2004 Nantucket 190 fuel sender

Repair or modification of Boston Whaler boats, their engines, trailers, and gear
houston777
Posts: 9
Joined: Tue Jul 19, 2022 2:38 pm

2004 Nantucket 190 fuel sender

Postby houston777 » Wed Jun 07, 2023 6:38 am

Q1: can the fuel sender on a 2004 190 NANTUCKET be accessed from the deck hatch inside the console?

Q2: what must be known in order to prepare to replace a fuel sender on a 2004 190 NANTUCKET?

Q3: what is the part number of the fuel sender on a 2004 190 NANTUCKET?

Give me advice on the fuel sender on a 2004 190 NANTUCKET.

I plan to replace the fuel sender on my 2004 190 Nantucket.

jimh
Posts: 11670
Joined: Fri Oct 09, 2015 12:25 pm
Location: Michigan, Lower Peninsula
Contact:

Re: 2004 Nantucket 190 fuel sender

Postby jimh » Wed Jun 07, 2023 10:32 pm

houston777 wrote:Q1: can the fuel sender on a 2004 190 NANTUCKET. . .
Q4: Are you asking about a fuel tank level sender?

Q5: Are you asking about a fuel tank level sender that uses a mechanical float arm to move a variable resistor?

houston777
Posts: 9
Joined: Tue Jul 19, 2022 2:38 pm

Re: 2004 Nantucket 190 fuel sender

Postby houston777 » Thu Jun 08, 2023 7:22 am

jimh wrote:Q4: Are you asking about a fuel tank level sender?

Q5: Are you asking about a fuel tank level sender that uses a mechanical float arm to move a variable resistor?
To be honest, I'm not sure.

I recently replaced all the boat's gauges and wiring. Fuel tank level always reads "99%" on the Smartcraft gauges - even though I know the tank level is only 1/2-FULL.

If I am going to get into the fuel tank sender, I'd prefer to replace all parts related to measuring fuel supply.

jimh
Posts: 11670
Joined: Fri Oct 09, 2015 12:25 pm
Location: Michigan, Lower Peninsula
Contact:

Re: 2004 Nantucket 190 fuel sender

Postby jimh » Thu Jun 08, 2023 7:51 am

Q6: why do you believe the fault in the display of fuel tank level is related to a fault in the “sender”?

Q7: how was the fuel tank level displayed before you changed the instrumentation to Mercury proprietary Smartcraft gauges?

fno
Posts: 170
Joined: Thu Oct 15, 2015 10:01 pm

Re: 2004 Nantucket 190 fuel sender

Postby fno » Thu Jun 08, 2023 10:02 am

There are at least six videos on Youtube explaining how to test a sender using a multimeter. As for the rest of the questions, I suspect that there is a round deck hatch for the sender. There is one for mine on my 210 Outrage of nearly the same vintage. KUS is most likely the supplier for the sender as that is where I ordered my replacement. It is a straight rod sender with a magnet in the float that indicates varying resistance. The thing to know before ordering is the length of the rod. This may mean that you have to remove the sender, measure it, then put it back so nothing gets in the tank while your new one ships. Or you can call Sue Lodell at Beacon Marine in Wisconsin. Give the model and year and she can get you a new sender that is correct for your boat.

jimh
Posts: 11670
Joined: Fri Oct 09, 2015 12:25 pm
Location: Michigan, Lower Peninsula
Contact:

Re: 2004 Nantucket 190 fuel sender

Postby jimh » Thu Jun 08, 2023 4:29 pm

fno wrote:There is [a resistor fuel tank level sender]…on my 210 Outrage of nearly the same vintage. KUS is most likely the supplier for the sender as that is where I ordered my replacement.
That the KUS resistive fuel tank level sender failed on yout Boston Whaler boat of similar manufacturing vintage is quite interesting. Perhaps those senders made in that epoch are prone to failure. Sitting in gasoline fuel all the time is a tough environment.

One would think that gasoline and electricity are not very compatible, but I believe that gasoline is a wonderful insulator for the flow of electrical current.

jimh
Posts: 11670
Joined: Fri Oct 09, 2015 12:25 pm
Location: Michigan, Lower Peninsula
Contact:

Re: 2004 Nantucket 190 fuel sender

Postby jimh » Thu Jun 08, 2023 4:44 pm

If a Boston Whaler boat has a below deck fuel tank, and the tank has any sort of tank level sender, you can bet there will be a way to reach the tank level sender from above the deck. Usually there will not be a hatch. Usually there will be a circular pry-out deck access plate positioned in the deck so as to provide direct access to the top surface on the fuel tank where the tank level sender is located.

The tank level sender is usually attached to the top surface of the fuel tank using a circular mounting plate that fastens to the tank by a multitude of machine screw fasteners that thread into threaded bosses fabricated on the tank. A circular ring seal or gasket is sandwiched between the tank and the tank level sender circular mounting plate.

Some advice before working on this area: do not drop any of the fasteners or the seal into the tank once you have removed the sender mounting plate.

fno
Posts: 170
Joined: Thu Oct 15, 2015 10:01 pm

Re: 2004 Nantucket 190 fuel sender

Postby fno » Fri Jun 09, 2023 8:57 am

JimH, not sure of your experiences with level sensors but on everything from mowers, tractors, to boats it's usually the float that fails or finds some liquid inside that causes it to read empty or half full all the time.

For Houston777 benefit, JimH is correct in that it's not a hatch but a circular deck plate. Mine is just under your feet at the helm.

Be advised that the hole for the sender is about 2-inch diameter, so no smoking, no sparks, no soldering irons, no heat guns for shrink tubing, etc. Running the tank mostly empty is also a good idea. And you can watch the fuel gauge rise when you fill it back up afterwards.

jimh
Posts: 11670
Joined: Fri Oct 09, 2015 12:25 pm
Location: Michigan, Lower Peninsula
Contact:

Re: 2004 Nantucket 190 fuel sender

Postby jimh » Fri Jun 09, 2023 9:33 am

Frank—when you mention a failure of the KUS tank level sender, I was thinking of the electrical circuit more than the buoyancy of the float being lost.

Was the defect on the KUS tank level sender on your Boston Whaler due to loss of buoyancy in the float?

ASIDE: my experience with tank level senders: to my good fortune, the tank level indicator on my 1990 Boston Whaler is completely non-electric, the linkage to the dial pointer is magnetic, and the buoyancy of the float seems to have tolerated 33-years of partial immersion in gasoline.

houston777
Posts: 9
Joined: Tue Jul 19, 2022 2:38 pm

Re: 2004 Nantucket 190 fuel sender

Postby houston777 » Mon Jun 12, 2023 7:00 am

Many thanks, everyone