Digital fuel gauges

islandboy

islandboy

Pre-takeoff checklist
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islandboy
I've got a C182P and have tired of the wobbly readings, etc. What would you suggest as a digital replacement?

74 gal useable.
 
CiES fuel senders and an Aerospace logic gauge (assuming you don’t have something else the senders can display on)
 
islandboy said:
Like this?

https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/pnpages/10-06539.php

https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/inpages/aerofl202.php
Click to expand...

I believe that's the right sender, you'll want to make sure it's the frequency sender. And you'll want the digital (frequency) Aerospace logic gauge. The FL202D https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/pnpages/10-06812.php ... note it's cheaper from Aerospace Logic directly than spruce: http://www.aerospacelogic.com/index.php?dispatch=products.view&product_id=249
 
islandboy said:
I've got a C182P and have tired of the wobbly readings, etc. What would you suggest as a digital replacement?

74 gal useable.
Click to expand...

We have a 182L with an Aerospace Logic FL202D and CiES CC284022 0602-101 transmitters. In stable air I would bet its within a gallon of actual fuel in the tanks.**

I did go a bit above and beyond calibration of the system. We already had dual G5 flight instruments and many pictures of them with the airplane in "level flight attitude" so I jacked and level the airplane to match. We also had a real gasoline dispenser calibration can handy. After all that we put the airplane on the floor drained the tanks again and made an "airplane on ground" fuel quantity correction card.

**Its pretty easy to see that the last couple gallons are not measurable by the system so until those are burned off the instrument will read "Full"

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Just had CiES sending units put in for a customer who was experiencing large fluctuations on the JPI. I’ve flown one test/repositioning flight since. Rock solid now. No erroneous JPI warning now. Very pleased so far. Keep in mind that CiES has a 2-3 week lead time in shipping. We ordered last week and had to pay for their AOG service to get them quickly.
 
I have a '76P as well. I have been using Insight G2 for 10 years and it has been flawless. 6 CHTs, 6EGTs, carb temp, voltage, fuel flow, and fuel totalizer. All for $3K installed. The fuel totalizer is super accurate.
 
I put CIES senders in my 182k as well. The head unit that you connect them to also matters, because they have different settings to deal with jitter.

All fuel gauges will move up and down a little bit as you maneuver or fly, but mine are usually within two to three gallons of my extremely well calibrated fuel flow indicator.

I have an MVP 50 engine monitor, that's connected to the CIES senders.

Highly recommended.
 
i have the same set up. in stable air it is accurate to .2 gal (verified multiple times). i have myself taken one tank to the reading of .5 and then switched to the other tank since it was night and i didnt wanted to push my luck. if you are doing the calibration yourself and i recommend you do, there are some YT videos on how to do it, watch it a few times and make sure you are alone when you are doing the calibration.

it sucks to drain the tank more than once when you do it wrong because your crusty IA is asking a gazillion questions when you are doing the calibration . dont ask me how i know it
 
Are these capacitance or resistive sending units?

I have an MVP50 that I've calibrated twice, but still always shows 5-6 gallons low. (Shows that I have less than the actual fuel remaining)
 
WannFly said:
believe they are Magnetic Field Fuel Senders
Click to expand...

EdFred said:
Are these capacitance or resistive sending units?

I have an MVP50 that I've calibrated twice, but still always shows 5-6 gallons low. (Shows that I have less than the actual fuel remaining)
Click to expand...

I have a pair in my 172 coupled to an FL202D. Incredible units.

The CiES senders are magneto-reluctance sensors, is my understanding. They have a float, just like a resistive unit, but instead of feeding the motion to a pot, the arm has a small, strong permanent magnet attached to the sensing end. That's sensed through the fully enclosed aluminum body of the unit with reluctance. This is the same tech that's used in ABS systems for measuring wheel speed or in a crankshaft position sensor to measure crank angle. It's very well understood tech that works even in dirty, hot, vibrating conditions.
 
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