Save Money This Summer Top Tips For Saving Boat Fuel

by Jerry Hale

                We’re only midway through the prime boating season, but thanks to $3-plus per gallon, our boating budgets are already strained. Stretch your fuel dollars well into fall by using these tips for getting around the Lake on less: 

                1. Don’t push more weight around than necessary. Your mid-summer spruce up should include removal of excess and infrequently used on-board gear. Leave it behind on routine outings.

                2. Don’t top off tanks.  Most Lake trips won’t require all the water and fuel your boat can carry. At over 8 pounds each, surplus gallons make the engine work harder at every speed. Keep fuel and water tanks about half full. Store a 2 ½ gallon approved reserve fuel can on board to handle emergencies. 

                3. Tune the engine.  Fouled plugs, dirty filters and erratic timing make engines run thirsty. If yours has gotten out of tune, fix it. Your fuel savings between now and the end of the season will cover a good chunk of the parts and labor – and the rig will run better. 

                4. Repair prop damage.  Dings and twists ravage propeller efficiency and create unnecessary noise and vibration. Smooth small dings with a file; have a prop that’s been bent reconditioned.

                5. Clean the bottom.  Many SML boats are kept in lifts, precluding fuel-robbing bottom growth. But if yours floats between outings, a power washing and repainting is likely in order. Owners of smaller boats can get similar results while enjoying a hot-day swim using a kitchen “scrubby” pad or cloth.

                6. Use your boat’s “sweet spot.”  The powerboat MPG curve starts high at idle speed, plummets when the hull is plowing water, and then hits peak cruising efficiency at a gentle plane, usually around 3,000-3.300 RPM. You can pinpoint your most efficient planning speed with a fuel-flow meter, but the 3,000 rpm rule is a good approximation. Exhilarating as it may be, running at top RPM sucks fuel mercilessly (and increases risk of boating incidents). Remember: you don’t’ have to be on-plane to enjoy the Lake. Idle-speed sunset cruises on warm summer evenings are a delight. Or visit neighbors in a nearby cove -- just tie up and join them for conversation and refreshments.

                7. Accept gas donations from guests!  Appreciative guests may offer to replace some of the fuel you’ve used towing their kids around the Lake. Let them assuage their guilt! This, by the way, is the time to violate the half-full rule of thumb. Go ahead and top her off anytime someone else is paying!

                8. For sailors only:  Fuel cost is hardly an issue for the stick-and-rag set, so set sail smugly and with sympathy for the gas-guzzlers as they power past. Just remember that powerboaters can be out there making breeze when the wind is dead calm!