Diesel Tank Dipstick

[Emerald]

I have seen a brass dipstick for the fuel tank for sale on a well known buy and sell website and was wondering if they are worth having or what people are using as alternatives? Myself, its been a case of get down on hands and knees with a torch to see if there is any sign of any liquid sloshing about.

[keble]

I have seen a brass dipstick for the fuel tank for sale on a well known buy and sell website and was wondering if they are worth having or what people are using as alternatives? Myself, its been a case of get down on hands and knees with a torch to see if there is any sign of any liquid sloshing about.

I use a piece of wood! Also record engine hours so I know when it's getting low.

[Martin Megson]

They seem expensive what they are - a stick! I just dip mine with one of the poles from my TV aerial. I've now worked out the average consumption and use the engine hours to gauge when to top up.

[dor]

I have a wooden dip stick. It's easy to cut notches in it to calibrate it. Also, it is less likely to damage the bottom of the tank. Although somewhat sceptical, I did read somewhere about a metal dipstick causing corrosion and/or damage to the bottom of the tank where the tank was dipped.

 

Like keble I dip the tank occasionally and record the reading along with the dip reading.

 

Remember you probably have a few centimetres below the pickup pipe!

[Guest]

I have seen a brass dipstick for the fuel tank for sale on a well known buy and sell website and was wondering if they are worth having or what people are using as alternatives? Myself, its been a case of get down on hands and knees with a torch to see if there is any sign of any liquid sloshing about.

 

The Dog House has a wooden stick (square) roughly marked off at full, 3/4, 1/2, 1/4.

 

Combined with the known tank capacity we find we know all we need.

[Keeping Up]

I have a wooden dip stick. It's easy to cut notches in it to calibrate it. Also, it is less likely to damage the bottom of the tank. Although somewhat sceptical, I did read somewhere about a metal dipstick causing corrosion and/or damage to the bottom of the tank where the tank was dipped.

 

Like keble I dip the tank occasionally and record the reading along with the dip reading.

 

Remember you probably have a few centimetres below the pickup pipe!

 

One way to be certain not to damage the bottom of the tank, is to just lower the dipstick in until it touches the surface of the diesel, which is easy to judge if you can see into the hole because the reflection suddenly disappears. The calibrations then show the distance to the top of the tank (or if like me you are using a metal rod with no calibration marks, it's actually my VHF radio aerial, you can measure the distance instead) and you just subtract that from the depth of the tank to tell how much fuel is left. It also means you don't pick up anything more than a single drip of diesel.

[Barry]

Can be hard to see the liquid level on a brass dipstick because it is nearly a clear liquid. An old trick I learned in the merchant navy was to rub the stick with chalk. The liquid level becomes immediately obvious.

[Albion]

I prefer a wooden dipstick as the fuel level just slightly wets the surface of the wood and gives you an indelible level which you can view with ease. Metal dipsticks can be difficult to see exactly where the level is under certain light conditions and, all the while you are searching, the fuel is running back down the stick. It should be designed with a cross bar so that the tip cannot touch the bottom of the tank. A wooden one is easy to calibrate as well if you get a fairly empty tank and then put in known amounts and mark the stick with pencil at each set amount. Then later you can mark these marks indelible by putting a shallow saw cut across the stick.

Roger

[Rebotco]

One way to be certain not to damage the bottom of the tank, is to just lower the dipstick in until it touches the surface of the diesel, which is easy to judge if you can see into the hole because the reflection suddenly disappears. The calibrations then show the distance to the top of the tank (or if like me you are using a metal rod with no calibration marks, it's actually my VHF radio aerial, you can measure the distance instead) and you just subtract that from the depth of the tank to tell how much fuel is left. It also means you don't pick up anything more than a single drip of diesel.

 

The way I have done it is with a 1 metre long piece of 18 mm square timber.

Wait till you are ready to refill, and dip the stick, marking the low level with a pencil. Then add your fuel of a known amount, say 50 litres. Dip again and pencil mark this level.

 

Measure distance between the two marks. Lets say this is 50 cm for the 50 litres of added fuel, so then each cm = 1 litre. Then cut a notch in the wood about 5cm from the bottom and label that Zero or "Empty"(Cos you don't want to be using the crud in the bottom of the tank.) Then cut notches say every 10 cm above the bottom notch, each division will represent 10 litres of fuel. You can mark these divisions with the figure they represent or just count them each time you dip the tank.

Its unlikely you'll get the figures I've used (for convenience), but the principle is the same for whatever figures you get.

