What To Do When Your Boat Runs Out Of Gas

[@naeemjoseph8214]

#1: thing which is the lives/lifes saver ..is dropping your anchor..then you can process with all what said..

[@JayRSwan]

You carry 600+ feet of rode?

[@chiphill4856]

If it isn't rough, why put on life jackets?

[@pfpublius]

I had a Johnson 48spl blow it's block out on New River in NC. There was plenty of people out & i know many saw i needed assistance...but it took 3 hours before anybody stopped. Was one of the worst experiences of my life. To this day I'm still extraordinarily cautious of any little issue with my motor. I watch this channel so i know how to fix things & limp home.

[@BajaGirl302]

One time my husband and I ran out of gas not to far from shore on Lake Michigan. We were close to a military facility, which wasn’t ideal🤔Although they had gas and did help us out, along with another boater who also ran out of gas. Needless to say, our fuel gauge was broken and that was the first thing to get fixed!

[@stephenrankin2078]

A drift sock is a good piece of equipment to have in a situation like that It will help keep the boat facing the weather

[@jaysonlima7196]

So once upon a time I worked for Towboat US, a few bits to add, if at all practical drop your anchor to stop your drift, which can be an amazing help for both you and whoever is coming to help you. It gives you time and stabilizes your situation, remember take your time when anchoring and do it correctly by slowly lowering the anchor to the bottom and then paying out line in small increments until you have about 7x the depth of water if possible (you likely could get away with less but, you don’t have an engine to circle around and try again and when it comes to anchor scope more is better) Next keep calm, remember this is an inconvenience more than an emergency and often times the difference between the two is panic. If you are in an area where there is a level of commercial traffic, get on the VHF and make securitie calls about every 20 minutes or so. (Secur-i-tay security-I-tay, secur-i-tay, your vessel, is not currently able to maneuver, your position, all concerned traffic, your vessel standing by channel one, six. Doing that will let them know there is an uncharted hazard (you) they need to be aware of and it lets others know that you may need assistance without any of the butthole puckering that a mayday (unwarranted) or a pan pan (probably unnecessary) would cause. If the wait may be a while feel free to keep yourself occupied, breakout the fishing rods and try your luck. But most important thing would be consider adopting the rule of thirds, one third of your fuel to get there, one third to get back, and one third because shit happens.

[@kevinjustkevin7627]

I try and fill my boat after every other trip. In Florida with the high humidity, a full fuel tank has less ambient air, so less chance of water build up in the tank. I also don’t use ethanol gas. Need to add the VHF radio, my boat is a 1720, so I don’t go more than three or four miles off shore, so I always have cell service. I use progressive insurance that includes emergency towing/ fuel delivery. Cheap insurance

[@DirtySouth33T]

so another tip, when running suzuki motors like larger ones when you turn the key on the fuel pump runs and tries to prime. if you are struggling priming the balls try it turn key on and off a coupe times to purge air out of lines. tight lines!

[@rdh5961]

I watched this video two days ago just for the heck of it. I have two 66 gallon tanks that I keep full and this would almost certainly not affect me..... Well...... I went out yesterday and buzzed around all day. While coming in, I was about a mile from the marina and my motor died. Ran out of had in the first tank but had 66 gallons in the other so no big deal. The transfer switch wouldn't work, do I was essentially "out of gas". Two hours later I got to use my Tow boat USA membership and was brought it. Point is, the lessons learned from this had me drop anchor and troubleshoot while I waited. Thanks again for great content as it was certainly helpful yesterday.

[@josephholey7616]

There you go , thanks for mentioning this, about the anchor, personal experience, I was actually very new to boating and didn’t deploy my anchor and ended up 12 miles off shore, embarrassing to say the least. I do laugh about that day now,live and learn, but as you mentioned very dangerous

[@kennethk9590]

Another thing to think about is electrical usage after the engine shuts down. Nothing like getting the fuel needed but having no battery power left to start. Trying to jump start after opening the fuel system on a gas boat can be deadly. Anything extra should be shut off while waiting for help. Even batteries can put out flammable gas that can be set off with a spark. If you have a diesel boat just never run out of fuel. Getting the system primed on some older motors takes a lot of time and skill. You can also do some serious damage running dry.

