Dauntless 220 Fuel Capacity, Water In Fuel, Ethanol

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   Dauntless 220 Fuel Capacity, Water In Fuel, Ethanol

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Author Topic:   Dauntless 220 Fuel Capacity, Water In Fuel, Ethanol

Reichy posted 12-24-2007 05:50 PM ET (US)
I have an 2005 Dauntless 220 that, no mattter the conditions, will take no more than 80 gallons of fuel. I have drained the tank and can still put in no more than 80 gallons.
I am bringing this up because I recently had a problem with water in the fuel that required complete draining of the tank and service of the Verado 225. I am concerned that the tank has a constant empty space of approximately 10 gallons that is contributing to condensation and subsequent water contamination.
Anyone have feedback or opinions on this?
Much obliged,
John
Grasonville, MD
Chesapeake Bay
rtk posted 12-24-2007 07:10 PM ET (US)
If they drained the tank using the fuel pickup it is likely they did not completely drain the tank, the water was left at the bottom of the tank. The fuel pickup does not reach the absolute bottom of the tank.
Here is my experience:
http://continuouswave.com/ubb/Forum3/HTML/012877.html
Again, another great season with absolutely no water in my RACOR water seperating fuel filter. I pay no attention to the level of fuel in my 119 gallon tank.
This season I also purchased fuel stabilzer at the best price I could find. The price of this stuff has become rediculous. I used Startron, CRC, Stabil, PRI-G. Ditched the Mercury Quickleen, most of the fuels and other additives claim the same attributes. The price just got rediculous. Fuel quality and performance did not suffer.
You will absolutely not get enough water in the tank from condensation to be a problem. The water is leaking into your tank from some point on the tank, vent or fill or it came from your fuel supplier.
I received quite a few emails and messages, and spent a great deal of time on the phone, with people from this board and one other board regarding their fuel problems. The removal of the water from the absolute bottom of the tank and resolving the water ingress problem was the solution.
One person I spoke to after suffering through additives, tank drainings, fuel polishings and all that stuff removed the fuel supply hose from his fuel fill, then soaked his fuel fill with a hose. Water poured in. Problems solved, smart way to diagnose, his idea.
Think the problem through logically and you will resolve it.
Good luck and Merry Christmas.
Rich
jimh posted 12-25-2007 11:21 AM ET (US)
When one finds water in the fuel tank, my opinion is that it most likely was introduced via the filler pipe, that is, you bought some gasoline which was already contaminated with water. Given the small volume of air above your tank (10 gallons equivalent space) I can't see how it would be able to generate significant amounts of water just from condensation due to diurnal temperature variations.
glen e posted 12-25-2007 11:55 AM ET (US)
If you don't have terribly large amounts of water in the tank (like from a leak) and just want to get rid of water from possible condensation, you can use MDR Water Zorb - (Not e zorb). Merc has no problems with it and it works very well. We have many Verado members that use it for 1000's of hours with no problems.....visit us at veradoclub.com for more details...
Reichy posted 12-25-2007 07:50 PM ET (US)
Thanks guys.
I've pored through much of the posts on this [problem], and have tackled it systematically. I drained the tank myself by removing the filler hose and siphoning, then pumping, all contents from the tank. I made sure to tilt the bow of the boat up quite severely and slosh the tank as I proceeded to ensure water was diluted through fuel as it siphoned and didn't leave it in a puddle at the very end.
Now I am dealing with a problem of fuel in [the engine crankcase lubricating] oil that has only popped up after the second oil change, which I did at 30 hours. I now have 74 hours. Maybe a badly seated ring or leaking injector. I'd bet the latter, as it only developed in the last 10 hours or so. I'll have the dealer in Grasonville MD do a compression check, etc.
R
glen e posted 12-25-2007 07:58 PM ET (US)
R--your fuel in oil problem I think is easy to fix.
Reichy posted 03-28-2008 11:42 PM ET (US)
Update: Whalertowne changed out the FSM, replaced filler cap O-ring, fuel filter & thermostat (engine was running rich). I'll be putting boat in water next weekend and monitoring oil levels. Will update further in a few weeks.
boatdryver posted 03-31-2008 08:10 AM ET (US)
Reichy, are you buying your fuel from a marina or from an automobile type gas station?
JimL
Reichy posted 04-29-2008 12:46 PM ET (US)
Fuel is sourced from both marina & auto station pumps. In retrospect, I don't believe that water in the fuel was the issue. Rather, the fuel delivery system wasn't functioning properly.
R
boatdryver posted 04-29-2008 02:58 PM ET (US)
Reichy, from your last post it sounds like the problem that was first posted in December has been solved and that whatever abnormal engine behaviour at first seemed related to water in the fuel turned out to be a fuel delivery problem.
It would be great if you could then summarize what the initial symptom was and the final defect and final successful corrective action. That might save someone else like me (Verado 175) a lot of trouble.
Thanks, JimL
duckear posted 04-29-2008 09:25 PM ET (US)
Be thankful....you are saving about $35-$40 per fill-up since you can't get that last 10 gallons!

