svbeatrix.com — The website of the Sailing Vessel Beatrix, Kelly-Peterson 44 #276 (1980).
We
wanted to be able to polish and transfer fuel between all our tanks, have gauges
to see how full the tanks were, and have easy access to valves, fillers and
gauges.
In 2000 Beatrix
had 3 fuel tanks: a new custom-built aluminum starboard(100 gal) tank, the original steel
port (60 gal) tank, and a new (bought it at Doc Freeman's moving sale) aluminum port "day" tank (54 gal).
By 2014 we were having tank problems with the original steel port tank. First the original tank was leaking. She also has a large Racor 900 filter for polishing and a Racor 500 for final
filter of the engine supply. A continuous duty Oberdorfer gear pump is
used for transfer and polishing with a light duty Walbro for priming, bleeding,
and backup. We also have an external pickup (discharge) to allow us to
pump fuel from (to) an external source such as a fuel drum or another
vessel.
The
system is built into an aluminum frame with the most used valves and gauges
accessible from the a panel in the aft cabin. Less used bypass and shutoff
valves are in the engine room just behind the sliding door.
In 2012 the fuel control system was expanded to allow for automatic shutoff when transferring fuel to the day tank. This system also will enable a "tank full" alarm when any tank is being filled and allow for timed polishing. Very sensitive 02.5PSI pressure switches are used to tell when the tank is full.
In 2018 we removed the original black iron port tank and installed new two port tanks. One tank is the "Day Tank" of 166 liters and the other a storage tank of 145 liters.. They are made of 2mm 316L Stainless Steel and are completely removable through the port cockpit locker.
Photos & Links
Click here to see photos of the fuel management system.
Click here to see how we replaced the starboard fuel tank
Click here to see how we replaced the port fuel tanks
Disclaimer
The contents of this page are an example of a refitting job performed on a single vessel by its owner. Just because I put it here for your interest and information does not guarantee it will work on your boat, or work at all. Fair winds & smooth sailing. -- Jeff Stander
Fuel System Schematic (Adobe PDF File, 1.9 MB, 