NAUTICAL MILE
P U B L I C A T I O N S
Tom Papesh
Ethanol fuel is up to 10% ethanol and ethanol can hold up to 100% of its volume of water. But it only takes 4 tablespoons of water per gallon to cause the ethanol to separate and this separation can cause big problems. This event is called “phase separation”. Ethanol fuel can reach this point in just 3 months at 70% humidity.
When this happens and the ethanol is at the bottom of your fuel tank and the gasoline is at the top, the gasoline’s octane level can be reduced to less than 87. Most engines won’t run on less than 87 octane. The ethanol in the bottom can clog filters and cause poor performance in your engine. Also, the ethanol has a corrosive nature that can affect fuel components causing them to fail.
Here are some things you can do to prevent this problem: install a 10 micron fuel water separator, keep your fuel tank full. If your engine and, therefore, your fuel has been sitting without use, pull a sample from your separator
before use and dispose of all fuel if it has separated.
Use a good additive, one that has de-
For recommended brands contact York Road Marine.
What’s Your Keel?
Have you checked your mast rigging lately? Salt water, over time, can destroy your standing rigging and it should be inspected regularly to prevent a total loss of your mast. York Road Marine can inspect your rigging and advise you of any potential problems.
To keep your engine running properly, regular maintenance is a must. And for proper maintenance all you need to do is check your owner’s manual. Your owner’s manual will tell you what the scheduled maintenance intervals are.
Engines should be maintained properly to keep in compliance with your warranty and, more importantly, so your engine won’t let you down. All engine manufacturers recommend you service certain items either by hours on the motor or by time intervals, whichever comes first. In a salt water environment this is very important. For instance, you may only use your boat twenty hours a year, but you should still change your oil at least once a year. Oil can lose its lubricating abilities over time.
Lack of use of your engine can create more problems than consistent use of your engine. Some problems that can occur and possibly cause bigger expenses are; thermostats that stick can cause oil and fuel problems; internal engine zincs that are not checked can create excessive corrosion and even catastrophic failure of blocks and cylinder heads.
When in doubt read your owner’s manual or contact your factory authorized dealer to get the manufacturers recommended service table. Use OEM (original equipment manufacturer) parts for best results and reliability. Most OEM parts are guaranteed for one year.
What’s Your Keel?
Sailors, remember annual service is just as important with your auxiliary engine. And preventative measures should be taken to keep your fuel stabilized or, if you use diesel fuel, you should add an algaecide to protect your fuel system from the damaging effects of algae growth. You should also check your owner’s manual for recommended service intervals.
Selecting the right propeller for your engine and boat can improve performance and save you money on fuel costs.
All engine manufacturers have a recommended operating RPM range. It is extremely important to allow the engine to reach the proper rated RPM. This puts less strain or load on the engine, which in turn will allow the engine to run cooler and consume less fuel. It will also increase the life of the engine. Proper propeller selection is the key to achieving the recommended rated RPMs. Props that are too large will bog down your engine and this can cause many unpredictable problems. It can also void your manufacturers warranty.
Some signs of an overloaded motor can be: continuous running problems, fouled spark
plugs, over-
Some of these problems can be fixed by simply changing out your prop to the right size. But some problems may need further repair to the engine.
You can call The Boat Guys @ York Road Marine and they can help you choose the right prop for your engine and boat.
What’s Your Keel?
Sailors have the same issues with prop selection as power boaters. Don’t believe if you run your engine at half the rated RPM’s your engine will last twice as long. If your propeller is too large you can damage your engine. Too large a prop will bog the engine and cause higher fuel consumption and shorten the life of your engine.
Not all Facilities are the Same
When choosing a repair facility for your boat you should check out their credentials.
There are many ways the marine industry has to assure consumers that the repair facility
or mechanic they use is up-
Sea Cock Safety
According to Boat US faulty sea cocks and thru hills can be blamed for 44% of all the boats that sink at the dock. Here are some tips on sea cock maintenance:
Check all hose connections under the water line, all hoses should be double clamped. These clamps should be stainless steel and installed with the screw of each clamp 180 degrees from each other. Check the bonding wires and make sure they are in place and free of corrosion. All hoses below the water line should have an operable sea cock. Make sure to operate your sea cocks at least once a month to keep them from seizing up. Grease sea cocks once a year to keep them operating properly for a long time. Check sea cocks and thru hulls for discoloration, looseness or pitting, these are signs of trouble. When in doubt check with a reputable repair facility.
