"barret bondon" wrote in message
...
Why did the engine run at all ?
Atomic 4 in a 1977 27 foot Columbia. Boat had sat all last summer.
Engine started and ran fine for half an hour, got us 200 yards outside
the breakwater ( not a rough sea, but more motion than in the harbor)
where it quit. I pulled a fuel line; lots of water in the gas.
Q: Why did it work at all ? Assuming the fuel/ water mix homogenized
out of the harbor and got drawn into the pump doesn't tell me how to
prevent this on the next boat. Where is the intake on most tanks ?
Water sinks to the bottom of course, and I assume the intake is at the
bottom of most tanks; in that case I never would have left the dock.

(not my boat, BTW !)




Water in fuel tanks is a common problem. It would seem to me that built-in
tanks should all have a small sump at the lowest part with a drain valve
to check for and get rid of any water that collects from condensation or
water in the fuel from dubious sources.

In lieu of that, you should install a large fuel/water separator filter in
the intake line and check and drain it frequently. Your theory of
'frothing' or mixing is probably why the motor ran OK for a while but when
things got a little rougher the engine quit because enough water got into
the carburetor so fill the float bowl.

Wilbur Hubbard