24' offshore relocating main tank to rear?

[jbrinch88]

Does anyone have their main tank (93 gal. if I recall?) located in the rear hatch? I want to put my new tank when the time comes in the rear compartment and use the front one for my batteries/electronics/holding tank/parts and tool storage area.

Here is a picture showing what was my original plan:

Now I'm thinking of rotating the entire hatch 180* and using it to cover the front sump. Reason being is it will be under the bimini/enclosure and I won't have to worry about making it a water tight seal for rain water/water coming over the transom. Also my wiring will take less of a beating being in the front compartment.

The only issues I see with doing this is that the rear sump looks shallower then the front sump. I didn't have a tape on me but just from looking at it I thought I could tell a difference. Not a big deal since my tank isn't made yet, but would I still be able to get the same amount of fuel capacity.

The other issue I see is will this put the transom a lot lower, or effect how the boat performs? I'm not sure how the boat sits normally, I would imagine like my 22' seafarer with the transom low and water bailing out the rear (22 has a closed transom/bracket setup, 24' has the open transom).

Looking for as much info as possible from members with this setup, or similar. Thanks.

 

[billyttpd]

Never tried this so I have no idea but my $.02 is this. putting all the batteries and all under the front hatch seems like a lot of work to gain what? aren't the "boxes" on either side of the transom notch for batteries and what not?? isn't that the easiest ay to access them? Also how is the boat going to ride, perform and sit in the water with the weight of the fuel tank pushed aft? Does you Offshore have an auxillary tank? I thought the Offshore models held more than 94 gallons of fuel, they had a 50 gallon aux tank? Maybe that was an option and your going to not have one? IDK

 

[jbrinch88]

Never tried this so I have no idea but my $.02 is this. putting all the batteries and all under the front hatch seems like a lot of work to gain what? aren't the "boxes" on either side of the transom notch for batteries and what not?? isn't that the easiest ay to access them? Also how is the boat going to ride, perform and sit in the water with the weight of the fuel tank pushed aft? Does you Offshore have an auxillary tank? I thought the Offshore models held more than 94 gallons of fuel, they had a 50 gallon aux tank? Maybe that was an option and your going to not have one? IDK

If you go into the photo section and look at the thread (new to me 24' offshore) you will see what I'm dealing with. I basically bought a 24' offshore shell, no fuel tanks/motor and gutted everything completely.

Yes they usually come with a main and an aux. tank. I'm choosing to only have a main tank.

I'm choosing to put the batteries down there for a "neater" setup. Also it'll be easier wiring the boat since that will be the main location for everything. I'm planning on running 2 batteries for the house/electronics and 1 for the motor with a manual paralleling switch and a Blue Seas ACR.

Maybe too complicated for only a 24' boat, but I'm trying to make the most of it and set it up exactly how I want.

I really don't know how the boat will perform/sit/ride if it's setup like this, which is why I made this thread in the first place.

I'm going to try and come up with a ballpark number of what everything will weigh in both compartments for example a full tank of fuel+tank weight v.s. 3 #24 batteries, a 10/20 gallon holding tank, gear/tools/parts etc, washdown/livewell pump and whatever else that may end up going in there.

 

[suzukidave]

i thought all outboard gradys had the main tank in the rear. is your boat a converted outboard? the old inboards had them up front to balance out the extra weight of the engine and because the motor intruded into the rear hatch area. i'd definitely put the tank in the rear unless there is something special about the 24' design.

personally i'd also want the distance between my battery and starter motor as short as possible to reduce the voltage drop on the cable. you can only compensate so much with thicker cable.

and my 190 has one of those hatches. i tried adding gasket seal but it leaks like a sieve and fills my bilge when it rains. no way would i want one near the stern. i think grady deleted them for a good reason.

