*THE HULL TRUTH is the world's largest FREE network for the discussion of Boating & Fishing. Whether you're researching a new boat, or are a seasoned Captain, you'll find The Hull Truth Boating & Fishing Message Forum contains a wealth of information from Boaters and Sportfishermen around the world.
Welcome to the updated THT!
If you are having trouble signing in, please email feedback@thehulltruth.com with your username and we will help you. We thank you for your patience as we help you access the new site!
Random Quote: If wishes were fishes, we'd all cast nets.
Hello all, my fuel guage on my brand new boat isnt working. All other electrical devices are fine. Any suggestions? And yes the tank is FULL. The guage reads empty....thanks!
"Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy."
Benjamin Franklin.
If the two ends of the sender give you the big zero, bring boat back to dealer for new fuel tank sending unit.
If you are interested in doing it yourself, check the connections between the gauge and the sender and make sure they are tip-top.
The sender/float assembly is a simple cirquit that changes resistance as the float climbs and falls, hence the needle placement. Not super-accurate, but telling enough, no?
I agree most boat fuel gauges are garbage. Do yourself a favor and purchase a Navman ($150). Easy as cake to install, should fit in your existing hole for the fuel gauge and allows you to monitor how much fuel you burn, at what rate ect..
I like the idea of the Navman fuel flow meter but does it work with EFI engines?? What I've read states it's compatible with 2 and 4 stroke carb engines but no mention of EFI's.
First of all, thanks for the responses. Anyone on a 21' boat, with a cuddy, begging for overnight trips near shore, etc, must have some sort of fuel gauge. I dont care if its 50% accurate. The idea of not having any guage is just not prudent boating. Now, that being settled, I will check with a meter today. I have a feeling a wire is loose on the gauge. We had the front panel off the other day to wire radio and maybe we knocked it off. If that is NOT the case, and the sending unit is bad, seeing that the boat is in the water and would be a pain to trailer back to dealer, can't I just get him to give me a sending unit and I can replace? Is it a real pain in the behind to replace? Also, as far as spending $150 on Navman, sure that sounds nice, but really only interested in how much gas I have. Johnson 2 stroke 150 gonna burn what it burns not alot of fine tuning there.
"Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy."
Benjamin Franklin.
Fuel gauges are a pain on almost every boat but I would expect them to work on a new boat. Is there a reason why you would not take it back to the dealer and tell them to fix it??
Of course even when working a fuel gauge is not much use in my opinion. They will read 1/2 tank when you are about to run out or still have a full tank. I prefer to rely on a fuel management system. Mine is very accurate, usually within a gallon or two. As far as I know they will all work on EFI engines. I can tell you at anytime during the day exactly how much gas I have burned and how much I have left.
I agree with the fuel flow meter that is better than any gas gauge. I grew up around boats all my live. All of my family members own boats and I dont belive that one of them have a gas gauge that works. We just know what the boat burn in gas. I've been commercial fishing for a few years now and all the captains that I've been with know exactly how much they burn.
I have a Standard F41 a mechanical guage at the tank and the fuel level on the Yamaha speedo. They are all pretty much in agreement. Pull the pye plat above you gas tank and see if the sending units wires are hooked up.
Since you say it is new, this happened to me. It did not work for the first two trip's, then I hit some rough water and it started working. The sender unit was just stuck on the bottom. Use the boatand see if it will start working.
[1] the likely problem is where the pink
and/or black wires actually contact the
sender on the top of the tank...these will
recurrently get dirt and water into the
connections...the rx is, at minimum, to
sand the contacts clean, spray with some
water-displacing gunk, and reseat it..it
will probably work...the better upgrade is
to remove and redo the connectors from the
usual "bayonet" style to soldered-then-
potted-with-silicone style...you wont be
removing the tank soon.
[2] take this opportunity to put in a better
sender like the livorse unit i did on my
parker last winter...the tempo brand units
with the cork-on-ss-stick are crude and very
inaccurate...the livorsi unit has no moving
parts and is both extremely accurate, but the
"full" is adjustable vs arbitrary, as with the
tempo unit....this is a $70 job.
[3] the fuel guages are the deluxe item, and
i would jump at one if my engine didnt run so
consistently at 7 gal/hr....outboards can/will
change fuel use dramatically with a few hund-
red rpms, so these are the most accurate and
most useful of all....the floscan can be fussy
to install and is $300 or so...the navman is
new to the market and is getting fine reports,
so for half of the floscan, it would seem to
be the deal....
my advice would be to DECIDE where you are going
with the fuel system and purchase after knowing
that....i.e. dont redo the connections and then
go to a livorsi sender....i.e. dont go to a livor-
si unit and later go to the fuel monitor units.
dan
Fuel Gauge Not Working 