What Your Keel?
Sailors should be aware that if your engine doesn’t start in the first 10 to 20 seconds you should close off your engine sea cock to prevent serious damage to your engine from water backing up thru your exhaust system.
The Boat Guys @ York Road Marine
With a combined 75 years of experience The Boat Guys at York Road Marine keep up-
Getting Your Boat Season-
Before getting back on the water a complete inspection of your boat should be performed after storing it for the winter.
Here’s a check list of items that should be inspected:
-
clamps.
-
lubricate the shaft. If you have a hub in
your prop have it tested or replaced if
there are signs of wear.
-
-
cables, tiller arms, lubricate as needed.
-
-
strainers and replace if cracked or
corroded.
-
hoses and clamps for cracks and
corrosion.
-
forget trim fluids.
-
replace if you find cracks, lubricating
cracked cables will make matters worse.
-
adjustments, replace packing as needed.
-
filler caps assembly.
-
change fuel filter elements.
-
leaks, they should be disassembled every
few years and inspected or replaced as
needed to prevent severe engine failure.
-
if corroded, bad connections can be a fire
hazard, check the battery electrolyte.
-
pumps, clean bilge pump impeller and
float switch of any oil and debris.
-
out of date.
-
in good condition and not out of date.
-
sure they are free of cracks and
corrosion, don’t store propane tanks on
your boat.
-
electrical items that grease and oil can come in contact with.
-
What’s your keel?
Sailors need to check out their rigging, remove the tape from turnbuckles, lubricate and turn a little to prevent them from seizing.
-
wires that can catch fingers.
-
caulked every few years and inspected for rust or electrolysis.
The Boat Guys @ York Road Marine
With a combined 75 years of experience The Boat Guys at York Road Marine keep up-
Even if you pay careful attention to safety, dangerous mechanical problems can crop
up on the best-
Vessel Safety Checks are offered by experienced members of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary and the United States Power Squadrons, two of the nations premier volunteer boating safety organizations. York Road Marine can also perform this inspection for a small charge. A Vessel Safety Check is your best way of learning about problems that might put you in violation of state or federal laws or, worse, create danger for you or your passengers on the water.
You can find an examiner near you by going to www.vesselsafetycheck.org and click on I Want a VSC
You can also do an on-
Exhaust manifolds are one of those items that people seem to fear. Because of this fear most boat owners think that if they don’t worry about them there won’t be any problems. This is definitely the wrong approach. The life expectancy of marine exhaust manifolds depends on many factors.
There are some general rules of maintenance that can help you prolong the life of your engine. Proper inspections of your engine room should be performed. Upon inspection, if you find any corrosion, this may be a sign that you have a water leak. This water leak could be from the exhaust manifolds. If your manifolds are leaking into the engine room they may also be leaking internally into your engine. This of course would be catastrophic if not corrected immediately.
We just did a repair on a 2006 28’ foot Donzi with only 70 hours on it. It had twin
engines and both were over-
Also this month we had a 2005 Sea Ray with severe corrosion problems thru out the engine room. Again it turned out the manifolds were leaking water and damaged the following; Motor mounts, Spark plugs, Dipstick Tube, Oil pan, Starter, Electric fuel pump, Fuel filter, Misc. wiring. This boat had an extended warranty from the boat builder but none of the repairs were covered because all the damage was corrosion related.
To save money and down-
I put this chart together to give some guide lines to what the marine industry life expectancies of exhaust manifolds are. Of course this depends on what type of conditions your engine is run in. Salt water operated boats could fail in three years and fresh water operated boats can see twenty years. The industry average is six to eight years.
