How-to: Maintenance

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Simrad Yachting said customers purchasing certain new marine electronics products from authorized dealers are entitled to rebates up to $200. While the program runs til the end of June, customers who purchased eligible products beginning February 8, 2010 are also eligible for the rebates. That’s a nice touch. Here’s a list provided by Simrad of the [...] …Read More

A few weeks back I announced that a new Alerion 33 electric boat was on the horizon. Friday I made a visit to Pearson Composites to check on the build progress. Things are coming along quite nicely and I'm excited about getting a chance to tag along on the sea trials. Its looking like we may be only 6-8 weeks away. On Friday, I met with engineer Wayne Burkett as he was getting ready to perform some electrical tests to the motor control system as everything was in place and ready to run. The photo below shows where we were on Friday:  What you see above is the pair of Mastervolt Lithium ION batteries to port and starboard and the chargers that will replenish them. In the very center is the motor controller which is mounted just aft of the electric motor that is the heart of the system. Remember, this boat is all electric, not a hybrid. The motor is shown below:  I was amazed at how smooth and quiet the motor is. On Friday the motor was not even bolted in place on its mounts to accomodate final placement when the shaft and coupling are installed. Even at full RPM the motor was nearly silent and there was virtually no vibration. A far cry from the two or three cylinder diesel this system is intended to eliminate. I asked Wayne about the engineered run time on the two batteries presently installed and the estimate is 4 hours at hull speed. Just to be safe, and allow for a relatively easy expansion of the system Pearson has installed a pair of extra mounting trays for an additional pair of the same lithium ION batteries in case we find out that 4 hours run time is not realistic after testing, or if the owner decides they want to extend their range. Remember, the concept here is based on a day sailor, not an extended cruising boat.  According to Wayne all of the Mastervolt gear and integration to date has worked flawlessly and things are moving along as planned. I can hardly wait to see how it all works once we get it in the water. Stay tuned because I'll be along for the ride when the boat gets launched and will be sure to get some live video of us underway to bring to my YouTube channel.      …Read More

KVH Industries said today that current TracVision satellite TV customers can upgrade to the latest HD7 system and get a rebate of up to $2,000, depending on which system they are upgrading. The promotion runs through June 30, 2010. The deal requires the customer to return to KVH the old system’s circuit boards via an [...] …Read More

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Parker Hannifin has a remarkable new fuel polishing system that has been designed specifically to run nonstop, using extremely small amounts of electricity and with a design that makes it seem nearly immortal when compared to conventional pumps. The new FPM-050 Fuel Polishing Module (click on the photo above for a larger view) consists of a [...] …Read More

I really like the idea of using the newer plastic sea strainers you see being used increasingly on new boats. They offer one less thing to get green with corrosion and nearly impossible to open up to clean out once they get that way. But I have observed something about them that needs to be shared with all of you that may have one of these installed on your boat. The strainer I'm talking about is shown in the photo below to the left of the engine as you look at it. The caps on these units simply thread onto the reservoir. But, that's the catch. Having taken a few of these apart to clean out the strainer of debris I've observed that it is extremely easy to cross thread the cap when reinstalling it. Be Careful! I was amazed at how easily this can happen. If you get it cross threaded and then force screw the cap down either it won't seal or you may actually crack the cap. Either way you'll have a problem. Don't expect to be able to find a new cap at the next boatyard you pull into because you won't. When servicing these strainers make certain that the strainer basket is in its proper resting place within the plastic housing and carefully rethread the cap back. It should screw on easily with no force needed. If you encounter any resistance in threading the cap on, STOP! Back the cap off and start over making sure the threads on the cap and housing are properly engaged. A close up look at one of these units made by Vetus is shown here: With a little caution these strainers should last several lifetimes, just watch those threads! …Read More

Cole Hersee has just introduced a new battery master switch #75920 that is quite unique, and has a place on a lot of boats, especially small open boats. In my view all boats with a battery should have a master shut off switch. ABYC Standard E-10 does exempt boats with a single battery rated at 800 Cold Cranking Amps (CCA) or less, but personally I prefer to have a master switch installed. What makes the Cole Hersee switch unique is that it has clearly been designed for extreme weather exposure. Its housing is made of a polymer and tested to an SAE 1455 standard for exposure to road salt, calcium chloride and magnesium chloride. Its waterproof rating is IP 67, which is ideal for small open boats where the switch is most likely going to be mounted in a highly exposed location. The switch is rated for 300 amps at 12 VDC, more than ample for the average small open boat, even one of mine which has more electrical gear on it than the average 50 footer. Another unique feature is the slotted handle and matching housing slot. These are specifically designed for situations where tag-out lock out may be required in an industrial application, but for the small boat owner this feature provides additional security against theft. My skiff for example, spends the summer on a mooring and I'm certainly not around to watch the boat every day. Locking the power off adds just one more step a thief would have to go through to steal my boat. Waterproof, salt proof and I can lock the power off all add up to making this switch a winner in my view. This one is going on my boat before I launch this summer.     …Read More

