Forums
NautiqueParts.comNautiqueSkins.com - Correct Craft Upholstery and Part
  New Posts New Posts RSS Feed - How many gallons does my Fuel Tank hold ?
  FAQ FAQ  Forum Search   Register Register  Login Login

How many gallons does my Fuel Tank hold ?

 Post Reply Post Reply   
Author
damonwells View Drop Down
Groupie
Groupie


Joined: June-13-2006
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 87
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote damonwells Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: How many gallons does my Fuel Tank hold ?
    Posted: September-05-2007 at 1:31am
1990 Ski Nautique, FORD 351 engine. Manual says my fuel tank is 25 gallons.

When the Gauge reads half-full, I put in anywhere from 6 to 8 gallons to FULL. The other day it read 1/8 full and I put in a bit under 16 gallons. So, either my tank isn’t 25 gallons, or my Gauge or Sender is goofy. How accurate can I expect my Sender & Gauge to be ?

Anyone else have similar issue ? cheers - John
Back to Top
bmiller View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: June-05-2006
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 234
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote bmiller Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: September-05-2007 at 2:11am
Your sending unit has gone bad,replace it.I don't know on your 1990,but on the 70's and 80's boats you can pull the sending unit out and check it with a volt meter.Just put the meter on the 200ohm's and check the resistance.Put one lead on the sending unit connection and the other end on someplace metal on the sending unit.Simulate what a full gas tank is by moving the arm and with a full tank you should read 39 to 40 ohms.When the arm is all the way down you should read 0 ohms.
Back to Top
TRBenj View Drop Down
Grand Poobah
Grand Poobah
Avatar

Joined: June-29-2005
Location: NWCT
Status: Offline
Points: 21104
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TRBenj Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: September-05-2007 at 11:30am
Originally posted by bmiller bmiller wrote:

Your sending unit has gone bad,replace it.

Maybe, maybe not.

Has your gauge always read that way? How long have you had the boat?

The fuel gauge on our '92 always read that way. On that boat, the tank was triangular (to match the sloping transom). Naturally, the bottom half of the tank holds a lot more than the top half, so the readings are skewed with the linear sender.

My '90 is much more linear, as the tank isnt a complete triangle. Check to see which tank you have- at some point they went from a metal tank (like my '90) to plastic (like our '92).
Back to Top
nuttyskier2002 View Drop Down
Gold Member
Gold Member


Joined: September-28-2005
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 669
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote nuttyskier2002 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: September-05-2007 at 12:51pm
If you want to know how much your gas tank holds you can calculate it very easily. Just measure it's width, length and height in inches and multiply the 3 dimensions. This is your volume. Divide this by 231 (231 cubic inches = 1 gallon).
95 Malibu Echelon w/Mercruiser 350 Magnum Skier

Former boats:
88 Ski Centurion Tru Trac II
59 Chris Craft Capri (woody)
Back to Top
TRBenj View Drop Down
Grand Poobah
Grand Poobah
Avatar

Joined: June-29-2005
Location: NWCT
Status: Offline
Points: 21104
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TRBenj Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: September-05-2007 at 12:58pm
Originally posted by nuttyskier2002 nuttyskier2002 wrote:

If you want to know how much your gas tank holds you can calculate it very easily. Just measure it's width, length and height in inches and multiply the 3 dimensions.


Kind of. Like I said in my previous post, neither of the 2 tank styles installed on these boats have square cross sections. Theyre deeper at the bottom than they are at the top. If you can figure out the cross sectional area, then multiply by the width, that trick will work.
Back to Top
93SNautique View Drop Down
Groupie
Groupie
Avatar

Joined: July-06-2006
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 45
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote 93SNautique Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: September-05-2007 at 1:00pm
My 93 gauge does the same thing. It has always been that way. I guess TRBenj is right and the triangular tank causes the nonlinear readings. When my gauge says 1/2 full, it wont take more than 8 to 10 gallons (my manual says my tank is 28 gal). I have just learned to live with it and know that i always have more gas than it shows. Its a good safety margin. You wont ever run dry unless you really screw up.
Back to Top
damonwells View Drop Down
Groupie
Groupie


Joined: June-13-2006
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 87
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote damonwells Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: September-05-2007 at 2:32pm
We got our ’90 Nautique a couple years ago from deceased father-in-law, so we can’t ask him how the gauge has always worked, but this has been the case for us past two seasons since we’ve had the boat. Our tank is plastic and it is triangular shape, wider at the bottom to match the slope of the stern.

I guess the best thing to do if I want to be anal about it would be to pump the fuel out and refill with 5 gal jerries, or go to the gas station and top off.

Maybe I should get one of the newer electronic senders that learns the shape of the tank, like this one … http://www.centroidproducts.com. But that might require a new gauge.

Thanks, cheers - john
Back to Top
bkhallpass View Drop Down
Grand Poobah
Grand Poobah
Avatar

Joined: March-29-2005
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 4723
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote bkhallpass Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: September-05-2007 at 3:42pm
As said, if you have a rectangular tank, then the readings should be approximatley linear. If the tank is odd shaped, it will not be linear.

On my boat, the tank is in the belly, and contoured to the boat. It takes much longer to go through the "top half" of the tank, than to go through the bottom triangular shape.

BKH
Livin' the Dream

Back to Top
Root View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member


Joined: August-06-2006
Location: louisiana
Status: Offline
Points: 214
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Root Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: September-05-2007 at 9:00pm
Not shure how much the 86sn holds either im thinkin around 20g.   
Also my gas gauge seems to read right but it bounces around      is that normal?     if not then how do I fix it.

Thanks
RootRacing
Back to Top
jeffinohio View Drop Down
Newbie
Newbie


Joined: July-07-2006
Location: Madison, Ohio
Status: Offline
Points: 26
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote jeffinohio Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: September-05-2007 at 10:02pm
my 92 ski nautique has a 26 gallon tank. if you take the rear seat out you may be able to read the lable on the tank. my tank is marked on the top 26 gal. my gauge reads the same way. always much more gas in the tank than the gauge says. on average i burn 3.75/gallions per hour. that is how i keep track.
Back to Top
 Post Reply Post Reply
  Share Topic   

Forum Jump Forum Permissions View Drop Down

Copyright 2024 | Bagley Productions, LLC