1995 Pursuit 3000 Fuel tank leak

[TonyB_Sydney]

Hi team,

new member, so thanks for letting me join!

A year or so back i bought a 1995 Pursuit 3000 Offshore with Volva KAD300 engines (2004). Did a heap of electrical upgrades including a full rewiring. Amazing boat, and handles the swell offshore Sydney perfectly.

Just recently, a new challenge has emerged that I would love some advice on! A week or so back i found a bit of diesel in the rear bilge before heading out for a fish. Not a huge quantity so I siphoned it out and we went off shore. I checked through the day and didn’t seem to have any significant volume in there. Came back, refilled to bowser click off and since then a constant amount has been getting in to the bilge. i would guess at about 30 litres a day for two days. Besides the environment risk, the cost of throwing diesel away breaks my heart!! I have checked breather and inlet/outlets with nothing coming from there.

Two questions.... anyone else had a similar issue and could suggest where i can start looking for the leak? And, worst case, has anyone replaced the tank on a 3000 offshore and if so, what was the process and the damage?

Thanks all....tony

[Dan1]

Diesels return the majority of the fuel they pump to the engine back to the tank,take the deck caps off and have a look at the return/supply hose fittings on top of the tanks. Take a couple of pics of the top of the tanks while you have the caps off and post them.

Also have a look at the fill/ breather hoses while your there, use an inspection camera if you have one.

The bottom of the tanks is only a few inches from the bilge, if the boat has been operated over the years with water in there the aluminum tanks may have been submerged in salt water, you should be able to put an inspection camera through the steering compartment weep hole and get a visual on the tank condition, you may also be able to do the same from the engine room weep hole to look at the front of the tanks.

[TonyB_Sydney]

Thanks for the reply. The return lines, uptakes and breather were my first suspicion but they are all good - tank is down to a bit higher than three quarters and the drip continues. I am siphoning out about 9 litres a day - down from about 25 litres a day at its worst. Photo attached looking from the steering compartment back towards the front of the tank and engine room bulkhead - circled area is where the leak is dropping to.

Have had an inspection camera through the engine room weep holes and unable to find it - but do know it is between the centre stringers. I have a board screwed in the bulkhead on the starboard side of centre which i will remove hoping to find an inspection hole or maybe uncover work done by a previous owner - and get the camera in there further.

[TonyB_Sydney]

Update....have taken around 100 litres of fuel out over the weekend - so probably now about 250 litres from full and around 10cm down from the top of the tank. Drip has effectively stopped. Still not sure where it has come from - made an inspection hole in the engine room bulkhead and used a camera but couldnt find any source. Shipwright will have a more detailed look when she is up on the slip in a few weeks.