Gas Gauge Question

[koondog]

I am trying to figure out the details on a new to me 22TRS .   Question:  I filled up Saturday and put the boat in . Gauge reads full but says available gallons 45 .  I believe this boat holds 55 gallons ? 

Is this normal to have the 10 gallon difference ? 

[smilemaker]

Where are you getting the available gallon reading from?

Most fuel burn calculators require you to tell it each time you add fuel.

[koondog]

3 hours ago, smilemaker said:

Where are you getting the available gallon reading from?

Most fuel burn calculators require you to tell it each time you add fuel.

I'm getting this available gallon number from the command link gauge.

[Bruce J]

Do yourself a real favor and get an engine data cable connected into a NMEA2000 backbone and then to your MFD (Garmin, Simrad, etc.).  Then you will have digital calculation of your remaining fuel based on the actual fuel burn rate.  With this setup on my Pathfinder and Maverick, it calculates the fuel to within a gallon or so.  My Command Link gauge on my Pathfinder was often off by 20 gallons or more by the time I filled up.  This new setup gives me a great deal more peace of mind.  It would be so inexpensive to add to a boat when building it, I really think it should be standard equipment, or at least a listed option for everyone.  But if you're not comfortable with doing the electrical work yourself, it's an easy job for your local rigger.

[jh141]

My Command Link gives me bars. I have not seen a command link that gives a number of gallons. Can you take a pic? 

What year is yous 22 TRS ?

I have a 2012 and it actually hold 60 gallons

[Bruce J]

My Command Link gives me bars or gallons just depending on which display option you choose. But either in bars or gallons, they numbers can be way off - equally inaccurate.  Right now my Pathfinder's Command Link gauge shows something like 35 gallons, when it actually has 49 gallons - and the difference will be even greater as the tank level drops further.

[bernieNC]

My Command Link fuel gage has been spot on since day one (7 years). Most of the time within 1 gallon. A couple times on fill up maybe as much as 2 off. That could be because of how well it was topped off. No complaints.

[jh141]

Yep, I have to say My command link has been very accurate, I have run it until the last bar flashes and then goes away. It Was still running. Put in 53 gallons as I remember. The sticker on the actual tank itself says 60 gallon capacity.  I also have a NEMA 0183 and the NEMA 2000 networks interfacing the Lowrance and Yamaha Command link and My Lowrance Dash Screen is pretty much right on. 

IMO.....you should not be cutting fuel burn that close. Good Capt. training promotes 1/3 out, 1/3 in and 1/3 reserve. Never know when weather or something else will throw you a curve and you may need that 1/3 reserve.

" I have run it until the last bar flashes and then goes away. It Was still running."   I was with another boat and had a 5 gallon spare can. We were testing. How do they say it.......Don't try this at home, we are experts.....LOL

[Bruce J]

If you have an engine data cable and NMEA 2000 network, perhaps you can get the Command Link to read from the engine data, but mine still reads off the tank.  But I like the redundancy of having the tank measure plus the engine fuel data on the MFD.  For example of the difference for me, when I was running around in my Maverick yesterday, I started with 4 bars on my 18 gallon tank.  My MFD showed 9.8 gallons remaining.  I ran about 15 miles during the afternoon, which would be roughly 2 gallons for my little F70.  When I got back home I had only 1 bar on my Command Link, which would imply less than two gallons in the tank, but my MFD showed 8.0.  Having the confidence in the more accurate fuel burn data meant the difference between having a nice afternoon of fishing, or a tense run to the nearest marina to fill up my tank that was really still almost half full.  My Pathfinder 2400 does the exact same thing.  So you guys that have accurate Command Link readings don't have that problem, but for those who do, the NMEA 2000 data option is a great one.

[smilemaker]

When you break it down there are three ways to know how much fuel is in a tank.

the first is a sensor that tells a gauge either analog or digital what the level of fuel is at that instant. this instantaneous  signal will vary on boat attitude and movement of fuel. the gauge can use this information and show it as full to empty, # of bars or convert to gallons but it all is just a sensor.

 

the second  is to calculate fuel burn and subtact it from a known volume of gas.

when you add fuel you MUST tell it how many gallons you added so it can add that back to the available amount of fuel.

The third way is old fashion and that is a dip stick

not being familiar with command link i don't know if it works on fuel burn or a sensor.

[bernieNC]

18 minutes ago, smilemaker said:

When you break it down there are three ways to know how much fuel is in a tank.

the first is a sensor that tells a gauge either analog or digital what the level of fuel is at that instant. this instantaneous  signal will vary on boat attitude and movement of fuel. the gauge can use this information and show it as full to empty, # of bars or convert to gallons but it all is just a sensor.

 

the second  is to calculate fuel burn and subtact it from a known volume of gas.

when you add fuel you MUST tell it how many gallons you added so it can add that back to the available amount of fuel.

The third way is old fashion and that is a dip stick

not being familiar with command link i don't know if it works on fuel burn or a sensor.

or just fill it up and hit reset.

