Confirmed I have a 52 gallon fuel tank

[sunedog]

Had to have the center toon replaced on my 2017 23RSB over the off-season. At the end of last season, I purposely managed the fuel level down to make it easier for the techs to remove the fuel tank and replace it while swapping the toons. Picked up the boat Friday and gassed up on the way home. Put in 51.658 gallons! I was either running on fumes or there is some headroom in the tank in addition to the stated 52 gallon capacity.

I initially tried fueling at Costco because they have (in my opinion) good quality gas and their prices are always less than anyone around. But my Costco Gas has the fuel vapor recovery nozzles on their pumps and I could not get gas in my boat no matter which way I tried. Aborted that effort and hit another station that has standard nozzles. Had no issues fueling there and didn't spill a drop.

 

[BigKahuna]

Looks like you're ready for another season down there John! Why was your center toon replaced? Was it damaged? Yes Costco has that "Top Tier" fuel meaning it has 5 times the amount of detergent additives required by the EPA. We put it in all of our vehicles! But I have never put any fuel containing ethanol in our last 2 boats or any of our power equipment! I know it's safe to use in our boats as long as you run them and don't let them sit for an extended period of time. Hope all is well with the family!

 

[sunedog]

Why was your center toon replaced? Was it damaged?

Had a manufacturing defect and the toon was taking on water. Covered by warranty, thank goodness!

 

[LaurencetheAdventurer]

Had to have the center toon replaced on my 2017 23RSB over the off-season. At the end of last season, I purposely managed the fuel level down to make it easier for the techs to remove the fuel tank and replace it while swapping the toons. Picked up the boat Friday and gassed up on the way home. Put in 51.658 gallons! I was either running on fumes or there is some headroom in the tank in addition to the stated 52 gallon capacity.

I initially tried fueling at Costco because they have (in my opinion) good quality gas and their prices are always less than anyone around. But my Costco Gas has the fuel vapor recovery nozzles on their pumps and I could not get gas in my boat no matter which way I tried. Aborted that effort and hit another station that has standard nozzles. Had no issues fueling there and didn't spill a drop.

Interesting - my 21 is a 56 gallon (stamped on tank). Now my gauge only reads 50 gallons.

 

[Potomacbassin’]

Interesting - my 21 is a 56 gallon (stamped on tank). Now my gauge only reads 50 gallons.

Can you calibrate it? I'd also try and see if that 56g is total space in the tank, or useable (there will be some gap at the top of the tank when full).

My gauge (Yamaha digital) reads fuel level in bars which is not really helpful, but also gives me fuel consumed which is what I use. It's pretty much within a half gallon when compared to how much I fill up so much more accurate than the bars. This can be calibrated.

But the bar level I believe is not able to be calibrated. The gauge just takes the resistance value from the sender and interprets it as full, empty and everything in between but no actual units of measure.

 

[LaurencetheAdventurer]

Can you calibrate it? I'd also try and see if that 56g is total space in the tank, or useable (there will be some gap at the top of the tank when full).

My gauge (Yamaha digital) reads fuel level in bars which is not really helpful, but also gives me fuel consumed which is what I use. It's pretty much within a half gallon when compared to how much I fill up so much more accurate than the bars. This can be calibrated.

But the bar level I believe is not able to be calibrated. The gauge just takes the resistance value from the sender and interprets it as full, empty and everything in between but no actual units of measure.

LOL - as enter a 4th season with my Benny, I still haven't completed the Welcome Screen when the Simrad boots up. I have played around with some of the features but have not looked for a gas tank calibration option - though I like the "idea" of having a 5-gallon reserve. Sometimes when filling, especially for the long run up the lake, I open the hatch and visually check the fill level - I have had the pump register 56 gallons! (but did not take note on how low I actually was before filling - pump wrong?). This leads me to believe the "fill" level is not to the tippy top. I also believe (but again have not confirmed) the tank level float recalibrates with each engine start, so while it may not pick up 55 gallons, when it drops down to 40 it is relatively accurate.

 

[Potomacbassin’]

The tank level is indicated when power is supplied to the sender, and a resistance value is then sent to your Fuel gauge which interprets it. So each time you cycle power the gauge just reads the resistance.

In your case with the factory Simrad, I think (because I don't have one) there is a device that intercepts this resistance value from the sender, turns it into a NEMA 2000 signal which your Simrad can then read.

The Simrad has a setup where you tell it how many gallons/liters the tank holds, so here is where I'm guessing the factory or dealer put in 50 instead of 56. You can always go back and change it. Then if you're finding the fuel usage values are off, the Simrad also has a calibrate feature.

I get it, all annoying stuff that gets in the way of boating! Fuel for me though gets dicey since I can make long runs and end up back at the marina on fumes! So I had to nerd-out a little more on the fuel functions!

 

[NCLakeGuy]

Had a manufacturing defect and the toon was taking on water. Covered by warranty, thank goodness!

John
Did a local dealer do the work or was it sent to the factory? Always looking for good service options. Charlotte dealer is excellent but small service team, not a fan of the Lake Norman dealership which I had some very disappointing experience with my Cobalt there. Mine is at Race City Marine in Mooresville getting Hull Jacket applied to the pontoons and some warranty work. I am paying for labor and they got parts covered.
Peter

 

[sunedog]

John
Did a local dealer do the work or was it sent to the factory?

Captain's Choice Marina in Leesville, SC (on Lake Murray) did the work themselves. They are top notch.

 

[BigKahuna]

The 52 gallon tank and gauge in my old I/O was really accurate! When it got down to 1/4 tank we would go ahead and fill up thinking that we were getting low. It would take 39 gallons meaning we had 13 gallons left.