[Chet-H]

Hello folks...

I want to fish the big water but my tank is too small...
Anyone haul extra fuel? At what point does it become unsafe? well, Im not so sure any is safe but...I need to carry 60 gallons extra minimum..prefer 80.

I've thought about 5 gal cans...32 gal fuel cells.... jon boat in tow with 55 gal drums lol??

I need more gas!!!


cells are probably the safest but $500+ for 2 32's...
5 gal cans are managable but make me nervous..swelling etc...


TIOA!!

Chet

 

[David-C]

Don't. But if you're gonna anyway...

Get additional 6 gallon fuel cans so you won't have to be pouring gasoline (fire at sea can ruin your entire day), use an extra fuel line.

Run off these cans on the way out so you can bungie them out of the way when they are empty.

How much EXTRA gas do you need to carry?

David

 

[Bryansfish]

Thats alot of gas and I agree with what David said about not doing it and if you do how he said to do it. I went out in a Cat a few years back they had 8 five gallon tanks stored in the center consoul. On the way out we smelled gas and when they opened the door I went off because I did not know they had those extra tanks on board. I would check into adding another tank and spend the money so all is safe.

 

[Dae]

Chet,

What size boat and gas tank do you have that you feel you need to carry 60 gallons extra? How far do you plan on running offshore?

On my 19 footer, I've been offshore 35+ miles, trolled for hours then back in and still had close to a half tank left (60 gallon tank total in boat).


- Dae

 

[Guest]

We got two of these for our boat:

http://www.overtons.com/modperl/overtons/detail/pdetail2.cgi?r=detail_view&item_num=36868

One is mounted "permanently" under the old engine box. Boat used to be an I/O, was converted to a bracketed outboard. Under-deck and aux tank are on a two-way valve.

We used to use the other one right on the deck, and would run out on that and then move it up front and lash it down when it ran out.

Eventually, we replaced the stock 52 gallon tank w/ an 82 gallon under-deck tank and upgraded to a newer, more fuel efficient engine and we don't need the second aux anymore.

 

[Chet-H]

Thanks for the advice fellas...
The boats a 21' striper with a 63 gal tank...
Seems to burn about 10 gals per hour..20 knots in good conditions..3-4 footers winds out of the south @ 10-15..ok fair conditions for our vessel...thats about the worst we would dare...
Wanting to run to the canyons from chincoteague...60'ish miles..

We ran to the parking lot last weekend, trolled, stopped by a reef on the way back and burnt 55 gals....

The 5 gal cans seem to be the easiest cheapest solution...
I carried 4 last weekend.... and they fit well below..
I bought new cans without the vent hole, have a vented nozzle...but they seel to seal tightly and no chances of leaks...fuel or fumes... easy to manage and store...

Why didn't someone warn me of this obsession?

Chet

 

[UBETRUN]

[Q]Chet-H originally wrote:

Why didn't someone warn me of this obsession? [/Q]

Isn't that the truth [smile]

My boat holds 208 gallons but the motors get real thirsty when the throttle is any further than half-way. If I can't get the fuel consumption under control, I'm going to have a 100 gallon aux tank installed and run it as fast as conditions allow.

 

[billfish]

I would think 3 times about going out to the caynons in your 21 ft boat. There is a reason that you have a smaller tank. If you have more gas I would not put in a closed area. It doesn't take much gasoline to cause an explosion. I guess that you have an outboard. If you had an i/o you would have a blower in the engine compartment to rid it of fumes. Your gasoline storage place doesn't.
The ocean is no place for a 21 ft boat. The waves can swallow you up in a minute. Did you hear about the Mako that went down in the Washington this June. I think that the waves went over the stern and the boat could not recover before the next one did her in!!
If you go out in the ocean stay close to shore in that boat. Crazy things happen at sea. Better yet go out with someone that has a larger boat. Use your boat for the inlet and bay!! Your life and others is at risk.
Bill James

 

[croakerpoker]

call the factory and see if they ever put larger or auxillary tanks in that model. you may be able to pull up a panel and install one which would solve most of your problem. i used to fish offshore in a 22 grady that we carried 40-50 gallons in 6 gallon containers. we never had a problem. just keep them far to the stern when running so they get bounced the least and tie them up tight. as soon as you get there dump what you can in the tank and lash the empties up front. if its too rough to dump them in then you shouldnt have gone out in the first place. its a little more risky going out in a boat that size but very doable. just be smart, watch the weather, and buddy up.

oh yeah and keep a fire extinguisher handy[wink]

 

[Slipsinker]

Your ego is clouding your judgement. Not knocking your boat but it's not designed for off shore. Call the factory and ask them why they don't put larger capacity gas tanks in those boats. I think you'll get the answere. [wink] If you do try it calculate the extra wgt of the gas in relationship to gal.burned per hour with the extra weight. Good luck dude. I think you're foolish to try it.[sad]

 

[Chet-H]

Actually that was my first phone call. Only because a friend of ours has the SAME boat with 126 gal tank..and I a 63!!
same MODEL...SAME MANUFACTURER.... anyways I can make some modifications as they did in production and get the 126 in there, too costly though.
I've talked with folks that run to the canyons on 18 and 20's....
Have to choose your days very wisely...

