Cruisers: How Much Fuel?

[Pelagic]

Originally Posted by Jon Eisberg

...No wonder the builder's standard tankage never seems to be enough...

:-)

Good point Jon, but I think it has more to do with them choosing the wrong boat for their style of cruising.

Personally I am drawn towards an efficient motor sailor, because I like the cruising freedom to use the engine for a rhumb line course towards my destination if practical, or maintain a good SOG in light or adverse conditions.

Carrying 2200 litres or 580 USG diesel in integral tanks there is no need to load jerry cans and I can cruise for months without thinking about fuel.

[hpeer]

I'm an advocate of having one jerry can of emergency fuel and a way to run pick up and return lines to the can.

It will get you the last couple of miles into dock.

[sailnow2011]

I have always liked to have at least half of the trip worth of fuel. This way if I lost my rig mid way, I could motor to safety, and well a jury rig. I would rather do this then jump off the boat.

[belizesailor]

Added much more solar and feathing props before this season...net much less fuel burn and less hours on my aging engines. About 40 gallons total for our cruising season...Feb thru May this year.

My little MD2020s sip about 0.6 GPH at modest cruising RPM so normally don't need extra fuel, but carry a few spare jerry jugs for longer runs just in case.

[sailorboy1]

People like to argue about various design stuff to determine whether a boat is a day sailor or a voyager, yet all one really needs to do to determine what the builder/designer was thinking just by checking fuel tankage.

[lifeofreilly57]

Different strokes for different folks.
Our boat holds 150 gallons of fuel, we have a 5KW genset and will be adding solar and wind to augment our power needs, this should reduce the fuel consumption to a manageable amount.
Just the same I'm looking at an asymetrical spinaker to offset those light air blues, it won't solve all light air issues but will help make use of moderate wind days. The use of a spinaker on our last boat certainly helped keep us moving in light air at an acceptable pace, this ones bigger and heavier so I'm thinking a REALLY BIG asym is the way to go.
How much fuel do you need?
It all depends on your own personal sailing needs and personality, which ocean, your boat type, the time of year, etc,etc.
I've found I would always tailor my fuel usage to what I had, the more you have the more your tempted to use it, and I'll have to admit I've been short on patience from time to time and paid for it by running out just short of the intended port, good thing I've had lots of experience sailing up to (or into) docks. I could use a little less of that experience.

[Jon Eisberg]

Originally Posted by sailorboy1

People like to argue about various design stuff to determine whether a boat is a day sailor or a voyager, yet all one really needs to do to determine what the builder/designer was thinking just by checking fuel tankage.

Hmmm...

So, then... judging by the fact this boat's owner obviously felt the designed tankage alone was inadequate for the trip, he was resigned to the likelihood that his Hunter was not REALLY intended to be making the passage from Hampton to the Islands with the Caribbean 1500?

:-)

[goat]

Originally Posted by sailorboy1

People like to argue about various design stuff to determine whether a boat is a day sailor or a voyager, yet all one really needs to do to determine what the builder/designer was thinking just by checking fuel tankage.

That, of course, puts Lin and Larry firmly in the daysailor category.

[JPA Cate]

Well, for those who need to use gensets for water, battery charging, and/or cooking, they have to plan around higher fuel consumption than those who don't. The higher fuel consumption would lead to larger fuel tanks if one were designing the boat from the get-go. Most boat users do not need lang range fuel tanks.

It depends, too, on how much Duckwheat likes to sail, and how capable of light air sailing his vessel is. If your boat sails well in light airs, you most likely will be content to sail in winds that do little for the boats of the folks whose boats need at least 20 knots to get out of their own way.

Ann

[zboss]

This is insane... people have been crossing oceans with ZERO fuel forever! I know the pardey's are considered old school in this regard but they have recent experience in this regard. Our boat carries 55 gallons of which around 50 is reachable and we carry 12 on jerry's. We could expand that to 90+12. Cabo Ricos (a big fat slow boat by some standards) in this configuration circumnavigate all the time.

Just yesterday we were in a reach @ 6-10 knots True doing half wind speed.

IMO, the desire for a boat to have 200 or 300 gallons of fuel is not because there was some deficit in older boats but because the voyage expectations have changed. If you only had 50 gallons of fuel (or whatever) and the wind was blowing you in some other direction, you went the way the wind blew. Sometimes you never got where you wanted to go. Today though, people insist on going from A to B to C and hell be damned, they are getting there!

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by zboss

This is insane... people have been crossing oceans with ZERO fuel forever! . . . If you only had 50 gallons of fuel (or whatever) and the wind was blowing you in some other direction, you went the way the wind blew. Sometimes you never got where you wanted to go...

I think you've stated the case for generous fuel tankage very well indeed!

Sent from my D6633 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[transmitterdan]

Originally Posted by zboss

If you only had 50 gallons of fuel (or whatever) and the wind was blowing you in some other direction, you went the way the wind blew. Sometimes you never got where you wanted to go. Today though, people insist on going from A to B to C and hell be damned, they are getting there!

Good to know things are better now than they were back in the old days.

[accomplice]

Our tanks hold 1500 litres. We use just under 8L/hr @ 7 kts (15 @ 8 kts). Recently , en route from USVI to RI, we were headed by northerlies from a low that passed north us. At one point 600nm from RI, one crew member was so panicked that we might actually be forced to sail that we diverted to Bermuda - as much to send him home on a plane as to refuel. It comes down to how comfortable you are being (more ?) at the whim of the winds.

Even at 1500liters, I would be happy to have larger tankage, although this is certainly sufficient.

Sent from my XT1060 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[lifeofreilly57]

Having a boat that will go to wind? Priceless.
I know it's frowned upon but sometimes you just have to sail upwind to get to where you want to be. If your boat is not good at this your either going to have to motor more or choose another destination.
Sure I prefer to be on a permanent beam reach, unfortunately the wind gods rarely cooperate when you want them to, but to each their own.
There is no "one way" to cruise, only your own way.
Figure out which way that is and it will help answer the question of how much fuel do YOU need.
I respect the Pardey's purist approach but am not totally there myself, I'm not a motoring guy either but somewhere in between, sail as much as possible and motor when you really have to. I'm sure the rest of the community is spread totally across the spectrum on this one and their boats pretty much reflect that.

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by accomplice

Our tanks hold 1500 litres. We use just under 8L/hr @ 7 kts (15 @ 8 kts). Recently , en route from USVI to RI, we were headed by northerlies from a low that passed north us. At one point 600nm from RI, one crew member was so panicked that we might actually be forced to sail that we diverted to Bermuda - as much to send him home on a plane as to refuel. It comes down to how comfortable you are being (more ?) at the whim of the winds.

Even at 1500liters, I would be happy to have larger tankage, although this is certainly sufficient.

Sent from my XT1060 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

I just did the same trip and used 10 gals/ 40 litres.