Ways to clean Sea strainers

[magnawake]

My Sea strainers are mounted horizonally. Most of my friends in the marina give me a funny look when I tell them this. When I clean them out, it dumps water all into the bilge. I just dried the entire bilge and want to keep it dry. Is there a good way to open the side door of the strainer without letting the water pour into the bilge? I was thinking of putting garbage bag below the strainer with rags to soak up water. Please give me your way of cleaning them out. Thanks

 

[Pascal]

having them horizontal doesn't help but even vertical whatever water is the hose above the strainer will drain back... I guess you could move them vertically and put a ball valve on the strainer outlet to stop water from draining down and out?

dont' know if it's worth it...

 

[GJH]

All of mine are like that; it is a weird Hatteras thing. I generally just let it flow until I can get the cap back on. The bag idea isn't bad if there is room; as Pascal mentioned there is more than just the water in the strainer.
Way down The List is replacing the through hulls and rearranging the strainers. But at least it is on The List!

 

[Colwyn D]

I did ask why the strainers would be mounted horizontally on the 'Boatdiesel' forum last year. From most replies, including T. Athens, the view was there is no practical reason for it and the advice was move them to a more sensible vertical position with the strainer inlet slightly higher than the boats waterline.
My strainers are further compromised because the lids face the stringers and I can't get the baskets completely out. I hope this was done by a P.O.and not the factory. When I bought the boat I also found the seacocks frozen, a nice combination! I temporarily fitted grease nipples in the drain ports and with that and heat got them moving.

 

[daniel r morrison]

i removed the sea strainers and installed the clam shell stlye strainers with a screen under the hull. This was back in 2002 and haven't had any issues with this set-up. My bottom is done monthly and they brush the screens, seems to do the trick

 

[carolinacoast]

I added a 2nd strainer and put a ball valve between them to be able to valve over to a clean one as necessary. This also allows both strainers to be valved off and clean both strainers at the same time. I would tell you that it is not necessary unless you keep a boat between charleston and brunswick , GA in the summer. we just have lots of stuff growing with large tides, and the 2nd strainer has been a great thing. the boat was in NC most of the summer, and I really didnt need anything that extreme for those waters. a nice change.

 

[GJH]

Bring your boat up to Morehead/Beufort and we'll show you what growth is all about. Leave the end of a fender scraping the water for a couple of days. Warm water and current are what will really make the difference.

 

[krush]

one time i was workng in the bilge and i dropped a wrench and a rag and they got wet and it was horrible. Then i found $5 behind a hose.

 

[Pascal]

I tried one of those external strainers on a water maker inlet and it worked great this summer. never had to clean the strainer (which I kept since it was in) where as the summer before we'd have to clean the damn grass out every 3 to 5 hours in Nantucket harbor.

this winter, we're installing them on all remaining 4 air con pumps and on both gennies. will keep the standard strainers on the mains since they dont' require frequent cleanings.

 

[34Hatt]

I tried one of those external strainers on a water maker inlet and it worked great this summer. never had to clean the strainer (which I kept since it was in) where as the summer before we'd have to clean the damn grass out every 3 to 5 hours in Nantucket harbor.

this winter, we're installing them on all remaining 4 air con pumps and on both gennies. will keep the standard strainers on the mains since they dont' require frequent cleanings.

Been telling all of you about the external for years now! But it just to easy for most.
Speaking of easy how about just using a shop vac or you can re plumb everything?

 

[Boatsb]

And a while back when I discussed the outboard strainers the expurts panned them. It's interesting how things change.

 

[Paul45c]

IMHO, for external "grater" type strainers, get the kind where you can completely remove the screen in the water (mine has two skinny tracks that bind the long edges, with one big retaining screw on the end). Eventually when the bottom paint loses its antifouling capabilities, that thing will block up really quickly. It's very helpful to be able to remove the screen, clean it up and re-bottom-paint it, and slap it back on there. I just did this for the big one that feeds my a/c's. With our summer bathwater down here, it would start to restrict flow in less than a week after the bottom paint's antifouling effectiveness was gone. I got tired of swimming under and scrubbing that screen that often.

 

[Boatsb]

Just get a set of extra screens and paint them then you can swap out clean for dirty pretty easy.

 

[GJH]

Those external screens would make me paranoid where I am now. My diver, who has to come at least monthly, spends enough time working on the slotted clamshell scoops and regular through hulls today. I'd rather just be able to inspect and clean the strainers in the friendly confines of the boat. That said, Hatteras uses the external strainer screens for the mains on their new boats.

 

[saltshaker]

Been telling all of you about the external for years now! But it just to easy for most.
Speaking of easy how about just using a shop vac or you can re plumb everything?

X2!
I had them for 12 years on my 46C. Mine were on the engines and the AC. Never had a problem and never had to clean the internal strainer from anything but silt. Once you do it you'll wonder why you didn't do it sooner. A lot of new boats are delivered this way.

 

[Angela]

I love my external strainers. I've had them for about 2, maybe 3, years now. I've never done much with them - never even opened them, and still nothing is stuck on them. They were bottom painted when installed. I've gone under to peek at them and they are always clean on their own. My water is about as warm as it gets for the majority of the crowd. So, don't let warm water deter anyone from making the switch. I like Boatsb's idea of having an extra set of screens to swap out when the need arises.

 

[Bill Root]

I spent a couple of weeks in Beaufort, SC and Isle of Hope Ga. this summer. I had cleaned the AC strainers before starting the trip. When I took them out again in Isle of Hope they were literally packed with what looked like fine hair that was attached to the inside of the strainer baskets. I had to scrape the stuff of. This was after only two weeks in that area. Wouldn't the external screens get clogged the same way?

 

[Paul45c]

The externals won't clog the same way because they're painted with antifouling. When they lose their effectiveness, clean up and repaint. That hotswap idea is a good one if you want to buy extra screens. Probably not a bad idea to have those spares on the boat, anyway, in the freak chance that something bashes in the screens underway.

 

[saltshaker]

I spent a couple of weeks in Beaufort, SC and Isle of Hope Ga. this summer. I had cleaned the AC strainers before starting the trip. When I took them out again in Isle of Hope they were literally packed with what looked like fine hair that was attached to the inside of the strainer baskets. I had to scrape the stuff of. This was after only two weeks in that area. Wouldn't the external screens get clogged the same way?

There's nothing to cling to.It's no different than the hull bottom. The internal strainers collect debris, external strainers prevent the debris from getting into the cooling circuit. Just do it and you'll be a believer. I've never heard of anyone having bad results from using a good external strainer. Just don't put gobs of paint on them.

 

[magnawake]

I cleaned the sea strainer (Stbd side) today. I just cracked the door and caught the water with a cup, then emptied into a bucket. I layed rags down in the bilge and soaked up the spilled water. My screens were suprisingly clean. Getting to the strainers was very tight. I wish they were mounted in a better location closer to the centerline.