28+ projects for new owner-fuel tank first

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bwindrope

Member I
Well I have fulfilled a dream of many, many years and today purchased a 28+ for my family. I'm excited, having fulfilled one of the two proverbial happiest days in my life and knowing that the other happy day is some years away! Now I have the usual, I would guess, laundry list of projects on a boat that had very little day to day maintenance performed.

The list is endless but the first and two most critical things are that the fuel tank is known to leak and must be replaced. Having read everything on this site I can find, plus Nigel Calder, I am now decided that cross linked polyethylene will be my next tank. What I don't know, is how much surgery I should expect to have to perform? Have any of you ever replaced a tank on a 28+ or maybe even a 28?

Also, in checking all the seacocks today, my first hours of ownership, I discovered the sink throughhull was essentially frozen. Previous owner never ever closed them or used them in many years. Surveyor found it tight, but moved. It is plastic. I got it to move once or twice, seemed to be loosening, and then the handle broke off under gentle pressure. Fortunately the valve is in the closed position, but damn.

It seems I must haul the boat to deal with this, and now am wondering about ever using plastic having had one break off in my hand. This is a well trodden topic, but I'm joining the club of those dealing with frozen seacocks. Sympathy? Advice? Is it absolutely essential to haul the boat??? I'm sure it is, but shoot.

It is great to join such a helpful group of people. I'll have many more questions later!:)
 
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NateHanson

Sustaining Member
It's not absolutely essential to haul the boat, but it's not exactly straight forward to replace a seacock in the water. If your through-hull has a backing nut (not JUST the seacock valve holding the through-hull in place) then you might be able to do it, and at any rate I think it's worth a try.

Here's the steps if you decide to try.
1) dive and stick a plug in the throughhull from the outside. DON'T drive it in. Just fit it in by hand. The plug will swell, and you'll never get it out if you drive it in. (A friend of mine did this, and had to drill it out from the inside, resulting in a very wet drill! :))

2) Inside the boat, put a wrench on the seacock, and a wrench on the backing nut that holds the through-hull in place. Use the second wrench to hold the through-hull still, so it doesn't turn and loosen it's bedding compound. Use the top wrench to thread off the broken seacock.

3) Have a replacement ball-valve ready to go. (same material as your through-hull; bronze or marelon). Coat the thru-hull threads with teflon thread sealant, and spin that bad boy on before the plug falls out. :) The trick is to snug it up without spinning the through-hull (you can't really use the backing nut now, because you're turning in a direction that will loosen the backing nut, rather than tighten it.)

The absolute worst that could happen is that there's something weakened about the through-hull, and you break it off, so have a few plugs on hand just in case. And maybe do the operation at a time when a boat-yard is open, so you can race into their travel-lift bay frantically waving your arms and yelling. :D

The more likely "uh-oh" is that you loosen up the through-hull a bit by accident and it develops a very very slow leak between the hull and the through-hull. You'll have plenty of time to wander over and casually mention to the yard guy that you'd like to schedule a haul-out sometime.
 
Sean Engle

Sean Engle

Your Friendly Administrator
Administrator
Founder
Welcome to the family - you'll find lots of nice people here. You

First - do a search on 'thru hull'- with the search feature above (not for this thread - use the one above it that searches the entire board). Loren also has a project out there on thru hulls. Loren - where is that post you did recently on replacing ball valves?

Anyhow - on the haul-out - If it were my first boat, I would consider hauling out to do the job (do you have anything else you wanted to do to the hull anyhow - like get it cleaned, check the condition, check the paint...strip and wax the sides...)?

I hauled out within two months of purchasing my E35-3, and was happy I did. I got to know the underside of the boat very well, and it gave me lots of confidence. Plus, if you do it on the hard, you won't feel the rush/worry about pulling the valve in the water, etc.

On the otherhand, it is more money...and of course, flooding your new boat is not much fun either...:egrin:

Loren?

//sse
 
G

Gary G

Member II
Welcome

I can't contribute to your thru-hull problem but welcome to the "club". What year is your 28+ and where do you sail? If you haven't sailed this model Ericson before you're in for a treat. You have a great sailing boat (a little tender but "locks" in and takes off as a solid sailing boat) that's quick enough and maneuverable yet strong and stable.

Fair winds,

Gary
s/v Imi Loa
1983 E28+
 
G

GMaurer

Member II
On your list of things to do -
one of the most beneficial (at least for me) came from this Forum. There is an upgrade to the wire size leading from the starter to the solenoid. This change greatly improved the starter's reliability.
Good luck,
Greg
1988 E28
 
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Gary G

Member II
Starter wire E28+

Greg,

Thanks for the tip. Every once in a while I get that empty feeling in my stomach when I'm ready for the engine, push the starter button, and am greeted only with silence! I'll check it out.

Gary
 
Jewel

Jewel

Member II
E28+ Fuel Tank

I have taken the fuel tank out of our 1984 E28+ twice. The access is easy through the quarterberth and other than removing the fill hose, fuel lines, etc. there was no problem. No disassembly of any boat structure was required.

Dan and Julie
Jewel E28+
:egrin:
 
D

Dan Hayes

Member III
Here is the info on the tanks from my 1981 E28+ Owner's Manual. I am sure the manufacturers have moved, but I know Ronco is still in business.

Aluminum and Stainless:

Vic Berry
760 Newton Way
Costa Mesa, CA 92627
(714) 646 9704
(Try 949 Area Code)

Ronco Products
15031 Parkway Loop
Tustin, CA 92680
(714) 731 1385

Good luck!

Dan Hayes

PS - my Marelon sink drain valve is stuck, too. Scares me to think that if a hose breaks, the boat could sink... I'll be berry berry careful moving it...

And the wire to the starter trick - I'll get on that one right away!
 
B

bwindrope

Member I
Thanks for all the input

Well I had written a long and thoughtful reply and then the system bumped me off and ate my reply. Don't have the time to repeat it all, but put simply, thank you all for the welcoming and input.

I'm sure I will lift the boat, as I will likely replace other non-true thruhulls too. Thanks Sean. Also thanks for the swimming idea, as it is a good one for the files.

Special thanks to the other 28+ owners for sharing their insights. Now I just need to find out which Temp tank fits and how to strap it in. Better check that wire too.

Wish my previous post wasn't erased, but oh well.

Was happy to find all my bilge cleaning resulted in a still dry and clean bilge today when I went to check. Boat is starting to look and smell like ours.

Fair winds and no leaks to you all.:egrin:
 
B

bwindrope

Member I
28+ Engine Panel needed too

Another thing I know I need that I suspect will be hard to find is another engine instrument panel for the boat. The current one is the original for the Universal the boat came with, and the rubber buttons are cracked through and the panel is pretty shot after 22 years. Do any of you know a good source for another panel, either new or used, or at the very least, replacement parts for this one like the rubber buttons over the glow plug and starter switches?

Oh and Hi to Gary on the sister ship. I'm in Portland, Oregon and moored on Hayden Island on the Columbia. It'll be a few weeks (months) until I fix the fuel tank and a few other things before I can really give her a serious sail. She is otherwise good to go, with good sails and such, but seaworthiness or riverworthiness in this case, is still in question with the broken seacock handle and other unverified things. I'm meticulous on all things related to machinery/equipment and that is why I am still alive today after a lifetime of serious adventure:oops:
 
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