175 sport - smell of petrol when take covers off

[enners]

Hi. I have purchased a 2008 175 sport, had it a few months and loving it! I am though suprised by the smell of petrol when I take the covers off prior to use. I can imagine there will be a bit of a smell but it seems strong. I have checked the bilge area and its totally dry. I cant see any damage to the hoses or tank but its only what I can see. Do boats normally smell of fumes? Any checks I can do before towing it down the dealer? The fuel consumption seems average but to be honest its my first boat so have nothing to compare it to. Thanks.

 

[dicor]

I have had 4 boats and never smelled gas vapors in any of them. You should have that looked at by a professional ASAP.

 

[blaster]

The fumes could be from the fuel tank vent. If the vent is covered such as with my mooring cover I will have some smell when I remove the cover. Does the smell linger or is it only noticable when the cover is off? You do have to be careful but some slight fumes are not unheard of in certain situations.

 

[dicor]

Gas vapors are heavier than air, unless your fuel tank vent is on the inside, which I'm sure it isn't, the vapors should drop to the ground along the outside of the hull not get trapped under the cover. I had a friend who had a Chaperel that had a strong gas smell every time you opened the ski locker, turned out to be a leaky gas tank fitting. You could have a leaking line anywhere between the tank and motor. All it takes is a drop or two to make the smell noticeable.

 

[enners]

thanks to all.

Blaster: yes, I constantly store my boat under a full cover (goes down to the rub rail) which covers all vents. Not sure why I didnt think of that! Once removed the smell does not linger. I will keep it stored just inder the cockpit covers (although the local bird life seem to take advantage of that) and see if it makes a difference.

cheers

 

[Dave 205]

I started a thread with a very similar comment last year at this time. There is an odor of fuel when I lift my sunpad / engine cover. It dissipates quickly. I've searched all over, and had a mechanic look. No evidence of leakage. I'm always careful to air out the bilge and run the blower before going. Mine is a low hour boat in very good condition. My boat isn't covered except when I trailer, so I don't know if the cockpit would stink up if closed.

One CSR member told me last year that since I have the carbureted engine, some level of odor may be part of the deal.

If you find a leak source let us know. Mine could be a similar issue.

 

[ZZ13]

My 09 175 Sport is keep in a garage, with the engine hatch up, at a house I frequent part time. I can tell there is a combustion engine in the garage every time I go there and open the garage for the first time. But the odor vents out and goes away quickly. I think this is the whole reason bilge blowers exist. Some level of accumulated fumes seems to be normal.

 

[KarenS]

We had a strong gas smell when we opened ours up one weekend.
Brought it home and found this...... invisible until the tank came out
HOWEVER!! We DID have gas in the bilge!

 

[WazzuCMGrad]

We store indoors with the snap-on canvas and a "mooring" cover over top (covers rub rail). Faint fumes when removing the covers, but to me, it just means the covers are doing their job and keeping things inside dry and clean.

Bilge blowers are installed for just this reason; common sense will tell you if the smell is bad enough to get it checked out. If I was constantly smelling gas (like it's spilling out of a can), that's typically different that what I smell when I pop the covers on our 180SP.

Keep a keen eye out, and you'll be fine. Good luck!