Gas in bilge

dsparks

I have a new, used 2003 GS 201 Fun Deck.  Filled it with gas two days ago, yesterday found app. 2 gallons of gas in the bilge.  What did I do wrong?

FlyingV5

Be very careful, that is a dangerous situation. Open the hatch and remove the access covers to let the fumes out. Drain the spilled fuel or sop it up with a rag. A fan will help. Wait until the spill is dry. Use a cordless LED type light (not a hot bulb) to inspect the bilge. Don't turn on any battery power, but find out where the gasoline is leaking. It should vent to the outside even if it is overfilled so you probably have a cracked vent hose or filler hose.

dsparks

Thanks for this info.  I pumped out and sopped up all the fuel.  There's no more fuel coming into the bilge.  Stupid q (I'm new), but other than looking at the hoses in the access hole next to the captain's chair, how do I figure out where there's a crack?

FlyingV5

Sounds like you have the immediate danger under control, dsparks (but watch out around gasoline with that username). As a retired mechanic, let me first advise you to be very careful working with fuel and don't try anything you don't feel confident about. One of the best ways to diagnose a leak like yours is to use a "smoke machine", which produces a non-flammable white vapor at regulated low pressure. Squirt it in the tank and see where it comes out. But since the tank is under the deck, visibility will be difficult. Perhaps someone with access to factory info can offer a diagram of the hoses or a photo of the bilge with tank before the deck is on? A dealer mechanic would probably know just where to look. Good luck.

dsparks

Flying V5; thanks for your follow-up.  I think I found the leak, the area around the metal plate with the wires  on the top of the tank (I think holding the gas gauge sensor) is damp.  My assumption is filling the tank all the way pushed gas up against it and then putting the boat on the lift and tilting the bow up caused gas to leak out from around the plate. Probably a bad gasket.  I have a picture of the plate, but I can't figure out how to post it here.  Anyway, I think this is a good enough lead for my boat guy for when he comes out and fixes the thing!  Thanks for helping me through it.

cjjjdeck

dsparks, your comment about not knowing how to post a picture on the forum reminded me that I wanted to post instructions on how to do it.  Sometimes we forget that everyone out there has different level computer skills and pictures are very important for forum activity.

I've attached the instruction sheet.  Hope this helps!

dsparks

dsparks

Thanks for the info on posting.  Here's the suspected area.

cjjjdeck

I would say you definitely identified at least one problem.  After replacing that gasket, I would still keep a very watchful eye on the bilge area for other potential leaks.  Regarding cleaning up, I would recommend a non-flammable degreaser in cleaning up the bilge area to fully eliminate fumes.  I use ZEP Fast 505 for cleaning up fuel/oil/grease, available at Home Depot. 

dsparks

thanks.  I'll report back.  I appreciate the advice.

chdavis

You are very lucky you found this prior to launching your boat. We believe this may be what happened with our boat over the weekend. We have a 2003 GS201 Fun Deck as well. Well, we had. Fuel was topped off with no excessive spillage on the outside of the boat like you would see if overfilling a car tank. You could smell gas an hour later when launching the boat but not atypical to smell fumes with the inboard motor. Of note, we had not had any mechanical issues with the boat. Nonetheless, plug was out and hull was checked to ensure fuel was not leaking out. Water was present, expectedly, as it had been raining up until launch time. The trailer was backed into the water, engine blower on, boat reversed off trailer, and as soon as the throttle was pushed in forward, the boat exploded. The explosion blew all parts off of the boat including the engine compartment cover, seats, doors, and cupholders. It blew my husband forward into the dash/steering wheel, and an unknown object hit him in the back of the head leaving a large gash. Fortunately he was not knocked unconscious and was able to jump in the water and swim towards the dock. The boat was completely engulfed in flames within minutes. He was blessed to walk away from this accident. Since this has happened, google searches have shown issues relative to this are common with the fun decks. We continue to look for more information. 

ChiknNutz

OMG, that is terrible! What a horrible experience that must have been, cannot imagine that. Glad everyone walked away. If this is a not-so-rare issue, seems Hurricane has some 'splaining to do!