YEARS IN SERVICE vs
PROBABILITY OF FAILURE
3 / .05%
4 / 25%
5 / 45%
6 / 65%
7 / 85%
8 / 90%
9 / 100%
What’s Your Keel
Remember diesel auxiliary engines have exhaust manifolds and exhaust elbows that also need to be inspected and replaced. The same time table above should provide a guideline of inspection and replacement if needed.
Care and service tips
1. Perform a visual inspection. Inspect for defective or cracked case and cover,
and loose or damaged terminal posts or cables. Replace battery and/ or cables immediately
if any damage is found. Look for loose connections or hold-
2. Keep the batteries and battery compartment clean and corrosion free. Dirty, corroded
batteries can self-
3. Shine lead posts and terminal ends with a wire brush or steel wool to clean corrosion
and assure a low resistance connection. Reassemble and coat lead parts with petroleum
jelly or a terminal protection spray. Repaint hold-
Load Testing
1. Follow the instructions on the variable load tester or bring it to York Road Marine to load test your battery.
Charging tips
1. Batteries should be charged if hydrometer reading is below 1.225 specific gravity, or open circuit voltage is below 12.4 volts, or if the first load test is below 9.6 volts as noted previously.
2. Carefully read and follow the instructions that came with the charger to avoid serious injury, property damage and/or battery damage.
3. Unplug the charger before connecting or disconnecting a battery to avoid dangerous sparks which can cause a battery to explode.
4. Do not leave a battery on charge for more than 48 hours to avoid damaging the
battery by over-
5. Stop the charge when two hydrometer or voltage readings recorded two hours apart indicate no increase. Further charging would be useless and may damage the battery and shorten its life. If the battery won’t come up to full charge, replace it. NEVER leave a battery on a trickle charger longer than 48 hours. Serious damage to the battery WILL occur.
Batteries that are not in use during the off-
1. Disconnect the batteries to avoid self-
2. Put into storage fully charged and keep them above 75% state-
3. Ideally, store batteries in a cool, dry place with temperatures not below 32¼F
(0¼C) or above 80¼F (27¼C). Typically, batteries will self-
This information was taken from the Deka Battery Company website: www.dekabatteries.com.
York Road Marine is a Deka dealer and can help you with any of your battery needs.
We carry a full line of Deka batteries.
The Boat Guys @ York Road Marine
With a combined 75 years of experience The Boat Guys at York Road Marine keep up-
Outboard Power Tilt and Trim Units
Power Tilt and Trim units as complicated as they may seem, they can be maintained and repaired with proper tools and parts. And of course training.
Power trim units should be properly maintained just as everything else on your outboard engine.
They have fluid and filters that should be changed and cleaned. The fluid should be checked and if low topped off. If you notice that you have to add fluid often this could be a sign that there is a leak. In that case you should check for visible leaks. You may need to run then unit up and down a few times to find the leak. If your fluid is discolored this also could be a sign of a leak. The trim unit may not be leaking fluid out but maybe allowing water in. Your trim unit may also be wearing out from old age or poor oil quality. The oil can be changed to try and extend the life of your trim unit. There are filters inside of the unit that can be cleaned. This usually takes a trained technician. So ask your dealer if he has been trained by the factory to perform the repairs or maintenance correctly as needed. Most manufacturers have the parts available to perform proper repairs and this can be a cost effective option, compared to replacing the unit assembly.
Make sure you maintain zinc anodes. Make sure bonding wires are in their proper places. Check bonding wires for corrosion. If they don't contact the housing properly the trim unit could fail prematurely. Make sure all bolts, pins and circle clips are tacked. Check the electric motor for cracks and corrosion, and check the wires to make sure they are not cracked or corroded. You need to check outside the engine cover and inside the engine cover. Grease any zerk fittings. Lastly your trim unit totally depends on a good battery, make sure your battery is in good shape and the connections are clean.
Using quality anti-
Ablative or Hard?
The type of paint you should use depends on several factors: What are the fouling conditions of the water that your boat will be in? How long is your boat in the water for? How often do you use your boat? Is your boat a fast or slow moving vessel?
Ablative Paint: Ablative paint is a soft bottom paint that is designed to wear away
as your boat is used. As the water moving over the boat’s surface wears away the
paint, fresh layers of biocide are continuously exposed, so that the anti-
Hard Finish Paint: These paints are not designed to wear off the way ablative paints
do. If you frequently use your boat for high-
Should I paint my boat every year?
