Fuel Vent Water Intrusion R25/R27

[dclagett]

We have had a significant amount of rain in the mid-Atlantic this past summer and for the first time, other than a drop or two, I have taken several ounces of water out of the Racor fuel filter. While at the boat this week, after a hard rain, I noticed a small accumulation of water in the fuel vent. The boat is on the hard and is somewhat bow up. The fuel vent installed on my boat is a flush mount which is located on the upper angled part of the transom. So the face of the vent is not vertical and allows water to accumulate inside the vent. When the boat is in the water with the bow down I suspect the water accumulation to be greater. It appears to me that my fuel vent configuration may allow water to run into the fuel tank during significant rains.

I was wondering if anyone else with a R25/R27 has had a similar experience.

I plan to install a different type of fuel vent or put a cover over the existing vent so rain water cannot get inside the vent. If anyone else has addressed this on their boat please let me know your solution.

Thanks

 

[Andrew Custis]

Hello,

From my experience and all the boats I have seen, these have never created an issue with allowing water into the fuel. I would certainly recommend not spraying water with a hose right into it but never noticed the issue with rain or anything else.

Thank you,

 

[dclagett]

Andrew,

Thanks for the response. When I look inside the vent there are two screened holes for fuel venting, one is pointed straight down and the other is pointing about 40 degrees from the bottom. The water in the vent is up to the screened hole pointing 40 degrees from the bottom and the bottom screened vent hole is completely covered by water. I think I will remove the vent hose and run some water down the transom in the current vent configuration to see if I do get any water in the vent tube. If I do I will try to adjust the vent so that both the screened holes are about the same distance from the bottom and try the water test again. I will let you know what I find.

Thanks again,

Dick

 

[Salty7]

Is there any way to run the vent hose up beyond the vent and then back down to the vent itself. In other words put a loop in the vent hose? Water doesn't run uphill very easily.

 

[Brian B]

Is there any way to run the vent hose up beyond the vent and then back down to the vent itself. In other words put a loop in the vent hose? Water doesn't run uphill very easily.

If you are able to put an uphill loop in the hose be careful that it does not kink upon itself. If it was to kink the venting will be restricted and will cause fueling issues.

 

[dclagett]

Thanks, these are some good suggestions to look at. There is not a lot of room for a loop but I did find that Atwood makes a flush vent with a p-trap which provides a loop inside the vent. It also can be mounted at an angle which would fit the R25 transom.

First I want to make sure that the current configuration is a problem. From the lack of response to this post it dosen’t seem like other R25/R27 owners are having this problem. After I do the water test I will post the results.

Thank again

 

[Admiral S]

We have had our R-27 Classic for 2 years now and have had 0 water intrusion. The boat has been run in some very snotty conditions as well.

 

[knotflying]

Never had an issue with mine. Maybe the easiest thing to do to give you ease of mind is a clamshell cover.

 

[dclagett]

First I need to determine if the fuel vent is the problem or not but a clamshell may be a good approach. With the amount of water that lays in the vent and one of the screened vent holes pointing straight down it is hard to believe that water will not run into the fuel tank. I hope to get to the boat next week to test my theory.

 

[dclagett]

FYI

I removed the fuel vent hose from the fuel vent today and ran water down the transom to see if the vent would catch the water and ingest it. The answer is: yes, I was able to capture water where I disconnected the fuel vent hose. That means if the vent hose was connected, the water would run into the fuel tank. This occurred with a very small amount of water running down the transom. I was trying to simulate what might have occurred this past summer with torrential rains and thunder storms.

I know that this is not a comprehensive study and it does not take into account more severe conditions of driving rain against the fuel vent, however it does show that the fuel vent configuration on my boat will ingest water and deliver the water to the fuel tank. I also examined the fuel vent to determine if it was damaged in any way, but it looked to be in good condition.

 

[knotflying]

Thanks for the info. Not being familiar with the vent characteristics, was the installation positioning incorrect or is it the vent that is the issue? I guess the clam shell cover may be in order if it is a vent design issue.

 

[BB marine]

I have questioned the vent installation in my Cutwater. I have not had a water intrusion issue as of yet. When I was cleaning up the vent and fill hose installation from the factory ( making a straighter run by taking all low spots to help with the slow fill issue) I noticed the through hull vent fitting was pointing down instead of up. Cutwater uses a 90 degree fitting. Normally this fitting is pointed up to form a loop in the hose so that water intrusion in the vent can not drain into the tank and also not create a pocket to restrict ventilation. The vent intake is the low spot of the loop and can drain the water back out. The location of the fitting on my boat is to high to do this. If the vent thru hull fitting was 3" lower then a loop could be installed and there would be no worry of water intrusion. I have never seen a full vent installation with the 90 going down. I'm not sure of their reasoning behind that!

 

[dclagett]

I was not able to reposition the vent so that the screened holes are pointing to the side instead of one pointing straight down. In order to adjust the vent I would need to saw out an area of the cockpit liner. The next time I go to the boat I will take some pictures and post them of my configuration. I am not sure adjusting the vent will help much with the amount of water the vent holds being installed on an angle instead of a vertical surface. I think the best approach would either be your suggestion of a clam shell or a vent with a loop built in. My fuel vent looks like a “Whitecap 90 Stainless Steel Flush-Mount Fuel Tank Vent” that is available from Gander Outdoors.

 

[dclagett]

Brian,

Having the 90 degree tube coming from the vent pointing down I feel is my problem. Once the exterior of the vent starts to accumulate water in a hard rain it has nowhere to go but in my fuel tank. My vent is also positioned high in the transom so there is no room for a loop in the hose. I do believe if the vent was installed on a vertical surface this would not be a problem.