From the Boathouse: Little changes can save big on fuel

Ahoy.

Fuel prices in California have skyrocketed and the question du jour is how to save fuel while boating during the summer season. Some people can simply hoist their sails and use the wind for free. However, many skippers have to fire up the iron jenny.

What is an iron jenny? Well, for you landlubbers, the iron jenny is the engine in slang nautical terms.

Yes, I do have some recommendations to help save fuel, but it is hard for some people to change boating habits — like the need for speed and hard throttling.

Let’s begin with the basics. For optimal performance, always keep your engines serviced and tuned by an experienced boat mechanic, not a car mechanic.

Next, keep the bottom of the boat clean and devoid of growth that can create resistance while the boat is moving through water. I have seen barnacles growing under some boats, but then again, I know some of those boats never leave the dock.

Remove from your boat any extra equipment and other stuff that has accumulated — extra clothes, pots and pans, spare parts — adding weight to the vessel and requiring the use of more fuel.

Do not top off water and fuel tanks. Carry enough for the voyage with a reserve. Hundreds of gallons of extra liquids can add thousands of extra pounds to the weight of the boat.

Additionally, when was the last time that you checked your propellers to see if they might be dinged or bent? You might find it is time to have your props tuned, especially by a laser tuning system.

Lastly, back off on the throttle and lower the engine rpms. Skippers need to find their boat’s best cruising speeds for fuel consumption, and this includes learning how to properly use the trim tabs if equipped.

In a future column, I will explain how to use the trim tabs. Most skippers think there are only two settings, all the way down and all the way up.

Tip of the week: Two grants are available for fiscal year 2016 to help alleviate abandoned vessels on the water and on land. This is a growing problem in California’s waterways.

The Abandoned Watercraft Abatement Fund supports the abatement, removal, storage and disposal of abandoned, wrecked or dismantled vessels and other navigational hazards from navigable waterways, adjacent public property and private property with the landowner’s consent.

The Vessel Turn In Program allows boat owners to surrender — at no charge — unwanted recreational vessels to participating local agencies. This grant will hopefully stop boat owners from abandoning their vessels in the first place and lessen the need for the abandoned watercraft program, which can be expensive and time consuming — especially if the vessel sinks or leaks fuel or oil.

However, participating agencies have discretion over which vessels to accept under the program’s guidelines.

Boaters and boating groups should encourage their local governmental boating agencies to send in applications for the grants.

As always, just keep an eye to the weather for any changes. Please be boat smart and boat safe. Lastly, please boat responsibly and look behind you before you turn the wheel at the helm.

The original boating program, “Boathouse TV & Radio Shows,” has stretched from coast to coast for more than two decades. See the details at www.boathousetv.com, www.facebook.com/boathouseradio and www.twitter.com/boathouseradio.

Safe Voyages!

Mike Whitehead, Capt.

MIKE WHITEHEAD is a boating columnist for the Huntington Beach Independent. Send marine-related thoughts and story suggestions to mike@boathouse.com or go to www.boathousetv.com.