Too much?

OK, I wasn't 100% sure where to post this, but since it involves motors and trying to get the most out of mine I picked "Motors". I will attempt to be as brief as possible without leaving out obvious details. My experience is just with larger inboard, seagoing boats for diving, this is my first non-inflatable fishing boat.

The situation is this. I have a 1978 (I think) 14' Sea Nymph tin boat, with a 1968 Johnson 9.5hp motor as it's main source of power. As a backup I use a 1983 Yamaha 2hp (2b) which is usually mounted on the front.

For the Johnson I have a 3 gallon gas tank as well as a 12 gallon. The boat also has interior LED lights, exterior running/stern lights and a fish-finder that run off of a marine battery, located in the back of the boat. Generally this is where I place my gas tank(s) as well (have not yet used the 12 gallon tank).

Now, I generally run in fairly calm lakes here in Colorado, with a smaller soft cooler (holds lunch and beverages for 2-3 people with some ice), another person and a large dog (65lbs) as well as two people's fishing tackle and rods, anchor required safety gear etc.

My problem is that my normal fishing buddy happens to be a friend of mine who happens to be scared of water (though he won't admit that with a gun to his head). He refuses to let me get the boat's bow up out of the water, and forces this issue by sitting in my bow seat at all time. Unless of course he's getting to play pilot.

Clearly this causes me to push a lot of water that I really don't need to, and waste a ton of gas in the process. Hence the 12 gallon fuel tank.

Clearly, no one without the exact same setup can give me a final answer, I'll have to play with it, but generally speaking the full 12 gallon tank weighs about the same as the battery and the full 3 gallon tank combined, so keeping them on opposite sides of the boat seems to make sense.

My question is if keeping them in the back of the boat is a bad idea? Obviously there will be times when I don't have 200 pounds of person in the bow and I'm wondering how y'all think that would effect the boats capabilities/safety etc. Also, fairly obvious to me is that the 12 gallon tank might be impractical when I'm by myself or with someone who's willing to sit a bit farther back in the boat, but if it's full it will weigh something like 80 pounds and has no handles so it won't be real easy to move; especially on the water. Combine the weight of the big tank with 21 pounds of gas in the other tank, a reserve gallon for the 2hp (different gas/oil mix) and 25-30 lbs of battery with the outboard and I start to be concerned I might be seriously overloading the stern of my boat.

Should I keep the fuel tanks in the back of the boat? Move them? Move the battery? Take a gun and force him to move?

Any insight [short of moving the bow seat] would be appreciated.

Thanks!

I'm certainly not the best person to answer this, but here are my thoughts....

1. Your friend needs to always wear a life jacket, and sit where you tell him to.
2. If your boat will even get on plane with a 9.5hp, I think you're doing good. I can't imagine that you would have any safety concerns regardless of how you position the weight going 10mph.
3. I think having 15 gallons of gas is overkill. Like, 3 times overkill. I can fish all day with a 7.5hp in a 16ftr on less than 3 gallons of gas. However, I fish small lakes that are usually less than 500 acres, and I don't do any trolling with the outboard.
4. Again, depending on the size of the lakes you fish.... Wouldn't it be better to swap out the spare outboard for a trolling motor?

Have your friend take swimming lessons.

I agree with Brine. Anyone that gets in my boat will sit where I tell them while under power or they can start looking for another ride. Once we get to the fishing hole, they can sit anywhere they want to as long as it doesn't affect stability. Swapping the 2hp for a good TM and another battery is a good idea as well. My 12' will run almost as fast with a medium size TM and good battery as it will with my little 3.9hp.

You are the captain of the boat, anyone with you should be sitting where you direct them.

That is a heck of a lot of gas to be carrying though...and two outboards? I agree, switch the smaller to a troller.

Thanks for the input guys.

The only reason I've been taking the 2 with me is because the 9.5 was pretty new to me and I wasn't sure it would run reliably (it needed some work at the end of last year, a new clutch dog). Also, I got the 2 from my dad for free.

How large of a trolling motor would you guys recommend?

Also, how long would you think that 12 gal tank would last? I take the boat out on lakes that range from small to pretty darn large and I go out sometimes for extended weekend trips where a trip into town for more gas is not really an option. Lots of local people have told me I'm crazy, that you can fish all day with that motor and a 6 gallon fuel tank. As I said, in some cases I'm looking to fish all day 3-4 days in a row without driving a couple hours to town and back. I just sort of figured I'd put the largest fuel tank on the boat that she would accommodate.

Thanks again!

Here's a thought to help your friend get over his fear have him in the back and run the motor. With him doing this he'll feel in more control and pretty soon he'll be at full throttle.

Makes sense...why not try figuring it for your setup...put in a gallon in the small tank (have extra with you obviously) and see long far you get before needing to put more in.

You could always just fill it with 4-6 gallons for your regular trips and fill up with extra and bring more for multiple days.

The rule of thumb with trolling motors is... "As big as you can afford". Given your situation, I'd look for a 12V 45-55#.

Based on what I've read online, I'm thinking you should expect about 1 gallon per hour at WOT. That said, my 3 gallon tank should last me a solid 3+ hours (I run a 7.5). That means your 6gal tank should run about 6hrs WOT. Don't know about you, but if I'm fishing for a day.... I don't want to be spending 3-6 hours of my day running the outboard, and the people who told you you were crazy..... I guess they do more boating than fishing.

I'd consider keeping a 3 or 5 gallon tank on board, and for the extended stay trips, carrying an extra 5 or 10 gallons in portable tanks that you can fill up from. That would save you a good 50 or 60 lbs of fuel in the boat + the weight of the 2hp, and if all you have running on your battery is led's and a fishfinder, I'd stick with one battery. Again, for the weekend/extended stay trips, bring an extra battery (or battery charger/generator).

Admittedly, I say all this, and it's more suited for how I fish. You didn't mention how you do. If you troll with the outboard while fishing, if getting to the fish requires hour plus long runs, if making long runs and having an unreliable outboard, etc....that changes things. Having the 12-15gal tank and a spare outboard may be best for you. My original thought was that you were carrying alot of extra weight in the boat while being concerned about it.

Whatever you decide on, like stated before.... People on your boat need to sit where you tell them.

Lots of good advice above. I cannot add anything much to what has been said...except...you mention "not wanting to have to take a trip back into town for additional gas"...

Heck.. fill up BOTH the three gallon and the 12 gallon in town. Take a big funnel with you.

Once you are comfortable with not running out of gas with the three gallon, the 12 gallon tank is left back with the vehicle for back up.

Personally, I try to follow the one third rule.

Use, at the most, one third of your tank to get where you are going. Use one third to get you back...and always have one third left for whatever might come up. You will NOT run out of gas if you follow that rule. Take a ruler along and measure how far your boat will go on one third of a tank.

Putting your buddy in charge would also have been my suggestion, if someone hadn't beat me to it. He'll learn, or he will get out of boating...whichever is best for him.

I put my BIL behind the console last summer. He is a better boater for it. I can relax and watch out for anything floating and then also give him general instructions on where to point the bow.

Works for us.

regards, R

I can't say much for your buddy...

But for the fuel consumption, I ran my 9.9 (15hp carb) the whole summer/fall on probably 10gallons of gas. I have a 6 gallon can and only had to fill it up once. So unless you are doing more boating than fishing, I would do like the guys above said, take the 3 gallon and a five gallon can along for backup.