I'm winterizing our boat for the season. All is generally well, but I noticed a few things that I thought I'd mention.
* The belt saw more wear this season. This is its second season, and in a few places on the center grooves there are cracks and some wear marks. The outer grooves are perfect all the way around. The engine saw roughly the same number of hours this season (~120 vs. ~130) yet last year the belt looked brand new after its first season. No pulley damage or other weirdness that I could find.
* When I removed the port engine block knock sensor to drain the cooling water, nothing came out - until I probed into the hole. This loosed up some stuff that was blocking the hole and then the usual gush of water - a substantial amount, nice and clear - came rushing out. The blockage appeared to be made up of a very fine material, almost black. I probed around after all the water drained out and the chamber felt empty. Didn't happen on the starboard side. Haven't seen this in past years.
* When I removed the flame arrestor, I found the butterfly valve had a thin layer of extremely fine, perfectly black "dust" on it. It wasn't totally covered, but there was a fair amount of it. The flame arrestor had some too. I carefully cleaned off the butterfly valve with a shopvac and completely cleaned the flame arrestor. This dust might have come from the belt, but I wouldn't have said there was enough missing belt material to account for what I found. This raises a separate question: Has anyone ever put an actual air filter on an inboard engine? I know boat engines don't traditionally have air filters (which has always surprised me) but given what I saw today it's clear that airborne particles can get into the engine.
* All four of my bimini mounting points on the Alpha Z tower were loose. They were easy to tighten with a hex wrench, but word to the wise: Check those mounts! When the bimini is installed and tight the mounts feel solid due to the tension. Don't be fooled.
* My starboard knock sensor has always been a pain to remove for draining, because the transmission intercooler hoses are too close to permit the sensor connector to rotate. In the past I have loosened the sensor bolt so the connector can hold still while the plug is loosened underneath it. This time I tried removing the single bolt that holds the intercooler in place. MUCH easier. Removing this single bolt allows the intercooler to dangle out of the way, permitting the knock sensor to be removed in the traditional manner.
Comments invited... thanks!
* The belt saw more wear this season. This is its second season, and in a few places on the center grooves there are cracks and some wear marks. The outer grooves are perfect all the way around. The engine saw roughly the same number of hours this season (~120 vs. ~130) yet last year the belt looked brand new after its first season. No pulley damage or other weirdness that I could find.
* When I removed the port engine block knock sensor to drain the cooling water, nothing came out - until I probed into the hole. This loosed up some stuff that was blocking the hole and then the usual gush of water - a substantial amount, nice and clear - came rushing out. The blockage appeared to be made up of a very fine material, almost black. I probed around after all the water drained out and the chamber felt empty. Didn't happen on the starboard side. Haven't seen this in past years.
* When I removed the flame arrestor, I found the butterfly valve had a thin layer of extremely fine, perfectly black "dust" on it. It wasn't totally covered, but there was a fair amount of it. The flame arrestor had some too. I carefully cleaned off the butterfly valve with a shopvac and completely cleaned the flame arrestor. This dust might have come from the belt, but I wouldn't have said there was enough missing belt material to account for what I found. This raises a separate question: Has anyone ever put an actual air filter on an inboard engine? I know boat engines don't traditionally have air filters (which has always surprised me) but given what I saw today it's clear that airborne particles can get into the engine.
* All four of my bimini mounting points on the Alpha Z tower were loose. They were easy to tighten with a hex wrench, but word to the wise: Check those mounts! When the bimini is installed and tight the mounts feel solid due to the tension. Don't be fooled.
* My starboard knock sensor has always been a pain to remove for draining, because the transmission intercooler hoses are too close to permit the sensor connector to rotate. In the past I have loosened the sensor bolt so the connector can hold still while the plug is loosened underneath it. This time I tried removing the single bolt that holds the intercooler in place. MUCH easier. Removing this single bolt allows the intercooler to dangle out of the way, permitting the knock sensor to be removed in the traditional manner.
Comments invited... thanks!
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