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Old 06-13-2016, 05:22 PM   #4
tadhana
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City: New England and Canada to Florida
Vessel Name: Tadhana
Vessel Model: Helmsman 38 Pilothouse
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 596
We always flush our generator with fresh water if it is going to sit for a week or more. The engine intake is 2" so it s not practical to flush it after each use. But we do flush it if the boat is going to sit for a month or more. Remember, it is not a good idea to just hook up a hose. if the engine is running, the water pump will move the water through the system and the engine exhaust will push it overboard. But if you flush the engine and it is not running you will fill the muffler and backflood the engine. I flush the generator by hooking it up to a 5 gallon water tank and run the tank dry and shut it off. To flush the engine, I open the close the seacock, open the sea strainer cap and run two water hoses simultaneously. While it is not enough cooling water to run the engine at high speed, at idle speed it is adequate water flow to protect the raw water pump impeller and flush the system. I shut the engine down and let the FW flow int the bilge too that helps keep the bilge sweet..
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