 

[jbrinch88]

i thought all outboard gradys had the main tank in the rear. is your boat a converted outboard? the old inboards had them up front to balance out the extra weight of the engine and because the motor intruded into the rear hatch area. i'd definitely put the tank in the rear unless there is something special about the 24' design.

personally i'd also want the distance between my battery and starter motor as short as possible to reduce the voltage drop on the cable. you can only compensate so much with thicker cable.

and my 190 has one of those hatches. i tried adding gasket seal but it leaks like a sieve and fills my bilge when it rains. no way would i want one near the stern. i think grady deleted them for a good reason.

Definitely not a converted outboard, it's an 85' open transom outboard setup. I'm not sure how they came setup from the factory. My 88' 22' seafarer has a closed transom/bracket outboard setup and has the main tank forward and aux. in the rear.

I would plan on running heavy wire to compensate for the distance. #1 or #2 gauge would probably be fine it doesn't take too much to turn an outboard over.

 

[suzukidave]

interesting. i know the 80s era 223 tournament had the tank in the rear. that would mean that grady flipped the tank location on the 22' hull depending on the model. i would contact grady and ask why. maybe with the heavier superstructure it is better to concentrate weight forward.

fwiw as a point of reference, last year i looked at a 1985 223 with twin outboards from the factory and it had the main tank in the rear. that seemed to me at the time like an extreme amount of weight at the rear but the owner said it rode fine.

also, here is an older 243 tournament with the tank in the rear. same hull as you i think, but obviously different weight.

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=19949

 

[lime4x4]

I know on my 86 the main tank is in the front. My boat originally was a single outboard converted to twins. I installed the freshwater tank and 4 batteries in the rear hatch. I have the owners manual for the boat that shows the aux tank and freshwater tank are suppose to be in the front with the main tank in the rear.

 

[jbrinch88]

lime, thank you i guess that answered my question. I may still call Grady White and ask them just to be sure.

How do these 24's sit in the water? I'm hoping it bails just as well as my 22'. That boat never has more than an inch of water in it tops.

 

[lime4x4]

I have the flaps in my scruppers which are just below the water surface. never had any problems with water on the deck. Also on mine i assume they moved the 93 gal tank to the front to offset the weight of the twin outboards.

 

[moorehaven]

My 86 Offshore with cut transom and 225 Honda on the back has its 93 gallon tank is in the rear compartment . The front compartment is empty

 

[jbrinch88]

My 86 Offshore with cut transom and 225 Honda on the back has its 93 gallon tank is in the rear compartment . The front compartment is empty

Awesome! Thanks! So now my only dilemma is, are both tank hatches the same size? I just finished re-coring both hatches and I'm pretty sure they are, or close enough anyway. I ask this because I made my cutout on the rear hatch not the forward one, so hoping I can just swap the two.

 

[moorehaven]

Please let us know how it turns out . I might consider relocating my batteries . It is a great boat if maintained . I do not know if you are considering trim tabs but I would recommend it . Good luck

 

[lime4x4]

I was curious as to the location of the main tank so i emailed grady and this was there response.

Hello John,

I was able to located some notes from the boat's production period and for twin motor powered 24's the main tank was located in the forward position to help counterbalance the weight of the motors. On models with single power the main tank was located in the aft compartment.

Best regards,

Eddie Rowe
Customer Relations
Grady-White Boats

 

[suzukidave]

good information

if the boat was originally built for duals the transom will be about 23" deep.

 

[Jbird]

I've got a 1991 Offshore and redid the tanks... Mine was set up originally with the Main in the rear and auxilary in the front. Due to the heavier weight of my newer 4 stroke; I switched them - and put the Main in the front and the auxilary in the rear (and forward in the compartment), and plan to add a small fresh water tank in the rear. I'm also in the process of moving the batteries forward as well. I have both new tanks made to the original spec - minus the widths - so they would fit easier into the compartments. It was later that I decided to switch their locations, and all fit well... Patriot Marine did the tanks for me and did a great job.

Redoing all the electrical is next on my list - I got everything ordered - just waiting to decide when to pull the trigger and go full bore!

Best of luck.

Fish on!