Gas and battery placement

[mgarvie]

I have a 20 foot 1986 Bass Buggy with a starting battery and two portable six gallon gas tanks on the end of the toon behind the railing. Because of the amount of water splash on them I've thought of moving them. What would be the disadvantages of moving these to the front of the boat? Would the gas lines be too long of a run to the motor?

[GregF]

Mine are amidships in the console. It is OK, just use 3/8" or bigger fuel line and larger battery cables, #4 or #2 anyway.

[mgarvie]

I've been thinking of moving them up to the front of the boat and try and balance out the weight. Maybe my starting battery and deep cell battery on one corner and a 12 gallon tank on the other.

[BobG]

Well, that's an interesting question.

I have a 26 gallon internal fuel tank on the port side, aft. That's 182 pounds of fuel, with a full tank. Guess what? My boat leans to port when the tank is full! I'd LOVE to figure out a way to install it inside my center toon!

Also, I now have two batteries back by the transom. That's a lot of weight!
Again, it would be a good idea to relo them somewhere forward.

[GregF]

Where do your passengers ride? One of the most common threads here is about prop ventilation because there is not enough weight in the back

[BobG]

Where do your passengers ride?

I sit on the starboard side, and the Admiral rides on the port side, next to me.
No ventilation problems!

[ronb]

Well since we are on the topic of weight shifting, I was wondering about this too. I am guessing that "our people" need to keep a lot of weight in the rear because passengers like to weigh down the front?

There is another thread on here about a guy that has been experiencing prop blow out because the motor is coming out of the water too far with passengers onboard toward the front of the pontoon.

FWIW, at the most reward part of my pontoon there are 2 batteries (80lbs?) , a 29 gallon fuel tank (200lbs), and the motor (380lbs) about 660lbs within the first 2ft of the most reaward part of the deck...

-ron

[mgarvie]

Passengers aren't much of a problem, I only have one chair! I basically use the boat to haul me, two Great Danes, and my camping gear up and down the Illinois River. I removed all the old furiture and have a console, chair, and a few storage lockers. Figured I would add on as I decided what my needs are going to be. I'm working on balancing out the load at the moment. Also considering moving my console up to the front of the boat and keep my camping gear in the back. I've had ro raise my motor 2 1/2 inches above the transom and thought I could drop it back down to the transom if I move more weight to the front of the bot.

[Ron Burgundy]

I would add some weight to the front to mimic the weight of the 12 gallons of fuel before you move the tanks. You can see if it effects your ride. I can say that would definately cause me ventillation issues, but you may have different results.