Gas Tank Swap

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edwonbass

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Hello Folks, I am in the process of restoring my 94 Spectrum Dominator 16'. Currently there is a 12 gallon tank in there. The tank is old and I can no longer read the sight gauge if there is one. The plastic is no longer clear.
I am considering replacing it with a 6 gallon. This is mainly for weight, space and the ability to have some sort of visual level indication. I will have two batteries in the back along with a battery charger and a gas tank. There is a 25hp Mercury 2 stroke on the boat.
I have only run the motor on muffs so I have no idea of the speed, or range of my current setup. Does anyone have a ballpark idea about how far I can run on six gallons?
Will I regret the smaller tank?

Thanks, Ed
 
Im running a 25 evinrude with a 6 gal on a 16 ft , and run all day. I do carry an extra 3 gal tk if I'm running big water though .
 
The basic formula is.
A 10 horsepower motor will burn 1 gallon per hour at WOT. A 15 horsepower motor will burn 1.5 gallons per hour at WOT. A 20 horsepower motor will burn 2 gallons per hour at WOT. A 25 horsepower motor will burn 2.5 gallons per hour at WOT.
 
Charger25 said:
Im running a 25 evinrude with a 6 gal on a 16 ft , and run all day. I do carry an extra 3 gal tk if I'm running big water though .

That's what I need. The ability to run all day or what I would consider all day. 6 hours or so with a lot of stopping to actually fish. I don't fish tournaments so running far and fast is not really a concern. I'm all about relaxing times on the water. :D My primary fishing spots are electric only so weight is always a concern while just running off of batteries. I also don't want to have the bilge area so crammed if I need to check batteries or actually see the battery charger. It would be easier with more space. I like the idea of taking an extra small tank for back up.
 
lckstckn2smknbrls said:
The basic formula is.
A 10 horsepower motor will burn 1 gallon per hour at WOT. A 15 horsepower motor will burn 1.5 gallons per hour at WOT. A 20 horsepower motor will burn 2 gallons per hour at WOT. A 25 horsepower motor will burn 2.5 gallons per hour at WOT.

With that formula, it makes me think about keeping the 12 gallon tank in until I figure out what kind of running I will end up doing. :shock:
 
I can't remember the last time the gauge on most of my boat tanks EVER worked. I just used a stick and checked the height of the fuel every now and then. Of course, I never ran far.

I'd leave the 12-gallon in and only partially fill it when you are going to the electric only lakes. Or, replace the 12-gallon with a new one with a gauge that is clear ( for a while). richg99
 
:idea: Since your fishing places are electric only you won't be burning much gas... so as long as your current tank is clean just put a couple gallons in and shake it every now and then to make sure your gas hasn't evaporated away. When half the gas is gone the tank should weigh half of what it did when you started. You could take a bathroom scale to check it out PLUS you can weigh your fish too. :idea:
 
As it stands now, I will stick with the 12 gallon. I pulled it out the other night to clean back there. Man that thing was a bear to get out filled with gas. I had to turn it on it's side and pull it out diagonally. I would like to clean it up a bit. It has a lot of black stains from years of sitting in the boat. Does anyone know what to use to clean the outside of these plastic tanks?
I also want to replace the fuel lines. I don't trust the old ones. I think the last few owners of this boat did much to it.
 

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