Older Seafarer and Offshore fuel fill hose replacement guide

[Got Grady?]

For anyone that needs to replace the fuel fill hoses on these models here is a quick rundown. On the Seafarer I expected alot worse than what I got. Contrary to what I have heard these hoses are not all that hard to replace if you read these notes. First thing I noticed is that the hose to the aft tank went forward just below deck while the hose to the forward tank went aft. This meant that the hoses were crossed when looking at them through the access holes beside the fish box. Now this really worried me since I knew that meant they crossed again somewhere in the darkness unseen. I will mention that I did not cut any access holes to remove the filler necks from the gunnel. I removed the clamp from the vent hose and moved the hose out of my way. I was able to remove the screws to the hose clamps from the forward side and then using a small 1/4 inch drive socket to hold the nuts to the filler neck had a friend remove the screws from the top with a phillips screwdriver. The hoses even though they had been on there for 22 years came off quite easily(not the case where they attached to the tank). At this point I removed the hoses from the tanks which is no easy task but they will come off. Ok so now I have the hoses loose at both ends and have removed all the sealant where the hoses went through the floor and the stringer. Now I had just changed the hoses on an offshore 24 the week before and they are the same layout. When doing the offshore 24 I completely removed the rear hose and left it out while doing the front hose. I decided it was close enough to the same layout that I could do the same on the Seafarer. I took a can of silicone spray and sprayed the hoses heavily where they went through the floor and then everywhere I could through the small access holes beside the fish box. I then pushed down on the filler hose at the gunnel as far as it would go. Now I went too the rear tank and started pulling the hose through the stringer. Once the hose cleared the floor I was able to pull it all the way out(a little scarey yes but I was not worried). Now you can look through the hole in the stringer and see the bottom of the fish box all the way to the gunnel including the fittings and thru hull for the fish box. There is enough room there to get the new hose through without crossing over the front hose at all when done. Ok so now we work on the front hose. Having heard of many ways to attach the hoses together I decided to use rope. I pulled the hose up through the gunnel and drilled a hole through both hoses and tied them together with thin rope. Now while my buddy pulled and I pushed we started the new hose on its way to the tank. All seemed too easy and all of a sudden I felt the rope give out and yelled stop pulling. My heart sank thinking that I now had a hose with no way to route it. I told him to pull easy and he gained hose and mine did not move. I tried not to panic but had heard so many horrer stories that I was afraid of what was to come. He went ahead and pulled the old hose through and out. Still trying not to panic I reached inside the forward access hole and could feel the end of the hose. Ok so now we need rope tied to the end of this hose again, the hope here was that it would allow us to pull the hose on through. I drilled a 1/4 inch hole in the end of the vent hose and tied the rope on and pulled it back under the deck till I could get the rope through the access hole. I pulled enough rope through to tie to the fill hose and then pulled the vent hose back to the tank locker. Quick note, none of the holes were made larger anywhere during this entire project. Ok now we have a rope to pull the new hose with. He pulled and I pushed and it went fine for a few inchs and then stopped. The end of the hose had hit something in the dark. I have spent enough time looking through the holes to know it is hitting the stringer. The way these are put together they cut a notch in the stringer closest to the side of the boat. The notch runs the length of the fishbox and that is where the hoses run. We pulled it back and forth but it would not clear the stringer because of the angle it is being pulled from. Neither of us could reach more than a few inchs into that forward access hole so I called out the reserves, my 12 and 13 year old boys. First I had the older one see how far he could get his arm into the hole and try to guide the hose under the fish box. He tried and tried but just could not get it. I then got my 12 year old and drew what it looked like under the deck and explained to him where the hose needed to go. He said he understood but could still not guide the hose. I am thinking I need to cut a hole in the stringer farther back from the hole where it comes through the stringer. He says let me try one more time and I say sure no problem. He works his arm in all the way to the shoulder and then says ok now push the hose from the top. I push a little and he says ok now Tom you pull, the hose stops dead and I figure we are done then he says ok push some more and bam Tom says hey its here at the tank hold. Some whooping and hollering takes place and then we work the hose on through the stringer. We now have the new fill hose to the front tank and the vent hose is super easy to change since no hoses are crossed under the fish box anymore, it slides right through. The rear hose just needs to be pushed through and you are done. Oh and the rear vent hose is super easy now too. Just put your new hose clamps on and bed your filler necks back to the deck. Dont forget to attach the wire to the filler necks. Ok a few notes about the Offshore 24. Everything is about the same except the hoses are not crossed under the fish box so the rear hose comes out easier. The front hose actually goes around the aft end of the fish box so I drilled a 3 inch access hole through the stringer at the back of the tank by the fish box. I drilled it about 8 inchs from the middle bulkhead and about 2 inchs below the deck. Turned out to be the perfect spot as I could see the hose through the hole. I then took a piece of fishing line and tied a 3 inch loop in the end and taped it to a stiff wire(clothes hanger). I pushed it through the hole and over the hose till the loop fell behind it and then used another piece of wire(clothes hanger) with a hook bent in the end and pushed it under the hose and grabbed the loop in the fishing line and pulled it back out the hole. I then tied a piece of rope to the end of the fishing line and pulled it through and back around the hose. This gave me something to pull the hose from between the gunnel and the front of the tank. I then drilled a hole through the hose at the gunnel and tied a rope to the hose. We then used the push at the gunnel pull at the middle pull at the front routine till the old hose was through. We then pulled the rope through with the new hose attached using the same method of push a little pull the middle pull the front. Now this may sound difficult but it really is not a bad job other than your hand will be a mess from all the fiberglass when reaching through the access holes and such. I have plenty of cuts right now but I am used to it and they heal pretty quick. Using the methods above you can change all the hoses in less than 2 hours with 2 guys and a kid(kid only needed if the hoses or rope come apart. I believe if you could firmly attach the new hose to the old hose at the gunnel you could pull it through easier. I have heard several methods but this is what worked for me. A few notes; When I drilled a hole through the end of the hoses I went all the way through them not just through half the hose. The rope I used was from the bottom of an old cast net, strong and small diameter. P.S. I have fairly small hands(medium gloves fit snug) which helped alot when removing the hoses from the filler necks. I put a light coat of grease on the new hoses before pulling them through. If you have large hands then find a friend with smaller hands for this part of the job....and be really nice to him cause it kind of sucks. The 89 Seafarer had a ground wire to the forward filler neck and a jumper to the aft filler neck, the 1984 Offshore 24 did not but does now 8)

 

[PNW_Drifter]

Got Grady,

I read your whole post since I have a similar situation with my Seafarer (need to replace main tank filler hose). Did you have to remove the floor hatch ?

Thanks.