I use notches cos they're permanent, whereas any writing eventually wears off.

[philjw]

I've always used a wooden metre rule. It's easy to measure the rise in the level for a known quantity of fuel and do the division.

The pre painted marks are still fine after more than 20 years.

Phil

[Guest]

I'm struggling to understand why people feel the need to be so precise.

 

If your tank is getting much below half full - top it up!

[Martin Megson]

I'm struggling to understand why people feel the need to be so precise.

 

If your tank is getting much below half full - top it up!

 

I tend to agree, I prefer to keep the tank above half full to maintain the trim of the boat.

[Trev]

My wife tells me every boat should have a dipstick and I'm it on ours!!

 

Trev

[bottle]

I have a fuel gauge.

[Albion]

I'm struggling to understand why people feel the need to be so precise.

 

If your tank is getting much below half full - top it up!

 

The main advantage is that when you go for a fuel top up and the guy asks you how much you want you can tell him "About 50 litres" (or whatever) instead of "I haven't a clue just fill it up, it might be about 40 litres". This allows the guy to whack the fuel in for most of the fill, safe in the knowledge that he's not going to have it foam up on him and out straight into the water (with the resultant pollution).

Roger

[Guest]

The main advantage is that when you go for a fuel top up and the guy asks you how much you want you can tell him "About 50 litres" (or whatever) instead of "I haven't a clue just fill it up, it might be about 40 litres". This allows the guy to whack the fuel in for most of the fill, safe in the knowledge that he's not going to have it foam up on him and out straight into the water (with the resultant pollution).

Roger

 

I've never had that happen though - maybe I've been fortunate but the pump has always cut off before any diesel has been expelled from the tank. (I normally handle the pump handle myself)

 

Plus the notch stick method I use combined with an idea of how much your tank holds can give enough info. to avoid over filling.

[Proper Job]

I use the 'fill it up every year or so method'.

 

It's not that easy to estimate how much is in there. It's a base tank that runs right across the width of the boat but is only about 12" high (80 gallon capacity), so any slight difference in the port/starboard trim could be a massive variance on the level on any dipstick (side filler).

 

I've never lost suction on the lift pump to the day tank yet

[Naughty Cal]

I have a fuel gauge.

 

Same here. When it gets towards half full top it up. None of this faffing around with sticks

 

I've never had that happen though - maybe I've been fortunate but the pump has always cut off before any diesel has been expelled from the tank. (I normally handle the pump handle myself)

 

Plus the notch stick method I use combined with an idea of how much your tank holds can give enough info. to avoid over filling.

 

Depending on how our boat is sat in the water our fuel can and often does escape from the tank breather before the pump cuts off at the filler neck. Not great when the breather is located next to the deck walkway. Diesel makes GRP very slippery

[Albion]

I've never had that happen though - maybe I've been fortunate but the pump has always cut off before any diesel has been expelled from the tank. (I normally handle the pump handle myself)

 

Plus the notch stick method I use combined with an idea of how much your tank holds can give enough info. to avoid over filling.

 

It very much depends on the design of the tank and the venting system. If you're prepared to put the fuel in slowly then it can obviously be avoided but when, as in the case of my barge, the tanks are hidden under the floor down in the engine room and I might be asking for a fill of 500 litres or more then asking the port guy to fill up slowly all the way doesn't go down very well

In my case I have a fuel gauge but, when I had Albion, whose tanks were part of the bedroom floor, the dipstick was particularly useful as that tank had a tendency to foam and blow back near the top of the fill. The tanks least likely to foam and blow back are those formed in the back end of the counter where the fill aperture is straight into the tank.

Roger

[Guest]

I wonder why fuel gauges on NB's are not more common than they seem to be. We have never hired a NB that had one and The Dog House doesn't have one...

[larkshall]

Can be hard to see the liquid level on a brass dipstick because it is nearly a clear liquid. An old trick I learned in the merchant navy was to rub the stick with chalk. The liquid level becomes immediately obvious.

 

 

I like that one, great idea

[churchward]

I don't bother with a graduated dipstick and fill up after each weeks cruising (even if we are out for longer than that) but I do have a wooden cane that tells me roughly if I have half a tank or less or more but I hardly use it.

 

I fill up each week when we use the boat for two reasons. It keeps the boat trimmed better and the tank is a rather puny size compared to many narrowboats and is just about bang on 120 litres. So I have a maximum cruising range of aprox 90 hours give or take.

Edited March 21, 2012 by churchward