Tank vent whistle

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Quetzalsailor
Master of the Arcane
Posts: 1100
Joined: Fri Aug 26, 2005 9:53 am
Boat Name: Quetzal
Boat Type: LeComte North East 38
Location: Philadelphia, PA

Tank vent whistle

Post by Quetzalsailor »

I'm under the impression that a tank whistle or fuel/air separator is required on new boats, true?

Anyway, some previous owner thought it a marvelous idea to abandon the gasoline deck fill which was adjacent to the vent on the port side and add a new deck fill on the starboard side. Means that there's no way to listen to the gurgle of a nearly filled tank without the crew at the ready. In any case, foam blows back up the fill side long before the tank is full.
This is tiresome at best, embarassing and expensive at worst.

Thinking about the Barlow Tank Whistle http://store.hamiltonmarine.com/browse. ... 33109.html (sold here for between $27 and $33), or the Racor LG-100 http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/us ... =6449&BASE (for about $100).

The Barlow acts by whistling with airflow, when it's drowned goes quiet and you have the time it takes to fill the vent hose to get your finger off the trigger. The Racor acts by separating the air and fuel and gives you just a smidge of time before its reservoir is full and overpowered.

Also planning to put both fill and vent on the same side - what an idea!

Ideas? Experience?
mitiempo
Candidate for Boat-Obsession Medal
Posts: 319
Joined: Mon Oct 27, 2008 11:37 am
Boat Name: Mi Tiempo
Boat Type: Canadian Sailcraft CS27
Location: victoria bc canada

Re: Tank vent whistle

Post by mitiempo »

I am pretty sure it is not required but it can be a good idea. I went a different route. I have an Attwood surge protector in the vent line (which exits high on the centre of the transom) that closes the vent when fuel rises in the vent line.
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