Sea Jay foward storage fuel tank and battery !!! Is there a danger of fire/explosion

[NEW HORIZONS]

I have a 4.4 mtr Sea Jay Territory, which comes with the fuel tank cradle and battery cradle both in the forward hatch with no physical separation of the voids, I have just installed a sealed agm deep cycle battery in the forward cradle and fitted a ctek comfort connector , I am reluctant to have a fuel tank in the same void and have two fuel tanks strapped to the open main floor area one is rear left the other forward center which I will only use as a reserve tank when on full day trips.

Am I being over cautious or is there a risk factor having the battery and fuel in the same enclosed voids Any comments welcome

Cheers Terry

[chris69]

Common sence says no why put 2 sides of a fire triangle together,felling safe is the best bet to avoid a slim chance of something happening.

[peterbo3]

There could be a problem if you shorted the battery to the alloy hull by accident & there were petrol fumes present. Used to be a major cause of explosions/fires on carby inboard engines when a spark from the blower or starter motor would ignite fumes under the engine cover.
I don't think that you are being over cautious. Stuff can happen on the water & it is better to be safe than sorry.

[aussiebasser]

Just about every tinnie in the past has had racks for the fuel tank and the batteries at the rear. All of my boats have had that. My current Stratos has three batteries right beside the 120lt fuel tank, my Stacer has two batteries right beside the 20lt portable tank. As long as normal precautions are taken to avoid sparks I'm not sure what the issue is. There must be thousands of tinnies out there with batteries beside fuel tanks.

[Seahorse]

What if battery is in those sealed plastic battery box.

[aussiebasser]

Never seal a normal battery in an unventilated box. It's OK with a proper sealed battery, but not a standard battery.

[Camhawk88]

I would be moving it. Combining a battery and a fuel tank in an enclosed space is a recipe for disaster. Just because some people get away with it doesn't make it a good idea.

[aussiebasser]

Guys, fuel vapours are heavier than air, and they sink. In a tinnie, there are no sealed off spaces to separate the battery and the fuel tank unless the fuel tank is vented to the outside. The only thing you can do is keep the battery in a box. When is the last time you heard of a Quintrex Hornet blowing up?

[Crocodile]

Hello New Horizons,
For mine, I would be wary of having a fuel tank in a poorly ventilated area where the fumes may concentrate near a source of spark or travel back under the floor to an electric bilge pump, (another potential source of spark).
The reason why aft tanks don't explode is that they are well ventilated and the fumes do not concentrate to dangerous levels.
Send us a photo of the deck layout.
It may be better to move the battery to under the console or similar.
This is a very interesting thread, thanks for posting.

[Seahorse]

The battery box is the plastic box with a lid that comes standard with the boat. Mine is about 2 ft from fuel tank

[captain rednut]

NOT to mention that is against the Australian standards and its defiantly not common sense to have a battery in a fuel cell.

[NEW HORIZONS]

Seahorse,

Are they togather in a sealed hatch area ?

[NEW HORIZONS]

Mine layout is not a custom fit out, the purpose built fuel and battery cradles are standard Sea Jay Territory fitment?

[NEW HORIZONS]

Crocodile

I have yet to learn the fine art of uploading a pic attached to an Ausfish post


Cheers Terry

[Seahorse]

I have 2 hatches on the renegade 420. One for the fuel then another hatch beside it, different opening.