Startin your Diesel when out of the water

[floater]

Is there a way to start a diesel when out of the water up on the jacks? How do you work on your motors and test them when not floating? Is there an
''ear muffs' like fitting you can use in your raw water intake or do you just put a hose into the cooling intake line?

 

[O C Diver]

I ran my charter boat out of the water when I skipped a season. My raw water system has a pencil anode to protect the seacock and strainer plumbing. I removed it and screwed in an adapter to garden hose. With the seacock closed, I opened the water hose valve part way to make sure there was water flowing through the dripless stuffing box and out through the cutlass bearing. Then I started the engine and opened the water hose fully. As the engine isn't under any load, it burns almost no fuel at any RPM. So water flow is mostly about keeping the exhaust elbow cool and lubricating the shaft tube and cutlass bearing.

I probably wouldn't try this with any engine that might get water back in through the exhaust elbow. At the very least, you may not want to start the flow of water before the engine starts if you have a lift muffler. Also struts with cutlass bearings could be a problem out of the water. Even with the transmission out of gear, some propeller shafts will rotate anyway.

Ted

 

[floater]

Why is it important to lube the cutlass bearing and shaft tube if the boat is in neutral and nothing is spinning?

 

[Jeff F]

Remove the impeller. You can run it for a long time before the water jacket gets up to operating temperature.

 

[O C Diver]

Why is it important to lube the cutlass bearing and shaft tube if the boat is in neutral and nothing is spinning?

An oil lubricated multi disc clutch will still turn on some transmissions from oil friction until the oil heats up and thins out. If the boat is in the water, have some one start it from cold while you're watching the propeller shaft coupling on the transmission. You'll probably see it turn.

Ted

 

[floater]

Thanks for the tips and info. No boat yet but by the time I get one I should know just enough not to blow it up!

 

[lwarden]

I've installed a hose fitting and ball valve to the top of the RW strainer. You can run the engine all day long on it if you want, also good for flushing with Salt Away. There is some info on Seaboard Marine and a video. I made the modification myself by drilling and tapping into the cover then silver soldering in a bronze nipple.

 

[Lou_tribal]

On my boat I can run the engine for few seconds out of water but no more if I do not want to burn the impeller, water hose debit is not enough to cope with engine water pump debit.

L

 

[jgwinks]

Remove the impeller. You can run it for a long time before the water jacket gets up to operating temperature.

I do that all the time. I remove the impellers mainly so they don't take a set, but that does let me safely run the engines for a few minutes. Anytime I've done any work on them, and always just before launch. It's real embarrassing sitting in the launch well with a no start. I start them up and warm up a little, then shut down and install the impellers while I'm waiting for the travel lift.

 

[rgano]

Since my boat is on a lift, I run the engine out of the water every single time it returns to the lift. While still in the water but held in place by the lift with the engine running, I connect a freshwater hose to a tee in the raw water cooling line between the sea strainer and the raw water pump, turn on the water, and lift the boat out of the water, without shutting the seacock. There is enough freshwater flow to supply the engine for the few minutes it takes to rinse the system while letting excess flow out the open seacock via the strainer, rinsing them as well. I shut the water off just before shutting the engine down.

 

[FF]

Disconnect the sea water intake from its thru hull and stick it in a pail of water.

Keep the pail overflowing , any extra water will collect in the bilge , where it can be pumped overboard or run out thru the garboard drain.

 

[Gabe n Em]

Keep in mind these are all good tricks for running antifreeze through your engine when it comes time to winterize.

Our technique: close the seacock, remove the lid from the strainer, and adjust the house flow rate to keep the strainer full, start engine, keep filling the strainer.

Be mindful that the inlets on the old, big bronze strainers that are common here, are right at the top. So it's a delicate balance between running the impeller dry and sloshing a bunch of water on the sole

 

[Ski in NC]

I close the sea cock, unscrew the top of the strainer, take out the basket and stick a garden hose in the hole. Crank engine and turn on the hose. Engine wants way more water than hose provides, but that is ok. Just need enough water to lube impeller and to provide some cooling spray in exhaust. Diesels make very little heat with no load so even providing a fraction of sea water pump flow capacity is fine.

If you want to bump it in gear, squirt some water in strut bearings and maybe a little Dawn for lube. If shaft is spun with dry bearing, it will raise hell.

 

[Datenight]

How about this?

https://www.defender.com/product.jsp?id=3882239

Might need to block it up to get good hull contact.

Rob

 

[Solly]

Disconnect the sea water intake from its thru hull and stick it in a pail of water.

Keep the pail overflowing , any extra water will collect in the bilge , where it can be pumped overboard or run out thru the garboard drain.

+1 This what I do to winterize. Stick the hose in a bucket of antifreeze.

 

[Lou_tribal]

How about this?

https://www.defender.com/product.jsp?id=3882239

Might need to block it up to get good hull contact.

Rob

I tried one that I borrowed from the marina, the arm is adjustable so to block it between hull and ground. Works fine but again water is limited by the hose debit.
I have the same without the arm that one need to keep in contact with the hull.

