Forgot to drain 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=8826
Printed Date: November-15-2024 at 9:21pm
Topic: Forgot to drain block
Posted By: Randy_in_Ohio
Subject: Forgot to drain block
Date Posted: October-27-2007 at 10:27pm
I forgot to drain the water from the block this year when I winterized.
I sucked up 5 gallons of the pink stuff, but forgot to drain the block first
I can not get the drain plugs out of the manifolds but I did drain the block last year, just forgot this year. After I was done I took a cup and drained a little water out from the plugs into it, it looked kind of pink, but after reading skidog's post got me worried.
I guess I could still drain the block only and then fill it up with pink stuff???
------------- http://www.correctcraftfan.com/diaries/details.asp?ID=1602&yrstart=1991&yrend=1995" rel="nofollow - 1993 Sport Nautique
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Replies:
Posted By: boat dr
Date Posted: October-27-2007 at 10:55pm
The manifolds are cheap,dont worry it do not get cold in Ohio.
Remove the inlet hose on the front , attach a length of hose taller than the riser and pour 2 gals. of RV anti- freeze into each side. This would not be as good as draining but should evacuate most of the water and replace it with AFreeze........
Or drag it down here and we will use it thru the winter............
------------- boat dr
/diaries/details.asp?ID=4631 - 1949 Dart
/diaries/details.asp?ID=1533 - 1964 American Skier
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Posted By: Randy_in_Ohio
Date Posted: October-28-2007 at 12:57am
Dr, I keep it in the garage attached to my house, so it doesn't get too cold usually, but I hear what your saying and pouring a couple of gallons of anti-freeze sounds like cheap insurance.
After reading about the trouble these manifolds can cause with water getting in the oil and all, I was seriously considering pulling them off, cleaning them up, I think there is a gasket in there that should be replaced and painting them.
I don't have any water in the oil, but I have noticed a little bit of rust stain on the outside, and from what I've read here that usually means the gaskets are getting bad on the inside. Plus, I know that the previous owner had once over-heated this engine and that is probably why the plugs in the manifolds don't come out any more.
Any advice on how to tackle this manifold job would be appreciated,
I will try to get some pics up of the manifolds.
------------- http://www.correctcraftfan.com/diaries/details.asp?ID=1602&yrstart=1991&yrend=1995" rel="nofollow - 1993 Sport Nautique
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Posted By: eric lavine
Date Posted: October-28-2007 at 11:27am
leave the water in it Randy..i need spring work
there has to be a way to get those plugs out, use a propane torch to heat the plug then let it cool, but be careful, next time you will only need to tighten them just past finger tight. There is no need to crank on them.
You know these Ohio winters it gets cold and if the antifreeze is diluted with water it raises the freezing point
------------- "the things you own will start to own you"
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Posted By: Randy_in_Ohio
Date Posted: October-28-2007 at 11:37am
Eric,
I've tried taking a torch to them, I have a big breaker bar on them and they will not budge. I think they are welded in there from when it was over-heated.
I think I'm going to follow the docs advice and pour a gallon of A/F in each one.
As for the engine block, i think I will drain it again and remove the T-stat, I'm going to order a new Stat and gasket and replace while I have them out.
------------- http://www.correctcraftfan.com/diaries/details.asp?ID=1602&yrstart=1991&yrend=1995" rel="nofollow - 1993 Sport Nautique
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Posted By: 8122pbrainard
Date Posted: October-28-2007 at 11:39am
Randy_in_Ohio wrote:
Dr, I keep it in the garage attached to my house, so it doesn't get too cold usually,
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Randy, Unless you have a heated garage, Being attached to the house won't make a difference. All it takes is the temp in the garage to be around 30 for several days.
Get the plugs out. Vise grips? Don't worry about saving the old ones. You will what to replace them with brass or like some do, petcocks for easy draining.
------------- /diaries/details.asp?ID=1622" rel="nofollow -
54 Atom
/diaries/details.asp?ID=2179" rel="nofollow - 77 Tique
64 X55 Dunphy
Keep it original, Pete <
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Posted By: Gary S
Date Posted: October-28-2007 at 12:34pm
Randy if you still had water in them when you used the torch,I doubt you could get them hot.If you do take them off maybe then you could get them hot,but then you'd have trouble holding them while you tried to use a breaker bar.Impact would be better,but for now I'd just go for pulling the hose.My Dad has another saltwater Shamrock boat with a PCM that he bought used,no way to truley know how old the manifolds are,but he got the plugs out.I'll ask him how he did it.