This question can be answered once you figure out what paint it is that you are going
to use. Some paints are designed to release their antifouling agents all at once
over the course of one season and must be re-
What if my bottom paint is chipping or peeling?
This is not an easy question to answer because there could be many reasons. Sometimes it’s as simple as whoever painted the boat previously didn’t do it right, or as complicated as problems with the underlying fiberglass. If someone didn’t properly prepare the bottom, your paint may not stick. The incompatability of the paints that are used year after year (switching brands/types) or not properly preparing the bottom between applications in accordance with manufacturer’s specifications can cause the paint to chip or peel. Sometimes there is too much paint on the bottom because the boat has been around for a long time and has had so many coats applied. The best solution to these problems is to have the old bottom paint removed completely, have any damaged areas repaired and new bottom paint applied by the professionals at York Road Marine.
Even some of the best in the business don’t realize the key to proper engine and shaft alignment and the proper way to achieve it. Proper alignment can increase efficiency and decrease the chance of a major drive train failure. Improper alignment can cause shafts to break, transmission housings to crack, shaft logs to leak, struts to come loose or break and couplings to come loose. I have seen, in the last two months, three different boats that the owners recently just had their engines aligned. But when the boat came to our boat yard their propeller shafts were rubbing against the shaft log. This rubbing was so severe in all three cases that the shaft needed to be replaced.
Aligning the new shaft properly and the engine to the shaft was very time consuming and costly for the owners of these boats. To properly align the engine means that the motor mounts need to be in good condition. The motor mount adjustment nuts need to be free to move the engine into proper position. And if there is rubber in the mounts, it should be in good condition or the mounts may need to be replaced.
Proper alignment takes some special tools and the expertise to decide if all the components are in good condition or in need of replacement. In some cases a good machine shop is needed to repair shafts, props and struts. We are fortunate to have the best prop shop that I have worked with in the last 28 years here in the area, Coastal Propeller, and they are located in Cape Coral. Randy, Janice and Len bring many years of experience to our area. They are key to a proper alignment.
If you think you have an alignment problem give us a call at York Road Marine and I can come to your boat and evaluate the situation. Perhaps improve your boats efficiency, performance and longevity. York Road Marines’ crew, has a combined 75 years plus of experience. We have technicians that have Powerboat, Sailboat, Diesel, Gas, Inboard, Outboard, Fiberglass, Electrical and just about all phases of boat/yacht repair experience to offer to our customers.
Outboard Maintenance & Service
Regular engine maintenance ensures your engine will provide you with years of trouble-
Services Performed at 20 Hours of Operation:
Battery: Check for connections and electrolyte levels.
Cables: Check for operation.
Engine: Clean and spray with lube and protectants.
Lower Unit: Inspect and change lubricant.
Oil: Change oil and replace filter.
Services Performed at 100 Hours of Operation or Once a Year:
Anodes: Check and replace if necessary. Extra charge if parts required.
Battery: Check for connections and electrolyte levels.
Cables: Check for operation.
Cooling System: Check for operation.
Engine: Clean and spray with lube and protectants.
Fuel Filters: Replace.
Fuel Lines: Check for leakage, splitting or rotting.
Fuel/Water Separator: Replace.
Gauges: Check for operation.
Hours on Motor: Record on service ticket.
Lower Unit: Inspect and change lubricant.
Oil: Change oil and replace filter.
Propeller: Remove, clean and lube shaft.
Service Indicator/Alarm: Reset.
Spark Plugs: Replace.
Thermostat: Check for operation. Extra charge if replacement required.
Water Pump: Replace impeller. Extra charge if additional parts required.
Call or stop in to York Road Marine and schedule your next service with one of our factory certified marine mechanics and keep your motor running smoothly and you out on the water.
The Boat Guys @ York Road Marine
With a combined 75 years of experience The Boat Guys at York Road Marine keep up-
The Boat Guys @ York Road Marine
With a combined 75 years of experience The Boat Guys at York Road Marine keep up-
