Beta 38 hp engine work all done: heat exchanger, exhaust hose, zinc threads etc - 2018

 Using our Stant 12270 30 Pound Cooling System And Pressure Cap Tester, Luis tested the stack tube/heat exchanger to be fine, no leaks.

August 2018- s\v Elegant'sea is currently in Paradise Village Marina in Banderas Bay Mexico (by Puerto Vallarta)

August 2018- We are now currently in Chapala which is a town by Lake Chapala, Mexico house/pet sitting.

  Stant 12270 30 Pound Cooling System And Pressure Cap Tester .

 The heat exchanger was removed and sent to the machine shop.  There, they welded up one end and then re-machined it to be round and smooth. At least that's what I think they did.It is aluminum so welding it.... Anyway, now it seals tight. The area where the "O" ring fits in by the stack tube had gotten chewed up some. It was not sealing last time I removed the stack tube and replaced the "O" rings. So we had some preventive maintenance done while the heat exchanger was out.

 

 Luis, our new mechanic through SYS Chandlery (Jorge in Paradise Village Marina) seems to have done a real fine job on our Beta Marine 38 hp diesel engine We asked him to use the rest of our touch-up paint on the parts before assembling them and he did.

 Here we have the new 2" exhaust hose from the heat exchanger to the water muffler.

This hose was showing signs of wear especially at the exhaust elbow.  Also on the top left of the photo you can see a bronze valve that Luis moved by putting a new 5\8 hose on it to lengthen it. Now it is at the top where we can easily get at it.

We had new alternator belts installed. Our old original belts looked fine but they are six years old. Beta Marine recommends four years for changing. Now we only run the motor six months out of 12 so in reality they are about 3 years old. Still we do not want problems while rounding Cabo Corrientes (Cape of Currents) as we have to do first thing to head south. 

The exhaust elbow was in pretty good shape but showed signs of wear. It was removed and cleaned and painted black at the shop. The bolts and studs were breaking off when the elbow was being removed. So at the machine shop they removed the bolts and broken studs from the heat exchanger and there are new bolts for the elbow now.

 Also the Beta Marine 38 hp engine zinc cap was leaking and we needed to use silicone tape on it to seal it. At the machine shop they welded it and re-threaded it so no leaks now. It now has NPT not BSP threads so we can buy zinc caps locally. 

Looking good. 

At first Luis thought they would need to remove the motor mount to get the heat exchange off. I was getting upset with Phil our original installer till they found another way 😁

 Because changing all the fluids and flushing the motor and removing the stack tube and putting in new "O" rings and cleaning it etc takes me so much time and effort I am going to budget for Luis to do it for "Summarizing" it.  That will take a lot off my plate. Also we are going to have a full boat cover made so that will be easy to put up. After six years of Summarizing the boat it is time to make it easier on ourselves!!