Cessna 182 fuel burn

[455 Bravo Uniform]

No, you addressed the question...the vent line is independent of the switch.

I had heard that when fueling one tank, when filled, it would start draining to the other wing, and when fueling the second tank and that tank showed full, the first tank would have less than it had when initially filled.

 

[ytodd]

My 182P, with an O-470, I've flown for a little over 3 years and 325 hours consistently burns 12-13gph

Flown about 6 hours in the last day with top offs 3 times. The number was 12.3.

 

[denverpilot]

No, you addressed the question...the vent line is independent of the switch.

I had heard that when fueling one tank, when filled, it would start draining to the other wing, and when fueling the second tank and that tank showed full, the first tank would have less than it had when initially filled.

Depends on how high you fill the first tank and it's a slow move from one to the other. Our hangar is slightly unlevel (luckily toward the non-vent side) so we fuel the left a little more and by the time we go fly again, a couple of gallons have moved to the right side through the vent line if the airplane is well above half full.

 

[flytime]

....should all take place inside the engine.

Often the discrepancy is fuel leakage.
Every Cessna I ever flew leaked fuel out of the low wing while parked.

Excellent point. In our club, standard procedure is to always switch the fuel tank selector to the right tank when parked. This will eliminate cross-feeding from one tank to the other. It is most useful when fueling, but also should prevent leaking from full tanks when parked on slightly uneven ground.

 

[denverpilot]

Excellent point. In our club, standard procedure is to always switch the fuel tank selector to the right tank when parked. This will eliminate cross-feeding from one tank to the other. It is most useful when fueling, but also should prevent leaking from full tanks when parked on slightly uneven ground.

Trust me. It doesn't work unless the valve built into the vent tube also works. It doesn't really prevent cross flow.

Park on an uneven surface sometime wit the left wing downhill, full it full, and set the main selector to the right tank, and it'll still pour out of the vent on the left until the level gets below the cross vent line between the two tanks.

 

[Hunter]

Trust me. It doesn't work unless the valve built into the vent tube also works. It doesn't really prevent cross flow.

Park on an uneven surface sometime wit the left wing downhill, full it full, and set the main selector to the right tank, and it'll still pour out of the vent on the left until the level gets below the cross vent line between the two tanks.

Denverpilot is exactly right, fuel selector won't stop cross flow. On same note, filling up might take quite a while because they are constantly flowing from one tank to the other. After you fill the first side, and by the time you have moved to the other, a few gallons have already drained out of the full tank into the other one. To get accurate numbers, you have to let it settle for a minute.
My 182J gets 14 GPH at 23 squared, I'm running 75-85 ROP.