[C320-list] Fuel sender access

[Dennis Cookson]

Hi Graeme,

Thanks for your advice. I would like to inspect the whole tank more closely but the task of removal looks too daunting for my skills and ability, not to mention flexibility. There are so many hoses and harnesses in that area that I wouldn’t know where to begin.  How many hours’ labour would you reckon it would take for someone who regularly does this kind of work?

By the way I’m also in the UK - Poole, Dorset. 

Thanks to all others who replied with useful info on fuel consumption and cruising speeds.

Dennis Cookson
Catalina #577

> On 5 Nov 2020, at 19:05, Graeme Clark <cg at skyflyer.co.uk> wrote:
> 
> Dennis
> 
> Looking at your hull number I would recommend removing the tank and inspecting it, particularly at the bottom.
> 
> Like you, I wanted to fit a new sender and struggled. I decided to remove the tank and am glad I did.  The older tanks are thinner gauge than the newer ones and become pitted and eventually develop pinholes causing a leak
> 
> The bottom of my tank was wafer thin in parts where the pitting had almost broken through.  I had a local fabricator weld in a new base as the remainder was in good condition, but I know for many of you in the USA it’s easy to source a new tank.  (I’m in UK so carriage costs are very high). There are articles on the site on this.
> 
> I also added two inspection ports, one each side of the baffle, each about 6inch diameter. I can now easily access the entire tank to clean it out
> 
> And of course fitting a new sensor and checking it worked etc, was easy with the tank out!
> 
> Graeme
> 
> #366, 1996
> 
> Sent from my iPad
> 
>> On 5 Nov 2020, at 18:02, Dennis Cookson <dennis at cooksons.net> wrote:
>> 
>> Thanks Chris, I looked under the shelf first but no luck, just pipe connections there. Would have been a doddle in that position.  I guess they improved access over the years.
>> 
>> Regards,
>> Dennis Cookson
>> Catalina #577
>> 
>> 
>>> On 5 Nov 2020, at 16:53, Chris Burti <clburti at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> 
>>> First, let me say  that this picture doesn't look at all like our #867. In
>>> #867 the sender is relatively easy to access once the shelf above it is
>>> removed (about 8 screws), The sender comes out with six Phillips head cap
>>> screws tapped into the tank. The red wire runs directly to the buss  in the
>>> instrument pod on the pedestal and in my opinion is the source of a
>>> majority of fuel instrument gauge issues. However, over reading suggests to
>>> me that is more likely that your float arm may be bent at the wrong angle.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> Fair Winds,
>>> Chris Burti
>>> Commitment #867
>>> Farmville, NC
>>> 
>>> 
>>>> On Thu, Nov 5, 2020 at 11:38 AM Dennis Cookson <dennis at cooksons.net> wrote:
>>>> 
>>>> Today I made an attempt to change the fuel sender on my diesel tank, which
>>>> has been over-reading on the gauge since purchase of the boat last year.
>>>> I say attempt because I was shocked at how awkward it is to access this
>>>> instrument, and as I couldn’t get an eyeball anywhere near it, I had to
>>>> content myself with an arm’s length snap with a smartphone, which I’ve
>>>> uploaded here <
>>>> https://c320.org/mediagallery/media.php?f=1&s=20201105160834374&i=0&p=0>.
>>>> As you can see, it’s in the dirtiest part of the boat.
>>>> 
>>>> I can just about make out the six bolts that attach this sender to the top
>>>> of the tank, but it is so difficult to access that I would only be able to
>>>> undo them by feel, again at arm’s length, with a suitable wrench, while
>>>> contorting myself into various uncomfortable positions that I wasn’t
>>>> designed for.  I tried from both stern lazarettes and also from the hatch
>>>> in the aft cabin - all equally painful.
>>>> 
>>>> If anyone has managed to change this sender successfully with the fuel
>>>> tank in place, can you kindly describe how you did it?  I’d like to know
>>>> what size wrench/spanner is required, can you actually remove all six
>>>> bolts, and particularly whether there is a loose retaining ring under the
>>>> sender that will drop into the tank when the last bolt is undone.  I’m
>>>> aware that this is often the case with holding tanks (ask me how I know).
>>>> Oh, and where does that red wire go? Is there a terminal strip somewhere?
>>>> 
>>>> Until the latest lockdown I’ve been managing my fuel level by tracking
>>>> engine hours, but I’d like that gauge to work properly. Am I wasting my
>>>> time? Maybe I should just wait until the fuel tank corrodes and has to come
>>>> out anyway - it’s 21 years old after all. But there is no smell of diesel
>>>> at the moment.
>>>> 
>>>> Dennis Cookson
>>>> Catalina #577
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>> 
>