My laziness = possible cracked block
Printed From: CorrectCraftFan.com
Category: Repairs and Maintenance
Forum Name: Boat Maintenance
Forum Discription: Discuss maintenance of your Correct Craft
URL: http://www.CorrectCraftFan.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=28483
Printed Date: November-18-2024 at 1:45pm
Topic: My laziness = possible cracked block
Posted By: tullfooter
Subject: My laziness = possible cracked block
Date Posted: December-04-2012 at 1:49am
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So my procrastination may have cost me my engine. I took my boat out for the season at the end of October. I put it in a detached garage of a house that my wife and I are renovating to rent out. At the beginning of last week, the night time temps here in Michigan were going down to the high teens. I put a space heater in the garage and a 60 watt bulb under the doghouse. The next night I added a space heater under the boat cover. That heater was on a separate circuit from the other one. The next morning I stopped in and found the power to the garage had quit. I found the 40amp breaker that feeds the garage from the house had kicked. That makes no sense, but that's another issue. Tonight (59 degrees) I took the boat to my truck shop to winterize. I could not run the engine to temp because the raw water pump would not take water from my bucket. I even ran the hose directly in the intake hose, but it would not suck the water. So I drained the block and exhaust manifolds, then refilled the engine with RV antifreeze. For the heck of it, I reconnected the hoses, raised the hull intake hose, filled it with RV, and started the engine. It seemed to take the RV, so I put 3 gallons of RV in a bucket. When I started the engine, it sucked it up like Patty, the day time hooker. I then did a full winterization. If I get a chance, I may run it again to see if the pump is working well. If so, I'll run it for a while and look for any indications of block damage. Is there anything I should be looking for? Sorry so long. ------------- Play hard, life's not a trial run. '85 BFN '90 BFN White Lake, Michigan |
Replies:
Posted By: tbeard
Date Posted: December-04-2012 at 2:10am
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It takes alot to crack a 454 block. It was not in the high teens inside the detached garage...right. Mabey 10 degrees warmer without heat. Then that water has to freeze hard and really expand to crack that block over a period of time. If I was a betting man I would say no worries.. The only I know of a true test is to run at operating temp for a while and look for milky white oil. ------------- Thanks.......Tom |
Posted By: Kristof
Date Posted: December-05-2012 at 10:27am
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I wouldn't worry too much either... Like tbeard said, that block can take a lot. Buddies of mine left their boat outside for two nights while it was lightly freezing (around minus two degrees celcius), before they got to winterizing last winter. They never had nay problems... ------------- - Gun control means: using BOTH hands! - Money doesn't make one happy, but when it rains cats and dogs, it's still better to cry in a Porsche than on a bicycle... |
Posted By: phatsat67
Date Posted: December-05-2012 at 12:42pm
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Engine block is like a giant heat retainer under a cover. Ever let your boat sit for 6 hours after a run and it's still hot to the touch? Early my ford popped a rear freeze plug out and no damage but it only had to freeze the little corner of water left at the drivers side rear of the block. If the T stat was closed then wouldn't that mean you may have had a blockage in the exhaust manifolds instead of the block? Maybe you got partially lucky. Grab a beer, enjoy winter, Start it in the spring. Tom, hows the resto going on the Footer? I'm still waiting on my guy to get the 88 ski and footer graphics right. |
Posted By: Hollywood
Date Posted: December-05-2012 at 1:38pm
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I'm not understanding why the rwp wouldn't pull water, or take it from the hose. Are you implying there was ice in the engine that you melted out in the process? ------------- |
Posted By: Guests
Date Posted: December-05-2012 at 2:02pm
Maybe the housing in the RWP, was frozen? Exposed more to temps? So at first no RWP, action? Wishing the best and hope all will be well, going forward... 
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Posted By: tullfooter
Date Posted: December-06-2012 at 1:53am
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No ice anywhere. When I winterized it, the ambient temp was 50+. It made no sense as to why it would not suck (insert joke here). ------------- Play hard, life's not a trial run. '85 BFN '90 BFN White Lake, Michigan |
Posted By: 74Wind
Date Posted: December-06-2012 at 10:00am
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Couldn't find the post in a search, must be too old, but I'd asked a freeze plug question a while back and as I recall, Pete Brainard replied something like..."thier intention is not as an actual freeze plug but just to plug the holes used to support the block during the casting process"(??) ------------- 1974 Southwind 18 1975 Century Mark II |
Posted By: Hollywood
Date Posted: December-06-2012 at 12:13pm
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They are there to close off the water jacket. It's really the core used to form the jacket extending into the mold (core print). Such a large core could not be supported by the drain plug holes and intake. ------------- |
Posted By: GlassSeeker
Date Posted: December-06-2012 at 5:20pm
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Maybe the impeller took a dump just by coinkydink. I would be kind of freaked out leaving a space heater under the cover in the boat in a garage at a house I am not living at...thats blowing fuses for unknown reasons...we don't need anymore fire threads. I am paranoid when I leave my battery charger hooked up and running in my boat in my garage while I'm not there for just a little while. ------------- This is the life |
Posted By: TRBenj
Date Posted: December-06-2012 at 6:07pm
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The RWP priming (or not) wont have anything to do with a cracked block. If you dont have any other indications of freeze damage on the engine (pushed out casting plugs, water in the oil, etc), then dont worry about it. If the RWP now primes fine from now on and keeps the engine cool, then youre fine there as well. If it overheats at speed or leaks externally, then its possible the pump housing froze up and is pulling air. I havent seen that happen myself, but if the RWP was holding water and froze solid, I could see it being possible. ------------- |