Need help with my Sea Water inlet to Impeller

[Peter B]

My E30+ is dripping water from the filter and the hose that leads the water to the impeller.
The water can't be drained from the hose as it draws water continuously. Changing the hose seems like a very wet proposition.
Does anyone have experience with replacing hoses and/or the filter system? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[Loren Beach]

Is this the raw water intake for the engine circuit? Or, the outside water for the galley pump?
Either way, I would guess that you would close the thruhull valve and then change out the hose. Or, am I missing something? (always possible)

 

[Frank Langer]

Hi Peter,
Our 1984 E30+ has water come in through the seacock, where the hose has two clamps. That hose connects to the raw water strainer/filter, also with two clamps. A second hose with two clamps goes from the raw water strainer to a bronze elbow on the raw water pump, also held in place with two clamps. If the clamps are reasonably tight (don't overtighten to avoid cutting into the hose), there should be no leakage at those connections. The strainer itself may leak (many have an O-ring inside) or the raw water pump can leak out of a small hole in the bottom, indicating that the seals inside need to be replaced.
Closing the seacock and having a small pail to catch remaining water in the hoses and pump should allow you to work on these parts at your leisure.
If I've misunderstood your setup, let me know. If possible, a picture is also often helpful.
Frank

 

[Peter B]

Thanks Frank and Loren for the help. I turned off the seawater intake valve and was successfully able to change the least hose.
Looks like it'll hold.

 

[Loren Beach]

If you are indeed talking about the engine water intake, you might consider an upgrade someday. Many years ago I installed a "winterizing" ForeSpar thruhull valve that makes adding antifreeze super easy.
Matter of fact I just did this little task today, and it took less than an hour. I winterized our Betamarine25 (Kubota block, 3 cylinder).

I have the Forespar 3 way ball valve integrated into their thruhull fitting. As per usual for the last two decades, I attach a short piece of hose to the "hose bib" fitting on the top. Drop the other end of the hose into a one gallon bottle of pink "RV" antifreeze. Then warm up the engine. Finally, with the engine idling away, turn the valve from 'outside' water source to the position for the hose connection, and watch the pink liquid start to go down.
Walked back up to the cockpit, and in a few seconds the exhaust burps out some pink water, and I push the stop button. Done, and Done.
Unscrew the hose and put it away. As usual the whole raw water side (strainer, heat exchanger, and water lift muffler) took approx 3 quarts.

Your engine bay will likely required a different arrangement of valving. This change from the EY thruhull locationwas one of the best ideas I have had. Our stock (EY) engine intake valve was under the galley sink and then had a long hose run to the engine pump. Ick.

O34 - Coupler, Shaft Seal, and Antifreeze

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[Kenneth K]

Loren, do you have a part number or a link to that Forespar 3-way valve? I can't find it. I accomplished something similar a few years ago by installing a Groco SSC Flush fitting:



It works well for flushing and winterizing but has two drawbacks: 1) The engine must be stopped to switch from the raw water intake to the Groco fitting (which is okay, because I usually drain the lift muffler in between when winterizing), and 2) over the years, as the bronze has "weathered," the plug gets harder and harder to remove and replace every year.

 

[Loren Beach]

Here it is:

Engine Flush Out

Engines running in salt or brackish water need to be flushed with fresh water after use to prevent costly corrosion during Winter or off-season storage. Forespar has designed a single valve system that makes this maintenance procedure simple. Forespar 931274 937474 931275 937475 931276 937476...

www.forespar.com

 

[Kenneth K]

Thanks Loren. Too bad Forespar only makes them down to 1" dia., my raw water through hull is 3\4". Have to try something else....

 

[Loren Beach]

Use the appropriate hole saw.... not a problem. Note that this replaces your present thruhull in its entirety.