Aside from the sharp pain in your wallet, many other factors should be considered before pulling your boat up to the pump. It’s essential to be aware of some challenges and hazards of fueling up, especially in larger vessels with bigger tanks. Additionally, you can take steps to increase your fuel efficiency and even avoid engine troubles down the road.
As boaters in Southwest Florida, we need to keep in mind the challenges and hazards of fueling our vessels. Bigger boats often have quite large fuel tanks—much larger than cars—meaning where there’s more fuel, there’s more to cause problems if you’re not careful. Dock-based gas nozzles often pump fuel faster than those at automobile service stations. And, gasoline fumes are extremely flammable. In fact, most fires and/or explosions on boats happen during (or immediately after) fueling—so please take as much care as possible when at the pump.
Read more “Where and how to fuel up: Gauging your responsibility and options.”