Guidelines for winterising diesel inboard engines

The following information is only to be used as a guide. There is no perfect way to winterise an engine.

Cooling System

In a Direct Cooling system, water is pumped from outside the boat, through the engine cooling passages and out of the exhaust. To winterise this type of engine: Remove the Thermostat. This lets water circulate in the engine without the engine having to reach operating temperature. Check the Sacrificial Anodes. Make sure that these are not depleted. Replace if necessary. Run the engine with the water pump feeding from a Coolant Water mix. This can usually be done by closing the external stopcock and disconnecting the pump's feed hose from the water inlet. This hose can then be put into a bucket filled with Coolant Water mix. Run the engine until this mix can be seen coming out of the exhaust. All the cooling passages should now be filled with this mix. (Collect the coolant from the exhaust in another bucket and dispose of it in an environmentally friendly manner) Reconnect hoses etc.

In an Indirect Cooling system, coolant is held in a closed system in the engine. Heat from this internal system is dissipated in a heat exchanger to external water which is pumped, from outside the boat, through the heat exchanger and out through the exhaust. To winterise this type of engine: Check that the internal Coolant is at the correct density by use of a hydrometer. The manufacturers of the Coolant will recommend how often the coolant should be replaced totally but it is usually every three years. Run the engine with the water pump feeding from a Coolant Water mix in the same manner as in a Direct Cooling system.

Lubrication System

As an engine is used, sulphur in the fuel is burned and Sulphuric Acid is formed. This finds its way into the engine oil and is the main reason to change your oil before laying up the boat for the winter. It is a good idea to warm up the engine before changing the oil. Both the oil and the oil filter should be replaced at the same time. Normal grade oil is fine for laying up the engine for the winter. The waste oil should be disposed of in an environmentally friendly manner. (Most garages will dispose of it for you)

Fuel System

Check Fuel Pre-Filters and Main Filters. These should be cleaned or replaced. Drain any water from the bottom of the fuel tank and/or the water trap. The fuel tank should be filled before laying up for the winter. This prevents condensation during the winter which will cause corrosion in the tank.

Electrical System

All main electrical connections should be checked for corrosion before laying up for the winter. Once they are corrosion free, they should be sprayed with WD40 or equivalent so that they won't corrode in the damp weather. The batteries are very susceptible to damage during the winter season and should be cared for in the following manner. They should be disconnected and the terminals should be cleaned. The electrolyte level should be checked and topped up if necessary. The batteries should be fully charged. Ideally the batteries should be removed and kept indoors for the winter as sub-zero temperatures are not good for them. Also ideally they should be re-charged every month during the winter as the charge will slowly drain over a long period of time.

‘Fit a smoke alarm and keep it working’

‘Fit a smoke alarm and keep it working’, is the blunt advice from the Boat Safety Scheme following a recent boat fire where the owner was potentially only seconds away from death. The live-aboard boater had no early warning when he awoke in the middle of the night to find his home was filling rapidly with toxic smoke. The solid fuel stove in the saloon had set fire to the boat’s lining and he had previously removed the battery from his smoke alarm. By the time he had realised what was happening, he had to crawl out of the boat on his chest to keep below the level of the smoke. In less than a minute after his escape, flames filled the cabin as he stood on the towpath calling 999.

According to the Fire Kills campaign, toxic smoke will affect your ability to breathe and cause you a drowning sensation; with just two to three breaths of toxic smoke in a boat fire, you could be unconscious, so every second counts when you need to escape.

BSS Manager, Graham Watts said: ‘Whilst this boat owner has lost all his possessions, luckily he still has his life. Boaters have died from smoke poisoning when fires developed as they slept and a working smoke alarm could have alerted them to escape. ‘If you sleep aboard, give yourself a chance to escape a fire, fit a smoke alarm and test it weekly when you’re using the boat. ‘Also if your alarm regularly goes off when you’re cooking, replace it with one that has a hush button that stops the alarm from sounding while you make the toast or fry the bacon! These alarms are cheap and easy to buy from online suppliers, DIY shops and supermarkets. ‘The alarm of choice is an optical alarm with a long-life battery, a hush button, and one that is certified as meeting either BS 5446:2000 Part 1, or BS EN 14604:2005, so it should carry a ‘Kitemark’ or ‘horseshoe’ certification mark. Also, if you can’t hear it in the saloon while you are in the sleeping quarters, buy two, one for each end of the boat.’

There are guidelines for choosing and installing an alarm on boat on the BSS fire safety website.

Broads Biodiversity Forum launched to celebrate World Wetlands Day

Conservation partners in the Broads will be celebrating World Wetlands Day on February 2nd by launching the first ever Broads Biodiversity Forum at the Abbey Road Conference Centre, Norwich.

The Broads Authority, RSPB, Environment Agency, Natural England, National Trust, the Norfolk and Suffolk Wildlife Trusts, BESL (Broadland Environmental Services Ltd.), and Buglife will celebrate their successes and investigate further opportunities for partnerships to enhance and promote the magic of Britain’s largest lowland wetland.

One hundred people from conservation, boating, angling, tourism, farming and recreation backgrounds are expected to attend.