------------- http://www.correctcraftfan.com/diaries/details.asp?ID=1711&sort=&pagenum=1&yrstart=1966&yrend=1970" rel="nofollow - 69 Mustang HM SS 95 Nautique Super Sport
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Posted By: Randy_in_Ohio
Date Posted: October-28-2007 at 12:39pm
I do have a gas heater in the garage, but only run it when I'm working out there.
I'm telling you, these plugs will NOT come out. I've tried every penetrating oil, heat, big breaker bar, they don't budge!
Anyone who would like to try to get these loose, your welcome to stop by and give it a shot.
I'm thinking if I got them off the engine this winter I could then manage to heat them up enough to get them loose, I think the problem is that there is water in there and they are attached to the block and therefore the heat from the torch is dissipated too much..??\
------------- http://www.correctcraftfan.com/diaries/details.asp?ID=1602&yrstart=1991&yrend=1995" rel="nofollow - 1993 Sport Nautique
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Posted By: 8122pbrainard
Date Posted: October-28-2007 at 12:56pm
You may have better luck with the manifolds off the engine. You may even need to drill them out. With a brass plug, you will not have this problem.
------------- /diaries/details.asp?ID=1622" rel="nofollow -
54 Atom
/diaries/details.asp?ID=2179" rel="nofollow - 77 Tique
64 X55 Dunphy
Keep it original, Pete <
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Posted By: LaurelLakeSkier
Date Posted: October-28-2007 at 1:42pm
If you can get an impact wrench give it a try. The sharp jarring action seems to work better than the steady pressure that you get from a breaker bar. I had a similar problems the first fall after I got my boat a few years back. Tried the same stuff you have and had similar (no) luck until I gave the impact a go.
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Posted By: GottaSki
Date Posted: October-28-2007 at 2:36pm
'Pink stuff' is not meant to be diluted. I think a re-do is in order. Lower the bow and suck the manifold dry with a shop vac. Drain the block and refil. 20 minutes and 10 bucks.
------------- "There is nothing, absolutely nothing, half so much worthwhile as messing around with boats...simply messing."
River Rat to Mole
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Posted By: eric lavine
Date Posted: October-28-2007 at 3:47pm
Randy, try mapp gas, it gets much hotter, I've found over the years on any pipe thread (NPT) you have to get them as hot as you can or even red and let them cool completely down then remove, dont try when they are red, you will end up pulling threads. if you need to pull the manifolds and bring them down
------------- "the things you own will start to own you"
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Posted By: Randy_in_Ohio
Date Posted: October-28-2007 at 7:14pm
I'll try the mapp gas, I was thinking of trying that, I know it gets a little hotter...
------------- http://www.correctcraftfan.com/diaries/details.asp?ID=1602&yrstart=1991&yrend=1995" rel="nofollow - 1993 Sport Nautique
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Posted By: Randy_in_Ohio
Date Posted: October-28-2007 at 7:18pm
That shop-vac idea is a good one Gotta ski, I may just do that until I can get these things off this winter and re-do the gaskets and clean them up.
I got some pics of them today, i'll post them later..
------------- http://www.correctcraftfan.com/diaries/details.asp?ID=1602&yrstart=1991&yrend=1995" rel="nofollow - 1993 Sport Nautique
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Posted By: Guests
Date Posted: October-29-2007 at 7:18pm
randy i got a b tank sitting here that will heat them bad boys up for sure...let me know
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Posted By: Randy_in_Ohio
Date Posted: October-29-2007 at 10:34pm
Ryan,
Excuse my ignorance, but what the hell is a b-tank?
------------- http://www.correctcraftfan.com/diaries/details.asp?ID=1602&yrstart=1991&yrend=1995" rel="nofollow - 1993 Sport Nautique
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Posted By: bmiller
Date Posted: October-30-2007 at 9:56am
A b-tank is a tank used for a bigger torch setup.You can use feather tips on them to soft solder pipes,or you can covert the torch tip over to a turbo torch which ables you to braze pipe togerther.These type of torches get hot in an excess of 1500 degress.Once you do get the plugs out of your engine I recommend getting the drain ball cock kit from SKIDIM.I installed them last spring on my enginge an it made draining my block and exhaust manifolds a breeze this fall when it came time to winterize.Well worth the money.
