Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

As soon as I started work on the boat about three weeks ago I smelled gas the minute I stuck my head yunder the tarp. #$%%^#$$%# the gas tank In my boat is only three years old and every piece of the fuel system from the vent all the way to the engine was the best I could buy. Heck the first tank and hoses siad 1974 right in them not bads I only want to do this once right? Thank fully I put two plastic access covers in my tank hatch after I recored it. One in the back right ofer the fill hose connection and pick up line, the other right over the sender in the front under the front seat. I unscrew the sender access and there it is the gasket is all piiched out and gas is weeping right by it, so I bought another gasket I asked the boat yard what was best and they gave me neoprene the same type that was leaking, oh well, I took the old gasket to work and showed the Master tech and he took one second and said ethanol. The only thing I put in that tank since new was mobil gas and stabil in the fall when I topped it off. All the injector cleaner and majic potions I feed her goes in a small portable tank a couple of times a year. He said that I will probably be replacing the new one too soon enough, he said wait till the E85 hits the pumps and watch what happens. I asked him what the best gasket was for this and he said neoprene like the marina. Its the best out ther right mow but it does not like the new fuels. He said ethanol has been in the fuel of a couple of major supliers for a couple of years because it used to be cheaper than gas and they could leagally add 10% by volume so they were making more money. He said he had some "special" stuff we could make one out of and try but he was scaring me a little with the "try" part. At least the whole job of replacing the gasket was only fifteen minutes because of the Round access's I installed, I would have been bent having to remove my console and pry up my hatch with fresh 4200 sealing it :mad: now I get to go fill her back up tommorow I had to drain ten gallons out to change the gasket. My truck fill up was $113 today :( :(

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

I might be a better idea to not fill it so much. That way you won't be soaking the gasket in fuel.

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

I hear you on the Ethanol. I am having the same problem on my 73 20SF. Stock tank and hatch. Problem is I did not put the pie holes in when I recored my hatch. :o Any chance you could provide some measurements on there location for me? I was planning on doing the same thing. There is no rush, I am working on the other boat right now. I won't hold it against you if the boats are different for some reason. Thanks in advance. :D

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

If you don't fill it right to the top of the fill, up here in the fridgid north, all winter the tank makes water and you will get GALLONS of water coming out of the tank in the spring. Every time the temp goes up and down(dialy) condensation forms inside the tank and it makes alot. I didn't top it off two years ago had 3/4 of a tank all winter and had to empty my racor three times !in the first half hour of running the boat and got a full seperator of water every trip for a month. If I top it off I get NO water in the spring. The ethanol in the gas is going to cause lots of problems in boats esecially since it atracts water like a magnet! :( maybe its time to move to florida? :D

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

Bryan I can give you a measurement to where mine is, the tank builder made me an exact copy of my original tank so at least you will be close, I'll measure tomorrow and grab a pic for you too. When I measured I was a little off and it worked out good because If I was right over it I would not have been able to get the sender out. I could just get the screws out and the sender came right out, my worts case was cut the hole bigger and put a larger access in.

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

Thanks. Much appreciated. I have been playing with fuel levels and as Jon said, if I don't fill it all the way it does not leak. I am 99% shure that it is the sender gasket. I look forward to the pics and the dimensions. Now I need to warm up the rotozip. :D

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

That's a myth. How do I know for sure? I've stored empty for the last 15 years and never made any water. My two brothers do the same, with the same result. You probably had it coming in from a different source when you had the problem. Do you change your gas fill o-ring annually?

BTW, we all probably live less than 100 miles from you, here in the frigid north.

Hope to see you on the water.

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

We've been using 15% ethanol here in Connecticut for a few years, haven't seen any problems yet. It seems to be a scapegoat, whenever the mechanics can't figure out a problem they blame it on ethanol.

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

I have to agree with Rodger. I have always stored empty (4 boats, 2 summer cars, lawn equipment, hovercraft, forklifts) and have never had any issues. IMHO, the marina wants to sell you that 200 gallons right at the end of the season.

