+x+xCovid has extended the time far beyond that when we should have been reunited with our boats in far away or not so far away places. What disasters await us after about two years of neglect?
Perhaps the best advice would be to make sure you have a copy of
Nigel Calder's boat maintenance handbook. However despite its encyclopaedic contents there are many traps for the unwary.
I am no great expert in the field but I have plenty of experience restoring much neglected yachts. Most of which had been left alone between four to five years.
Of course you will hope that the boatyard has “kept an eye on things”. I would not hold my breath.
I am hoping to call on the experience of the OCC membership to help compile the most frequent problems and the DIY solutions.
I will start by listing a few of the almost inevitable problems that occur even if your boat was put to bed properly.
- Flat batteries, are they dead beyond recovery ?How would the fact be established? What treatments have been found to be successful?
- Seized skin fittings, it is usually the lot in hot places, freeing them without breaking the levers or snapping the screw thread is an art form. Inspecting the outside of a valve is no indication of the horrors of what might have happened to its innards.
- Stinking marine toilets together with bilges and polluted water tanks will exercise some lateral thinking in restoring sweetness.
- Water in the fuel, or horror of horrors a rampant fuel bug might well ruin your day.
- The life raft is out of date. Did you weigh it when it came back form its latest service so that you can now monitor the gas content of the cylinder? How else can this be done?
- The list is endless, and professional solutions expensive.
- Leaks of all sorts are highly probable.
Perhaps our pooled knowledge of these and similar problems will be of benefit to others.
Yours, Noel Dilly
Hi Emily,,
Some of us will have engines that have been in storage for at least a year and a half when we get to them. I have put together the following thoughts for a friend who asked, but also would like feedback/suggestions.
Thanks, Dick Stevenson, s/v Alchemy
1. New impellor.
2. Check oil level (oil was changed as were the primary and secondary fuel filters and oil filter)
3. Tighten pto/alternator belt which I loosen over the winter
a. I might swap with new if left tight and put old in stores
4. Ensure starter battery is charged
5. Fuel:
a. I have a system to take fuel from the bottom of my tank (below the pick-up tube), run it through a Racor filter and return it to the top of the tank. Do with both tanks.
b. It might be wise to find some sort of cetane additive: perhaps someone has ideas/experience with this?
6. Remove the rag from the hull exhaust discharge thru-hull
7. Starting
a. I am in a cold area. I will ensure that the engine is at least warm room temperature and try to ensure the oil in the sump is warmed (space heater in engine room?). This is likely needed to be started an hour or two before starting. I might even try to heat the engine room to 90 degF/30+C or more for a few hours before starting.
b. Turning the engine over manually will ensure nothing is seized and will distribute oil a bit.
c. I plan to: while holding down the manual “stop” button, hit the start button for a couple seconds. Let the engine sit for a bit and do again and again let sit (for oil to drip around)
d. Then I will start as usual (while crossing my fingers)
Other possibilities include:
Remove injectors or glow plugs and dribble oil in and hand turn.
Fairly quickly in the season change oil and coolant: they may have depleted their detergent and anti-corrosion properties with the long time period and exceeded expiry (coolant) and sludge may have developed.
More:
Do not over-crank if the engine does not start right away and get water into the engine/exhaust system.
Hi Emily,
Some thoughts on the other questions:
Batteries: Recovery is dependent on the battery chemistry. Refer to manufacturer. They can be very helpful. Any stored boat is best left with someone who can plug the boat in to charge batteries every month or so.
Properly maintained and serviced sea cocks should be fine. If worried or find difficulty remove the hose and let sit with a puddle of penetrating lubricant (PB Blaster or Liquid Wrench might be good) of some sort. Sread it on all moving parts /threads etc. Heating the metal will probably help the penetrating if cold (watch for igniting the penetrating liquid).
If properly prepared for storage, the toilet, holding tank and hoses should be fine.
There are water absorbers for fuel but I have never used so I am unsure of their effectiveness. Polishing the fuel might be a wise move. At the very least keep a close watch on your fuel filters for the first hours and longer. If a clear bowl, be sure you know what water accumulation looks like. Have extra filters for a bug. Might be a good time to consider a polishing system and to fit in a Dual Racor filtering system.
An out-of-date liferaft needs to be serviced.
What leaks are “highly probable”?
Come back with questions/comments etc.
My best, Dick Stevenson, s/v Alchemy