How accurate is your fuel gauge?

[Pye_End]

Stick with some notches - seems to be consistant!

Keep some fuel in cans, so tend to keep the main tank full. When the cans are empty, the next trip then ends up as a re-fuel (twice a year maybe).

 

[FullCircle]

Ahh yes, lots of talk about sight tubes and dippers, but......

my tank is about 10 inches high and four feet long, and also buried under the difficult to get at aft cabin, with 2 very large mattress cushions, a storm jib, cruising chute and man overboard tackle kit, not to mention the baggage from whoever is occupying the aft state cabin.

I like Cliffs gauge, very drole...... and Galadriel/Emjaytoo have obiously been briefed about having a hundred grands worth of boat that cant even measure simple fuel load by manufacturers.

I think I will get a Jeanneau water tank indicator which is 3 green lights and a red light. This has worked out fairly accurate for my showering/washing, and is far more visible than the poxy analogue gauge in the cockpit.


For Big Nick, go to the East Coast Meeting Forum, and ready under Naan Goes Hungry thread... suffice to say we came a very close second in the 'Lets sail back onto a tight mooring in an F7 competition'. Would have got it second time around, natch.....

 

[TeamSpirit]

Seems to be about right, but always check tank visually before very journey and never let tank drop below 1/2. When traveling any distance always carry a 10 ltrs reserve can just in case and after a recent experience an additional gallon of oil too.

 

[ChrisE]

Puff, Jim. Where's your 'engine hours' entry in your log? Fill mine in whenever I fill the tank/remember to /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Seriously, our engine has one of them there LCD displays which are awful to read especially if you have my poor eyesight but I do read it every now and then

 

[cliff]

[ QUOTE ]
my tank is about 10 inches high and four feet long, and also buried under the difficult to get at aft cabin, with 2 very large mattress cushions, a storm jib, cruising chute and man overboard tackle kit, not to mention the baggage from whoever is occupying the aft state cabin.

[/ QUOTE ]I don't like that arrangement much - a long, shallow tank but.... I was hoping someone would remember the name of the pnuematic gauge - there was a thread about them some time ago. Failing that what about the fuel gauge out of an old series II or III landrover? The gauge in my Series II is spot on on E, ¼, ½, ¾ & F. And the sender is mounted on the top of the tank which is only about 10" ~ 12" deep.
Should be able to pick up a sender and gauge in a scrappy - don't forget the voltage stabiliser though.

Glad you liked the "alternative" gauge - will be more appropriate after Nov 2008 /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif
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"Artificial intelligence is no match for natural stupidity"
sailroom <span style="color:red">The place to auction your previously loved boatie bits</span>

 

[Twister_Ken]

My fuel gauge is a stick. Unlike your fool gauge.

 

[Guest]

I bought the Tank Tender gauge complete with display from ebay ... about 26 quid I think ... all in.

Works a treat - is adjustable for all sorts of depth tanks ... Mounts via inspection plate or via supplied plate.

Works direct of 12v without need for any intermediate stuff.

I also checked mine by emptying the tank ... and putting back in stages and dipping against the displayed reading ...

I wired the gauge so that it only powers up when Engine Enable switch is on ... (this cuts feed to alternator excite and also to push to start relay switch ... ). So I have no drain on battery ....

 

[billmacfarlane]

Thankfully mine works the other way round from yours. I've a 90L tank and when the guage is just showing above empty it's got about 30L left. It's got a float sensor about 6" long and the tank shows empty when the botton of it reaches the bottom of the tank, with the fuel level actually being just above the top of the sensor.

 

[waterboy]

Hi Jim. I had a similar problem once with a Westerly Discus I used to own. The fuel lift pump developed a fault which was only apparent when the fuel level fell to a certain point. Above that point gravity was sufficient to feed fuel into the engine. Just a thought.

 

[rogerthebodger]

If you are looking for an accurate fuel gauge have a look at this

I have used their sender units for both water and fuel and have both full and empty settings pots/ screws on the sender unit with VDO gauges.

The one above can compensate for the shape of the tank if not rectangular.

 

[CPD]

Jim,
Next time it happens, bend the needle on your gauge to zero, and hey presto !!!!!!!

 

[raven]

Thanks Nigel,

That sounds like a pretty easy to install option - will check it out.

regards,
Alan

 

[DeeGee]

I dont know about recalibrating the sender, I have one of those things on my domestic fuel tank and it is always weird.

We have a beautiful system, standard for the boat, easily added to any boat, methinks. There is a sightglass (a tube) the same height as the tank, and open at the top. At the bottom is a normally-closed valve. To read, one pushes the button on the valve, and the level in the sight-glass drops to the current level in the tank (no possibility of error). Release the valve and it will hold this reading whilst the level in the tank goes down - needing a push next time you read. It is neat, perfectly accurate.

 

[sailorman]

same as mine
fool proof bit-o-kit
i should know /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[Guest]

Why not route top back into tank via filler pipe and have just an emergency valve to close the line ... then you can have a permament read-off ?

 

[DeeGee]

Sounds great. I am not CERTAIN that the top of my sight-tube does not overflow into the tank, actually. In the very remote possibility that the tube was broken (difficult to imagine as it is well out of the way), the normally-closed valve is de rigeur.

 

[sailorman]

we have
vent into tank + shut-off valve @ the bottom of the tube

 

[roycharles]

I have a translucent sight tube which is fool proof - or is it?
Got back home from Holland/Belgium a few weeks ago, looked at the site guage - no fuel after only a couple of hours motoring on a full tank (11 gall)
Then it dawned on me, I'd filled up in Belgium with WHITE diesel so couldn't see the fuel level in the sight tube. Now filled again with red diesel so no problem - unless we are forced into using white over here.
Perhaps a small red floating ball inserted in the tube.

 

[Guest]

Trick here is to use difraction ...

You cut a card the length of the tube to paste behind. This card you paint with thin black / white or black yellow alternate lines at 45 deg angle to horizontal - like a barbers pole. The fluid in the tube causes the line to distort and you can see a distinct change in the line at the air to fluid interface ...

Red or white - no difference !

 

[roycharles]

Brilliant!

Hands up - who else thought of diffraction?

This forum is a beautiful thing - there is always someone who has the answer to your problem.

What's wrong with a little red ball anyway?