[C320-list] Fuel sending gauge

[Rick Sulewski]

Jeff,  Early 320 hulls had the thinner walled fuel tanks that are more prone to leaking over time. It is not a matter of if an aging aluminum tank will leak, but when. Cleaning up the fuel after a leaking tank or even from a replacement fuel tank sensor, is a real pain. Even a small amount of the fuel will find its way under the hull liner and move about requiring repeating some multi-step processes to get out all of the fuel and the odors. Imagine discovering a large amount of fuel under the liner....   I replaced my tank on hull #277 tank after having a fuel sender leak on my topped off tank over a winter storage period. I found the tank replacement to be much less work than cleaning up the leaked fuel. I did not want to repeat the fuel cleaning process when  my tank finally failed (with my luck would occur over a storage season). You can save yourself a lot of work if you can find your way to replace the tank earlier than later. I also replaced the fuel hoses from the tank to the engine when I replaced the tank to ensure the next likely leak source was addressed. As our 320 hulls age, there are some predictable preventative maintenance schedules that could be gleaned from this owner list to avoid sailing season interruptions and avoid predictable problems. Replacing an aging original fuel tank on early hulls that had thin walled tanks is one such preventative maintenance task that will improve your vessel's condition, rather than waiting for a predictable failure!

If you really want to take your chances on your older tank given your hull #, you can hang upside down from the aft corner locker (after removing the lid)  and then go about replacing the fuel sender. You will need to remove the wooden shelf pieces above the tank and then find the correct tools to reach/replace all of the sender screws. Just as a precaution, I suggest that you consider applying some  fuel resistant sealant paste, (like from NAPA - white, that is used when installing a fuel fitting) and paint (goo-up) the replaced fuel gauge sender unit AFTER it is installed. Be sure to heavily coat all areas of the sender, including all of the screws and around the gasket, but  only after installing the fuel sender and only after checking that your fuel gauge is working to ensure you have properly re-attached all of the wires and connectors.  The sealant will help to keep fuel from ever leaking from fuel sender gasket edges and from screws securing the sender, all potential leak areas as l I learned. I applied the sealant to a leaking sender and that solved my leak problem for one season before finally determined it was time to avoid another fuel clean-up and just replace the tank at the end of the season after I had used up most all of the fuel leaving me with a nearly empty tank.  If you decide to replace the tank, be sure to order an access port for about $65, so you can more easily clean up the tank by hand if ever necessary or simply access the tank to pump out about a half-gallon of the dirty fuel gunk and water that will settle to the bottom after about every 3-5 years.
Rick Sulewski
C320 95' Hull # 277 

-----Original Message-----
From: C320-list [mailto:c320-list-bounces at lists.catalina320.com] On Behalf Of Jeffrey Brown
Sent: Tuesday, July 04, 2017 12:11 PM
To: C320-List at Catalina320.com
Subject: Re: [C320-list] Fuel sending gauge

Yes I did. The problem is one or two of the five bolts that hold the unit in are underneath some fiberglass from the aft storage locker that comes out. The space isn't sufficient to allow the bolt to be removed. I need to lift the tank out a bit but that requires moving around a lot of stuff. 

Jeff Brown
949-350-5123

> On Jul 4, 2017, at 9:07 AM, Graeme Clark <cg at skyflyer.co.uk> wrote:
> 
> Jeff
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> Have you removed the two wooden floor pieces above the tank. It’s fiddly but it can be done.
> 
> Graeme
> 
>> On 4 Jul 2017, at 17:04, Jeffrey Brown <oceanblues at mac.com> wrote:
>> 
>> I'm hull 78 and wondering if anyone near my hull number replaced their fuel sending gauge without pulling out the tank. One of the bolts is hard to get to. Just wondering before I begin removal of the tank. I'm even considering replacing the whole tank if I'm going to this much work. Any thoughts?
>> 
>> Jeff Brown
>> 949-350-5123
> 
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