|
-
POSTING RULES

-
Donate yearly (please).
-
Advertise in here!
-
Today's Posts
|
Insert Pics
|

07-07-2014, 11:03 AM
|
|
|
|
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Missoula, MT
Posts: 714
|
|
Visual fuel check paid off
An interesting thing happened this morning that validated my original training - imagine that. I ordered some fuel while preflighting and a new line guy came to fuel me up. I had about 18 gallons on board. I told him to fill them to within an inch or two from the top. He did his thing and left. Should have taken on about 42 gallons. I normally glance at the fuel gauge on the truck but did not this time.
I was taught to ALWAYS visually check the fuel in the tanks as it's the easiest thing to do to prevent a major cause of aircraft falling unscheduled from the sky. So I do. Every single time that I don't fill the tanks myself, I open them to check fuel level and also always sump newly filled tanks after giving the new fuel a few minutes to settle. Visually checking fuel levels always seemed a tiny bit obsessive but easy to do and a good idea in theory.
When I opened the left tank to check fuel level, it was about 9 inches low, probably holding about 12 gallons. Hmmm. Right tank was about 6 inches low, probably holding about 22 gallons. Hmmm again. Bells going off in cranium. Wow, that is the first time that ever happened - how could this happen, something so easy to get right didn't get done right? Now this was a new line guy, new to my plane and it was in the shade so it was a little hard to see the fuel level. I'm not bashing him because that isn't the important thing, but making the point why it's important to do what I (and probably most of us) was trained to do. It can happen and it did happen, which means it can happen to you.
I called him back and asked him how many gallons he'd given me. 16 gallons he says. I show him the levels and we top them off together giving me another 24 gallons!
Now, I was only going for a short flight and would have been fine. Even if I was going on a long flight my EFIS would probably have pointed out the discrepancy between the float level readings and what I told it were now "full" tanks. Probably. Not good enough.
__________________
Bryan Douglass
=VAF= 2020 dues paid
RV-10 N242BD
|

07-07-2014, 11:16 AM
|
 |
|
|
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: Omaha, NE (KMLE)
Posts: 2,247
|
|
I'm just a low time pilot, but I don't think visually checking fuel levels every single time is obsessive at all. I trust electrical and mechanical devices like fuel senders and gauges about as far as I can throw the whole plane, line guy and fuel truck.
__________________
Dale
Omaha, NE
RV-12 # 222 N980KM "Screamin' Canary" (bought flying)
Fisher Celebrity (under construction)
Previous RV-7 project (sold)
|

07-07-2014, 11:19 AM
|
|
|
|
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Missoula, MT
Posts: 714
|
|
It's not of course. It's just that when you do something 10,000 times and never see anything amiss, it seems a bit tedious sometimes. My point was that it isn't. In this case it wasn't the gauges or senders that were faulty, but the human who filled the tanks.
Paul Dye probably has some input about the human factors involved in something like this.
__________________
Bryan Douglass
=VAF= 2020 dues paid
RV-10 N242BD
|

07-07-2014, 11:31 AM
|
 |
|
|
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Marion IA
Posts: 1,095
|
|
Not obsessive. Whenever I (or anyone) fuels my plane, I drain some fuel from the wing sumps. It only takes a second and tht way I KNOW they (or me) didn't pumpma bunch of water or dirt in there. Added benefit is that I see the fuel level is correct and that the caps are on correctly.
Ok, maybe it's a little obsessive. I haven't found water yet, but have found dirt.
__________________
Dave Gribble VAF #232
Building RV-9A N149DG (slider, IO-320, IFR)
Restored and Flying Beech Super III N3698Q
Marion IA
Struggling with fiberglass
There is no sport equal to that which aviators enjoy while being carried through the air on great white wings." Wilbur Wright, 1905
|

07-07-2014, 12:25 PM
|
|
|
|
Join Date: Jul 2006
Posts: 188
|
|
Not obsessive... no one but me ever puts fuel in my tanks! If I run into an FBO that insists that they (not me) must fill my tanks, I will watch them like a hawk. Also, I always look at the pump to observe the amount of fuel that went into my tanks, and then I reconcile that amount with my on-board fuel totalizer.
The result of my obsessive behavior is that i can relax while flying and know that I have enough fuel for my mission.
Good job.
Victor
|

07-07-2014, 12:42 PM
|
|
|
|
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Independence, OR
Posts: 316
|
|
It's also a good idea to visually check your fuel, even if you filled the tanks, if you leave your plane unattended. An exception might be if it's in your secured hangar only you have access to. Even in that situation I can be a little anal about it.
I've never had fuel stolen from my tanks but I know people who have.
__________________
John Horn (donated for 2020)
Independence, OR
LSRM-A, CFII
Rotax Service, Maintenance, and Heavy Maintenance Trained
Building an RV-12, N7878H reserved
Flying a Flight Design CTSW
|

07-07-2014, 01:46 PM
|
 |
|
|
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Sumner, WA
Posts: 722
|
|
Nice catch!
He probably filled them completely. (well at least briefly the tank section between the last to ribs  )
Most pumps are just too fast for our RV tanks.
__________________
Jeff Bloomquist
Sumner, WA
PP-ASEL, IR
RV-7A
Flying
1150 Hours
|

07-07-2014, 01:55 PM
|
 |
|
|
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Litchfield Park, AZ
Posts: 1,019
|
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by douglassmt
In this case it wasn't the gauges or senders that were faulty, but the human who filled the tanks.
|
I wouldn't knock the new line guy so bad yet. Although he did not fill the tanks the first time just shows how he is not familiar with fueling the RV tanks. Because of the RV tank baffling it take time to fill. Not like the "other" cert. ships do. In the PA28 I learned in there was no need to wait and let stuff settle then check for the dist. from the tab. Dump it in and go. It does sound like you "taught" him when he returned which is always good. Next time he knows.
__________________
Carlos in Arizona
EAA Chapter 538 www.chapters.eaa.org/eaa538
Wittman Tailwind W8 N53CH (built & sold)
Pazmany PL-1 N2029 (bought & sold)
RV7 - N537TC (reserved & building)
Emp, Wings & Fuse done - working on FWF
"The air is an extremely dangerous, jealous and exacting mistress. Once under the spell most lovers are faithful to the end, which is not always old age." - Winston Churchill
|

07-08-2014, 07:52 AM
|
 |
|
|
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: St. Paul, MN.
Posts: 4,792
|
|
I can see why this was a problem.
At least with a 7A, filling the fuel tank is full of optical illusions. You think it's full, because the fuel is up near the top. But it's not. I don't know if it just takes time for the fuel to even out in all the sections of the tank or what but it seems to be you can think you've filled the tanks and you haven't.
If a line guy is in a hurry, I can see this happening.
I usually just fill the tank myself but this is a good reminder to me to add how many gallons the plane SHOULD take to the line guy when I tell him to fill it up.
|

07-08-2014, 08:02 AM
|
 |
|
|
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: Half Moon Bay, CA
Posts: 1,035
|
|
+1 on not obsessive. I do it every time I fly. Manually dip the tanks to confirm quantity. Good habit!
__________________
Bill Bencze
N430WB RV-7 #74152 @ KHAF, tip-up; IO-360-M1B; Hartzell CS. !! Phase 1 !!
2357 hrs over 8.5 years to get to flying. Log at: http://rv7.wbencze.com
VAF 2020 donation happily made
|
| Thread Tools |
Search this Thread |
|
|
|
| Display Modes |
Linear Mode
|
Posting Rules
|
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
HTML code is Off
|
|
|
All times are GMT -6. The time now is 01:45 AM.
|