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Author Topic:   outrage gas tank

efjr1 posted 07-30-2009 09:08 PM ET (US)
I have a 1986 18 foot outrage with the 63 gallon gas tank. The sight guage read empty and did not move even when I came to a stop off plane. I put in 16 gallons of gas and the guage reads nearly 1/2 full. Does this mean that there is around a 15 gallon reserve when the sight guage reads empty and does not move when at rest. Any thoughts from you guys who have this boat are welcome. Ed
LuckyLady posted 07-30-2009 10:42 PM ET (US)
I have the same 63gal tank in my 86 Guardian. When the fuel gauge registered 1/4 full, it was actually empty!
Blackduck posted 07-31-2009 09:57 AM ET (US)
There is no reserve, the gauge should be fairly accurate, depending on how your boat sits in the water.
Blackduck posted 07-31-2009 10:12 AM ET (US)
A lot of these boats sit quite low in the stern. Therefore, as you fill the tank. the rear of the tank gets all the gas, lowering the stern even more. Your gauge is midway, reading low when there is only 20 or 30 gallons of fuel.
efjr1 posted 08-02-2009 12:34 PM ET (US)
thanks for the responses. Motto is put gas in when it reaches 1/4 so at least the sight gauage is always moving and I know there is gas in the tank.
Buckda posted 08-02-2009 04:06 PM ET (US)
I have about 10 gallons in the tank when it registers empty. 40 miles from "E". To learn your reserve I recommend bringing a small reserve tank so you are not guessing.
number9 posted 08-02-2009 04:55 PM ET (US)
It's just a simple mechanical float gauge designed to give an approximation of fuel on board. Over the years some corrosion or other damage may occur affecting the original inaccuracy.
Considering the age of the tank that's probably in a 1986 and all of the reported fuel problems I would never recommend running until empty as a way to calibrate your fuel gauge.
Buckda posted 08-02-2009 06:49 PM ET (US)
Bullox! If you have an 18 you should also have a water separating filter externally and a secondary one aboard your powerhead. If these fail to protect your engine, chances are high you would have a failure anyway.
Run it empty if you really want to know your range. Otherwise you'll be guessing in a situation where KNOWING is critical. That is something I would never recommend.
efjr1 posted 08-02-2009 08:41 PM ET (US)
I have always had a Raycor and being on the So. Shore of LI I very rarely travel more than 20 miles in any trip. The waves at Tobay were 4 foot with and offshore wind on Saturday and I wanted to get to the beach (12 miles round trip) to go surfing before the wind changed and did not want to take the extra 45 minutes to get the gas with the guage at a little below 1/4. With 63 gallons there is no excuse to let it go below 1/4 tank per the sight gauage. As long as it the sight always moving, you can be assured there is some gas on borad, in my case probably the 10 gallons that Buckda said.
Buckda posted 08-03-2009 09:06 AM ET (US)
I would argue that there are several very good reasons to run your tank dry on a periodic basis, and some of them are in this thread.
With all the talk about "bad gas" and sediment in the tank - doesn't it make sense to cycle the tank dry occasionally so you can clean out the "bad gas" from accumulating in the tank? Your filters will clean sediment before it hits your engine (or they will clog completely) - removing the sediment from the tank.
Finally, and I believe most importantly, despite your best intentions and plans, most people will experience some moment on the water where nature or life will intervene and you will find yourself challenged beyond what you planned for. Doesn't it make sense to "know" what is left and when, rather than to "think you might know based on what some guy said on the Internet" when you are challenged by this situation?
I try to run my belly tank dry at least one time per season. After that, I change my filters, put in fresh gas and carry on.
Your mileage may vary - but I get about 40 miles after the needle hits "E" - at 4.0 MPG that I see with my E-TECs.
number9 posted 08-03-2009 10:49 AM ET (US)
Buckda,
Must admit you have some good points and will do just that if my tank ever gets that low. One of my neighbors wouldn't agree but his problems probably resulted from neglecting his beater Outrage.