One of the easiest but totally forgotten maintenance items that should be on your checklist this spring is to service the vented loops on your boat. In case you have no idea what a vented loop is, several pictures might help. Vented loops are used in on board plumbing systems where a thru-hull fitting brings water on board below the boat's water line. Typical uses are for head systems and engine raw water intakes. The idea behind the vented loop is to allow the water to enter the system it serves when needed, but prevent siphoning of water when the system is not in use. Without breaking the siphon, which the valve hidden under the cap at the top in the photo above is supposed to do, you run the risk of water siphoning in and well, maybe sinking your boat! These things are simple in design, but totally neglected when it comes to routine service. The details of the inside of the valve mechanism is shown below:   Not much going on under that cap, just a small rubber one way valve. But here's what happens to them. Over time they become contaminated with calcium deposits and or other small bits of debris in the water that flows through the loop on a daily basic. Eventually they can become permanently closed so that when its time to vent to prevent siphoning, they won't work. The fix is easy here and I recommend it as an annual maintenance item. Begin by threading the cap off to access the valve. You will probably need a set of water pump pliers or small pipe wrench to get the cap loose. Clean the valve, cap and the seat area the valve sits in with some warm water and vinegar. The vinegar will dissolve any calcium deposits. Once clean, re-install the duckbill valve and thread the cap back on. Note that some boats today are using more sophisticated valve mechanisms, and they may have an additional hose attached to the vent to divert any water that spits out to your boat's bilge, rather than squirting water all over system components near the valve. The photo below shows such an arrangement. The valve shown is a bit more complex than the units shown earlier, it's actually easier to close the sea cock supplying the water and removing the valve mechanism from its mount for disassembly and cleaning. Again, vinegar works great for dissolving any calcuim build-up. So, again, I'm hung on the small details that will help ensure a trouble-free boating experience. These vented loops / anti-siphon valves are installed for a good reason, to make sure sea water doesn't back up into your boat when you least expect it. Make sure they are able to do their job, an annual bath is all they are asking for.     …Read More

If you've read any of my earlier posts you may be getting the idea that I'm kind of a nut for details. I am, and details can make the difference between trouble-free boating or a never ending string of "surprises". Its your choice as to which way you prefer to go. Relative to battery installations I see several common mistakes being made today that will definately contribute to the surprise factor, and often when you least expect it. In the photo below you see a fairly typical example of a brand new boat with at least three things wrong with the battery installation. First, the green and red wing nuts that secure the positive and negative battery cables to their posts are no longer compliant with ABYC's E-10 battery standard. The Standard now states that cables 6 AWG and larger shall not be attached with wing nuts. The obvious question is why? This has been common practice for years. Its also caused some problems for years. The cables you see are probably 2 AWG in size, which is much larger than 6 AWG. This means they are intended to carry large amounts of current (amperage) to facilitate engine cranking, maybe to supply an inverter, or perhaps both. The issue is that these terminations may get a bit warm from time to time and repeated heating and cooling cycles will eventually cause the wing nuts to get loose, further exasperating the problem of heat generation. Remember the primary by-product of electrical resistance is heat, the primary causes of electrical resistance on boats are loose or corroded connections, or wire too small for the task at hand. In any event, when these wing nuts get loose enough, arcing can occur at the terminal and if the batteries happen to be connected to a charging source and gassing a bit, the batteries could explode. Or, in a more mundane situation, the engine won't start or electrical equipment could simply just start blinking out. These terminals should be secured with conventional hex nuts and lock washers and tightened with a socket or wrench! Wing nuts be gone! Unfortunately my eye also sees several other matters of concern with the installation above. If you look carefully at the terminal clamps you'll see some light green grease smeared over the terminals. This is to help prevent corrosion from building up and again, some people have been using grease for this purpose for years. Its a bad choice. Remember these terminals will get warm from time to time and the grease will melt and turn to an oily fluid. It will act like penetrating oil and seep between the clamp and the post on the batteries. This in itself will cause electrical resistance and heat, which in turn will cause the thin film of grease to get hot enough to actually dry out, leaving a terrific insulating barrier between the clamp and the post on the battery, which in turn creates even more electrical resistance. Don't use grease for this purpose! I use a product that's readily available at most marine supply stores, Boeshield T-9. As the name implies it was actually invented by Boeing Aircraft. It's a great corrosion inhibitor and it dries to an almost clear film that will not break down with the typical heat associated with battery terminals. Next, as I look at the photo above I see that the batteries are sitting in a wooden enclosure. Standards dictate that battery enclosures be made of materials that will not be affected by exposure to battery electrolyte. Wood will be dramatically damaged by exposure to electrolyte. The easiest fix here is to remove the batteries and paint the inside of the area with some West System epoxy. The epoxy will not be affected by exposure to any electrolyte spill. Now if you are using AGM or gel batteries I would not worry too much about this as electrolyte spills are a non issue. Finally, as I look at the photo, I can't tell for sure, but it appears the only thing holding the batteries in place in the vertical plane is gravity. Not good! Here's what I tell technicians I train. Ask yourself this question, if the boat does a 360 degree roll-over will the batteries be in the same place they were before the event?  Yes / No . If you circled yes, the installation is good to go.   …Read More