"Gas" millage in a Hunter 26/260

[rgranger]

Hi fellow Hunter 26/260 owners.

I'm planning a short 4-5 day cruise in early January in my new-2-me Hunter 26. For auxiliary I have a 2014 Honda 9.9. For those of you with the same hull (Hunter 26/260) and same size outboard, can you help me ballpark how many hours at half throttle can I go on 6 gallons of fuel?

I've only had the chance to take this boat out on a few day sails so I have not really had the chance to figure out the fuel range yet. I have measured my speed at half throttle so a good ballpark number will help me a lot in my planning.

Thanks in advance.

r

 

[Kermit]

Rob,
I know this won't answer your question but here goes. I have a 1999 Tohatsu 9.8. 6 gallons of gasoline seems to last me forever. But I also keep an extra 3 gallon can onboard just because no one ever runs out of fuel at the dock. I'd say that you can never have too much fuel just like a pilot can never have too much runway in front of him.

 

[twalker H260]

Going easy I get about 1/2 gallon per hour. Longer trips or more motoring I use a 6 gallon tank with a backup 3 gallon tank. Good for about 10-12 hours at High throttle or 18 hours if backed off a bit. 9.9hp Yamaha with high thrust prop.

 

[rgranger]

Thanks Kermit and twalker

I think that is the info I needed. I was hoping to get 8 hours out of a tank but it sounds like I can expect a little more than that. I'm considering a run down the great dismal swamp canal from Norfolk to Elizabeth City. I've never done this run before so I'm not sure if I can sail much of it or if I'll have to motor most of it. I got a guide book and the more I read it... the more I really want to do this run. It looks like it is about 50-ish statute miles by water and my gps says I do 4-5 mph at half throttle. So if I'm conservative and assume I have to motor the entire way and estimate 12 hours/tank at half throttle that would be 48-60 miles per tank.... If I'm carrying an extra 3 gallons I should be fine. I'm then hoping to sail to Manteo and hang out a day or two... maybe do some day sails....then take the outer leg of the ICW through the Currituck Sound back to Norfolk. That should be doable in 5 days if all goes well. Of course all of this depends on the weather. I have a week off in early January and if the nightly temps stay above freezing and the daily highs get into the low 50's... I'm going to go for it. If things get cold.... I might have to trailer to Georgia for a sail around St. Simons.

 

[Skipper]

I had a Capri 26 with the Honda 9.9
Ran at 1/3 gph at 5 knots.

 

[rgranger]

Thanks Skipper!

 

[Benny17441]

Fuel consumption has always been a concern of sailors. They usually start by calculating the average burn rate of their engine. In an automobile as the wheels are mechanically engaged to the road "miles per hour" becomes the measure but in a boat where the propeller has a variable slip in the water distance cannot be used and the standard used is "Gallons per Hour" . Based on average use the amount of fuel your engine burns in an hour is referred to as its "burn rate". Once you know the burn rate and the number of gallons you have aboard it is simple to calculate pretty accurately for how long your engine will run. Calculating your "burn rate" would entail filling the tank up and running the engine for two or three hours and then refilling making a note of how many gallons were taken in to divide the number of gallons by the hours. At first you may get a rough approximation but as you continue to repeat the process over many hours a consistent "burn rate" figure will emerge. Understand that not all fuel in the tank is usable as the tank pick up tube will start sucking air way before the tank is empty. You should also maintain some fuel in reserve for emergencies. Depending on the shape of the tank between 15% and 20% is recommended to be kept in reserve. Once you know the "burn rate" and the amount of usable fuel in the tank then there are some useful calculations that can be made. I always like to know how much fuel I have left and for how long will the engine run. Range or distance can only be calculated on the water according to the prevalent conditions on the day of travel. If you have a tail wind and current you could travel many miles but if you have to buck an opposing wind or current you may not travel very far. It is important when setting out, to calculate range to the next refueling opportunity as if the results indicate you will not make it, this would be the time to take additional fuel or postpone the trip. It is also important during the trip to be aware of changing conditions and to recalculate range based on left over fuel. Obviously the time measured is the time while the engine is running so any time you sail you may be getting free miles. Motor sailing does help and on extended motor sails we will drop our "burn rate" by 1/3. Nevertheless for your trip the simplest recommendation I could give is take two extra 5 gallon cans and tie them to the stanchions. Stop every three to four hours to refuel. Also having towing insurance is a consideration as they will bring fuel out to you. With shorter daylight this time of the tear I would consider a good day to be 40 nautical miles. I hope this information is helpful,if perhaps not now but in the future when planning and executing passages.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

Rob;
I know the boat and sailing area. First do not attempt night time sailng and if you go into the Albemarle, make sure you know the weather ahead of time. Can get very rough if windy as it is shallow. Do not navigate the Alligator River at night. Make sure you are up on the regs and have the equipment on board as you will probably be stopped. Remember Norfolk is a military region and stay away from the naval ship particularly NOB.