"should also have a water separating filter externally"
Is not always the case and doubt you'd recommend running on empty without one.
Any idea of unusable fuel amount remaining? Would be a good idea to suck that out too rather than mixing with the new gas.
Buckda posted 08-03-2009 12:23 PM ET (US)
*on my boat* there is approximately 3 gallons of "unusable" fuel that remains in the tank when the starboard engine (shorter fuel hose) dies from fuel starvation.
number9 posted 08-03-2009 01:12 PM ET (US)
Buckda,
Thanks for that info and will make a point to do what you suggested.
pglein posted 08-03-2009 03:44 PM ET (US)
I will confess that I have not done this on my Outrage yet; but on my Albin, when the fuel gauge did not seem to be working properly, I simply removed the sending unit from the tank to physically inspect it. It looked to be in good condition until I ran the float up and down the shaft by hand while watching the gauge. The sender was working perfectly, while the gauge was not. I replaced the gauge, and ever since, I have been able to get accurate fuel readings.
Still, this does not account for the shape of the tank, or how the fuel sits in the tank. But it will prevent a repeat of the situation in which I ran out of fuel in the middle of the night up-current from a bridge caisson with the fuel gauge reading 1/2.
Buckda posted 08-03-2009 03:52 PM ET (US)
The mechanical gauge in an 18' Outrage - in my opinion - is not an accurate gauge.

But it is repeatable.
Take the time to learn what YOUR gauge is telling you and expect it to repeat that information with uniformity.
For instance, I can run 40 miles (about 10 gallons) when the needle on my guage reads "E" - meaning there are 13 gallons in the tank, and 10 "usable" gallons for my motors.
Likewise, I run approximately 40-45 miles before the needle falls off "F" - meaning that when the needle falls off "F", it really has about 53 gallons in the tank, and only 50 are usable.
This is important to know, and realize that depending on the conditions you find yourself in, you must compensate for changes in economy. This is where a fuel flow meter/sender is very beneficial.

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Author	Topic: outrage gas tank
efjr1	posted 07-30-2009 09:08 PM ET (US) I have a 1986 18 foot outrage with the 63 gallon gas tank. The sight guage read empty and did not move even when I came to a stop off plane. I put in 16 gallons of gas and the guage reads nearly 1/2 full. Does this mean that there is around a 15 gallon reserve when the sight guage reads empty and does not move when at rest. Any thoughts from you guys who have this boat are welcome. Ed
LuckyLady	posted 07-30-2009 10:42 PM ET (US) I have the same 63gal tank in my 86 Guardian. When the fuel gauge registered 1/4 full, it was actually empty!
Blackduck	posted 07-31-2009 09:57 AM ET (US) There is no reserve, the gauge should be fairly accurate, depending on how your boat sits in the water.
Blackduck	posted 07-31-2009 10:12 AM ET (US) A lot of these boats sit quite low in the stern. Therefore, as you fill the tank. the rear of the tank gets all the gas, lowering the stern even more. Your gauge is midway, reading low when there is only 20 or 30 gallons of fuel.
efjr1	posted 08-02-2009 12:34 PM ET (US) thanks for the responses. Motto is put gas in when it reaches 1/4 so at least the sight gauage is always moving and I know there is gas in the tank.
Buckda	posted 08-02-2009 04:06 PM ET (US) I have about 10 gallons in the tank when it registers empty. 40 miles from "E". To learn your reserve I recommend bringing a small reserve tank so you are not guessing.
number9	posted 08-02-2009 04:55 PM ET (US) It's just a simple mechanical float gauge designed to give an approximation of fuel on board. Over the years some corrosion or other damage may occur affecting the original inaccuracy. Considering the age of the tank that's probably in a 1986 and all of the reported fuel problems I would never recommend running until empty as a way to calibrate your fuel gauge.
