a problem... just a thought. Might need to go through the fill opening on the tank.

 

[rickroc]

Re: Please help with gas tank problem

Rick, There should be a fuel sender plate screwed into the top of the tank. Remove it, and you should be able to siphon all the gas out of the tank into Jerry cans. (siphon thru the garboard drain plug in the transom). Now fish the piece of hose out and wipe out any dirt that remains. Filter the gas thru a rag and dump it back in.....

Thanks Chris, will try it when I pull the boat out of the water again. Right now, as a temp fix, I am running off of a 6 gal removable tank, and bypassing the problem altogether. It was an easy way to salvage the last of the season. I believe the tank is molded into the boat itself, not a separate aluminum unit. Thanks for all the responses