Top Up Tanks For The Winter?

[Gunni]

In a perfect world completely draining the fuel tank at season's end would be a great solution. Unfortunately almost no fuel tank allows for this without opening it up. There will still be a residue which must be stabilized and you need to find somewhere to dispose of the extracted fuel. We now have decades of fuel additive chemistry that makes this unnecessary. Beyond properly stabilizing the fuel from oxidation, water separation, bio-growth etc, just don't leave head-space in the tank above the fuel. The daily heating and cooling of the boat will turn exposed tank walls into water condensation producers.

 

[RichH]

Gunni - Consider how friggin simple it is to rig a siphon hose to a fuel tank and to have a few 5 gallon containers. If you have a 'deck plate' + fill hose for a tank, you have a ready access for a simple siphon hose.

 

[Gunni]

The fill hose on my boat, and I suspect on Ducati's First is at the high end of the tank, you can't drain the tank via the fill. Beyond that I have no use for jerrycans full of diesel and the going rate for dispensed diesel is $0.25 as bulk waste oil. So I pickle the fuel, top the tank and forget about it. Which, by-the-way is per the Beneteau manual.

 

[Don12364]

Utmost respect for RichH. This is the first time I have seen his argument and it is the most credible of all.
My response is usually to calculate how much water can come in via actual condensation and show it is nothing like the 1 gallon needed to reach the bottom of your dip tube.
i.e. We buy the water at pump prices.

My final advice to Ducati - BUY IT NOW WHILST YOU CAN STILL AFFORD IT!

 

[Benny17441]

I think this may be one of those issues where preference rules over reason and there is no clear resolution in sight. Luckily those who top off the tanks as well as those that drain them and the few that do nothing special all seem to report they have been doing it their way for years with no ill effects. So perhaps the evils of condensation are overrated. Don't believe fuel will spoil nor that rust will be stopped. My Racor seems to take out the extra water suspended in the fuel so "no problem man"