I have trouble getting past 80 gallons as well in my 01 220. . I just figured the boat was sitting just a bit off of level (forward/aft) so the tank was tilted against me so to speak.

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Author	Topic: Dauntless 220 Fuel Capacity, Water In Fuel, Ethanol
Reichy	posted 12-24-2007 05:50 PM ET (US) I have an 2005 Dauntless 220 that, no mattter the conditions, will take no more than 80 gallons of fuel. I have drained the tank and can still put in no more than 80 gallons. I am bringing this up because I recently had a problem with water in the fuel that required complete draining of the tank and service of the Verado 225. I am concerned that the tank has a constant empty space of approximately 10 gallons that is contributing to condensation and subsequent water contamination. Anyone have feedback or opinions on this? Much obliged, John Grasonville, MD Chesapeake Bay
rtk	posted 12-24-2007 07:10 PM ET (US) If they drained the tank using the fuel pickup it is likely they did not completely drain the tank, the water was left at the bottom of the tank. The fuel pickup does not reach the absolute bottom of the tank. Here is my experience: http://continuouswave.com/ubb/Forum3/HTML/012877.html Again, another great season with absolutely no water in my RACOR water seperating fuel filter. I pay no attention to the level of fuel in my 119 gallon tank. This season I also purchased fuel stabilzer at the best price I could find. The price of this stuff has become rediculous. I used Startron, CRC, Stabil, PRI-G. Ditched the Mercury Quickleen, most of the fuels and other additives claim the same attributes. The price just got rediculous. Fuel quality and performance did not suffer. You will absolutely not get enough water in the tank from condensation to be a problem. The water is leaking into your tank from some point on the tank, vent or fill or it came from your fuel supplier. I received quite a few emails and messages, and spent a great deal of time on the phone, with people from this board and one other board regarding their fuel problems. The removal of the water from the absolute bottom of the tank and resolving the water ingress problem was the solution. One person I spoke to after suffering through additives, tank drainings, fuel polishings and all that stuff removed the fuel supply hose from his fuel fill, then soaked his fuel fill with a hose. Water poured in. Problems solved, smart way to diagnose, his idea. Think the problem through logically and you will resolve it. Good luck and Merry Christmas. Rich
jimh	posted 12-25-2007 11:21 AM ET (US) When one finds water in the fuel tank, my opinion is that it most likely was introduced via the filler pipe, that is, you bought some gasoline which was already contaminated with water. Given the small volume of air above your tank (10 gallons equivalent space) I can't see how it would be able to generate significant amounts of water just from condensation due to diurnal temperature variations.
glen e	posted 12-25-2007 11:55 AM ET (US) If you don't have terribly large amounts of water in the tank (like from a leak) and just want to get rid of water from possible condensation, you can use MDR Water Zorb - (Not e zorb). Merc has no problems with it and it works very well. We have many Verado members that use it for 1000's of hours with no problems.....visit us at veradoclub.com for more details...
Reichy	posted 12-25-2007 07:50 PM ET (US) Thanks guys. I've pored through much of the posts on this [problem], and have tackled it systematically. I drained the tank myself by removing the filler hose and siphoning, then pumping, all contents from the tank. I made sure to tilt the bow of the boat up quite severely and slosh the tank as I proceeded to ensure water was diluted through fuel as it siphoned and didn't leave it in a puddle at the very end. Now I am dealing with a problem of fuel in [the engine crankcase lubricating] oil that has only popped up after the second oil change, which I did at 30 hours. I now have 74 hours. Maybe a badly seated ring or leaking injector. I'd bet the latter, as it only developed in the last 10 hours or so. I'll have the dealer in Grasonville MD do a compression check, etc. R
glen e	posted 12-25-2007 07:58 PM ET (US) R--your fuel in oil problem I think is easy to fix.
Reichy	posted 03-28-2008 11:42 PM ET (US) Update: Whalertowne changed out the FSM, replaced filler cap O-ring, fuel filter & thermostat (engine was running rich). I'll be putting boat in water next weekend and monitoring oil levels. Will update further in a few weeks.
boatdryver	posted 03-31-2008 08:10 AM ET (US) Reichy, are you buying your fuel from a marina or from an automobile type gas station? JimL
Reichy	posted 04-29-2008 12:46 PM ET (US) Fuel is sourced from both marina & auto station pumps. In retrospect, I don't believe that water in the fuel was the issue. Rather, the fuel delivery system wasn't functioning properly. R
boatdryver	posted 04-29-2008 02:58 PM ET (US) Reichy, from your last post it sounds like the problem that was first posted in December has been solved and that whatever abnormal engine behaviour at first seemed related to water in the fuel turned out to be a fuel delivery problem. It would be great if you could then summarize what the initial symptom was and the final defect and final successful corrective action. That might save someone else like me (Verado 175) a lot of trouble. Thanks, JimL
duckear	posted 04-29-2008 09:25 PM ET (US) Be thankful....you are saving about $35-$40 per fill-up since you can't get that last 10 gallons! I have trouble getting past 80 gallons as well in my 01 220. . I just figured the boat was sitting just a bit off of level (forward/aft) so the tank was tilted against me so to speak.