My Lowe 160W and gas fumes

[T-SHRED]

I uncovered it today and opened the back hatch (battery access, etc..) and it smelled like fuel a bit.

Is this normal?
It seems to smell under the deck in other hatches also.
It's not overpowering, or all that strong, but I thought I would ask.

Also, does anyone know where the fuel tank is on this boat?
It is a 2005 and the filler spout is just in front of the cockpit (right side) on the rail.

Thanks

[SUPERCHUGBUG]

gas fumes are normal, i have asked about it before. when garaged, i have a small piece of baseboard i cut to prop open the hatch. as far as the location, my guess would be in the rear of the boat near the batteries.

[illinifish]

Fumes are something you will have to live with. I leave my transome area hatch open when stored in the garage and that eliminates the problem with the storage areas having a smell. Tank should be in the rear of the boat. That is where you want the weight to be.

[EdDavisKY]

If the Lowe has a plastic gas tank, you are going to have to learn to live with it. The fumes can penetrate the plastic tank. Figure a way to leave the rear compartments open some to allow venting, and also try keeping your tank as full as possible, seems to help with mine. Let mine get down to near 1/4 tank and it get real bad.

[T-SHRED]

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by EdDavisKY &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">If the Lowe has a plastic gas tank, you are going to have to learn to live with it. The fumes can penetrate the plastic tank. Figure a way to leave the rear compartments open some to allow venting, and also try keeping your tank as full as possible, seems to help with mine. Let mine get down to near 1/4 tank and it get real bad.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I spoke with the manufacturer (Lowe) and they are so polite and helpful!!
Found out that it does have plastic fuel tank and the smell is more so with plastic.
He told me about the access ports so I am going to open them and take a look at the connections to double make sure nothing is leaking.

Also, someone else told me that as the fuel get used it smells more as the dank goes down. More air in the tank I guess.

Anyway, I am going to check it out but it appears as if this is not as big of an issue as this nervous, first time boat owner made it out to be.

[EdDavisKY]

If you put it in a garage after each trip, leave all the lockers open, this helps with the gas smell as well as letting you lockers dry out

Yes mine gets worse the lower the gas gauge gets and especially if I allow it to get down to 1/4 tank or less.

Good luck, and am sure you probably have not leeks but is good to check anyway, Lowe from what I hear makes a good product.

[T-SHRED]

I opened up the access panels to the gas tank and fuel lines.
They were just like new and tightly connected.
There was no residue around any of the connections and I ran my hand around them and smelled no gas.

I'll keep an eye on it, but it looks good.

[Rudeman]

The fuel tank is in the floor at the midline below the cockpit. The newer 160's have a lower max hp rating and that allowed them to move the fuel tank to the rear due to less weight from a smaller OB.

I think your fuel filler cap is vented adjacent to the fuel inlet. It may be a bit of a challenge but you may benefit from uncovering the filler so that it is not venting underneath the boat cover. Also might consider having vents placed in your cover to allow accumulated fumes to escape.

Nice rig! Glass boats are nice but there are many times I wish I had a smaller tin boat to get back into out of the way tight spots. And then there's the fuel economy consideration.

Take care of her and she'll be around for a long time.