Fuel Tank Size-For you Math heads!

[The_Handier_Man1]

From: mikekaidan  (Original Message)
Sent: 4/4/2005 1:19 PM

I think I've done this correctly, but for you math geeks... really would like you  to check my work!  Since my gas gauge on my Brave is all over the map, the fact that I'm heading down into Baja next week, I'd like to have an idea of my precious fuel situation during the trip. First of all, my manual says I have a 35 gal. tank, but I measured it, this is where y'all come in, cuz I think it's much bigger!

Outside dims are 12 x 24 x 42. (My biggest question...any big voids on the inside?)
Based on no voids, that gives me  12,096 cubic inches or 7 cubic feet. (these are outside dim's, not figuring for wall thickness etc)
Looked up that 1 cubic foot holds 7.48 gallons.

So, 7.48 gallons multiplied by 7 cubic feet= 52.36 gallon tank!

Minus wall thickness and whatever else, I'm calling it 50 gallons... Is this correct?

Of course if I ever went to fill up on an empty tank... I'd have the answer, but because my gauge is so far off... never came close, was always affraid of running out!



From: chip
Sent: 4/4/2005 1:53 PM

231 is the constant that i use--and come up with the same answer. iguess you could drain it and see how many gallons you can stuff in.



From: DanD2soon
Sent: 4/4/2005 2:44 PM

Mike,

Ours has a 3" filler tube that's almost horizontal and enters the tank such that the bottom of the filler is about 3.75" below the top of the tank - essentially a 4" void...

If the same is true of yours, it changes the calculation to (8 x 24 x 42) divided by 231 = 8064 / 231 = 34.9 Gal.

I dropped my tanks to replace the tank holder straps and clean up the gas gauge connections about two years ago and from dead empty to full-without-dripping one took 35.2 gallons and the other 36.1 gallons.

A word of CAUTION here - everones' tank pick ups are at least a little if not a lot different - going straight & level, one of mine begins sucking air with about 4 gallons left in the tank and the other one sucks the tank nearly dry!

DanD



From: Derrek
Sent: 4/4/2005 3:03 PM

I cheated when I calculated my fuel tank capacities...

http://www.greertank.com/tankcalc.htm



From: greasemonkied
Sent: 4/5/2005 1:59 AM

Here is another calculator that may also be some help. It helped me quite a few times.
               http://www.abe.msstate.edu/~fto/tools/vol/index.html