L

 

[koliver]

I close the sea cock, unscrew the top of the strainer, take out the basket and stick a garden hose in the hole. Crank engine and turn on the hose. Engine wants way more water than hose provides, but that is ok. Just need enough water to lube impeller and to provide some cooling spray in exhaust. Diesels make very little heat with no load so even providing a fraction of sea water pump flow capacity is fine.

If you want to bump it in gear, squirt some water in strut bearings and maybe a little Dawn for lube. If shaft is spun with dry bearing, it will raise hell.

This is exactly what my mechanic did once my engines were ready for a test run, in the swap that I did with Tamd41s, having removed the pair of TMD40s.
The boat was on the hard at the time.

 

[Comodave]

A simple solution is a Sea Flush adapter. I use it to winterize the engines. Take the top off the strainer and remove the basket. Stick the Sea Flush in and have a 5 gallon bucket to draw the water in from. No modifications needed of no need to remove the impeller. It takes just a minute or two to do it.

 

[jleonard]

+1 This what I do to winterize. Stick the hose in a bucket of antifreeze.

Me too. Have done it this way for 30 years.

 

[Xsbank]

Notice how long your engine takes to heat up at an idle at the dock? The thermostats are closed and there is no cooling from raw water taking place. If the impeller is removed or lubed, likewise the cutlass bearing, you don't need a cooling flow to do tests, unless the test will take longer than the coolant to heat.

If you block the wheel so it can't turn, you don't even need water, just pull the impeller. This protects the ground crew; just don't put it in gear.

 

[Lou_tribal]

Notice how long your engine takes to heat up at an idle at the dock? The thermostats are closed and there is no cooling from raw water taking place. If the impeller is removed or lubed, likewise the cutlass bearing, you don't need a cooling flow to do tests, unless the test will take longer than the coolant to heat.

If you block the wheel so it can't turn, you don't even need water, just pull the impeller. This protects the ground crew; just don't put it in gear.

Last time that I winterized myself,the impeller was toasted so was not pumping the antifreeze. One thing I noticed is that without water the exhaust is warming up pretty fast and I am not sure how long it would take to melt down the waterlock. My guess is that running without water for more than 2 minutes would be a treat to it.

L

 

[Xsbank]

Of course you are right, Lou! My boat is dry-stacked so I totally forgot the exhaust. Too late to delete.

 

[Lou_tribal]

Of course you are right, Lou! My boat is dry-stacked so I totally forgot the exhaust. Too late to delete.

I wish I had a dry exhaust and keel cooler, oh yes I wish!!!!

L

 

[Jeff F]

Right. I didn't think through my original comment. Thanks for calling that out Lou. No load EGTs don't get that high, so I doubt there would be a melt down. But a valid concern.

 

[floater]

Thanks for the great tips and info. Still saving money and drooling.

 

[hollywood8118]

A number of years ago I watched a guy set a old aluminum boat filled with water under his boat in the boat yard. It captured 95% of the water that ran out the exhaust and he added water as the water level dropped in the aluminum boat. He ran a hose through a removed thru hull into the aluminum boat. The aluminum transferred most of the heat away. Said he learned the trick from a guy in Florida that did the same for his AC units in the yard.
HOLLYWOOD

 

[ProMaritime]

This is not a good idea. City water pressure is usually much higher than what your raw water pump puts out. You are lucky that excess water volume under higher pressure didn't back up into your exhaust manifold and through your valves into the cylinders.

If you do this you should only turn on the water faucet so a small stream of water comes out the exhaust, not the full blast. Any small amount will provide adequate cooling.

 

[mvweebles]

A simple solution is a Sea Flush adapter. I use it to winterize the engines. Take the top off the strainer and remove the basket. Stick the Sea Flush in and have a 5 gallon bucket to draw the water in from. No modifications needed of no need to remove the impeller. It takes just a minute or two to do it.

Something like this? Would suggest NOT turning water on until engine is started to prevent flooding the exhaust. Preferred would be taking inlet off thru hull and put into an open bucket, but understand that can be difficult.

https://trac-online.com/product/trac-flushcaps/

Question for the OP. Why are you asking? General information or perhaps you're in a cold climate and seeking to do an out-of-water purchase survey? If the latter, would be difficult to do a proper engine inspection without putting it under load.

Peter

 

[Comodave]

The Sea Flush adapter has a pickup hose that is designed to go into a 5 gallon bucket. You fill the bucket and let the engine suck the water in on it’s own. The water isn’t under pressure. It takes the place of the strainers top. The Trac adapters have a garden hose adapter built into them. I use them to winterize the A/Cs and genset. But I use a 5 gallon bucket and let the antifreeze gravity feed into the strainer. I don’t hook a pressure hose to them either.

 

[mvweebles]

The Sea Flush adapter has a pickup hose that is designed to go into a 5 gallon bucket. You fill the bucket and let the engine suck the water in on it’s own. The water isn’t under pressure. It takes the place of the strainers top. The Trac adapters have a garden hose adapter built into them. I use them to winterize the A/Cs and genset. But I use a 5 gallon bucket and let the antifreeze gravity feed into the strainer. I don’t hook a pressure hose to them either.

Ahh.... That makes much more sense. Thanks for the clarification. I learned something here today, as usual.