Water in Gas Tank Part 2

Classic Parker Boat Forum

Help Support Classic Parker Boat Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

pfish

Well-known member
Joined
Sep 3, 2008
Messages
53
Reaction score
0
Just an update: I had my fuel polished today by Roy here in San Diego. He has a very good reputation among SD mechanics is my understanding. What he found was the gasket on the sender had been rotted away. It seems Parker had a design flaw in their gas tanks. My understanding is they have since fixed them, but if you have rivets, you should have it checked if you as the gasket (picture attached) was disintegrating and clogging up my fuel system. The mechanic comes tomorrow.
 

Attachments

  • Gasket.jpg
    Gasket.jpg
    1.3 KB · Views: 222
Don't you run a fuel/water separator? That would have caught it ...
 
I do have a water/fuel separator....did not catch it. I think there are two more filters in the engine?
 
pfish":sd3um6wr said:
I do have a water/fuel separator....did not catch it. I think there are two more filters in the engine?
Then that is the INFAMOUS Yamaha-specific problem where every other OB motor digests anything the 10-micron f/w separator can't or doesn't catch. More than a few here on CP have had to add a 2-micron fuel polishing extra filtration systems to their Yam OB fuel delivery systens in order to get them to run and to stay running ...

Please do a search on '2 micron'.

I tell you, it really makes me wonder why anyone would run or buy a Yam motor ... seriously! I 110% realize they are the ONLY choice out there for Mfg'rs to put on transoms from the factory, but c'mon ... ?!?!?!?!?!

FWIW, TomS is the expert here on Yam VST filters, let's hope he can chime in!
 
Did you ever discover root cause of the issue? Trying to do any preventative maintenance i can to prevent this from happening to my 2012 2120.
 
Did you ever discover root cause of the issue? Trying to do any preventative maintenance i can to prevent this from happening to my 2012 2120.
The main culprit IMO are the circular inspection ports in the deck that over time leak. They don’t leak a lot but they leak. Eventually you get water both fresh and salt that settles on top of the fuel tank and around the sending unit gasket. Process is slow, takes years but eventually you get break down of the gasket/ corrosion under the gasket resulting in both water getting into the fuel tank and gasoline leaking OUT of the tank when the tank is full. There are replaceable o-rings for the inspection port covers, keeping them in decent shape and periodically checking for leaking is not a bad idea. I also think cleaning and wiping up around the sending unit gasket with a towel isn’t a bad idea either.
 
The main culprit IMO are the circular inspection ports in the deck that over time leak. They don’t leak a lot but they leak. Eventually you get water both fresh and salt that settles on top of the fuel tank and around the sending unit gasket. Process is slow, takes years but eventually you get break down of the gasket/ corrosion under the gasket resulting in both water getting into the fuel tank and gasoline leaking OUT of the tank when the tank is full. There are replaceable o-rings for the inspection port covers, keeping them in decent shape and periodically checking for leaking is not a bad idea. I also think cleaning and wiping up around the sending unit gasket with a towel isn’t a bad idea either.

Im somewhat baffled that the water is coming from the inspection ports in the deck. If the inspection port base is properly sealed to the deck, then is it the o-ring that is the problem? If the o-rings are sized correctly and lubricated there should be no leakage. A dry o-ring could be the source of a leak.
 
I checked my circle hatches after I washed the boat and sure enough thetre was a bit of water on top of the tank. Not sure how its been doing that but the o rings definitely need to be changed. Glad this came to my attention by browsing this Parker forum.
 
Unfortunately keeping the tank 100% dry is IMO an impossible process. I replaced my circular access hatches with circular hatch plates that are made of clear plastic. You can see through them. The plates are almost always covered in dripping condensation. The fuel tank, typically being filled with liquid that doesn’t change temperature as rapidly as the surrounding atmosphere, being mostly sealed up in that compartment, which by nature of location is moist, creates a very effective condensation generator. Short of installing some sort of ventilation system, the fuel tank is going to be moist/wet frequently.

Think about what happens in the Summer. Let’s say you’re living in Southern New England in July/August or how about Florida or North Carolina, It’s not uncommon to have very humid and warm conditions for weeks on end. Your boat is out in the sun roasting and then you fill up with a 100 gallons of gasoline that is likely to be significantly cooler then the surrounding air and store that gasoline in what amounts to a giant Aluminum beer can located in a confined space with almost 0 ventilation.
Think that situation might generate a little moisture?

I think the fuel tank is going to be wet/damp a lot of the time no matter what we do. I think keeping out the salt water from leaking in is the best most of us can hope for.
 
Im somewhat baffled that the water is coming from the inspection ports in the deck. If the inspection port base is properly sealed to the deck, then is it the o-ring that is the problem? If the o-rings are sized correctly and lubricated there should be no leakage. A dry o-ring could be the source of a leak.
What should the o rings be lubricated with ??
 
I have never removed a deck lid unless their was a problem that required me to do so before. In all my years of owning boats , I didn’t realize the need for maintenance on the lid seals. This is good information.
 
Unfortunately keeping the tank 100% dry is IMO an impossible process. I replaced my circular access hatches with circular hatch plates that are made of clear plastic. You can see through them. The plates are almost always covered in dripping condensation. The fuel tank, typically being filled with liquid that doesn’t change temperature as rapidly as the surrounding atmosphere, being mostly sealed up in that compartment, which by nature of location is moist, creates a very effective condensation generator. Short of installing some sort of ventilation system, the fuel tank is going to be moist/wet frequently.

Think about what happens in the Summer. Let’s say you’re living in Southern New England in July/August or how about Florida or North Carolina, It’s not uncommon to have very humid and warm conditions for weeks on end. Your boat is out in the sun roasting and then you fill up with a 100 gallons of gasoline that is likely to be significantly cooler then the surrounding air and store that gasoline in what amounts to a giant Aluminum beer can located in a confined space with almost 0 ventilation.
Think that situation might generate a little moisture?

I think the fuel tank is going to be wet/damp a lot of the time no matter what we do. I think keeping out the salt water from leaking in is the best most of us can hope for.




I have a solar fan in use when boat is not in use
 
When my boat is not in use, I run 2 of the solar fans on exhaust setting, as mentioned by Brent, on my deck plates. They create air movement that greatly reduces condensation and mildew in the bilge. I coated the top of my gas tanks with Fluid Film as far as I could, to 'seal' against water that may leak around the deck plate. After 5 years...so far, so good!
 
Back
Top