Fuel Tank Tops

[Black Pearl]

After removing the heavy fuel tank tops and replacing the fuel tanks with a new plastic ones, the tops were beside the boat just laying there. I was talking to Giles Mosher, who used to work for Alden and has done many refits and knows most of the boats that have sold and been redone, and I mentioned what we had found out about the leak in the fuel tank. He reminded me that the weight in the tops was there for stability and to make sure I replaced the weight I had taken out.
I am happy I discusssed this with him. I dont think I would have thought that one thru.
Bill

 

[Quetzalsailor]

Two thoughts: I'd bet that the tank tops are close to the boat's center of gravity so that they contribute little to righting moment. I imagine that the weight, which does contribute to comfortable motion, would be more than easily replaced by other must-haves in the boat.

 

[rjoconnell]

I have the steel tops off my tanks now. Each weighed around 50 pounds before rusting (they were 3/8" thick), for a total of around 200. Nils Heldenberg(?) at Alden told me a couple of weeks ago that they were thick to be stiff and not warp. The person at Rumery's that did the tank replacement on Black Pearl suggested using fiberglass G10 board as replacement tops; stiff but light. 50 gallons of fuel is around 400 pounds, and rides lower than the covers. If you're worried about ballast, a bit of lead in the bottoms of the tanks would be most effective.

I'm replacing the covers with aluminum. I will post my experiences when I'm done, since I have encountered some surprises along the way. Covers are fastened with 268 3/8" bolts, about a third of which were inserted before the fiberglass cover was glassed into the hull.