Running off plane on a single engine.
04-13-2010 | 04:10 PM
#11
Registered
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 1,801
Likes: 33
From: Palm Bay FL
i always run on 2, need as much help as i can get. When we first got the boat we were idling thru the GG no wake section. Next thing i know one engine dies. So i try to get it started again, then the other one dies & we come to a drift. Neither one would refire. I then realized that they werent even getting power. i open the cabin door & see that both the engine switches are in the down position. apparantly my 5 yr old when attempting to close the door ended up hitting the switches & killing the engines. talk about going from dead panic to relief.
04-13-2010 | 07:55 PM
#14
Platinum Member
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 1,460
Likes: 77
From: Omaha - LOTO
It really depends on where I'm idling whether or not I shut one down...when it's really hot out i usually run on one and then switch to the other when coming back through the other direction...
04-13-2010 | 08:13 PM
#15
Skater Brother
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 2,541
Likes: 5
From: Wichita, KS
I always shut all but one down.
Around Ft. Myers we have a number of slow zones.
One of the boats I sold had 50 hrs on it. When I pulled up the log on the Smartcraft, 27 hrs were between 500 and 1500 RPM.
Beside cutting down the hours there have been studies that show you do burn less fuel by running on one engine.
If you look at all of that it seems like there's no good reason to run more than one.
Of course if you have power steering on just one motor it gets a little trickier.
Around Ft. Myers we have a number of slow zones.
One of the boats I sold had 50 hrs on it. When I pulled up the log on the Smartcraft, 27 hrs were between 500 and 1500 RPM.
Beside cutting down the hours there have been studies that show you do burn less fuel by running on one engine.
If you look at all of that it seems like there's no good reason to run more than one.
Of course if you have power steering on just one motor it gets a little trickier.
04-13-2010 | 08:41 PM
#16
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Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 5,325
Likes: 112
From: Northern NY
Been there, done that! However I have found that the gas would have been far cheaper than the fix. Odd how running on 16 can end up being cheaper than running on 8 while dragging the other 8!
04-16-2010 | 09:07 AM
#19
artselectricinc.com
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 703
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From: Longview, WA, USA
04-16-2010 | 09:18 AM
#20
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Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 3,078
Likes: 80
From: Fort Worth, TX
Me too. I don't like for mine to idle in gear at less than 1000-1100 RPM's. So I always keep one at idle so they are both at 1000+. I tend to shut one off after midnight. Its always fun to see other boaters admirring the sound only to be suprised by another popping off.
