Fuel Flow Discussion, Moved from Float Mounting

[jaredyates]

The following posts are relocated from a discussion about mounting floats, to make it easier to find and discuss.

[MattS]

I had a hard landing after an engine failure late last year. This is a Quickbuild bearhawk and we did not reinforce any of the fuselage. We followed the suggestions of Clamar and Mark WhatsApp Image 2019-09-29 at 1.10.04 PM (4).jpeg . Ripped the floats off but very little damage to the fuselage. WhatsApp Image 2020-01-17 at 8.46.26 PM (1).jpeg

[Sir Newton]

Thanks for posting, this information Matt.

[JJohnston]

Did you determine the cause of the engine failure?

[MattS]

short story; Running on "Both" without having interconnecting tanks. Pressure differential between the tanks caused fuel flow stoppage.

[Bcone1381]

For the first time reader of this thread....Today it is 2023, consider jumping to post #174 for Matt has discoverd and shared with us a different cause of fuel starvation.

[zkelley2]

short story; Running on "Both" without having interconnecting tanks. Pressure differential between the tanks caused fuel flow stoppage.

If you dont mind its probably worth doing a post on this. It's an issue that is addressed in certified aircraft and rarely in experimental.

And since fuel related issues are the #1 experimental problem, it's worth discussing.

[Sir Newton]

100% it's worth discussing. The loss of one plane is to many planes.

[svyolo]

I am interested to learn a lot more about this, if you don't mind.

[Nev]

Same here, I’d appreciate any discussion to learn more about this.

[MitchG]

Very interested as well. I'm at a bit of a loss to understand this cause. Thanks!

[JimParker256]

Matt, add me to the list of folks who would like more details on the issue you encountered. Sounds like something the entire Bearhawk community needs to better understand.

[jaredyates]

Sounds like a great Beartracks article.

[Sir Newton]

yes, 100%
This stuff scares me during my pillow time!

[zkelley2]

It's more or less exactly what he said. If you have a fuel pump and have a both setting on your fuel selector, you need to either a) never use it in both b) have a vent line running between the two tanks towards the top of the tank to equalize the pressure in the air above the fuel. I could do some math with it later to show how that happens, but that's what's happening. You can have one tank empty and the other tank completely full and not be able to get any fuel to the engine.

Every certified aircraft has this if they have a both selector. They are required to by FAR.

[Battson]

I needed more explanation than this to get my head around it, page 3 helped me the most.

[alaskabearhawk]

Ok, zkelley2 I admit, I don’t get it. If the fuel tank is vented through the tank caps, what would a vent line connecting both tanks do for you that the cap doesn’t already do? The only failure scenario I can think of is to have one cap vent hole plugged. If that happens the fuel won’t drain out of the tank with the plugged cap and an alternate air source would be necessary.

[Archer39J]

Only thing I'm finding has to do with Cessna 182s, 185s and their interesting venting scheme, maybe an AD for vented caps? What's the FAR that requires a cross vent between independently vented tanks?

[Mark Goldberg]

One thing to keep in mind is that Matt's BH has a IO360 CONTINENTAL. Not a Lycoming. I am not sure if the fuel injection systems are the same. But worth noting. Mark

[Battson]

Mark, I am not sure if the FI system makes much difference in the extreme case.

[JJohnston]

The only failure scenario I can think of is to have one cap vent hole plugged. If that happens the fuel won’t drain out of the tank with the plugged cap and an alternate air source would be necessary.

If that were the case, would a fuel crossover serve to equalize the pressure? Do the kit tanks have a provision for a vent crossover?