Boat Engine Maintenance

I have a 17 foot outboard engine boat and need help. I have been depending on men to help me with the trailer, interior, engine, etc. I want to learn on my own but it's so difficult because alot of things need to be taught by experience.

What's a good book about boat maintenance or outboard engine care?

There is a book out there called " Understanding the Outboard Motor by Eugene Stanger" it will give you a good look into the motors and how it works. Once you understand how you motor works, you can repair it much easier. I would also recommend it to other who also answer questions here. I use to teach at a marine mechanics school, and this book was a good help.

2006-08-01 10:32:15 by LoNGiSLAnD GiRL

HOW THE AMAZING SUPERFLUSH MARINE ENGINE FLUSHING SYSTEM CAN DOUBLE OR TRIPLE YOUR MARINE ENGINES LIFE, REDUCE MAINTENANCE BY 70 % OR MORE AND ...

check Marine engines.com for manuals.

2009-07-07 18:58:52 by a13-t13-f13

Price: $55.11

Winterizes your engine right on the trailer
Allows flushing and preparation of boat engine for winter storage with just five gallons of antifreeze and your flusher
Saves time and money season after season

General maintenance and engine maintenance, website or actual place.

Marine engines.com or iBoats.com. both have articles and manuals.

2010-02-01 10:46:27 by Brenton D

Price: $29.99

Large 5-5/8 inch diameter cup prevents water blow-by or fall-off
No tools required; flusher installs in minutes
Allows precise alignment for hard-to-reach areas

I am moving into a house with a boat dock no lift but I'm not sure if I should keep my boat in salt water for long periods of time, I have a 20' feet stingray, is there anyway I can flush the engine while the boat is in salt water? should I really paint the bottom? for how long can I keep the boat in salt water?

thnks

Ok, as long as you have the right stuff on the hull, leaving a boat in salt water is no problem at all.

If I remember rightly, stingrays are fiberglass hulls, so you don't to worry about wooden hulls leaking because of no primer.
You really should anti-foul the hull, at least once every 2 to 3 years, if not you're going to have a hell of a lot of growth on the bottom, and that leads to slower speeds, more fuel consumption, and it will clog up inlets and outlets ports, and if you don't anti-foul your engine parts that are underwater, e.g. the prop you'll have the same problem.
Find a good anti-foul, giving it two thick coats will save you a lot of hassle in the future, I promise.

Most people leave their boats in the water for just the main season, i.e. march to september (that's here in the UK mind you, not sure where you are). Then it gets taken out for a quick clean, and if needed a new coat of anti-foul.
You can leave it in the water indefinitely though, it will come to no harm as long as there is some anti-foul and you have an aluminium sacrificial anode attached to the hull to protect all the metallic compounds in the paint, and on the hull.

You can't flush an engine with salt water as I'm sure you know, as the whole point is to remove the corrosive sodium chloride (the salt) and any other grit from the engine. If your engine lifts clear of the water, then flush it normally with fresh water, but if you can't you will definitely have to take the boat out of the water during the off season. Sitting still in salt water without any use or flushing will create a big headache in the future.
The only other way I can think of flushing would be connecting the fresh water to engine while it's still underwater if you can reach, and then flushing, although I'm not certain how effective that would be as the salt water would return fairly quickly.

Hope that helps, feel free to contact me if you want to ask anything else!

Benny

2010-02-24 13:44:19 by Oscar Araya

I'm looking at a boat, it is a small 14-16 foot Bayliner Capri, I don't have all the info on it yet as to size/year. However, after some internet research , it seems they can have serious quality issues with stringers, transom, engines, controls, etc. Here's what I know about it :
- been garage kept inside, just dusty
- supposedly has a bad Mercruiser motor ( IB/OB system? )
,( unknown problem at this point )
- last registered in '96, so suspect it's a much earlier model.

Now, here's what I'd LIKE to know about small Bayliner Capris :
- what variety of motors came in the smaller ones ? I've seen Force, Mercruiser, Ford, and Chrysler listed on Ebay boats, to name a few. Are they all interchangeable, or do you have to swap out the Outdrive too, or can you just swap motors? Which are better?
- If a motor swap, does it require custom or engine-specific mounts for each different type?
- Asking $2,000. I figure maybe $500. Boat is probably sound. Your opinions, to pass or repair?

Motor shouldn't be too hard to find. Have outdrive pressure tested to see if its good. If transom is rotted, let it go. If its been sitting for a long time even under shelter (garage) you can still have dry rot issues. Really get in there on your hands and knees and check that thing out. Just finishing with my "cheap boat" $500 and I had to put around $1500 in new parts, bellows, gimbal bearing, ujoints and such in this thing. Learned more than I wanted to know about the mechanics of a boat, but hey, now I know where to look and what the stuff is called and such. Did you also know - BOAT stands for: Break Out Another Thousand? LOL

2007-08-30 16:39:20 by gremlingts