[@ryansingh950]

Get a 2nd batt

[@markwiebner7806]

I never bust through the inlet without a full fuel tank if heading offshore. I like a sea anchor or a large drift sock, even a bucket to keep the boat's bow into the waves. That way I won't get swamped if something goes wrong. Anchoring isn't a great option in say 800 feet. That's my humble opinion. Great video!

[@andreireal9158]

if it's offshore - follow the 1/3 rule - 1/3 of fuel on the trip there, 1/3 to return home, 1/3 in reserve. I won't go offshore without at least 40L of fuel in plastic canisters, separately stored on the boat, not in a fuel tank. That way you could be sure you have fuel at least to idle and have power. If on the river, anchors down and just call your buddies or a taxi to the nearest beach, than to the nearest gas station. But again, a reserve fuel stored in a separate canister and not in the fuel tank, will save you a lot of hassle.

[@migueldefelice4940]

Bro do you ever run that boat on the water? I’ve been waiting for that video since it first came in! 😅

[@BajaGirl302]

Have a sail with you. One could make one ahead of time and have it in the boat. And definitely paddles. I have seen powerboats have sails that can be deployed

[@sam-y8t]

If you have service. Drop your anchor so you don't lose service and coordinates are accurate for sea tow.

[@JhanDeCal]

A few years ago, I gave a 5 gallon can of gas to a stranded boater in the Hudson river by the GW bridge. He and his wife was drifting near the shore and had no anchor...😮 Pointed them to a gas dock in Englewood cliffs and told em to pay it foward. 👍

[@JayRSwan]

#1 plan your trip better. #2 Call Seatow and give the GPS coordinates.

[@paulthompson1216]

When I was 14 my dad and I ran out of gas on the Ohio river about a mile from the gas dock. We had 6 gallon portable tanks so we took one through the brush along the river bank to the dock. We filled it up and made a very exhausting trip back. Lesson learned…about a gallon would have got us back to the dock. Duh.

[@djloungemonkey]

9 times out of 10 we run the 3 3rds rule when we take our boat out. 1 third there 1 third back and 1 third for emergency. Or when we go out we make sure we know where fuel stops are

[@paulkersey2179]

Thanks for sharing.

[@HoldFast-un2fc]

Great info it's a learnid

[@suzukiclarke]

I've noticed that you don't have videos on yard anymore. What's happened?

[@josephprimavera2545]

I fish offshore in the Lower Keys. Rule of thirds and epirb for me,

[@josephholey7616]

How about mentioning drop anchor?

[@jazzyj2243]

Good idea for shallow waters, but not realistic in deep water situations, which I think he is referring to.

[@Blakeneal407]

@@jazzyj2243still can use a drift anchor which is like a big bag that goes off the bow and drastically slows your drift

[@Midnightpursuit21]

Uh call seatow.

[@johnwilkinson4399]

Make a PAN PAN call on channel 16 if no one stops.

[@Dougarrowhead]

Use trolling motor

[@gregeconomeier1476]

Well first, get more gas. Then start........whoops it won't start because it needs priming. Pump the primer bulb.......cuss out the primer bulb because it's junk.. Get your Mighty Mite pump and hook it up to the gas line just before the fuel pump. Pull a vacuum until all the air is out of the line. Then, start the engine.

[@buddyg1408]

On a boat its a line❤

[@boashna]

You will be ticket it by coastguard .

[@rayvagabond3429]

Like directions on a shampoo bottle

[@jackrickells3979]

If you’re in a lake, eventually you will drift closer to the shore

[@edwardranno7119]

SOS...mayday

[@randomtransitadventures]

doesn’t it shutoff?

[@tallyforeman3145]

It takes a few seconds for the fuel in the lines to clear the injectors or carb. Disconnecting the line shuts off the delivery and the remaining fuel with the motor burns out.

[@randomtransitadventures]

@@tallyforeman3145 THE WHAT

[@tallyforeman3145]

@@randomtransitadventures did we watch the same video?

[@randomtransitadventures]

@@tallyforeman3145 im new to boating

[@darrenkokenzie9041]

START SWIMMING

[@JonDoe-cg4mr]

Towboat

[@rossevans1774]

You have f*cked up once don't f*ck up twice, put your life jacket on.

[@Roger-gm9tl]

Shouldn't be out on the water if you haven't checked or can't afford gas, mechanical problem I'll give a little pass, old, bad gas, dirty gas filter no bueno, or take lessons on how to walk on water, still trying, no bueno !