Filling up with diesel...

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BarryD

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My new toy is a twin diesel with twin tanks and some cross feeding stuff. Pretty simple. I'm sure I've read that the more safety aware of the forum fill up their tanks from different places to ensure that they don't get crappy diesel in both tanks and hence don't go.

So given that that each tank is (I think) 75 gallons doesn't that mean I'm in for a big list until I balance it all out?

The correct phraseology is "Are we insured..." NOT "Were we insured"
(IMHO, BTW FWIW and NWGOI)
 
you are destined to be a right fusspot at this rate.

Meself, i just fill it up and that's that.

With the crossfeeding things, you turn off the cross feeding, fill up one tank from one place, another tank from another place but er then it's time to go home. So, bosh it in the tank imho. You can get a beaker and run off the chambers in the fuel filters if you get uncommonly boatie, and with twin diesels you can shout at wife in scottish accent whilst doing this, esp if you have nicked a glass from the kitchen er galley.

once it's established tht the diesel is alright, you can open up the cross feed thing and then it'll all balance up.
 
Just buy your diesel from Cowes @ 24pp ltr. They have a big turn round with a delivery sometimes twice a week. They regularly (twice a year) clean their tanks out so you shouldn't get stale/contaminated diesel.

Politically incorrect and proud of it.
 
Just fill it up Barry. Then leave the cross over closed. They'll both use about the same. Then if like me, one engine goes fiz cerplonk and stops, in the middle of no where. Switch the cross over on and you can get back home. But not like me cos I've been fitting a cross over for years, and it's nearly done. Gear box broke out in LJS country, last year. Tother engine was running out of fuel so would not make Plymouth. Luckily there was Salcolmbe. But still got stuck cos fuel barge had run out the stuff.

No one can force me to come here-----------
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Haydn
 
Balance

As has already been said, it's best with the cross-over closed (hence, tank to engine) but for an additional reason other than those listed on this posting.

If, for any reason, the slightest list is evident and the cross-over is open, the fuel from one tank will start to flow to the other, in turn creating a greater list and so on.

So, if you do have to use the cross-over, close it after you have moored up.

The last point is that the engines ought to have been plumbed so that the excess fuel from the injectors is fed back to the relevant tank. That keeps the fuel balance good. But, of course, some boats are plumbed so the spill from both tanks returns to one tank. Boring. But this can always be found out at the end of a longish run by seeing if the fuel levels in the tanks are the same. So onwards and upwards - enjoy the boat and boating!

Piers du Pré
MBM Cruising Club enthusiast
www.dupre.co.uk/fsPlaydeau.htm
 
Dont worry about it Barry. IMHO instances of diesel contamination are rare (there's a hostage to fortune). To be on the safe side just fill up at the well known busy places. For the record, in the Solent, I use:
Yarmouth (next to the harbour office)
Cowes (upstream of the ferries on the west bank)
Warsash (opp Hamble Point Marina)
The price/l is reasonable for quantity at all the above
Filling up is a pain in the bum as well as the wallet anyway so you want to do it as seldom as possible especially on busy weekends
 
We've only got the one big(ish) tank, 120galls so no particualr experience. Might be good to check the stae of your tanks at the start of the season and syphon out any existing crud? I did that 2 years ago and was surprised at what was in the the bottom of the tank, depends how easy it is to get to though. Check your filters and carry spares and then perhaps just do as everyone else seems to do. Hope for the best.

Of course you could always use one of those fuel treatments. No particular names come to mind though I'm sure a search would reveal one or two;-).
 
Re: Balance

I found that when I use fuel from one tank for both engines, the fuel returns went to both tanks, so I put a crossover in the return lines aswell, so I can select which tank the return flow goes to.
 
Re: no, piers? hydraulics

If one tank has 20 cm depth of fuel, and t'other has 30, then even with a list the fule will flow from the 30 to the 20, untill they're both 25, almost regardless of listing. It wd have to be one hell of a list be4 the fuel flowed downhill.
 
Thanks all - I guess when I stop I'll just fill both tanks, and trhow in some additive or the like. Still think like a Petrol V8 boatie so £150 to tank her won't really hurt <G>.

The correct phraseology is "Are we insured..." NOT "Were we insured"
(IMHO, BTW FWIW and NWGOI)
 
Agree the other comments. Just fill up and leave the crossover shut. In the Solent, you will be filling at the usual high-turnover places. You will never be first to the pump, so can be sure that if the diesel is bad enough to stop your motors then there will be several boats already tied to the fuel pontoon unable to start their engines.....
 
Re: Can\'t agree, Matt. Hydraulics rule OK!

Matt,

Experience, as well as theory, shows me my comments are correct.

For example, my current boat (Princess V39) has 2 fuel tanks, each approx 18" square base x 4' tall, max capacity around 80 gallons each, each displaced some 3' from the centreline.

Water tank (74 gallons capacity) has its COG well stbd of the centreline.

Loading of the boat gives a small list to stbd. When the water tank is full, and 2 crew are sleeping in the aft cabin, the list is more pronounced.

Left the fuel cross-over (1.5" ID pipe) open one night when some 60 gallons were in each fuel tank, and by the time the morning came the list was even greater, and the fuel tanks showed considerably more in the stbd tank than port.

Hence, I now keep the cross-over closed, and no more problems....

Piers du Pré
MBM Cruising Club enthusiast
www.dupre.co.uk/fsPlaydeau.htm
 
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