Replacing Powerboat Fuel Tank (part 2)

If the tank is aluminum, you will have far fewer choices. If the manufacturer of your boat is still in business, you might be able to purchase a direct replacement tank from them. Don’t look for it to be cheap, however. If your boatbuilder is out of business, there is a slim chance that a marine consignment store may have purchased their old inventory. It’s worth checking, perhaps online.

Replacing Powerboat Fuel Tank (part 1)

Most permanently installed powerboat fuel tanks do not get proper treatment. In most cases they are placed below a leaky deck and encased in water-retaining foam. On top of that, they’re fed bad gas with water in it and then left to sit all winter. It’s no wonder they give up, corrode, and develop pinhole leaks. At least you hope it’s a pinhole leak.  In all seriousness, that describes some of the conditions in which many of our fuel tanks live. A small powerboat’s fuel tank will often be found near amidships beneath the plywood deck. It is likely to be foamed in place between plywood or foam-cored stringers, and will be further secured by floors running from side to side at its forward and after ends.

Regulatory Standards For Your Safety

In the United States, boats are required to conform to one or more sets of standards. The United States Coast Guard has issued minimal standards influencing the design of fuel and ignition systems and requiring that boats up to 20 feet long be able to float level even when totally swamped.

In addition, all boats made in the United States must have a hull identification number permanently affixed to the boat. Boatbuilders self-certify that their boats meet these requirements and must install capacity and data plates reflecting the certification.

Little Knowledge of Materials That Build Fiberglass Boat

Fiberglass boats are built from a composite material known broadly as fiber-reinforced plastic, or FRP. This consists of strands of fibers embedded in a matrix of a hardened plastic resin to form a rigid material that is stronger and has better mechanical properties than either material by itself. Both the fiber strands and the resin can be of several different types.

FIBERS

“Glass-reinforced plastic,” or GRP, is a slightly more specific term than FRP, and it can be accurately applied to the majority of boats, because fiberglass is by far the most common reinforcing fiber in FRP. Fiberglass is real glass that has been melted and forced under pressure through fine holes in a die. After exiting the die, the glass fibers can be stretched or blasted with steam or air to make them even finer, and the resultant strands are then coated with a sizing and wound onto bobbins. Fiberglass for boatbuilding comes in a variety of constructions. Tight bundles of fine strands can be woven into fiberglass cloth, which formerly (but not so much any longer) found frequent use as the finished interior surface of a molded hull or component. It is still used in small boats, where its high tensile and flexural strength works well in conjunction with lightweight mat.

Basic Parts of The Boat

You can't love it, if you don't know it.. and so also on your dream boat. Before you can take care of it, at least you have to know the basic parts of your boat. Here are the basic terms to describe the various parts of most boats—use them as often as you can, and soon they’ll be second nature.

Hatch. A horizontal door, usually on a storage compartment.
Sole. The part of the boat you stand on, the floor.

Outboard motor. A self-contained engine and propulsion system that mounts on the stern. Many are two-cycle and burn oil along with gasoline to make power, but four-cycle outboards are now increasingly popular.

Find The Suitable Boat

You’ve looked at the boating magazines and mooned around the boat shows long enough. Now it's time to find the suitable boat for you. Now it’s time for you to be the guy or gal next to that smiling, Florida-tanned model with the mirrored sunglasses and the wind-rippled hair, cruising across that emerald sea toward adventure, romance, and a monthly payment book. Or maybe your vision is a bit more domestic: the spouse, the kids, the Bostonterrier, a jug of Gatorade, and a picnic basket full of pastrami on rye, off for a visit to a sandy beach. Sailing, water-skiing, snorkeling, a visit to the next port down the river, or maybe a cruise to that island over the horizon—you are the skipper; you decide. You’re in command in a world where there are no yellow lines and no traffic jams, where fish and birds and wonderful marine mammals such as porpoise and manatees are frequently part of the scenery, and where you can find true solitude when you want it. No wonder people love boats and boating.

Why should I need boat maintenance knowledge

Why do your own boat maintenance, repairs, and upgrades? There are a lot of good reasons, but the most obvious one is financial. Most maintenance tasks are straightforward and can be done by most boatowners. Rather than spending $70 to $100 per hour for a marine mechanic or technician to do a job, do it yourself and save the bucks. Besides, you’ll learn more about your boat, be able to recognize small problems before they become big problems, and be able to fix things in an emergency.

Convenience and personal preference are also good reasons to do it yourself. You may have gotten a good deal on a boat that doesn’t have exactly the equipment you wanted and now would like to add. Need more storage for cruising gear? Want to make your boat better suited to fishing by installing rod holders or a T-top? Want to brighten up the interior by adding larger portlights? Tired of raising the anchor by hand and want the mechanical assist of an electric windlass? Learning to do the job yourself is an economical way to upgrade your boat to exactly the configuration you want, with the additions exactly where and how you want them.

Even with the advantages of doing it yourself,it’s still reasonable to have a professional do some or all of these jobs for you. In that case, this blog is here to give you a sound basis for knowing what is involved and to help you decide if the job is being done right in a realistic time for a realistic price.