For those that have followed...
I've bought 6 gallon vent free cans....8 will fit nicely on storage racks in the cuddy...48 gallons extra...

 

[croakerpoker]

i would strongly advise you keep those tanks against the transom when running. the cuddy is the worst possible place on the boat other than the hard top. it is enclosed and far forward where the tanks will get beat the most. not sure but i would bet your cuddy drains into the bilge which is a big risk. keep them far to stern when running then dump them in your main tank. The empties can be put just about anywhere. You can safely fish your boat but you have to take necessary precautions and choose your days wisely.

 

[Dae]

Chet,

All I can say is enjoy the fishing offshore and let us know how you did. I wouldn't do it now but years ago, I would have ran to the canyons in my 19 footer if I had a buddy boat.

- Dae

 

[ontheflats]

[Q]Chet-H originally wrote:
For those that have followed...
I've bought 6 gallon vent free cans....8 will fit nicely on storage racks in the cuddy...48 gallons extra...
[/Q]

[grin][grin][grin]

 

[BigWillJ]

From a fuel consumption safety viewpoint, appears you are at least familiar with, and perhaps calculating according to, the '1/3 rule' - which is plan to use about 1/3 of your fuel out, 1/3 of your fuel back, with 1/3 in reserve.

'This will leave you 1/3 of a tank in reserve for those times when wind, waves, or drift make your running time longer than expected.'

Folks run offshore in 'smaller' boats all the time, hopefully in relative safety, with much planning and awareness for how it can be done. I wouldn't do it now in our boat, but then, seems I used up all of my risk taking in more youthful times.
[grin][wink]

 

[Sandtiger]

The 1/3 out, 1/3 back, and 1/3 reserve iosa good rule. However, realize that you will not get 100% recovery from your tank because of the way it is designed with the fuel pickups. So, I would recommend that you take you total fuel capacity and subtract 10% from it and then do the calculations of thirds.

I hope and pray that you are not considering doing this running offshore thing without a buddy boat. Think about it...... '60 ish miles offshore' and here comes a thunderstorm with 45 to 50 knot winds and possible seas of up to eight feet or more in a very short time. At 20 knots (three hour trip home) in fair weather .................. well you get the picture. I'm not going to condemn you, because I've done it myself, but be aware that it's not the safest thing to do. Just thought I'd put up some numbers to get you to think about it a bit.

Be careful

 

[tolmaz]

'I would think 3 times about going out to the caynons in your 21 ft boat'

its not worth the chance. when I was younger I did things like that. Used to fish with a guy that carried 6 5 gallon cans. I mean CANS! If I were you I wiould be happy staying inshore and you can still have your fill of dolphin, bluefin, kings, bluefish etc. not to mention the wrecks. but in the canyons in that size.? i just wouldnt do it. Things change too fast out there. if a squall were to come thru and you were 70 miles offshore. whew! just my 2 cents

 

[Chet-H]

Thanks much for the sound advice....
I hadn't considered what we can call usable fuel in the tank versus size....
I am a little more cautious than the average Joe though....

We've managed a couple runs out to 40-45 miles now and have good ideas of fuel consumption...we are aware we are definatley pushing the envelope with things so we must be cautious....
We've not considered any days that aren't forcasted perfect for us....
We're burning 11 gals an hour @ 20 knots in good conditions....
so if we run 60 miles out....33 gal out...33 back....66 total...
the tank is 63 but lets say 58....So I'm 8 short..so I need to haul a reserve and trolling fuel and those 8 gal....a reserve of 20 gal....and lets say 30 gals for the troll...lets call that 8 say 10..so an extra 60 gals... thats 12, VENT free/sealed tight cans we'll have in the back along the transom...480 pounds roughly... 3 fisherpeoples and I'm about 200 pounds under the sticker minus 400 pounds of gear of course but thats the envelope thing...

half the cans get dumped in when we get there and I'd guess half of the rest when we finished trolling. worst case scenario or perhaps best case scenario we have to stop on the way back to empty the full cans into the tank...just to avoid the extra run time with cans on the deck....

filling the tank is fairly easy, small platform on the back makes everything nice and stable....no spills etc.... of course rough seas would make this task much more difficult (for those about to warn me of that) but we choose our days wisely...

the cans I've bought are vent free and have a really nice rubber seal on the cap...I've had a pair of them bouncing around in the back of my pickup under the cap without spills/fumes...

all is good....safety always has to be #1.......

if you'all see someone hanging on the back of a bay boat dumping cans in at sea gimme a holler!! ESPECIALLY if we're way way out there!!


tight lines

Chet

 

[croakerpoker]

sounds good, go get em