Fuel Consumption Poll

[zellerj]

I ran the ICW and got 1 statute mile to a gallon of gas. I always use MMO also.

This was on my Tartan 34, 12000 pounds, just launched clean bottom. Indigo prop, 6 kn, 2000 rpm. Some current helped, some hurt.

Are you sure that you did not mean 1 hour per gallon, which would put it at about 6 miles per gallon?

[edwardc]

... if you lash a bunch of fuel jugs on deck, in addition to the obvious issues with safety and seaworthiness, you are going to look like exactly what you are - a "floater". ....

There's another potential issue.

A few years ago, I helped a friend move his sailboat down the Chesapeake Bay on the first leg of a trip down the ICW to florida. In addition to his internal 30 gallon tank, he had six 5-gallon plastic jerry jugs lashed on deck. While I was chatting with our marina owner before departing, he told me that the Department of Homeland Security had "requested" that marina owners notify them of any vessel departing with more than 5 gallons of gas in jerry jugs!

Being a sailor himself, he declined their request.

But I wonder if all those jugs might get you boarded. Anyone ever heard of that happening?

[Dave Neptune]

I am using the Indigo prop on a 35 footer and at my cruise of 7" of manifold I get 2100 RPM's and use just under .9 GPH. Nothing fancy just an EI, stock plugs and carb. She runs great and has for 44 years so far!!!!

Dave Neptune

[sastanley]

I always plan 1 GPH, but I don't think I burn quite that much. This fall, I was calculating fuel burn at 1 GPH, and when I went to winterize the motor, I'd figured I could put 10 gallons in the tank to fill it based on the hour meter..I could only add about 8, so I am somewhere in the .8/gal hour range I think.

[romantic comedy]

Are you sure that you did not mean 1 hour per gallon, which would put it at about 6 miles per gallon?

Thanks Jim. Who knows what I was trying to type.

6 statute miles to a gallon, I would suppose, lol

[romantic comedy]

Could the second tank be filled by the main tank and not have a fill thru the deck, but just a vent?

I know it could be hooked up, but is it ABYC?

[ndutton]

Could the second tank be filled by the main tank and not have a fill thru the deck, but just a vent?

Sure it could. Logically fuel from the larger tank is transferred to the smaller tank.

I know it could be hooked up, but is it ABYC?

I think it could be done in compliance. It would certainly need grounding and its own vent. Engine operation is required to be locked out during fuel transfer too. All you'd be saving is a hose and a fill plate.

edit:
I forgot to mention my strong preference for transferring fuel through the filter. You don't want contamination in one tank to pollute the other. Also, if the existing tank doesn't have an available port to receive transferred fuel we have an easy solution for that too.

[romantic comedy]

thanks Neil,

I have a nice square 15 gallon tank that fits nicely below the cockpit. I have had it for years and never hooked it up. The fill house run will be a pain. Now this thread has me thinking of not having one. Better then the cans on the deck.

[Marian Claire]

Captainmurph. Do you plan to make more long distance trips or is this one and done?
As with most things "how you use your boat" is key. If you are making relatively short, time wise, but long motoring hrs wise then your below deck space may be better used for a fixed multi-tank system. That is not the case for me.
I do not know how many cans you need but I use three and have never felt like they compromised the seaworthiness of the MC. If a boat is so tender that 100# of fuel at deck level makes her unstable then it may be time to use a different boat.
I have been boarded many times over the years. CG, LEO's etc. No one ever asked me about my Jerry Cans
This whole "floater" thing has got my knickers in a twist so I had better stop.
Dan S/V Marian Claire

[hanleyclifford]

Captainmurph. Do you plan to make more long distance trips or is this one and done?
As with most things "how you use your boat" is key. If you are making relatively short, time wise, but long motoring hrs wise then your below deck space may be better used for a fixed multi-tank system. That is not the case for me.
I do not know how many cans you need but I use three and have never felt like they compromised the seaworthiness of the MC. If a boat is so tender that 100# of fuel at deck level makes her unstable then it may be time to use a different boat.
I have been boarded many times over the years. CG, LEO's etc. No one ever asked me about my Jerry Cans
This whole "floater" thing has got my knickers in a twist so I had better stop.
Dan S/V Marian Claire

Hi Dan - Please don't be upset about the term "floater". I've had it applied to me by the Florida Marine Patrol and subsequently learned it's actually an honorable appellation for gypsy liveaboards like me (and many other rogues of the ICW). Sorry for any unintentional twisting. BTW, I too have been boarded multiple times, jugs on deck, without event.

[Marian Claire]

Untwisting. Thanks. Dan S/V Marian Claire

[brewgyver]

Are you sure that you did not mean 1 hour per gallon, which would put it at about 6 miles per gallon?

And 6 nautical miles, just under 7 statute miles. And that's about as good as a lot of the old caddies that were making pretty much the same run every year in the old days!