Can I run two engines from one tank?

[BigB9k]

My boat has 2x 15 HPs on it (single line fuel)
Can I just get a Brass "T" and feed both engines off one 6 gallon tank?

 

[ondarvr]

Yes, but you need a squeeze bulb between the TEE and each motor.

 

[BigB9k]

Well thats doable! I didnt want the 2 tanks taking up that much room.
I'll use the 3/8th line too.
Thanks for the reply!

 

[tpenfield]

We will allow it this time.

You might be better off with a priming bulb for each motor, after the Tee fitting.

 

[oldboat1]

Hey gents -- I'm not sure how well that would work. Each bulb would suck air from the other side, seems to me. I guess if you squeeze long enough on one bulb, you will collapse the other bulb and then might draw fuel up from the tank(?) Dunno. I'm also not sure how well the split feed would work when the motors are running and drawing fuel.

In any case, it's usually a good idea to have separate fuel sources for each motor (eg., main motor and a get-me-home trolling motor). If a tank or fuel supply fails, you don't lose use of both motors. Or put another way, you can use either individual motor if you have one working fuel supply (assuming the hookups are the same, fuel ratios, etc.)

 

[ondarvr]

It works fine, there's only about 5000 boats around here plumbed that way (That's actually an exaggeration, there's probably a lot more). The squeeze bulb is the check valve that makes it work.

It is better to have two separate fuel sources, but if you don't, this way works.

 

[fhhuber]

It will work and be fine. The priming bulbs have check valves in them. one bulb is not going to reverse draw fuel through the other.

Your small engines are not going to draw more fuel than the standard line ie going to handle at the tank connection (most restrictive point in the dual engine from one tank setup)

I'm not certain what the max size engines for this setup would be. I could guess, but it would just be a guess.

 

[oldboat1]

Convinced me. (5000+ salmon fishermen can't be wrong.)

 

[F_R]

If the check valves actually work with the bulb probably laying on it's side--which I doubt. The fuel pump check valves are the life saver that prevents backflow from a non-running motor to a running motor.

 

[tpenfield]

The priming bulbs are uni-directional flow, so they should serve the purpose of a check valve.

 

[interalian]

Meh. I'd use one primer bulb between the tank and the "T", and prime both at the same time. I'm going to assume you're running both at the same time anyway.

 

[ondarvr]

Meh. I'd use one primer bulb between the tank and the "T", and prime both at the same time. I'm going to assume you're running both at the same time anyway.

It doesn't always work doing it that way.

 

[interalian]

If running only one motor, disconnect the QD at one motor and prime/run the other. If running both, pump until both carbs are full. If one fills quicker than the other, its needle will stop flow and the other one will finish filling. I can't imagine that the standard OMC primer ball which can supply 140+hp motors would have any issue filling two 15hp carbies. Each 15's fuel pump should have no problem drawing through a common primer. Unless I'm missing something?

 

[ondarvr]

It has nothing to do with the volume of fuel through the bulb, the issue is sometimes the fuel pump won't stop fuel from being sucked out of one motor if it's not running, then the fuel line is empty and both motors are out of gas, now it needs to be re-primed, but it will happen again and again.

We switch back and forth from one motor to the other so many times during the day that unplugging and re-plugging in the correct motor isn't an option.

​The two primer bulb system it tried and true, nothing needs to be messed with no matter whether only one motor is running or both.

 

[interalian]

Good point. I suppose in the one bulb scenario, the running engine would also see the other as an air leak.