Mechanic is sure something in tank occasionally blocks pick-tube.

[RickyB]

Finally got my new '76, 38' Fly Bridge DC from Milwaukee to Detroit. Nothing but fuel problems all the way home. It really wore me out. I was lied to big time about age of fuel in tanks. Had fuel polIshing done at mid trip. Still has problems after much black flakes removed. If water is smooth the engines seem to do well. If not it slows & stalls in about 2-4 seconds. In order to gain access to both ends where access plates/ fittings are, please tell me what is best to throughly clean tanks. Do the tanks have vertical baffles separating one tank into compartments fore to aft? Do I have to somehow remove 2 inch 90 degree street ell where fuel fills tank to get in there? Thank you very much in advance.

[BOATER BOB]

Take the screws out of the plate where the gauge and pick up and returns are that will let you check the bay and pickups .
Bob

[bobk]

You didn't say what your engines are. If Detroits, they return lots more fuel to the tanks than they burn. So one strategy might be to buy BoatUS towing insurance and go out and run them dry. That might pick up a lot of the crud if you can do it on a rough day. Put vacuum gauges with drag needles on the fuel filters so you can change them in time in the future. I know, it sounds crazy, but it might be an easy way to remedy the problem. The experts here may disagree.

BTW, how did they polish the fuel? To have much effect, the tank needs to be pumped dry, not just recirculate the fuel.

Bobk

[oscarvan]

Put in a polishing system and anchor in rough seas for a few days?

[Toolsntoys]

I took the covers off my tanks to clean them. Well worth the effort even after stripping the heads off and drilling and tapping the 54 screws

[34Hatt]

Well first polishing does not get a lot of the stuff in-between the baffles and they go bottom to top with some opening's but not to many that being the reason for them. Second when you do get them cleaned it can be something that is now sliding or floating around in your tank In my case it was a bottle cap in my hatt another boat I found a chunk of silicone that came lose of the top plate plugged the pickup tube. Bandit another 34C hatt Mark found a piece of tape in the elbow of the pickup tube that worked like a check valve.

I still have the bottle cap took a while to figure that one out and it was all due to using AJX perfect fuel that cleaned all the crud in the bottom of the tanks which then set the cap free to slide around and get sucked up to the pickup ONLY when it was ROUGH but that was in 2005 and I never have a problem any more and only change filters because of age and the tanks are clean since I had my hand in there to go fishing.

[DCMY #92]

I had a similar problem. After the tedious job of opening the full/return covers I found a 1" length of very old 3/8" fuel hose intermittently blocking the port pickup tube. Polished the fuel while pumping from one tank to the other to empty each tank, then cleaned all the sludge left in the bottom of the section under the cover plate. As previously stated, you can't clean the sludge that remains behind the baffles unless you cut more holes in the top of the tank.

I"ve had no more problems, but plan to repeat this process before long.

[sgharford]

I too had similar problem and tried AJX perfect fuel per Dan's (34Hatt) suggestion - wow that was about 8 years ago! Have to say the stuff really worked, it's not snake oil.

[RickyB]

Take the screws out of the plate where the gauge and pick up and returns are that will let you check the bay and pickups .
Bob

I could loosen the screws but the bronze access plates look like there gel coated in place. I don't mind doing a lot of work to get them out if I know how. The fuel gauge is at one end of tank & the fill tube & draw tube are in plate on opposite end. If I tried to take out plate where Filler & draw tube are I see a 2" ninety degree pipe elbow that has an adapter that has hard copper pipe soldered or brazed to that adapter. After that the copper pipe goes up the inside & up transom & I don't know how I would reconnect the copper to the pipe elbow in tank if I cut pipe at elbow to remove plate & filler pipe elbow. Thaks Bob

[RickyB]

You didn't say what your engines are. If Detroits, they return lots more fuel to the tanks than they burn. So one strategy might be to buy BoatUS towing insurance and go out and run them dry. That might pick up a lot of the crud if you can do it on a rough day. Put vacuum gauges with drag needles on the fuel filters so you can change them in time in the future. I know, it sounds crazy, but it might be an easy way to remedy the problem. The experts here may disagree.

BTW, how did they polish the fuel? To have much effect, the tank needs to be pumped dry, not just recirculate the fuel.

Bobk

The engines are Perkins-Sabre M300TI's. I do have the best towing package of Boat US. I did buy the Racor something indicators but as soon as I changed a primary & reset indicator it went right to the change out filter position instantly when engine started running & stayed there. That's the port one & that's why I think I need to get into tank.
The tanks were 2/3's full when polishing was done in boat mid-trip. P.S. I wouldn't feel right about running out of fuel & having it towed. I just want in the tanks to clean the heck out of them.