On 3/2/11 7:28 PM, Gene wrote:
On Wed, 2 Mar 2011 02:59:10 -0500, wrote:



"Harryk" wrote in message
m...


Sorry, my boat burns diesel. I don't have any problems paying for it.
And I'm not dumb enough to mess with the engines. I keep the engines and
the engine "room" clean, I look for leaks, I check fluid levels, et
cetera. Just about anything beyond that, I call the diesel service
company.




I didn't see the origins of this thread and don't have any interest in the
****ing contest associated with it.

However, the topic ... and the subject of marine diesel engines and their
service is something of interest to me and I offer the following, based on
some experience.

Unless you already have knowledge or training in diesels, I would strongly
recommend that anyone with a diesel powered boat take a basic course in
their operation, service and emergency procedures. These courses are
available at adult education programs in high schools, vocational schools
and by Coast Guard sponsored adult education programs.

Most of us are familiar with gas powered engines and the basic operating
issues associated with them. Diesels are a different animal however. I got
caught once on the way to Florida where we ducked into a obscure marina for
the night due to some wild thunderstorms. There was nobody around at the
marina. When I went to shut down the engines, one of them would not stop.
Long story short, it turned out to be a tripped resettable fuse that
actuates the fuel shutoff solenoid. (Volvo diesels).
It took me over an hour talking to a Volvo representative on my cell phone
to finally get the engine shut down. Had I taken the course I referred to
before setting out on this voyage, I would have known how to shut the engine
down, even if I had not discovered the tripped fuse.

Had another experience on the Egg Harbor we had. Took 6 people out cod
fishing (drift fishing) about 35 miles out from home port.
After several hours of fishing, I went to fire up the Cats to take us home
and one would not start. It was getting snotty ... wind picking up and
heavy chop developing. I lucked out to find a poorly seated cable harness
plug to the fuel pre-heater on the turbo. That was pure luck. The
electronic controls interlocked the starter so the engine could not be
started until the heater reached a certain temperature. Not a lot of fun
bouncing around in the chop, 35 miles from shore with 6 people aboard
getting sick.

BTW ... both of these occurrences happened on new boats with less than 100
hours on one and less than 50 hours on the other.

There's also issues to learn like changing filters while underway in a
manner that doesn't cause the fuel lines to get air bound.
Or how to get a diesel running again after the fuel lines get air in them.
Many newer diesels have automatic fuel line purge systems, but that still
doesn't mean the engine is going to start easily. There's a technique that
should be used to get the engine running
easily again.

I ended up taking a basic diesel engine course at a adult education program
at a local high school. Well worth it. I learned things I never knew
about diesel engines and felt much more confident about my ability to
resolve minor issues while underway that otherwise could become a major
problem. Learned how to stop a diesel engine that is in "runaway" mode, for
example. Rare occurrence but scary as hell if it happens. The course
instructor encouraged us to bring the engine manuals for our specific engine
types and he spent some time individually going over some of the unique
issues with our engines as well as more general, generic diesel engine
issues.

Modern diesels have many electronic controls to operate, monitor and protect
their operation. Makes them easier to run and maintain, but can be a real
bitch if something goes wrong. The older diesels just required fuel, air
and enough juice in the battery to turn the starter motor over in order to
run. Not so anymore.

Eisboch

Would only add that in many areas the proper place to see this
training is the local Community College....





Several of the diesel distributors run those sorts of courses.

http://www.mackboring.com/training/B..._Training.aspx