[smilemaker]

When you break it down there are three ways to know how much fuel is in a tank.

the first is a sensor that tells a gauge either analog or digital what the level of fuel is at that instant. this instantaneous  signal will vary on boat attitude and movement of fuel. the gauge can use this information and show it as full to empty, # of bars or convert to gallons but it all is just a sensor.

 

the second  is to calculate fuel burn and subtact it from a known volume of gas.

when you add fuel you MUST tell it how many gallons you added so it can add that back to the available amount of fuel.

The third way is old fashion and that is a dip stick

not being familiar with command link i don't know if it works on fuel burn or a sensor.

[smilemaker]

on my 02 TE filling it up on the water or trailer and depending on the tow vehicle full to the brim will vary with how the boat sits. can vary as much a 7 gallons.

those air pockets can be hard to shake out

[Bruce J]

5 hours ago, smilemaker said:

When you break it down there are three ways to know how much fuel is in a tank.

the first is a sensor that tells a gauge either analog or digital what the level of fuel is at that instant. this instantaneous  signal will vary on boat attitude and movement of fuel. the gauge can use this information and show it as full to empty, # of bars or convert to gallons but it all is just a sensor.

 

the second  is to calculate fuel burn and subtact it from a known volume of gas.

when you add fuel you MUST tell it how many gallons you added so it can add that back to the available amount of fuel.

The third way is old fashion and that is a dip stick

not being familiar with command link i don't know if it works on fuel burn or a sensor.

If you fill up your tank, you just hit the "Fill the Tank" option on the MFD screen.  Super easy.  When setting up your system initially, it asks for your tank capacity, so when you later tell it you've filled the tank, it just resets the available fuel level to full capacity.  Or if you didn't fill it but just added gallons, you can specify how many you added.  One reason I still like having the analog/tank gauge as well is just as a double check.  If I asked the marina to fill the tank and they forgot - I can verify that the bar level on the Command Link registers full before I reset the gas level on the MFD.  Belts and Braces.

Also, using a dip stick doesn't work on either of my boats because the fill tube is offset from the tank.

[Bamaskeet]

My gas gauge is way off on my 2200V.  I prefer to use my odometer in my fish finder.  I reset it to  zero at every fill up.  My rig consistently gets 4 mpg in mixed running.  I usually run 160 miles between fill ups that gives me a 20 gallon reserve.

[fishmanjj]

37 minutes ago, Bamaskeet said:

My gas gauge is way off on my 2200V.  I prefer to use my odometer in my fish finder.  I reset it to  zero at every fill up.  My rig consistently gets 4 mpg in mixed running.  I usually run 160 miles between fill ups that gives me a 20 gallon reserve.

My gas gauge on my 2009 2200PF .....after filling is accurate till about 1/2 tank.....then it sits at 1/2 for a while , then drops to 1/4. But after many years and averaging 4 mpg with normal running conditions.... I do as Bamaskeet does...just look at miles ran and add gas accordingly.  

[Ron in Atlanta]

38 minutes ago, Bamaskeet said:

My gas gauge is way off on my 2200V.  I prefer to use my odometer in my fish finder.  I reset it to  zero at every fill up.  My rig consistently gets 4 mpg in mixed running.  I usually run 160 miles between fill ups that gives me a 20 gallon reserve.

I'm going to guess here - you either used to or do now, ride an older motorcycle (no gas gauges back then).  You filled her up, reset the odometer and refilled after a known number of miles (or hitched home for the gas can).

E. g.

[Bruce J]

On 5/12/2020 at 7:12 AM, fishmanjj said:

My gas gauge on my 2009 2200PF .....after filling is accurate till about 1/2 tank.....then it sits at 1/2 for a while , then drops to 1/4. But after many years and averaging 4 mpg with normal running conditions.... I do as Bamaskeet does...just look at miles ran and add gas accordingly.  

My gauges on both boats are similar.  Roughly accurate to half a tank, and then if falls off a cliff.  Because of that I was never confident what my real range was, and I hated the anxiety of seeing a flashing fuel bar even if I was pretty sure I must have more gas.  Now I let the machines do the math, and trust the digital gauge for the real measure.  But it's interesting to see all the different techniques which mostlhy all depend on something other than the gas gauge!

[fishmanjj]

On 5/12/2020 at 8:16 AM, Ron in Atlanta said:

I'm going to guess here - you either used to or do now, ride an older motorcycle (no gas gauges back then).  You filled her up, reset the odometer and refilled after a known number of miles (or hitched home for the gas can).

E. g.

Is that Ron on the classic BSA ....?awesome !  

In my younger days riding either dirt bikes or later the Harley’s .... I just took the cap off and looked in 🤣😎

[mulligan]

On ‎5‎/‎12‎/‎2020 at 8:16 AM, Ron in Atlanta said:

 You filled her up, reset the odometer and refilled after a known number of miles

Or you forget to reset the trip and wait for the motor to sputter, reach down and put the petcock on reserve.  I had an old Triumph Bonneville, sold it to my dad who still has it.