New day, new issue

[Richard Carlisle]

If you’re looking for the most efficient way to tell what the survey missed and the broker lied about, buy a boat 900 miles away and bring it home.

I usually fuel on the way out in the morning. Today I fueled on the way in this afternoon. An hour after fueling we come back to the boat and smell diesel and I see diesel in the bilge. Either the fill neck or vent is leaking on top of the tank. I can see fuel on the side of the tank just can’t see the top of the tank good enough to tell where exactly it’s coming from.

Didn’t notice it before because we burned off what was in the filler hose and bent hose before it had a chance to create a noticeable leak.

Short term fix is to not fill to the top. Got a local mechanic coming tomorrow to see if he can come up with an easy fix. If not, will add it to the winter list.

 

[Richard Carlisle]

So it seems that fuel in the bilge due to overfilling is not that uncommon. My friends that run big boats say to just watch the sight glass in the engine room. Don’t have those. Then they say to stick the tanks when you think you're getting close. Can’t do that either.

So on the QSC engines the Smartcraft shows the gallons in each tank under tank status. I thought maybe put the crew up on the bridge to stop me at 150 per side. Full shows 162 so that should leave a couple inches at the top.

Method 2 would be to look at the fuel used and use that as a base to stop the pumps. Only problem with this method is that the genset draws from one tank. I try to alternate, that’s not a perfect.

Stbd side doesn’t leak, only port and it’s on the winter list.

How do you all handle this, or do you just top off and not worry about it?

 

[Skybolt]

I had a similar issue and I replaced my fuel senders with Maretron TLM150's and put in a DSM410 to read the fuel levels. They accurate to the gallon. I never fuel entirely full. My tanks are 240 each. I never fuel much above 400 gallons, most of the time I keep each tank ~200 at best. I still do this even though I have new fill/vent hose(s).

 

[Jaybeaux]

Our new to us 48 with QSC 540s is our first boat with Smart Craft data. The admiral sits at the helm and calls out readings in 10 gallon increments, and when we hit 190, she calls them out in 1 gallon increments. The reading is 100% full at 196 gallons. If we are immediately going out, I will continue to fill with my ear right down on the diesel pump handle listening for the change in pitch when the tank gets full and fuel begins to ride up the vent hose. AS SOON AS YOU DETECT THAT PITCH CHANGE, STOP FUELING. It works for us.

Jaybeaux

 

[Richard Carlisle]

Do you have digital readout on each tank or just total fuel used and fuel remaining?

 

[Jaybeaux]

Do you have digital readout on each tank or just total fuel used and fuel remaining?

I have a digital read out on each tank, individually.

 

[Richard Carlisle]

I have a digital read out on each tank, individually.

I wonder if that’s a setting on the SC. Under each tank I see max capacity, which doesn’t change as fuel is burned. All I have e is total fuel used and remaining fuel. I burned 112 gallons today and took 40 per side which gets me a couple inches from the top.

 

[Jaybeaux]

Your guess is as good as mine. This was all set up when we got the boat in 2021. I can only assume, that the system needs to be "calibrated" of sorts. I've just been running under the assumption that the calibration is correct, still good, and quasi-accurate. As mentioned above, when the digital reads 196 gallons, I keep pumping to listen for the change in pitch of the sound coming from the fill plate. So far, it has worked well.

Jaybeaux

 

[quality time]

Even with analog gauges I still know roughly how much it will take and just listen for the pitch change as mentioned above. I've never had fuel in the bilge from overfilling, if anything it should come out the vent but having it in the bilge is not common.

 

[The Bill Collector]

I will continue to fill with my ear right down on the diesel pump handle listening for the change in pitch when the tank gets full and fuel begins to ride up the vent hose. AS SOON AS YOU DETECT THAT PITCH CHANGE, STOP FUELING. It works for us.

+1 it starts to whistle and the pitch changes as stated, it does work...

 

[Richard Carlisle]

Problem is that once the pitch changes, it’s too late. Fuel is already backed up into the fill hose. If I do t take off right way and burn it down, it leaked into the bilge. Until I get it sort out, just not filling to the top.