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Posted By: 8122pbrainard
Date Posted: October-30-2007 at 10:09am
bmiller wrote:
I recommend getting the drain ball cock kit from SKIDIM.I installed them last spring on my enginge an it made draining my block and exhaust manifolds a breeze this fall when it came time to winterize.Well worth the money. |
I recommend against the kit. Sorry but it has come up before that it is overpriced and too restrictive for sediment. You can't probe the drain hole with a piece of wire.
http://www.correctcraftfan.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=8845&PN=1 - better option
------------- /diaries/details.asp?ID=1622" rel="nofollow -
54 Atom
/diaries/details.asp?ID=2179" rel="nofollow - 77 Tique
64 X55 Dunphy
Keep it original, Pete <
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Posted By: bmiller
Date Posted: October-30-2007 at 12:19pm
Peter,I agree that your option works also.If you think about the kit is made of good brass ball valves from Skidim.If you were to go out and buy all the stuff separately it would cost about the same or even more.I installed mine kit on brand new fresh exhaust manifolds to begin with.If your worried about sediment build up I guess you could drain the manifolds every once in a while to reduce the risk.It makes it easy to just turn a valve and it less mess on the interior of the boat.Considering that I did put new carpet in my boat this year it cuts down on the black sediment from staining your carpet when draining.All I did was hook a 4ft length of 3/8 hose to the barb fitting of the ball cock and let it go drain out the bottom of the boat.I guess is what I'm saying is there's mor than one way to skin a cat.
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Posted By: 8122pbrainard
Date Posted: October-30-2007 at 2:13pm
Brian, I'm sure that you are correct regarding the kit from Skidim being the more economical way to go rather than purchasing separately. My major concern is the sediment. I should have been clearer on my description. I really wasn't talking about the occasional chunk from the engine or the manifolds but rather what is sucked up from the lake. We all do not have our boats equiped with raw water strainers and sand and silt from the lake will settle in the low spots. This is especially true with the low water levels we have seen in recent years. I have never found a engine that doesn't have some blocking a drain. It just seems to be the norm and the reason I always probe with a piece of wire. In the other thread, Tim mentioned that he always uses a piece of step flashing to direct the drain water away from his carpet. That's a good idea but I use a small can and manage to get the carpet wet!!!
------------- /diaries/details.asp?ID=1622" rel="nofollow -
54 Atom
/diaries/details.asp?ID=2179" rel="nofollow - 77 Tique
64 X55 Dunphy
Keep it original, Pete <
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Posted By: bmiller
Date Posted: October-30-2007 at 3:36pm
Peter I agree with what your saying also,with the sediment loading up at the drain hole.I also did have this problem with my old manifolds before I replaced them.I don't have a strainer on my raw water pump either but where I boat don't have that sand or silt problem.I guess I tend to stay out of those shallow area because I don't want to be replacing a prop.But like I said if your worried about the build up you could always drain the manifolds themselves if you have the ball valve kit installed.Even it you really wanted to your could flush the manifolds with the engine running by putting a hose on the barbed fitting and just opening the valve up.Just hook the boat up to a external water source,if the boat is on the trailer and let it go.
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Posted By: backfoot100
Date Posted: October-30-2007 at 6:05pm
Randy_in_Ohio wrote:
I forgot to drain the water from the block this year when I winterized.
I sucked up 5 gallons of the pink stuff, but forgot to drain the block first
I can not get the drain plugs out of the manifolds but I did drain the block last year, just forgot this year. After I was done I took a cup and drained a little water out from the plugs into it, it looked kind of pink, but after reading skidog's post got me worried.
I guess I could still drain the block only and then fill it up with pink stuff??? |
Was it at operating temp (thermostat open)when you sucked up the 5 gals. of antifreeze? If it was, you should be OK. That's the same thing I did for 12 years and I have three buddy's that have been doing it that same way for over 5 years each with no problems. As I have said before, I've never touched a drain plug anywhere.
------------- When people run down to the lake to see what's making that noise, you've succeeded.
Eddie
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Posted By: Guests
Date Posted: October-30-2007 at 10:17pm
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