Fuel Tank Manometers

DHeckrotte · Aug 7, 2019

Past discussions on this Forum have considered manometers for indicating fuel contents in tanks. No doubt reliable, simple, and effective, this is why we shouldn’t be tempted:

https://maritime-executive.com/article/faulty-fuel-system-contributed-to-deadly-passenger-boat-fire

sdowney717 · Aug 7, 2019

Just remember diesel does not burn and its safe...cant be lit with a match..., but the fumes sure can stink, exhaust and otherwise, sure, ok.

Chrisjs · Aug 7, 2019

I used polycarbonate tube (narrow bore) with shut off ball valves top and bottom. Since I thought many (most) fuel valves are ball valves, what are the preferred options for sight "glass" valves. PC melts around 250C but fuel volume was only a couple of teaspoons. Not sure what a better practical alternative is. Even using real glass tubing still requires use of seals that will likely melt/leak when subjected to 250C.

Ski in NC · Aug 7, 2019

On any boat I have run, I leave sight level valves closed except for reading level, then back to closed.

I this case the fire had to be pretty bad already if it burned that sight tube. Not sure the sight tube bit would have changed the outcome that much.

dhays · Aug 7, 2019

One of the many things that I want to do on my boat is to add valves at the top of my sight tubes. There are already valves at the bottom. They stay closed unless I am checking the fuel level.

Philkoury · Aug 7, 2019

sdowney717 said:
Just remember diesel does not burn and its safe...cant be lit with a match..., but the fumes sure can stink, exhaust and otherwise, sure, ok.

I do not agree with the diesel does not burn statement, Diesel is safer than gasoline but believe me diesel will burn. Basing my statement on both the shipboard fire fighting training where diesel was used as the fuel and the actual maritime diesel fires I responded to in my 28 years with the Coast Guard. Diesel vapors in an enclosed space can become explosive.

Fuel Tank Manometers

DHeckrotte

Guru

sdowney717

Guru

Chrisjs

Guru

Ski in NC

Technical Guru

dhays

Guru

Philkoury

Member

Similar threads

Latest posts