Two Fuel Tanks Better than One

[Ross]

Wow!! If I had a 75 gallon fuel

tank I could motor all the way to Bermuda.I have three water tanks with a total capacity of 75 gallons. The only time I run the engine is when the wind has abandoned me completely or in the harbor.

 

[tom]

wow 75 gallons

wow 75 gallons would last many sailers 5 years or more. I guess the bugs would love that!!!! I think that there may be a lot of closet stinkpotters driving around in sailboats. At .5 galon /hour that is about 150 hours of motoring at 6 knots that is 900 miles!!!!! Why ever raise a sail??? With a 75 gallon tank why would one want a mast???? It just gets in the way when you go under a bridge. A 75 gallon tank makes sense in a trawler they don't pretend to be sailers. Seriously if you need a 75 gallon tank and you don't routinely sail to Tahiti you might be a stinkpotter. If I didn't love to sail I'd buy a trawler or a houseboat as they are much more comfortable and you don't have that mast getting in the way. When I get to old to sail I want a small trawler.....just think..never having to go up the mast!!!

 

[Alan]

And just how many.....

..sailboat owners carry "Towing Insurance"?? IF,(big if), you manage to run aground and not be able to free yourself, then I can understand calling for a tow. In 20+ years of sailing, I have run aground once. It took us 20 minutes of heeling the boat over to free the keel and be on our way.However, running out of fuel or overheating the engine is just no excuse for towing a sailboat. The primary source of power for a sailboat, after all, is wind. Of course there are circumstances where a tow might be necessary, but I'm sure they are few and far between.

 

[Ross]

Alan, Twenty years and only hit bottom once

? stay out of the chesapeake bay if you don't want to ruin your record. There are only three kinds of boaters here, those that have runaground, those that will run aground and those that lie about having run aground.

 

[tom h]

thats what they were built for

The irwin 37's were built for the charter trade, accoring to legend. So 75 gallons isn't a big deal. I use 3/4 gallons per hour at 7 knots. She can do 8.2 all day (did it from Buffalo to Clevland). I thought it was excessive too. I even found out the tanks were made to register only 40 gallons! When I cut her up, there was all kinds of black muck in the bottom of it. I am replacing mine with a 35-40 gallon tank and if needed for the trip to the Caribbean from Cleveland, I will store a 55 gallon temp tank on board (secured in the head).

 

[NewportVic]

Alan ... Alan ... Alan .... There are a lot of us

... who have no choice but motoring in and out ... especially here in Fl. where we have a lot of canals and rivers running to the Gulf.Every sailboat owner I know in Naples has Tow Boat US ... unlimited. Takes at least 30 minutes to get to the Gulf under power on the Gordon River. AND 30 minutes to get back.Without power ... there would be very little sailing out of Naples and I would be surprised it we didn't have at least 500 sailboats spread out off the river. And that kind of sailing is real common in FL.Vic "Seven"But then again in NPT where I am on a mooring ... I often don't bother turning the battery switch on.

 

[RAD]

Alan,

I once could not keep the outboard running on my 24 Bristol to get into Bay Shore so I decided leave the sails up and sail into my slip via a busy waterway with ferrys and motor boats coming and going, what a trip that was!:{It turned out that I ran out of wind hundreds of yards before making a turn that would of put the wind at my back, I didn't think about sculling but I did get the engine started for enough time to get into the slip.I now have a 32 ODay and I will call fot a tow if I need to be brought into my slip.And I agree with Ross because on the Great South Bay we have the same three kinds of sailors.

 

[Alan]

Hey,

...you guys....I understand that there are times and reasons for motoring, hell I've been known to turn mine on. I've sailed and raced in the Great South Bay and I understand the skinny water problem. I know the old story about the sailor who fell overboard and couldn't swim. Started screaming for help, and someone yelled back, 'put your feet down and stand up!' Fortunately for me, the Sound can reach over a hundred feet(enough to give you guys a nose bleed) ;DI've also sailed in and around Naples and realize that sure there's a need for motoring there. But you sure don't need a 75 gallon fuel tank, do you??

 

[RAD]

75 Gal.

is too much fuel for me,heck I use about 1/2 tank a season if I don't take any trips and I have 24 gal.BTW Alan did you ever get those fuel whisles in production,myself and some friends sure could use them.

 

[Alan]

RAD

I've been keeping quiet on purpose about them. Had to start all over again after the storms last year. But, yes we are nearly finished(about time)!Will be on the market in two or three weeks. The response has been overwhelming.

 

[NewportVic]

Alan ... Alan ... Alan ... whould you want us all

... to tie on ten five gallon yellow diesel jerry cans to our stern railings?Just kidding ... but we see a lot of almost that kind of thing in Newport when they come over from Europe.Vic

 

[Alan]

Hey,

I'm not saying there isn't a time when you might need extra fuel on-board. Certainly there aren't any gas stations mid ocean. But the average sailor isn't spending most of his sailing time crossing oceans or running the length of the country. They are out on local cruises and I have a hard time believing that there aren't many marinas with fuel available for hundreds of miles around.