Boat U.S. - May 2008 - (Page 14) Fuel-Saving Tips for Summer Fuel prices are reaching historic highs all over the U.S. this year, but a few extra measures could help stretch your boating fuel dollars and keep everyone enjoying summer out on the water. 1. Leave the extra ‘junk’ home: Don’t load the boat up with weight you don’t need. Do a little spring cleaning — unused equipment that has been collecting mildew in the bottom of lockers for years should be taken home. 2. Water weight: At 8.33 pounds per gallon, why keep the water in the tank topped off if you’re only going out for the afternoon? 3. Tune her up: An engine tune-up is an excellent investment and should easily pay for itself over the summer. 4. Tune your prop: If your boat goes 30 mph with a like-new prop and only 27 mph with a prop that’s dinged and out of pitch, that’s a 10% loss in fuel economy, or you’re wasting one out of every 10 gallons you put in your tank. 5. Paint the boat’s bottom: When boating in salt or brackish waters, a fouled bottom is like a dull knife. It takes a lot more fuel to push your boat through the water. 6. Keep the boat in trim: Using trim tabs or distributing weight evenly will help move your boat through the water with less effort — and less fuel. 7. Go with the flow: Consult tide tables and try to travel with the tide whenever possible. 8. Install a fuel flow meter: A fuel flow meter is like a heart monitor; when consumption starts to rise, it’s an early warning that something is amiss. A fuel flow meter also allows you to select a comfortable cruising speed that optimizes the amount of fuel being consumed. If you don’t want to spring for a fuel flow meter (about $300), you can calculate your fuel mileage by dividing distance traveled by gallons at fill-up. Using your logbook, you can then approximate fuel flow using average speeds and time underway. 9. For sailboats only: While their engines are fuel misers, a sailboat with a fouled bottom, prop or poorly maintained engine can have marked effect on its fuel economy. 10. Get a discount: Many of the 870 BoatU.S. Cooperating Marinas around the country offer up to 10 cents off a gallon of gas. To get the discount, all you have to do is to show your BoatU.S. membership card. If you aren’t already a member, join online now for a special rate of $19 by going to BoatUS.com/membership or call 800-395-2628. BoatU.S. VP Appointed to Safety Council The U.S. Coast Guard has appointed BoatU.S. Vice President of Government Affairs Margaret Podlich to a three-year term on the National Boating Safety Advisory Council (NBSAC). The council has advised the Coast Guard on boating safety issues since it was created by an act of Congress in 1971. There are 21 members of the council and seven members each serve from three segments: the boating public, the boating industry and state boating agencies. Podlich represents the boating public. Other BoatU.S. staff currently serving on federal advisory councils are Ryck Lydecker, current chairman of the Boating and Fishing Partnership Council of U.S. Fish and Wildlife, and Elaine Dickinson, appointed to the Hydrographic Services Review Panel (charts and navigation services) of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 14 BoatU.S. Magazine May 2008 http://www.bennetttrimtabs.com http://www.BoatUS.com/membership http://www.bennetttrimtabs.com http://www.invisibleglass.com http://www.invisibleglass.com
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