Planning

It is important to develop a clear understanding of the problems you are going to solve, your goals in developing a solution, and the standards you plan to follow for all work. When looking at the differences between my new tanks and the work of others, every difference can be explained by the difference in goals or standards.

Goals

My goals, not necessarily in order of importance - the top ten goals all need to be met, others on a case-by-case basis.

1. Maintain the original fuel capacity of ~110 gallons (US)
2. Minimize disruption to the finished teak interior during the replacement and for future access.
3. Eliminate known problems with the original installation:
   • Provide proper drainage for the bilge area under and around the fuel tank.
   • Adequately protect the tanks from potential corrosion or rust.
   • Correct poor fiberglass work around the old tank that allowed standing water.
4. Provide access to the port side of the tank under the settee.
5. Provide adequate access to wiring and plumbing on the port side of the tank.
6. Allow tank access to all tank segments for cleaning and maintenance without disruption of structural members or major equipment.
7. Allow inspection of the exterior of the tank without disruption of structural members.
8. Provide mechanical means of determining fuel level.
9. Provide electrical means of determining fuel level and setting level alarms.
10. Allow re-fueling at appropriate flow rate.
11. Minimize number of fuel tanks, preferably no more than two storage tanks plus one day tank.
12. Provide a day tank isolated from storage tanks.
13. Provide a fuel filtering system independent of the fuel system on the main engine.

Standards

It's your boat, you are under no obligation to follow industry standards, or anyone else's standards for that matter. On the other hand if you need periodic surveys for insurance, or ever plan on selling your boat, then there might be applicable minimum standards to adhere to. The American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), US Coast Guard Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), and the ABYC are a few examples.

Since the ABYC is a commercial for-profit business that charges for copies of standards, and the ABS seems to apply to large ships more than small pleasure craft, I decided to follow the USCG Code of Federal Regulations for fuel systems (Title 33 - Navigation and Navigable Waters, Chapter 1 Coast Guard, Part 183 Boats and Associated Equipment, 183.500 - 183.599) and Title 46 Part 182. Title 33 Part 183 is technically for gasoline but still contains valuable information and works well as recommendations. Title 46 Part 182 is specifically for 'inspected vessels' but again contains valuable guidelines. A quick search on your favorite search engine will find complete copies on-line.

These standards are not required and I used them voluntarily. Many of them make so much sense I cannot think of a reason to ignore them:

• Hose quality
• Double hose clamps
• Hose sizing
• Baffle requirements
• Hose barb requirements (no smooth hose fittings)
• Tank penetration locations (none below the highest level)
• Tank supports
• Allowed movement

Even following these standards will lead to some ambiguity. Title 33 section 183 states all tank openings must be at the highest fuel level; depending on how you read it this could allow fittings on the sides as long as they are as high as possible. Title 46 section 182 specifically prohibits any tank penetration on the sides but does allow for a drain at the bottom of the tank for removing water. It also states that tanks conforming to ABYC H-33 meet the requirements of Title 46 Section 182, but H-33 doesn't address tank penetration locations, so apparently allows anything. Since I am unwilling to lose the capacity required to shorten the tanks by 2-3 inches to install tank fills into the top of the tanks, I will put them as high on the side as possible. Technically I fail Title 33 section 183, and would fail Title 46 section 182 except that this is allowed by ABYC H-33, thereby meeting the Title 46 requirements. A heavy dose of common sense is required at times.

Reading standards was very educational for me since I had minimal experience with fuel tank systems. Knowing they were written for commercial craft and I wasn't obligated to follow them to the letter, they nevertheless contained many common sense guidelines that I was happy to incorporate into the finished project.

As an aside, the completed tanks did pass a survey by an AMS/ABYC certified surveyor.

Back to Main Refit Page

Forward to Tank Removal Page