Fuel tank demarcations

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Thread Starter

Paul Choyce

I have a fuel tank which is a horizontal cylinder. It's length is 60'' and it's radius is 11'5'' It holds just under 100 gallons.
I would like to use a yardstick as a dipstick. I know inches to gallons may not be accurate in this situation because the tank is not square. I need a formula with the correct constant to be able to graduate my dipstick so as to get correct readings of gallons available.

Thanks in advance.
 
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Bruce Thompson

Knowing - as you do - that the tank volume will not be linearly represented on a yard stick, there is no constant available to gage the gallons to inches scale.

However, this web-site (a quick google search) provides the equation needed.

http://www.london-electronics.com/tank_volume.php

Note that if the percent of depth is between 30 and 70 percent, then the volume can be roughly approximated with a constant.
 
if its half full on the stick, thats 50 gals at one-quarter full you are down to 20 gals time to fill up at that point.
 
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Bruce Thompson

Another thought too.

Given the information that you're now receiving and viewing on other web-sites, there's really no reason to use a yardstick and then go to a chart (or equations) for calculating the gallons.

Since you're willing to drop a stick into the tank, why not just put the calculated gallons onto the stick. You'll get your answer directly every time you use it.
 
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> Since you're willing to drop a stick into the tank, why not just put the
> calculated gallons onto the stick. You'll get your answer directly every time you use it.

That is the crux of what I am asking: how do I demarcate the stick?
 
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