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

Thats what I thought too, I have alaways stored it full but two winters ago I left it 3/4 and had nothing but water in the tank in the spring. I have seen the outside of the tank sweat like crazy when I was installing it over the course of a couple of days.Upper 20's at night high fortys in the day I'm talking hot cold over the winter, I can't expalain other wise how I have never had any water in there and when I left it not full I had lots. I had so much infact that it got pulled right throught the racor and my Suzuki primary filter had a half inch of water in it too. Good thing I stopped to check it after running it for a little. I thought it was bunk to until the old Blazer I had stopped running one day and I talked to the old owner he siad did you drain the water out of the tank? I said waht? Thats what I put screw in the bottom for. This old Blazer would sit around with a 30 something gallon tank and make water like crazy. Sitting for two months you pulled the screw out of the bottom of the tank and you would get a half a bucket of water out of it before any gas came out. I did this many times belive it or not. Maybe empty is better than half I dont know all I know is the only time I have had trouble is when it wasn't topped off. Heck the origional gasket lasted twenty seven years before it gave up, it even looked like it was a piece of a rain coat cut out and put under the sender. Maybe thats what I should try :D

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

I use to get quite a bit of water in my 115 gal aluminum tank until an old friend/boat mechanic told me to leave the cap off of the gas tank and stuff a paper towel in it to keep out the bugs, etc,. It works great for me since I trailer my boat and store it inside my pole barn. I still get some condensation on the outside of the hull, but heck our humidity rate here stays around 80% most of the time.

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

From my experience from many years in aviation and boating the difference is that if you leave the tank with 1/4 to 3/4 of fuel you will get water due to condensation, but if you leave it EMPTY or FULL then you get almost none. Of course, unlined metal tanks are the most guilty for this, lined metal, fiberglass and other composites don't suffer much from this problem.

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

I think this winter I'm gonna drain it completely after reading the recomendations for the new fuel when used in boat. They say is starts loosing is octane after 15days and starts to go stale in 60-90, they are also recomending a fuel stabilizer YEAR ROUND, a non alchohol based stabilizer that is. They were saying to NOT fill your boat only put what you need in it and keep pitting smaller amoun ts in it more often to keep it fresh. I'm definatly gonna try a dead empty tank this winter, I read the post some where? I just remembered its over at that other real cool site ;) here http://www.striped-bass.com/Stripert...hlight=ethanol kinda interesting, I'm gonna do things differant this year for sure. [img]/forum/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

The problem here is filling a 135 gallon tank $$$$$$$$$$$$$ Les :mad:

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

In the past I've always used five 6 gal. plastic Jerry cans that I fill at the gas station, then bring to the boat and transfer, adding oil, to the six gal outboard tanks or under console 24 gal tank. That's in the 18' Maritime skiff. Now, with the Seafari and 19' Bowriders, both I/O, we'll see how that works. But the thing I like about the six gal. Jerry cans is I can use them to put gas in the boats or the car. That way the gas gets used up. And I don't pay fuel dock prices. :eek: :eek: :eek:

The prices at the gas station are scary enough out here.

I think that this year the answer is to go out in the boat more often just to make sure the gas gets burned up in time before it goes bad....... :D

rockdoc

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

Marina prices are going to be out of control this year, last Aug I saw them go over $4, I trailer so I find the best deal I can thats kind close. I just topped of with 16 gallons of super for $51($3.14 gallon) lol, I already have my coffee can gas savings acount open for the year :rolleyes: I have never filled up at the dock because I drive by two gas stations on the way. Rockdok my uncle used to take four five gallon jugs with him every time he rowed out to his 28 Bertram that was on a mooring in Wyhchmere harbor, I used to think he was nuts when I was a kid but now I under stand :D he kept it full and never paid the heavy price at the dock. lucky for him it had two 4.3L's so It sipped gas compared to v-8's, how much is gas on the island now in town? We go over every year just to look at the beautiful people and mega yatchs. There is no place on earth that is Nantucket, somehow the nine dollar icecream cone tastes just that much better ;) I cant' wait to get over there this summer already. :D

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

I don't know about anyone else's area, but around here the word on the street is that it going to cause big problems for boat motors being it absorbs water. Apperantly Yamaha has already voided it's warranty for motors running on it. :D

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

Finster- no kidding!?! Yikes! It sounds like we don't have a choice, but voiding the warranty? :eek: :eek: :eek:

A big concern I've heard out here is that it's going to "clean out" old crud deposits and send them flowing through the fuel system.

Jon G- hopefully ice cream prices (and beer prices!) will stay stable on Nantucket this summer. :D
Regular gas was $3.49 at the pump on Monday. Today, who knows?

rockdoc

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

I'm not sure if that warranty thing is true or not. But all the boating folks around here are concerned. I understand there's a problem with certain poly-tanks as well.

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

I'd like to know more about what it's going to do to the gas tanks. I have a 24 gal. Pate in my whaler. I heard it might damage it.

Re: Gotta hate ehtanol.........
 

Yamaha is telling us to use 10 micron fuel/water seperators and to run Stabil all the time. Supposedly, if you are running a 10 micron filter...warranty will be fine.