[C38] Overheat False Alarm

Mon Jun 6 08:26:29 EDT 2011

David,
Unfortunately, I don't think you have gotten rid of your bubble.   The 
flow you observe with the cap off is kind of working as your pump is 
circulating water, but it is more of an agitation rather than real flow.
Both Tom and Larry give you perhaps the two answers that routinely 
work.  Look to the forward, port side, bottom of your engine for the 
drain fitting.  You should notice if you trace it back that this 
location leads back to the heat exchanger and your hot water heater 
(that is where this bubble resides).  When you fill from the bottom, you 
fill the system in the opposite direction of the water pump flow and 
this forces the bubble out and up.  Remember your thermostat has only a 
small "flow hole" and it can take time  (I usually take the thermostat 
out while doing this).
I can't tell you how much time and angst I went through to learn this!  
The damn bubble can move around so that sometimes it is distributed 
enough to allow some flow, which makes you think some magic has happened 
and your temp looks great.  And the next time it is concentrated and 
allows no flow!  And I can tell you without qualification that the 
bubble is a very close cousin to that guy Murphy which means things go 
wrong at the worst time!

Any time you are working on the cooling side of your engine (pump 
impeller, heat exchanger, coolant change, etc.), you should refill 
through the lower fitting.  Adding antifreeze like Tom describes along 
with the expansion modification is also a must as running just water in 
our engines should only be done in emergencies.
One alternative I now use is I bought one of those inexpensive pumps 
that fit on the end of a drill.  This allows me to pump my antifreeze in 
through the bottom of the engine and I no longer have to drain down the 
system to add it.

I hope this doesn't come across as complicated because it really is 
not.  The trick is installing a hose fitting to your drain valve.

What I think is most frustrating is that the Westerbeke/Universal folks 
must know all about this problem, but do not comment on it!  Old time 
marine engine mechanics know all about it, but most of the ones we run 
into at shipyards are young...

Regards,
Chuck Finn
Mighty Quinn #114
Still not in the water because of flooding
Great Lakes

On 6/5/2011 3:46 PM, david at dlrfilms.com wrote:
> This might be the solution right here!
>
> I have a coolant recovery tank, but I don't see how the pressure cap would
> allow coolant to flow to it unless it was subject to high pressure; the
> seal is spring loaded and takes quite a bit of force to move.
>
> Furthermore, ran the engine with the coolant level down/cap off and it ran
> just fine for 30 minute. I could see the coolant circulating vigorously.
>
> But when I put the cap on I the temp rose and we were back to square one.
> As this was happening I was wondering whether or not caps were univeral.
>
> Will take mine to an autopart store and compare to a two-way.
>
> I love sailing. I hate motors.
>
>
>> Correction:
>>
>> I failed to mention replacing the pressure cap if anyone does install the
>> coolant recovery tank as I described in my last post.  You will have to
>> replace the original pressure cap with a modern 2-way cap made for
>> recovery tanks.  Our original caps were one way only and will not allow
>> the expansion tanks to operate.  Any automotive parts store should be able
>> to match up your old cap with a new 2-way cap.
>>
>> Tom Troncalli
>>
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: Richard West
>> To: Larrypi at roadrunner.com;Catalina 38 Listserve
>> Sent: 6/5/2011 11:47:18 AM
>> Subject: Re: [C38] Overheat False Alarm
>>
>>
>> Mine used to get air in the hoses to of from the water heater.  For some
>> reason I don't really understand, this stopped the coolant from
>> circulating in the engine.  It happened any time I had to disconnect those
>> heater hoses for any reason.  The only solution I found was detaching one
>> of the heater hoses and use a turkey baster to force coolant through the
>> heater circuit.
>>
>>
>> RIch, Legacy, #360
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On Sun, Jun 5, 2011 at 7:45 AM, Larry Malmberg<Larrypi at roadrunner.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>> I believe there is a small plug near the water pump that you can remove,
>> add
>> coolant until it comes out, replace the plug, run the engine for a couple
>> of
>> moments, remove the plug again and air will come out, keep doing until you
>> have no more air.  This is just from memory.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Best regards,
>>
>> Larry Malmberg
>>
>> 7231 Boulder Avenue Suite 507
>> Highland, CA 92346 PI 15211
>> Telephone  909-208-1847
>> FAX           909-991-7568
>>
>> E Mail  Larrypi at roadrunner.com
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Life is short, Break the rules, Forgive quickly, Kiss slowly, Love truly,
>> Laugh uncontrollably, And never regret anything that made you smile..
>>
>> "The American Indians found out what happens when  you don't control
>> immigration"
>>
>>
>> "Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely
>> in
>> a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside,
>> thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming; WOW-- What a
>> Ride!"
>>
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>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: listserve-bounces at catalina38.org
>> [mailto:listserve-bounces at catalina38.org] On Behalf Of david at dlrfilms.com
>> Sent: Sunday, June 05, 2011 7:17 AM
>> To: listserve at catalina38.org
>> Subject: [C38] Overheat False Alarm
>>
>>
>> My engine is back to doing that thing where the temp gauge climbs, the
>> alarm
>> goes off, but the engine itself is not even too hot to touch, and I can
>> stick my finger in the coolant without getting scalded.
>>
>> This problem plagued our 2008 and 2009 Summer sailing, but wasn't too big
>> a
>> concern because we never ran the engine for more than about 5-10 minutes.
>>
>> Thought I had it licked before our passage to the Caribbean in Nov 2009,
>> and
>> indeed, ran the motor for hours on end with no such problem.
>>
>> But now it's back, and with the wind out of the SE, that means getting
>> back
>> into the harbor is a long enough run to get the overheat false alarm.
>>
>> IIRC, cracking the thermostat housing open would (usually) solve the
>> problem.
>>
>> The other thing I notice is that coolent is not following through the
>> overflow tube to the reserve tank. It's not blocked; it seems like there's
>> a
>> air bubble that's keeping the coolant from flowing.
>>
>> I remember something about running the engine, and then adding more
>> coolant
>> after it burps or some such. I have my manual and will re-read.
>>
>> Meanwhile, any helpful hints are much appreciated.
>>
>>
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