Diesel Tank Fittings and Plumbing

[SpaceRnglr]

The attached picture shows the bulkhead running between the two aft cabins, the left is the aft end of the boat and the sloped wooden panel is the companionway steps. It sits directly above the engine and is where I want to install the 2x fuel filters, fuel pump, and associated valves (1 filter shown for space reference). I think it has the perfect amount of space for my setup.

Since it is located directly in the aft cabin I want to limit noise and heat from the Diesel engine as much as possible. The fuel lines will run vertical through the aft end of the engine compartment and exit near the sink. Does anyone know a good technique to limit the amount of noise and heat that gets through? Is just stuffing the hole with sound insulation The Best Bet?

I will most likely build a panel to mount everything to and then attach that panel to the bulkhead so I don’t Swiss cheese my boat, but any other mounting advice is also appreciated. Eventually I will probably enclose this full space in a cabinet as that sink is one of 8 on my 44 foot boat so is sort of useless...

[SpaceRnglr]

I don’t know if anyone is following this thread but I thought I would give an update. This has turned into a massive project and upgrade. Before I had 180 l of diesel and a single screw on filter. Now I have 2x 160l tanks that are a much better design, dual canister filters, fuel pump, and all the valves to switch on the go whenever needed. I installed a satellite electrical panel all properly fused with blower, fuel pump, upgraded engine lights, and dual fuel gauges. The complete panel as shown is installed in the aft starboard cabin above the sink. That is the guest cabin and may eventually have the charge Controllers too but still perfectly comfortable. I’m working on the water tanks now as they were leaking and not repairable. I have new ones made in fiberglass that turned out great, too bad the sole completely covers them...

What a huge project but at least now it’s coming back together.

[daletournier]

Mate, that looks great, we'll done. I have Intentions of increasing my fuel capacity down the track.

[daletournier]

BTW, did you purchase your boat in Bali?

[SpaceRnglr]

Originally Posted by daletournier

BTW, did you purchase your boat in Bali?

Nope, but the guy I bought it from did and only owned it 9 months. Elessar is the classic example of “crushing boat deferred maintenance”. She will be nice, just need a bit more time. Did you see it in Bali?

[daletournier]

I was moored next to it several years back, I actually considered purchasing it. I can imagine you got a good deal on a good boat. I'm surprised that it didn't sell sooner, it seemed a good boat that just needed some love. Looks fast.

[James S]

Your install looks nice.. clean.. well done..
How did you decide to run the vents?

[SpaceRnglr]

Originally Posted by James S

Your install looks nice.. clean.. well done..
How did you decide to run the vents?

The vent is a 5/8 inch line running aft. The old setup had them exiting the hull just under the toe rail about 1 meter from the transom. I don’t know if that caused problems but it seemed to me that a large wave off the rear quarter could send saltwater into the tank. I installed a new vent fitting in the cockpit next to the wheel where it is too narrow to sit. It will be 100% dry there but I may have to put a rag under it when filling in case it burps... no matter which direction I ran the vent it was going to have about 1 meter of very little incline. I hope it is short enough and inclined enough so the rocking of the boat will keep it dry. We will see!

[SpaceRnglr]

This project is finally coming to an end after 5 months. Both tanks fully installed now. I will check capacity in the next month or so, but it should be about 300l total, up from 180 before.

Commissioning the system was super easy. I filled up one filter using a cup, let it drain back to the tank, fill the filter back up and put the cap on, used the fuel pump to push fuel through the rest of the system, and then the engine started within about 3 seconds of cranking. Once the engine was running I filled up the second filter and was able to switch between filters while the engine was running with no problems. The port tank has no fuel in it yet, but I will be able to chose either tank, either filter, and chose the return line to go back to either tank. I can also run the electric pump or bypass it.

The tanks are now only slightly lower than the fuel rail. The old tank was maybe 2 feel lower than the fuel rail so the engine hesitated above 2500 RPM. I was wondering if I would have to run the fuel pump all the time but so far it doesn’t seem I will need to as the engine has no hesitation up to 3000+ RPM. I need to try it while moving to finally confirm...

The tank installation proved tricky as all my measurements only allowed a few mm spare on several dimensions. In particular the top fittings proved tricky and one of the fill hoses is a few mm too tall. I will have to cut the plywood cover that the mattress sits on to give me the extra height. I will cover the hole later so the mattress won’t poke through. All the diesel tanks and the deck fills are grounded. The valves on the top of the tank are to choose between the main fuel pickup or the “sump”. Sump is in quotes as the tank shape won’t allow a true sump, but I did attach a hose to the bottom of the sump fuel pickup so it gets fuel from the absolute bottom corner of the tank. The main pickup is 4 or 5 cm from the bottom. I tried to include a picture of the sump and fuel pickups from inside the tank.

With this system I can use the filters a fuel polishers by selecting the sump pickup and bypassing the engine, all the valves and pumps are installed to make this very easy. I suppose it also gives me a small fuel reserve. I stole the threaded inserts for fittings in the top of the tank and sump hose ideas from SailLife on YouTube, they worked well.

In addition to the fuel system, I also replaced the water tanks and added a pump strainer, accumulator, and drinking water filter. I also fixed the water foot pump and swim shower that I suppose hadn’t worked in a very long time. While I was at it also cleaned all the bilges.

All this proved to be a lot more time and money than I thought when I started. I need to test the system in anger, but so far I think it has been a huge success. There are always compromises but more fuel and a much more robust filtration system should be welcome while cruising in Indonesia. The fuel tanks are in a much higher and dryer part of the boat so should last the life of the Elessar. The new water tanks are fiberglass so should also last the life of the tank. Having a drinking filter and foot pump are also nice, no need for bottled water.

The only things I have to watch out for is I need to get the chemical taste out of the water tanks. My plan is to fill them up 1/2 way and go sailing, then replace all the water. I hope that works but any tips are appreciated... I may also need to change one of the diesel fill lines as it has a kink and I am not sure if it will flow properly—I wish I had used wire reinforced fill lines to prevent this, but it is easy to change if I need to as access to the deck fill is easy.

I found similar posts hard to find so I hope someone finds this useful.

[sailcrazy]

The project looks fantastic....super job. I just saw that you're in Singapore-when you get a chance, please say Hi to Jessie in Marinetech from us! My wife and I lived in the PI for 10+ years, bought our boat in Singapore, and I used to fly (was a pilot for FedEx) into Singapore regularily. I miss Singapore!!!! Say Hi To Jessie from Skip, the FedEx pilot from Subic Bay, PI. We ended up sailing to Phuket, did a year's refit there, spent 3+ yrs in the Medd, and are now in the eastern Caribbean. Enjoy!

[Pedro -Dawn-]

I am late here, but this sure looks fantastic!