How to safely stow extra fuel?

[mpmurray527]

I have a Venture 17..........not experienced with taking extra gas. I have an integrated tank in my Yamaha 4hp. But I'm going on a longer trip so need the extra fuel on board.

I have some small fuel bottle cylinders (backpacking type) I could use. But not sure where/how to store. Inside cabin may be hazardous? Not much room on deck.

Ideas appreciated!

Michael

[yukonbob]

Underway I store ventless (totally sealed) gas cans strapped under the M table for the longer portions. I worry putting them on the upper deck with a)putting more weight up high and b)losing one overboard while underway in heavy weather. With the sealed Jerry cans there is little chance of a leak and of it were to happen you'd know pretty quick and could take action. Many will say I have a death wish but to each his own. Oh an I store up top while at anchor, I never sleep eat cook etc with them in the cabin.

[mpmurray527]

I'm going to stick extra fuel under/behind the winch assembly. Tie a mesh bag to the winch's wooden brace and place fuel cylinders in there.

M

[BOAT]

I'm going to stick extra fuel under/behind the winch assembly. Tie a mesh bag to the winch's wooden brace and place fuel cylinders in there.

M

Seems like a good place for aft torpedoes.

[Catigale]

No fuel below decks. I'm guessing yukons cans are metal, with double closures and that he inspects, maintains, and secures them in a seaman like manner.

The rest of us don't get that privilege with plastic cans and our land lubberlyways

[Russ]

No fuel below decks. I'm guessing yukons cans are metal, with double closures and that he inspects, maintains, and secures them in a seaman like manner.

The rest of us don't get that privilege with plastic cans and our land lubberlyways

This ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Gasoline below decks requires special tanks, care, knowledge and no spark bilge blowers.
I wouldn't do it.

How much extra fuel do you need to carry? That 4hp should run for a long time with a 5 gal jug above decks.

--Russ

[yukonbob]

Poly, single opening (no vent),rubber gasket, secured and checked frequently. It also doesn't get all that warm up here even in the summers so expansion isn't a huge deal. These get emptied on all but the longest legs between services then are left empty the rest of the time. One little drop of gasoline in the cabin and you'd know right away and you'd have to be pretty ignorant to let a hole wear through one of those tanks. I've drug them in skimmers behind snow machines hundreds of miles loosely tied rubbing against nuts from the runners, gear, bouncing around, upside down , on their sides and have never lost one single drop of gas; so I figure they're probably fine tightly secured below deck. During the day when there's no spark and I'm usually trying to ventilate the cabin of moisture.

[BOAT]

I hate gasoline. It stinks. I hate it so much that if my tank leaked in the cockpit because it's too full I would rather dump the gas over board than smell that crap in the cockpit. Store gasoline INSIDE my boat??? Are you kidding? yuk Yuk - I would hate that smell - leave me at the dock - I don't like stink boats. I could have bought a Bayliner if I were into that sort of thing.

If it were absolutely required that you need more gas I would consider doing it the way the Jeep's do it out in the desert. They hang these five gallon "jeep" cans on the back bumper of their jeep cars. You can hang two at a time so as many as four total off the back bumper. We don't have bumpers on the back of our boats but you could make one that hangs off the transom and use the same jerry can holders that the jeep cars use. That would get you another 20 gallons.

How many more gallons do you need?

If you needed a permanent storage place you can glass in the area under the companionway and create a spot in the cockpit there for another 6 gallon tank. Another guy suggested the gunnels for gas storage but I don't think you could get much gas in there - maybe a couple of torpedo's.

Otherwise - your only choice is to turn your MAC into a Bayliner and add real gas tanks and blowers and pumps and all that other jazz. Seems like a horrible thing to do to a sailboat - friends don't let friends turn their sailboats into stink-boats. (That's why we bought sailboats).

[yukonbob]

With almost a hundred miles between fill ups and quite common for absolutely zero wind fighting a 3-4knt current every six hours, its good seamanship not to mention just plain common sense to ensure you have enough fuel to make it to your destination plus a reserve. If I had consistent winds, no geographical features to change or impede windward travel and no tidal current I'd have no reason to carry the extra fuel. Its a whole different animal up here , not a lot of traffic, towns or services; just cold water, bears and trees.

[BOAT]

With almost a hundred miles between fill ups and quite common for absolutely zero wind fighting a 3-4knt current every six hours, its good seamanship not to mention just plain common sense to ensure you have enough fuel to make it to your destination plus a reserve. If I had consistent winds, no geographical features to change or impede windward travel and no tidal current I'd have no reason to carry the extra fuel. Its a whole different animal up here , not a lot of traffic, towns or services; just cold water, bears and trees.

That is probably why there are so many Bayliners and Grand Banks stink boats up there.

It's a lot more difficult to get around in a sailboat in those kinds of places. Maybe the forward berth where the flotation is would be a good place for a big gas tank. It would need to be properly vented and have blowers and all that jazz.

[yukonbob]

Ya if you want to go anywhere up here it's either motor when it's dead calm or hold on tight in 20knt+ winds. Good Mac sailing days are rare (10-15knt). That window gets even smaller as when it's blowing <12knts it tends to be variable then starts to be more consistent above 12 but then starts to gust say 15 sustained gusting to 18-20. It also seems that every time you want to go south you end up with a strong southerly; then when it's time to head back up north it switches and it's off you now again the whole way. With only 3 safe anchorages in a 70nm stretch you end up motoring to make headway to avoid getting caught in the Lynn where it can get very nasty and much larger ships have gone down.

[sailboatmike]

Reminds me of my easter weekend, head out into a 20knt south westerly and punched our way south west all the time thinking this will be great on the way home on Monday, alas Monday came and the unthinkable, the wind turned North East, now the number of days in any year we get North East wind could be counted on one hand, we waited out till the afternoon hoping the prevailing South Westerly sea breeze would come in and we could run with the wind and tide home, but it wasnt to be the North Easter just kept building, so another slog home into the wind and tide.

When we were about 4 miles from home I cracked the number 2's and fired the motor, having more than enough of this bashing into the wind and wanting to get back before it was dark

[yukonbob]

Yup sounds about the same. Here in the narrow channels you tend to lose headway depending on which direction the wind is coming from. 4nm tack, loose a half mile; 4nm tack, gain 1.5nm and it gets worse the higher the wind speeds

[BOAT]

Sailing long distances has always been a downwind sort of thing - the old square riggers followed the trades and us Marconi rigs like the wind off the beam or aft. No one likes to sail upwind over a long leg and those are the conditions that drive a lot of wealthy yacht owners into cabin cruisers with big motors.

Out in the pacific I see the guys that are coming in from far off places or heading out and it seems that the transpac guys sail of choice is the asym. That tells me they are doing a LOT of downwind sailing and reaching. That makes almost 180 degrees of the compass uncomfortable for us cruiser types. I have been sailing with that reality for so long I have just accepted it:

When I make tack plans or look at a chart I always assume 180 degrees of the compass is off limits to me as I plan a course - by doing that I eliminate a lot of the disappointment that comes from trying to make an ETA. For me, any headway I make in that half of the compass rose comes out as a plus in my calculations.

That's why I want an asym - since I tend to concentrate on the 1/2 of the compass rose that I CAN attain easily the best bet it to maintain best speed in that range to make the best use of your tacks. That can save on gas too.

You guys have a lot of added obstacles in your way. That's a tough way to sail.

[sailboatmike]

They say overcoming the "added obstacles" builds character.

Somedays i think I have enough character and its all just too hard, thats why I bought a power sailer, for those days when my character jar is full and the obstacles persist