Fuel tank vent filter

[Dave39]

My 28TE has a fuel venting issue which is pretty common I'd guess. Unless I squeeze the fuel hose grip very lightly, I'll have a fuel spill through the vents. I'm always holding up other boats at the fuel dock, and even using paper towels etc. there is generally a spill. Yes, I am using the slowest fuel delivery pump. In Nov. of '06, Boats US ran an article about this issue, and mentioned that Racor offers a fuel/air separator to be installed in the vent line that is very effective. Has anyone done this installation, and if so, with the two vents, how did you accomplish this and how did you access the vent line?

[DougSea]

Hi Dave,

I don't have an answer for you on the Racor but I'm hoping someone chimes in with some experience on this. My vent lines are the one thing that I forget about until I get to the fuel dock, then, like you, I have to have a couple of paper towels under the vents to soak up the fuel "burps".

The strange thing is that it doesn't always happen. If you recall waiting for me and Kathy to fill up Sonny III up at Block I actually filled up fairly fast with very little in the way of vent leaking. My theory is that when I make the run from my mooring to the fuel dock that I get fuel splashing into and then pooling in a low spot in my vent lines which doesn't drain back into the tank before I start fueling. After the weekend at Block, with the boat running at slow speed up to the Boat Basin, then getting walked on in the slip and then a slow trip to the dock (plus a fairly empty tank) I'm going to assume the fuel had found it's way back to the tank and my vent lines were dry.

Looking forward to the collective wisdom of AOG on this one.

[Richard]

I have had the same experience as Doug (sometimes no splash back and other times lots of splash back). The best thing to catch the fuel is an absorbant pad. Some of the fuel docks around here will give you them for free when you fuel up; others charge a $1.00 and yet others don't even have them. The pads are designed to soak up lots of fuel and are available in bulk on the internet at industrial supply sites (much cheaper than West marine).

A post a year or so ago talked about checking the vent lines to make sure there are no droops or low spots that could catch and hold fuel. They should slope downward from the vent opening back to the tank. if you have a low spot a couple of long tie-wraps can fix the problem.

[jcollins]

Yup. That was me. My vent line went under a drain line and then back up to the tank. I looped it over and the next fill was better. But, not much better. The guys at the fuel dock know me now and have an donut ready for me when I get there. They also move me further up on the pier so other boats can get in and out while I'm still sipping fuel.

Doug - I'm thinking about your post. The run for fuel for me is about 10 miles. Gunpowder River to the Bay and then into Middle River.
Maybe next time instead of pulling right up to the fuel pier I'll just drift around for 15 minutes and see if things flow better. I never thought of that.

Capt Dave - Keep us in mind when you find out about the Racor filter. We all seem to have a slow fill problem.

If you search on "slow fuel fill" you'll find my post from last year.

[Merry Kate]

I concur with the above: I always burped a lot of fuel through the vents until taking some cable ties and elevating all of the droops out of both port & starboard vent lines. Then blew them out with the dingy foot pump. Now no fuel at all settles in the lines & fueling is fast and dropless. I never fill to the top, so as not to reintroduce any fuel back in the vent lines.

[chiefrcd]

Not sure this will work for everyone, but I use to have the same issue and would soak up 10 or 15 paper towels with burped fuel. Then one day I accidently turned the nozzle so that the hose faced straight off the back of the boat....and poof, no more gushing vents. I do still use 1 yes ONE paper towel and it will usually have very little fuel on it. I run the pump wide open.
I have not a clue as to why this would make a difference but it did for me.

[Pitou]

I've kept quiet on this one as I have not really had a problem.
I guess I just got lucky. From day one I've placed the nozzle in as Chief describes, sort of with the handle toward starboard stern / it just seemed to fit better. I take a piece of absorbant pad and wrap around the outer part of the nozzle and beneath the vents to catch what very little vents at the tail end of a fill. My gauge seems to be pretty darn accurate as well. When the the needle hits full I shut down and usually without a burp unless I try to squeeeeze in that last gallon or two. The gas docks get pretty fussy with any spills in my neck of the woods.