fuel vent whistle

[Lummisailor]

It appears that the vent hose is in between the inner skin and hull behind the plate rack on my R25. has any one accessed the vent hose to install the anti spill whistle/check valve? And do all 08 R25's have the plate rack?

 

[Admiral S]

I installed the whistle in our new R-27. I have filled up once since installing and I did not hear any whistle. Before installing i did blow through it and it whistled.

I only put in 35 gallons so maybe not enough empty space to whistle. Will run the tank down some more and see if that makes a difference.

 

[baz]

I installed a vent whistle on my 2010 R-25 (Classic). It made a whistle sound only when the fuel tank was almost full.... which IMO meant it was doing its intended job. 😀

 

[Favunclerich]

A plate rack was not standard equipment on the 2008 R-25. Yours must have been added by a previous owner.

The problem is that the fuel vent line takes a dip between the tank and the vent, allowing fuel to become trapped in the line and expelled out the vent by the escaping gasses during a fill-up. I tried a fuel whistle in the original vent line, and this did not stop the problem. You can also buy a suction cup mounted bottle to place over the vent, but I found this to be only partially effective. Some fuel still leaked from the gap between the bottle and the hull. The original setup makes it very difficult to judge when the tank is nearly full, and it is time to stop. Ranger has fixed this problem in newer models.

Many of us 2008 R-25 owners have moved the fuel vent to the stern, next to the fuel fill. This allows the vent line to be situated such that it rises gradually, with no dips to trap the fuel. This makes it less likely to burp diesel overboard during a fill.

I also added a fuel whistle just below the vent on the stern. This makes it much easier to hear. Please send me a PM if you decide to undertake this project and have any questions about what is required.

 

[Navigator's Son]

The original setup makes it very difficult to judge when the tank is nearly full, and it is time to stop. Ranger has fixed this problem in newer models.

Many of us 2008 R-25 owners have moved the fuel vent to the stern, next to the fuel fill. This allows the vent line to be situated such that it rises gradually, with no dips to trap the fuel. This makes it less likely to burp diesel overboard during a fill.

I wonder if maybe I should post this as a new topic? I am curious to find out if I am the only one having this experience? I have a 2017 R25sc. During the factory delivery Tim watched over me at the pump filling the tank - I didn't have any issues hearing the air escaping the vent line, and for the most part I didn't have any issues with the fuel intake itself burping (This happened all the time with the Bayliner until I got used to listening for the change in pitch when filling).

In subsequent fillings I'm finding the diesel starts to bubble up back to the filling nozzle. I clearly hear the air escaping from the vent, in fact I followed Tim's advice this last time where I removed the vent cap to ensure air was escaping fast enough. I even stop the pump at times and remove the nozzle to allow any trapped air to escape and wont start pumping again until I no longer hear any air coming out from the vent. But when it comes to adding that last 10 gallons or so to get my tank topped off, I still get the fuel bubbling back up into the nozzle, no matter how slowly I pump it in.

Is this happening to anyone else? Is this simply an issue of the lines running in such a way the air cannot escape faster than the fuel is added?

 

[Brian B]

My 2010 25SC had similar problems as described above. Check the vent line from the vent to the tank and make sure there are no dips in the line, if there are shorten the hose to remove them or raise the line where ever you can even at the tank. Knotflying and myself worked on my boat to try and resolve this, it got better but I still need to pump slowly. The high volume nozzles don't help the situation any.

 

[tlkenyon]

For the problem of fuel burping back up the fill tube, try one of these. I have one and it works great. Still gotta work with fuel burping out the vent, though.

TK

https://www.cleanwayfuelfill.com/

 

[Navigator's Son]

For the problem of fuel burping back up the fill tube, try one of these. I have one and it works great. Still gotta work with fuel burping out the vent, though.

TK

https://www.cleanwayfuelfill.com/

That looks like a great idea - just one question - from the pictures on that web link, the canister looks like it threads into the current opening - what do you do about the chain holding the gas cap? Did you cut the chain? Maybe the pics aren't making that piece clear?

 

[Captain Steve]

If you use this device, do you have to slow down the flow of fuel from the pump?

 

[Cessna172]

Diesel burping out the vent or fill nozzle is always a pain.

My experience leads me to believe that it is not the escaping of air from the tank as it fills that causes the mess; rather, the diesel foam itself.

Diesel is notorious for foaming when it is delivered from a medium to high-volume nozzle. Oftentimes quite profusely! If you ever filled a fuel can from a station diesel pump, you know that the can is spouting foam while the can is only 3/4 full. As the boat tank fills with fuel, the foam is forced up through the fill nozzle and vent. When I fuel from a can and control the rate of flow, no foam is produced and the nothing burps from the tank.

You really have to be patient (and so do others waiting on the fuel dock) and fuel slowly with frequent pauses to allow the foam to settle.

 

[Lummisailor]

I found the fuel fill issues helpful but none of them addressed were and how you access the vent through hull or the hose on the early 2008 R 25's

 

[Favunclerich]

I cut a hole in the panel underneath the stove and added an access plate to be able to reach the back of the fuel vent and install a fuel whistle.

Before you do that, I'll restate my experience that adding a fuel whistle to the original vent hose did not improve my ability to speedily add diesel without spillage on my 2008 R-25.

 

[tlkenyon]

The Cleanway canister does not thread into the fill pipe, it has rubber gasket-kinda things that push into the fill pipe. Various sizes come with the canister and there is one that fits tugs.

It does not require slowing down the fill rate. It is very effective in catching the foam-induced "burps" and preventing spills. I keep it in the propane locker between uses because it obviously smells like diesel.

A great product, and I have no connection to them except as a satisfied customer.

TK

 

[doke01]

Different pumps pump at different speeds. I've had the burping issue on high speed pumps. I have installed the whistle and it works perfectly for me. It's noisy as hell though, but it does the job. Had to cut out the back of the bottom cabinet next to the head to get to the vent hose. I used hinges and a latch to make a door out of the old cabinet back so I can get back to it if I ever want to.

 

[NorthernFocus]

There is one basic concept that causes all of these fueling issues. Air has to get out of the tank as fast as fuel goes in. First order of business is to make sure the vent is clear. No kinks in the hose, no bug nests in there, and the most common problem, no low spots that can fill with fuel. Second, don't pump fuel in faster than the air can exit the vent. If you fill slowly enough(and don't have a low spot in the fill line) air can also escape up the fill line. But when filling fast the only place it can go is out the vent. The only two things that cause burping out the fill line are filling too fast or the vent being obstructed(that includes being liquid full if there is a low spot). Also on most tanks the vent and fill are at least a few inches apart so when the tank is nearly full the vent can get blocked by fuel level in the tank(this issue is solved with the famous vent whistle).

My R25 does have the vent routed aft. But when I bought the boat it came with a home made contraption to fill with and a strong caution from the previous owner about "burping" during fill. On my boat the fill and vent hoses are easily accessible in the stern locker and with a little effort can be inspected all the way from through hull fitting to the tank. There was an obvious low spot in the vent that was easily corrected by removing about four inches of the vent hose. Problem solved....almost. In my case I had two issues. It wasn't as obvious and I neglected to notice that there was also a low spot in the fill hose. So when filling on the water when the tank was nearly full it had a tendency to burp depending on the attitude of the boat and any motion during fill. Removing three or four inches from the fill hose solved that problem also.

All that said, when filling on the water it is prudent to stop a bit short of what has been burned out of the tank to avoid the previous mentioned issue with the vent. For those who trailer their boats, filling at a gas station and paying the highway fuel tax is pretty cheap insurance against potential fines for spilling fuel overboard.