I was waiting till early spring to come down to go over mast raising, on/off the trailer, sailing techniques and so on with you at SML. I have admiration for you wanting to do that but to be frank, I would be very concerned attempting that in the dead of winter because I have seen the weather change quickly plus not many out there this time of year should you get into trouble.
Please reconsider as I am concerned for your saftety. Now you are sailing in my former neck of the woods and would suggest that you wait for safety reasons.

 

[jeffclown]

I was going to also estimate 10-12 hours for 6 gallons based on my H26 and Nissan 8 2-stroke. Some differences there, but you're looking for ballpark numbers. We all probably have a different touch for "1/2 throttle," so I like Benny's suggestion and will probably try that myself sometime when there is no wind.

 

[rgranger]

Thanks All

Dave.... thanks for the concern. I've sailed those waters quite a bit myself... and I've done a lot of cold weather adventures in norther Wisconsin and Minnesota. I have the right gear.... and I always keep my eye on the weather. I don't go looking for trouble when my kids are on board. If it is going to be too cold, I'll head further south. Got to love trailerable sailboats.

 

[Benny17441]

I was going to also estimate 10-12 hours for 6 gallons based on my H26 and Nissan 8 2-stroke. Some differences there, but you're looking for ballpark numbers. We all probably have a different touch for "1/2 throttle," so I like Benny's suggestion and will probably try that myself sometime when there is no wind.

On our boat we use an "hour meter" to keep track of motoring time but I have found that when using an outboard keeping time with a hand watch yields very acceptable results. We sometimes run a trailerable with a 9.8 two stroke Nissan outboard and we have set our burn rate at 1 GPH (it actually burns around .8 gallons but to create a favorable margin of error and simplify our calculations we use 1 gallon). Out of habit I glance at my watch when I start the engine and will mark time in increments of 15 minutes to when I turn it off. During any outing I mentally keep a running tally of the time I have motored ( at the beginning used to do it in paper) and can get a good approximation of the fuel I have left. In calm to average weather conditions I use a speed of 4.5 knots to calculate range so I can instantly say after two hours of motoring that I have burned two gallons and travelled 9 nautical miles. We use a 3 1/2 gallon tank to feed the engine and consider that only three gallons are usable so I that point I would determine that I have one gallon left before refueling and can only travel around 4.5 miles. Needless to say on long trips we carry one if not two 5 gallon cans attached to the rail. With regards to throttle position we do not concern ourselves with any minor fuel consumption differences as we use an average figure based on our way we use the throttle. This average contains periods at idle, at mid throttle and at wide open throttle. What we found is that this average does not change much within days of different conditions. In the bigger boat with the diesel it makes even less difference as those engines are more efficient at higher RPM and any time spent running at a lower speed will just be time that we would need to run longer to cover the same distance. I must add we have never ran out of fuel but that on a few occasions have had to alter our intended destination because of our fuel calculations underway for changing conditions. We were once slowed to a speed of 1 1/2 knots which meant that with 6 gallons we had left on board we could only have travelled 9 miles with our destination being 15 miles away. We were motoring in the Long Island Sound against a strong tidal flow so we decided, rather than to gamble on that the effect would diminish enough in a couple of hours, that we would make better use of our time and we altered course to a nearby town. Tacking under sail was not a sound (no pun intended) alternative. We were latter able to comfortably make our final destination without having to add any fuel. Trust me calculating your average burn rate, keeping track of your fuel consumption in GPH and being able to estimate range is having a very powerful tool at your disposal.

 

[shanker]

I have a 2010 Honda 9.9 but I have not determined any type of fuel consumption. I do know I get better gas mileage if I do not open the throttle to full when motoring. Kick it back to around 3/4 throttle, speed is very close but you go a lot further on a tank. Sorry, the best I have for ya.

 

[Fly_H23]

Not sure I saw anyone mention the biggest variable in motoring which is often overlooked ...WIND! If you've got a headwind, you're forward speed will obviously be slower at a given RPM. It's natural to want to keep your speed over ground at what you measured with GPS and almost unconsciously increase the throttle to maintain it. Conversely a tailwind will decrease your fuel burn. I would suggest bringing twice as much fuel as you think you'll need to reach the next fuel stop. I keep a second six gallon can so I don't have to refill from a smaller can while enroute, just swap the fuel hose quick-disconnect to the second tank.

Plan your trip when you see a forecast for a tailwind and have a safe trip.

 

[Apex]

to piggyback on Fly's comments, with wind, put the sails up....you are a sailboat afterall. Motor-sailing, I can see, with same throttle, 1/2 to full knot increase in speed with no penalty to the burn rate. Of course, I am not familiar with the area, so disregard if that comment has no relevancy. :O)

Anyway sailing gives you virtually unlimited gas mileage. /)/)/)