Beat the heat this month by floating the scenic, fish-filled streams on the North Shore.
With gasoline prices soaring to all-time highs every other day, I am getting questions about how to stretch the fuel mileage of my customers’ boats.
There are many things you can do to help conserve fuel. First and foremost, make sure your outboard motor is in good running condition. A first-class tune-up will ensure that you are not wasting fuel. An engine that is out of tune, has worn spark plugs or gummed-up carburetors can waste large quantities of fuel.
Along with that tune-up, you should also check the condition of your propeller. Propellers that are nicked up or have blades that are bent lose a large portion of their efficiency. If your prop is damaged, take it to a professional propeller repair shop to have it reconditioned.
Many engine manufacturers are now offering synthetic outboard motor oil and lower unit oil. Synthetic oils do a better job of eliminating both friction and heat in your engine. Less friction and heat will make your engine more efficient and burn less fuel. The next time you are changing your lower unit oil or purchasing a few containers of outboard motor oil, ask the dealer for synthetic, and see the difference for yourself.
Stretching fuel economy is not limited to your outboard motor only. I’m sure you have heard this question a thousand times: When is the last time you checked the air pressure in your trailer tires? Also, when is the last time you checked the air pressure in your tow vehicle’s tires?
Here in my shop we have for several years conducted an informal survey of trailer-tire air pressure. We simply check the air pressure in as many of our customers’ trailers as possible.
It is extremely rare for us to find a trailer with the proper tire inflation. The vast majority of the trailers checked have air pressure readings of less than one half of the specified amount for those tires. Besides the increased danger of a blowout, under-inflated tires create more friction and drag on the highway, and this translates to more dollars spent at the pump to fill up your car or truck.
Another way to stretch your boat’s fuel economy might be to better plan your fishing trip. Lay out your game plan in advance so that you don’t run around aimlessly wasting fuel covering the same territory over and over. If you fish a certain area on a regular basis, you should know in advance what spots you normally like to fish. Plan your trip so that you go to the closest spot first and then the next closest and so on.
I remember a trip last year that my fishing partner and I ran miles and miles in search of redfish. We caught a few, but definitely not enough to write home about.
Just before pulling into the launch ramp, my partner pointed to a little stretch of shoreline about 300 yards from the boat launch. He remarked that just the week before, he witnessed two other anglers catch several fish there.
We had a little time so we ventured over, dropped the trolling motor and in minutes were well on our way to a full limit of keeper redfish. When we finished fishing, we didn’t bother to crank up the outboard — we just trolled back to the dock.
If we had started our day at that spot instead of running all over, we would have burned a lot less gas.
While you are planning your trip you might also want to take a minute to check your gear. Sometimes we get carried away with the variety and quantity of fishing tackle and gear that we load into our boats. Excess gear is also excess weight, which becomes excess fuel consumption. I had a hard time convincing my fishing buddy that we don’t need to carry five or six ice chests full of ice when we are fishing less than 30 minutes from the launch, where we can purchase extra ice after our trip is done.
Probably the greatest tool you have in the war on fuel consumption is the hand that you use on the throttle control of your engine. Drag-race starts and prolonged full throttle operation of your engine will cost when you go to the pump.
Learn to use your power trim. By trimming down before accelerating, you can minimize the time it takes to plane off your boat, and this will save fuel. Once your boat has planed off, use your power trim again to help give the boat lift, which will minimize drag on the water.
Once you have achieved that optimal trim angle, you can then back down on the throttle and conserve even more fuel. If you are concerned that driving a little slower will take longer to get to your fishing hotspot, try getting out of bed a little earlier to make up for the lost time. It is much cheaper that way.
A trend that I have seen developing lately has come from many of my duck-hunting customers. It seems they are electing to leave the large bay boats home, and instead are taking their duck hunting boats out.
In years past, many customers have had two boats — one small aluminum boat for duck hunting and a larger fiberglass boat for fishing. Somewhere along the way, they have discovered they can take these smaller aluminum boats with their 25- to 35-horsepower air-cooled engines and go into the backwater areas that they usually hunt.
Many of these areas are simply too shallow for larger boats to access. They are fishing in shallow ponds that are many times a simple stone’s throw from the launch ramp. They can actually see the fish in the water, and are able to cast their bait to the fish they want.
The fishing action is great, but what they enjoy most is the fact that at the end of the day, when they stop at the gas station, it takes only three or four gallons of gas to fill up the tank.
If you have any questions or problems with your boat, motor or trailer, you can find my contact information on my web site: www.theboatdr.com.
Have a great summer, and be safe on the water.
