Best place to buy a 175 fuel tank for a good price

[Hoffman]

After some great advice I have decided to pull and replace my 1991 fuel tank in my 175 Aquasport. I was looking for advice from members on who I should contact that would have the specs of the factory tank and not kill me on the price. I also looking to get the tanks ASAP so I can put the boat back in the water.  I am located in Florida but shipping should not be a huge issue.  Thanks

[jdupree]

Contact Phil at Alloy Metal Works in New York (631) 694-8163.  I just got a tank from him for my 200 CCP, but he has been used by several members here and should have the specs for the 175 tank.  If he doesn't, just send him the specs and he can make the tank.

Even with the cost of shipping, I came out much better than anyone else I have found.

[Capt. Bob]

You could also try RDS since they made your existing tank.

[boatnamesue]

I was looking for advice from members on who I should contact that would have the specs of the factory tank and not kill me on the price. I also looking to get the tanks ASAP so I can put the boat back in the water.  I am located in Florida but shipping should not be a huge issue.  Thanks

You wouldn't want to rely on the fabricator to know the factory fuel tank specs, and doubtful they'd have it anyway.  And unless you are the original owner you don't want to rely on what the factory fuel tank specs are for a 1991 because a previous owner might have replaced with different dimensions.  So what tanks specs do you have?....since you've decided to replace, pull the tank out and measure for yourself. 

I can tell you with 100% certainty a 1976 170 fuel tank dimensions are 56" x 20" x 6" x .125", 5052 Aluminum, 27 gallons.  Your tank might be the same.  You might be in luck as far as locating a reputable fabricator, depending on where you live in Florida.  I hired a guy whose business is located in Venice.  He did a fantastic job, turned the tank over to me in less than a week, and charged me $400, which also included a WEMA float sender ($60 retail cost).  So essentially I got the tank for $340 ($12.60/gallon).  I called all over Florida for quotes...no one came remotely close to this price, and not one fabricator could turnover the tank in less than 2 weeks.

I can't remember the guy's name, but he owns the company and works solo.  Website is below.  Good luck.
http://www.sunrisemarinetanks.com

[Capt. Bob]

A few things to check before you start.

Again, look closely at the tank sticker. It will have the build date. This will tell you if the tank has been replaced sometime within its life. Many members over the years have used Alloy Metals for their replacement tanks and Phil has been a member of this site almost since its inception.

RDS is located in Perry Fla. about 50 miles east of Tallahassee. As I stated before, they were suppliers for tanks to the Genmar built hulls (along with Florida Marine) and had the specs (cutsheet) for my 91 WAC.

Lastly, as Jason stated, if you're happy with the tank size then using that as your guide, try shopping around locally. Like he did, other members have found local builders and got a quality tank at a good price.

Good luck.

[DanB]

You can probably try Marine Connection ( http://www.themarineconnection.com/ ) in Fort Pierce, FL. I have not been there myself but I heard they have good prices and a bunch of used stock.  I have been wanting to take trip down there and check it out but have not gotten around to it.

Dan

[boatnamesue]

You can probably try Marine Connection ( http://www.themarineconnection.com/ ) in Fort Pierce, FL. I have not been there myself but I heard they have good prices and a bunch of used stock.  I have been wanting to take trip down there and check it out but have not gotten around to it.
Dan

Not taking anything away from your suggestion here ^^^...but as it specifically pertains to the fuel tanks for the 170/175 models, their dimensions are so unique that marine surplus stores won't have them in stock, and neither will business's that fabricate AL tanks.  I know this because I called every single one in the state of FL.  The tank has to be custom made, specifically because of the uncommon tank height of 6".   

[CTsalt12]

The PO of my 175 replaced with a Moeller fuel tank, believe it's a 25 gal.  However it's a little too high and this has caused issues because the fuel fill/vent neck tubes aren't 90 degree, they're straight up.  This causes a kink in the line and it's just not optimal for a few reasons.  However you might want to look into other Moeller tanks, they're economical and poly doesn't rot..

Other than the size issues I've had no issues with mine.

[Hoffman]

Thanks everyone for the advice. I ordered a tank out of NJ and have given them all the specs as the tank is now out out of the boat. I am now looking at replacing the fill house and vent if I can get it out easily. They are old and it seems to make sense to replace all of the hoses at this stage. I don't want to have to pull the floor again. If I can't get the hoses out them out I might end up bring the vent and fill line into the console and close the the hole on the starboard side.

[doug mayer]

I replaced the fuel hoses (all) in my 86 osprey 200.  The 1.5" fill hose got pinched tween the outer hull and stbd floor, inner hull crease. I bent the up-angled hose toward the bow and with some wiggles it came out easily.  There might be a milky small hose from the fuel coffin up to the area tween the fill hose and the vent hose.  I think this is supposed to vent the coffin area, so if you have it, I think you should reuse it.  The new fill hose is slightly larger in diameter than the old withered, hardened hose, and it took some work on the coffin hole to get it through, along with that coffin vent hose.  The fuel tank vent hose was easy, as was the fuel to motor hose.

[clop52]

I replaced the fuel tank in my 175 Osprey last year.  I got it from Phil in Alloy Metals. He was fantastic and the ordering and shipping process was flawless.  You will not be disappointed.
On the hoses, yes, replace them all.  Not very expensive.  Keep the old ones in place until you are ready to replace them, then tie the old ones and new ones together with duct tape so you can pull them through. Add tons of tape, you can easily peel the tape off once they are in place.  This will save lots of time and cussing.
One note on the vent hose, make sure you do a loop as you connect it to the thru hole that goes to the outside of the boat.  This will prevent you from getting water into the tank. I made this mistake and had water running through my motor for months without realizing what was wrong.  The carbs were super clogged up and luckily did not burn up on me. Let me know if you need more details.

Good luck.