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We have rented a nice boat on a lake last week and it was really fun. Even makes me think about getting into boating. However rental company charged us for 10.5 gallon of fuel for one hour. Compared to what a car with similar output would burn that sounds like a lot for me. The boat had a 5l Volvo Penta engine and we were driving mixed speed, sometimes slow, sometimes fast with rpm averaging around 20-30 on the scale. I have no idea... do boats usually burn that much fuel or have we been ripped off?
Last edited by Douglas Dakota; 05-31-2017 at 11:14 AM..
Gallons per hour will always vary due to all the variables, engine type and size, boat weight, planing speed, start-stop, water conditions, weather etc. On the lakes around here 7 to 8 gallons per hour is about average across the rental fleets on calm days.
It takes about 8 times the power to make a boat go the same speed as a car due to hydrodynamic drag. So yes, boats burn a ton more fuel than cars.
I have a 32' go fast performance boat (Cigarette type) with twin 500HP engines. You don't even want to know how much fuel it burns!
I've been boating since I was a kid. My folks bought a little run about when I was 4 years old. I was a Sea Explorer Scout and went to Ft Schyler Maritime Academy. Boating is in my blood.
For me, boating is the most exiting (jumping waves at 80 MPH in the ocean) and relaxing (tied up at the dock, BBQing and hanging with friends) hobby that I do.
The old saying is, "What's the happiest day of a boater's life? The day he buys his boat and the day he sells it". My reply to that is, "Well, that's not a boater. That's just some guy that owned a boat".
A real boater will go on for hours about all the good times he and his family and friends have spent boating. I know I could and also have a ton of photos to accompany my stories.
There is much to know before you buy though (type of water you are boating on -small inland lake or large lake or ocean), type of boating you want to do (water sports, family cruising, go fast) which will dictate the type of boat you buy (cruiser, small cuddy, wake boat, pontoon, run about, performance boat).
Also important to learn the rules of the road and boating safety as well as how to properly equip your boat (dock lines, anchors, PFD's, etc).
Oh, a couple more sayings, "A boat is a hole in the water where your money goes" and "B-O-A-T, stands for break out another thousand (dollars)"! Both of these ARE true!
Beware of West Marine! You can easily exceed the $1,000s in there!
Good luck in your boat hunt and happy boating! You will build life long memories. This should hit you in the gut:
There used to be a ratio of hp of a boat to fuel consumption that was basically, if you had a 150 hp outboard, it would drink 15 gallons of fuel per hour at cruise. 10% was that number, so a 200 hp would drink 20 gallons, etc. Not sure if that number is totally accurate now due to the more efficient four stroke engines. Inboards are similar.
I had a 27 footer with a 5.7 straight inboard, and a fuel meter on the dash. If I kept it at 2800 rpms, I got 8 gallons per hour. But if I jumped up to 3200 rpms, it drank 12 gallons per hour, and I only picked up a couple of miles per hour.
You using 10.5 gallons of gas was pretty typical........boats are not like cars.
From my own experience, putting gas in the boat is the least of my concerns/expenses on a day out on the lake boating. My boat a small 18 foot inboard/outboard. with a 4.3l V6 has a 32 gal. gas tank, i can go out for at least 3 full days without needing to refill the tank. I spend more money gassing up my truck to get to the lake then I do on gas for the boat.
With that said our typical day out on the boat consists of boating from the ramp to the sandbar, then maybe water sports for an hour or two and then maybe a trip around the lake and back to the ramp.
If you plan on spending all day doing water sports or driving far distances you will easily spend a lot more money on gas. If you spend a bulk of your day with the anchor out relaxing your gas costs wont be too bad.
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