Saving Old Seagulls

Does anyone have ideas on how to devise a remote tank system for filling or topping off fuel tanks afloat?

I find it difficult to pour fuel without spilling even with an automatic shutoff without spilling it. I thought of a hose and pump arrangement through the air vent in the cap. That is as far as I have got .

Any ideas?

CharlesP pointed out this adventurous young chap on another post earlier today. Seems they have found something that works for them. .. ..scroll down this page:

http://www.jonnymooresailing.com/index.php?p=30

Not sure I fully understand the details but probably worth an enquiry.

Regards



Peter

If you look at the top of the tank he has fitted a fuel line plug, so you plug youe fuel pipe in and fill up witha hand pump till it comes out the tanks air hole.
by the way i used to use a filler head that filled to the standard petrol can for strimmers and so on, that had to put in to the filler hole and then push down to let the fuel out and you stoped pushing and stoped the fuel flow and was made to stop overstill.
I think it is made by stihl
By the way picked up a seabee and an anzani over the weeked, somthing to play with, still not as good as my Fvp.

British Seagull thought of this one, and made available the 'Refuueller' tank. Basically a 102 tank with a pipe and a nozzle, this was their answer. Quite a few were sold, and they crop up occasionally on the Bay.

I have one, but not here. (Not in my house at the moment) If I get a chance I'll photo it and post pix tomorrow. It is just possible that Current Primary Woman will allow me a little time off if I behave myself in the morning and take her to Waitrose. Personally I'm a great fan of Lidl (you don't get Gore-Tex Sailing jackets in Waitrose) but that's a whole different kettle of fish.

My daughter is getting married on Saturday, so my life at the moment is not my own.

You're quite right to think of these things, refuelling an outboard is hazardous.

An alternative answer may well be to seek out a very long range tank, and keep it brimming. One of the later plastic tanks with its fittings would be ideal, it would keep a forty going for ages.

How about a small carb type float working through the standard fuel cap. The tank would be the float chamber, a shaft running through the tank cap would activate a needle valve in a fitting just above the tank cap and attached to it. When the level in the fuel tank dropped enough the needle valve would open letting fuel in, when the float rose due to the tank filling the needle valve would close. It should work for a gravity feed or a pumped system that would keep a slight positive pressure on the line feeding fuel. Perhaps a float from an Amal carb may be the right size. It might need to be caged below the fuel cap. Some thing like an old airplane fuel gauge with a rod on a float sticking up through the fuel cap.

These are good ideas!

I am looking to devise something that will give me long range, and allow fueling without spilling, and hopefully topping up without stopping.

I use a sailing hull/freight canoe hybrid boat. For those from BC, it was made by Frontiersman Fiberglass in 1968. It looks like the bow section of a 16 foot frontiersman canoe grafted onto a sailing hull transom, complete with daggerboard trunk. Sails well. 15 foot waterline, around 6 knot hull speed, which both my Seagulls maintain efficiently. Very seaworthy and just the thing for big lakes with lots of wind, and for hauling moose. I use it on steep shores with few beaches, and haul it up at night, enough to keep it out of harms way. The major drawback is it is hard to safely reach the 40 plus hanging off the stern, especially afloat in the chop. It doesn't run for more than an hour and 45 minutes or so on a tank, and running out of fuel is inconvenient and could be dangerous. I regularly do 50 mile runs, and need an engine that could go that far without needing a refuel. I hate spilling fuel for environmental reasons, but admire the Seagulls fuel efficiency for a displacement hull for the same reason.

So far, the large remote tank idea connected with a hose and pumped with a bulb is the closest. If I can devise a floating rod type fuel gauge, to tell when it is full, I can probably avoid spills. I don't need a full length rod, only a short one that will protrude when the tank is close to full, as a tell tale.
or, I thought of using clear fuel line so I can see the gas as it backs up above the tank. If I use a biggish loop, that might work, if I can seal the tank cap so it won't leak there. Even on a seagul....

I drilled a hole in the bottom of a plastic gas can and screwed, then epoxied in a nylon elbow. The elbows are strong but took about a week to cure. Then I hoseclamped a small hose and valve to the elbow. If I can mount this tank somewhere above the outboard, I should be able to simply use a union to hoseclamp it to the carb feed line. If the feed line and tank can be well stabilized and a thumb screw type hose clamp employed, I should be able to do it easily and without dropping anything overboard while my boat breakdances. I'm thinking that a basket bolted to a rail might hold the tank. And an in-line filter could be added to either the tank or the carb line. I won't be able to try it on my large boat this year but I did use it as a refueler in a canoe. I used quarter inch tubing and it drained way too slow in that application. Holding the can is tiresome but it is easy to not spill. I like the idea of using several small cans instead of a large one since even my 'big' boat doesn't have that much room. One would have to be carefull since exposed lines could get jammed and leak. I plan to keep mine in a dedicated enclosure. Well - except for the keel winch.

Why not buy or build a say 20L. fuel tank with a proper bottom outlet. Mount it high enough to gravity feed your carb directly?

Maybe I have too much time on my hands. I'm trying to not ignite like a monk. I never seem to get a reliable flow from bottom pull tanks unless I mount them high. I'll try it with a two gallon commercial proper tank. 5 gallons is too heavy for me to lug and lift. I won't buy gas from the lodges. I just sail on chained lakes in northern Minnesota so I rarely need more than 3 hours of run time. I row to get out, then sail. Use electric when the warden's watching. My FLP is just my 'get me home' if all else fails. I enjoy the weight, reliability, understandability and servicability. I tend to spend more time fiddlin than runnin it.