My fuel gauge does not work. For a piece of mind someone said to add a engine meter so to do the calculations in hours of fuel consumed. This is a 18hp and 25 gallon tank...seem reasonable?
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Usually about .75 - 1 gal/hr.
Normally you will want to estimate .75 to 1 gal per hour. I just ran this calculation on my HV'36 and it worked out to .8 gal/hr on a 3JH2E (38 hp yanmar). The hour meter is only any good if you are sure to write down the hours everytime you refill the tank. It is a good estimate if you are faithful.
Normally you will want to estimate .75 to 1 gal per hour. I just ran this calculation on my HV'36 and it worked out to .8 gal/hr on a 3JH2E (38 hp yanmar). The hour meter is only any good if you are sure to write down the hours everytime you refill the tank. It is a good estimate if you are faithful.
absolutely
Estimating fuel consumption one of many reasons to have an engine hours meter installed. I should think you'll get at least .5 gph on an 18-horse engine. Hasn't someone out there run the calculations on this size?
Estimating fuel consumption one of many reasons to have an engine hours meter installed. I should think you'll get at least .5 gph on an 18-horse engine. Hasn't someone out there run the calculations on this size?
On the 3gm30 27hp
at 2800rpm I burn about .5 to .6 gals/hour. That is the average over 5 seasons of keeping records. Of course if you are bucking waves and wind, it goes UP. Jim S/V Java
at 2800rpm I burn about .5 to .6 gals/hour. That is the average over 5 seasons of keeping records. Of course if you are bucking waves and wind, it goes UP. Jim S/V Java
Fuel guages always seem to
malfunction. And some engine hour meters will keep clocking hours if the ignition is on the the engine is off. What has been infallable for me is simply keeping track of the hours my engine is running by looking at my watch and knowing the engine's fuel consumption rate. In my case, my Yanmar 2GM20F burns about .2 gph at 2,000 rpm in nearly flat water, .3 gph at 2500 rpm, and .4 gph at 3,000 rpm. If you start out with a full fuel tank and keep doing the simple math, you'll always know just about the exact amount of fuel you've got left -- and never be disappointed when a guage or meter breaks down.
malfunction. And some engine hour meters will keep clocking hours if the ignition is on the the engine is off. What has been infallable for me is simply keeping track of the hours my engine is running by looking at my watch and knowing the engine's fuel consumption rate. In my case, my Yanmar 2GM20F burns about .2 gph at 2,000 rpm in nearly flat water, .3 gph at 2500 rpm, and .4 gph at 3,000 rpm. If you start out with a full fuel tank and keep doing the simple math, you'll always know just about the exact amount of fuel you've got left -- and never be disappointed when a guage or meter breaks down.
Keep a Running Log...
...to track your hours of running time and fuel additions. Soon you will have a good feel for your usage. But, if you are like me, I have a poly tank that I can also check the fuel level at any time with a flashlight shining on the outside of the tank.
...to track your hours of running time and fuel additions. Soon you will have a good feel for your usage. But, if you are like me, I have a poly tank that I can also check the fuel level at any time with a flashlight shining on the outside of the tank.
Fuel gauges are unreliable at best. Excessive
calculations of burn rates at different speeds are not only cumbersome but unnecessary. All you need is to calculate the average burn rate of your engine according to your average use. The resulting figure will be an average burn rate as you idle, accelerate and cruise at medium or high loads. The best way to keep time for use of the engine is with an hour meter. Sure they can fail, but so can the Rolex on your wrist. If you leave the starter or power key on they may continue to run but with the buzzer going off that will be unlikely. I have kept time manually but find that such a system is more unreliable for me than an hour meter. Either I forget or do not have a pencil and paper handy. Any variations from real fuel consumption and mistakes induced by small errors in time keeping will be inconsequiential if you designate and maintain a reserve. I usually keep a 20% of tank capacity as reserve. On long trips I will calculate a predicted fuel consumption between legs and if necessary will carry additional fuel in jerry cans.
calculations of burn rates at different speeds are not only cumbersome but unnecessary. All you need is to calculate the average burn rate of your engine according to your average use. The resulting figure will be an average burn rate as you idle, accelerate and cruise at medium or high loads. The best way to keep time for use of the engine is with an hour meter. Sure they can fail, but so can the Rolex on your wrist. If you leave the starter or power key on they may continue to run but with the buzzer going off that will be unlikely. I have kept time manually but find that such a system is more unreliable for me than an hour meter. Either I forget or do not have a pencil and paper handy. Any variations from real fuel consumption and mistakes induced by small errors in time keeping will be inconsequiential if you designate and maintain a reserve. I usually keep a 20% of tank capacity as reserve. On long trips I will calculate a predicted fuel consumption between legs and if necessary will carry additional fuel in jerry cans.
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