World Wetlands Day marks the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands on 2nd February 1971, in the Iranian city of Ramsar, to help raise awareness about the global importance and value of wetlands.

John Packman, Chief Executive of the Broads Authority, will explain how the organisations will work together to respond to new polices and environmental challenges while Andrea Kelly, Senior Ecologist, will discuss the Broads Authority’s priorities and progress.

The RSPB will unveil its new Futurescape for the Broads, a new way of working in partnership with a variety of organisations, farmers, local people, and businesses to create quality habitats, enrich people’s lives, and provide good quality water, carbon storage and access for recreation.

Dr Paul Dolman from the University of East Anglia will explain the findings of the Broads Biodiversity Audit which revealed that the Broads is a habitat for 26% of the UK’s rarest species.

There will also be presentations by Broadland Environmental Services Ltd on biodiversity and flood alleviation, Norfolk and Suffolk Wildlife Trusts on their Living Landscapes in the Broads and a final inspirational presentation from the Chief Executive of Buglife, the national invertebrate conservation charity.

An opportunity to have your questions answered by a panel of experts will be chaired by Paul Forecast, RSPB Director, East.

He said: “There’s no doubt about it, in the next ten years, we will be facing some of the toughest environmental challenges we’ve ever seen. In order to overcome these, we need to work together to support a joint vision for a world richer in wildlife tomorrow than it is today.

“Everyone has a responsibility to ensure that places like this are safe for future generations and working together with other conservation organisations, water companies, local land owners and tourism providers, we hope to make the Broads an even greater place for people and wildlife.”

Andrea Kelly, Senior Ecologist, Broads Authority said: “The recent results of the Broads Biodiversity Audit prove what an amazing place this is for wildlife and we believe it is vital that we find new funding and additional business partners to continue to address the many challenges that threaten this very special environment.”

If you want to be part of the action on World Wetlands Day on Twitter, follow #Worldwetlandsday

Nauticat 33 Ketch.

Today’s assignment was at Goodchild Marine in Great Yarmouth. Goodchild Marine provide a full range of marina and marine support services to boat owners and boating enthusiasts enjoying leisure time on the eastern Norfolk Broads.

Today’s boat was this Nauticat Ketch. Nauticats are very well made motor sailers, manufactured by Siltala yachts at Turku in Finland. The 33 has been in production since 1966, and there are about 1200 of them worldwide. The name Nauticat comes from the Finnish for nautical quality and they are certainly quality boats.

This NC33 has a solid teak planked deck, screwed & bunged over a solid glass substrate. Since the deck screws don't penetrate through the 5/8" thick fiberglass, if the bungs are ever compromised, or screws loosen, cabin leaks typically will not occur.

Lots of lovely old wooden boats at Goodchilds...think this is an old pilot boat... double diagonal timber built..

 

The fibreglass on all Nauticats from the early 70's, right up to today, is of solid fiberglass. The greatest advantages of solid glass over balsa, or synthetic cored hulls, is hull strength, resistance to impact damage, and water resistance. The 33 displaces 18,000 lbs, but is built extremely tough. In fact, Nauticat Yachts has the undisputed reputation as builder of "the world's best-built motorsailers."



Keel designs do vary with production year. But most keels have a fiberglass encapsulated ballast, which was produced with the tall rig, modified fin keel and skeg-hung rudder option. Nauticats have always been built by the same boat builders in Finland. To learn more you could visit the Nauticat Yachts website - http://www.nauticat.fi/ , click on Yachts, then Traditional Motorsailers, and Nauticat 331, for a description of the current 33 ft model . These new models have undergone several design modifications, but still retain the similar lines and overall concept as the originals.

Thinking of Buying a Boat and Need Help? I specialise in Boats of all types, and I will assist you to make an informed decision. Contact me for a detailed and comprehensive report at: steventruss1@aol.com

Mediterranean 38ft River Cruiser

Today’s assignment was to carry out a Structural Survey on this Mediterranean 38ft River Cruiser. Back in the 1970's this Mediterranean 38 was the ultimate in relaxed luxury cruising. 

Unfortunately last winter a hose fitted to the shower pump froze and burst and she partially sank. She was lifted the next day, the repair carried out and she was refloated. Her structure was still remarkably good in general, and it is considered that she is well worthy of refitting. 

Surveyors Comments:

 The ideal bilge pump arrangement is a small (400 gph) automatic bilge pump mounted in the sump to dispense with rain and shaft-gland leakage, combined with a high capacity pump (2,500 gph) mounted higher to deal with more serious ingress. Stepping the discharge hose from the small pump down to ½” minimises the backflow from the hose when the pump cycles, maintaining a dryer bilge. The large pump can be wired to a float switch if you prefer, but I think a manual switch makes more sense. An added advantage of this bilge pump configuration is that the high-capacity pump sits high and dry, extending its life indefinitely.

Electric bilge pumps cannot be relied upon in emergencies when electrical power may not be available. Always carry a hand operated pump to cover the worst eventuality.

Thinking of Buying a Boat and Need Help? I specialise in Boats of all types, and I will assist you to make an informed decision. Contact me for a detailed and comprehensive report at: steventruss1@aol.com