Lesson Learned

[beckoning]

As noted in my recent prior posts, I've been having fuel tank seeping problems. It showed up various ways. Accessing the stern end of my below deck 35 gallon tank was really difficult, and removing the tank was next to impossible. But, I'd rather be lucky than good. Unbeknownst to me, a licensed and certified boat surveyor lives in my little village by one of the Great Lakes, so I asked him to help me find the cause.

Lesson Learned: Trust a certified, licensed marine surveyor (inspects boats of all sizes), and willingly pay for the person's services. After poking around a bit, he took out his video camera that has a long cord with a camera lens and light on the end. He snaked it around and inspected every hose and connection, and quickly found that the main fill hose was cracked on every turn it took, including where it connected to the tank. Likewise, he found with the camera and the snake lens/light that other fuel line connections showed signs of age where the hose clamp had crimped down on the fuel line. Remedy? Take it to my trusty, high credibility marine dealer and have the hoses all replaced since I can't get to many of them. The surveyor took the guess work out of the situation. He knew where to look and how to inspect, and what conclusions to draw, and gave me options for resolution.

He aslo chastised me for slap-dash wiring, and said to install a marine quality fuse bloc for stern electronics (down riggers, etc).

Lesson Learned, trust and pay for advice from licensed and certified experts who are required to attend classes and re-test for their licenses now and then.

 

[Fun Times]

Adding a few more years to your boating "life" would be well worth the added costs of getting a fuel leak like that found and fixed... Nice job and hope the access for repairs are minimal.

 

[beckoning]

Adding a few more years to your boating "life" would be well worth the added costs of getting a fuel leak like that found and fixed... Nice job and hope the access for repairs are minimal.

Thank you. Yes, my Yamaha G3+Yamaha 150hp are well worth the investment. Access to the hoses is nearly impossible for me (81 yrs old), so having a nearby marine store with a good reputation is money well spent, hopefully.

 

[aspeck]

Yes, at 81 you shouldn't have to crawl around the belly of your vessel to search for access to cracked hoses. Good for you for hiring the surveyor and then a good, credible, and reliable mechanic. I know a lot around here like the DIY method, but sometimes the best and/or cheapest fix is to hire someone.

 

[DeepCMark58A]

The way I look at it on complex repairs, what are the odds that I am going to get it right at my first attempt at repair, I would rather pay a professional and only cry once.

 

[beckoning]

UPDATE: I ordered a hinged, waterproof hatch to put in my motor well. With guidance from the above mentioned expert marine surveyor, I'm cutting out a rectangle from the motor well, not disturbing any structural pieces, and installing a 10x12 hatch for easier access. The hatch was shipped form the Netherlands, so I paid a 80% tariff on top of the hatch cost and shipping, but it was still a good price.

 

[beckoning]

Update #2: Using a standard portable jigsaw with metal cutting blades (broke 3 in the process), I cut out the 10" x 12" hole in the aluminum motor well. For now, I just laid the frame and hatch in the hole so the marine yard can remove it all and have a few more inches access to all the fuel hoses they'll be replacing. Once they're done, I'll seal the frame to the motor well (3M 4000 in case removal is necessary at some point), then screw it down to the motor well aluminum. Then, instead of a 6" diameter pie hole with a screw on lid, I'll have a 10x12 access port for working on hoses, bilge pumps, and recirculating pumps, and general bilge access.

 

[redneck joe]

we need pics if you have them