Buckda	posted 08-02-2009 06:49 PM ET (US) Bullox! If you have an 18 you should also have a water separating filter externally and a secondary one aboard your powerhead. If these fail to protect your engine, chances are high you would have a failure anyway. Run it empty if you really want to know your range. Otherwise you'll be guessing in a situation where KNOWING is critical. That is something I would never recommend.
efjr1	posted 08-02-2009 08:41 PM ET (US) I have always had a Raycor and being on the So. Shore of LI I very rarely travel more than 20 miles in any trip. The waves at Tobay were 4 foot with and offshore wind on Saturday and I wanted to get to the beach (12 miles round trip) to go surfing before the wind changed and did not want to take the extra 45 minutes to get the gas with the guage at a little below 1/4. With 63 gallons there is no excuse to let it go below 1/4 tank per the sight gauage. As long as it the sight always moving, you can be assured there is some gas on borad, in my case probably the 10 gallons that Buckda said.
Buckda	posted 08-03-2009 09:06 AM ET (US) I would argue that there are several very good reasons to run your tank dry on a periodic basis, and some of them are in this thread. With all the talk about "bad gas" and sediment in the tank - doesn't it make sense to cycle the tank dry occasionally so you can clean out the "bad gas" from accumulating in the tank? Your filters will clean sediment before it hits your engine (or they will clog completely) - removing the sediment from the tank. Finally, and I believe most importantly, despite your best intentions and plans, most people will experience some moment on the water where nature or life will intervene and you will find yourself challenged beyond what you planned for. Doesn't it make sense to "know" what is left and when, rather than to "think you might know based on what some guy said on the Internet" when you are challenged by this situation? I try to run my belly tank dry at least one time per season. After that, I change my filters, put in fresh gas and carry on. Your mileage may vary - but I get about 40 miles after the needle hits "E" - at 4.0 MPG that I see with my E-TECs.
number9	posted 08-03-2009 10:49 AM ET (US) Buckda, Must admit you have some good points and will do just that if my tank ever gets that low. One of my neighbors wouldn't agree but his problems probably resulted from neglecting his beater Outrage. "should also have a water separating filter externally" Is not always the case and doubt you'd recommend running on empty without one. Any idea of unusable fuel amount remaining? Would be a good idea to suck that out too rather than mixing with the new gas.
Buckda	posted 08-03-2009 12:23 PM ET (US) on my boat there is approximately 3 gallons of "unusable" fuel that remains in the tank when the starboard engine (shorter fuel hose) dies from fuel starvation.
number9	posted 08-03-2009 01:12 PM ET (US) Buckda, Thanks for that info and will make a point to do what you suggested.
pglein	posted 08-03-2009 03:44 PM ET (US) I will confess that I have not done this on my Outrage yet; but on my Albin, when the fuel gauge did not seem to be working properly, I simply removed the sending unit from the tank to physically inspect it. It looked to be in good condition until I ran the float up and down the shaft by hand while watching the gauge. The sender was working perfectly, while the gauge was not. I replaced the gauge, and ever since, I have been able to get accurate fuel readings. Still, this does not account for the shape of the tank, or how the fuel sits in the tank. But it will prevent a repeat of the situation in which I ran out of fuel in the middle of the night up-current from a bridge caisson with the fuel gauge reading 1/2.
Buckda	posted 08-03-2009 03:52 PM ET (US) The mechanical gauge in an 18' Outrage - in my opinion - is not an accurate gauge. But it is repeatable. Take the time to learn what YOUR gauge is telling you and expect it to repeat that information with uniformity. For instance, I can run 40 miles (about 10 gallons) when the needle on my guage reads "E" - meaning there are 13 gallons in the tank, and 10 "usable" gallons for my motors. Likewise, I run approximately 40-45 miles before the needle falls off "F" - meaning that when the needle falls off "F", it really has about 53 gallons in the tank, and only 50 are usable. This is important to know, and realize that depending on the conditions you find yourself in, you must compensate for changes in economy. This is where a fuel flow meter/sender is very beneficial.