Rubber water hoses

[Maynard Rupp]

I spent the entire day today changing every water and anti-freeze rubber hose. I noticed a small leak in the top of a hose. This turned out to be a sea water hose. I removed the hose and when we bent it, it split in half. Only the wire was holding it together. WOW!! Time to change all those puppies. Each main seawater hose goes from the Groco strainer, (near the stuffing box), through the engine bilge bulkhead and, after a ten foot run, it goes to the sea water pump. Of course the hose is held in place by about 5 Adel clamps in the true Hatteras tradition. I had to pump a tube of caulk into the gap around the hose where it goes through the bulkhead. I had to use a mirror to locate the screw holes for the clamps. After both P&S feed and all other seawater hoses, I attacked the anti freeze carrying hoses. These were also very rotten. Of course i spilled the required amount of slippery anti-freeze. I had changed the coolent last year so I just poured it back in, Well mostly in. A miserable job and it took 10 hours. I did learn something though. When you squeeze those Adel clamps to put the screw through them into the hole in the boat, try putting a zip tie around both ears to hold the ears compressed and the screw is into both ears. Now the screw is easy to start. Just cut and remove the zip tie before you tighten the screw. Our hoses were all original 1986 and most were more than ready for replacement, so take a critical look at yours!

 

[SKYCHENEY]

Nice job, Maynard. You just forgot the pictures (a yachtsmanbill tradition). Of course if you took as many as he does, it would have been a 12 hour job . I'm glad to know that I won't be needed in your ER now while we are underway to the rendezvous point.

 

[Maynard Rupp]

Nice job, Maynard. You just forgot the pictures (a yachtsmanbill tradition). Of course if you took as many as he does, it would have been a 12 hour job . I'm glad to know that I won't be needed in your ER now while we are underway to the rendezvous point.

I don't have a way to download pictures here in Miami. All that stuff is at home in Detroit.

 

[REBrueckner]

Good job...always better to fix that kind of thing in your slip on your schedule rather than in ten foot seas!
There's a traditional way to test the condition of hoses: Grab a hold and yank each...if they are hard/stiff and don't break, likely they are close to the end of their useful life. If you break/rip/tear any then likely all of that vintage are PAST their useful life. And of course, in general, hot water hoses deterioriate faster than cold water hoses. And the hotter the water, say engine coolant, the shorter the useful life...so hot water system often lasts longer and cold water and salt water even longer...

Keep paint off hoses as the drying solvents are bad for them; if you see cracks developing on hoses, it's time to replace them.

 

[Beckytek]

I'll be doing the same job in the spring, 1988 vintage. Along with changing the risers, flushing the heat exchangers, points and plugs. Going over the whole engines for top performance. At least I don't have to full around with those adel clamps. That was the worst part about changing the sewage hoses. The clamps were inaccessable. I had to cut holes in the cabinet bottoms and my shower stall to remove them. spent many hours getting to those clamps. What a lousy job. Ron

 

[JTS]

Should the fuel fill hose be changed also? Could crack where it bends down from the gunwale to across the tank.

 

[REBrueckner]

Fuel grade hoses are different than water...but give them a yank back and forth...see if they have visible craks on the outer surface.....