what is this?

Not sure what its function is but it looks ready to be replaced?

bfloyd4445 said:

Not sure what its function is but it looks ready to be replaced?

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At first glance it looks to be a horizontally-mounted sea strainer of the type commonly used on an engine's raw water intake. Unless your photo is rotated 90 degrees, I'm surprised to see one of these --- if that's what it is--- mounted sideways.

Normally they are mounted vertically so the top can be removed to pull out and clean the strainer that is inside. That way the water in the filter body doesn't spill out into the bilge.

The typical construction of these filters--- one of the better manufacturers being Groco which is the type we have--- has bronze ends with a heavy glass body. Four (usually) bronze rods run the length of the filter body and serve to clamp the end caps and the glass body together.

There is a bronze lid or cap on the top that can be removed, on ours with a big central wing nut, to give access to the filter element inside. The metal filter element, usually a long stainless steel "basket," is mounted inside and can be lifted out for routine cleaning.

The filter is intended to capture sand, mud, weed, etc that might find its way up through the intake through-hull and prevent it from getting to the raw water pump on the engine where it could clog the impeller chamber or even damage or break the impeller.

Whoa.

Run away from that boat.

It's a sea strainer in really bad shape. I think the photo is on its side, as noted by someone else. I also agree, stay away from this boat, if you are looking to buy.

At first, I thought it was a sea strainer. Then I rotated the picture 180 degrees and noticed the 2 wires. 12V or bonding wires? Could it be that the pic is upside down and is a very poorly mounted and maintained raw water pump?

Has to be a raw water strainer. Bfloyd, if you're seeking input on this stuff about a boat you're looking at, I would imagine there are HUNDREDS of other issues with the boat. Do you have a surveyor, or anyone else looking at the boat with you that's knowledgeable enough to answer these questions?

hmm.. recalling another post I saw tonight about "Titles" , Bfloyd, you're a Guru in a few months on the site, and I am only a Senior Member after 5 years. I guess I need to get busy posting more stuff....

No it appears to be a Perko Fig. 493 strainer. I relatively pricey strainer at that. However it is needing a little maintenance currently. Along with everything else in the picture.


Is this boat abandoned?

If the photo is 90 degrees off, that means the through-hull is in the side of the boat. Not unheard of, I suppose, for an engine's raw water intake, but not typical based on the ones I've seen thus far.

Our two sea strainers are connected into the boat's bonding system with heavy green wire.

Marin said:

If the photo is 90 degrees off, that means the through-hull is in the side of the boat. Not unheard of, I suppose, for an engine's raw water intake, but not typical based on the ones I've seen thus far.

Our two sea strainers are connected into the boat's bonding system with heavy green wire.

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If so, I'm mighty happy with my sea strainer.

bfloyd4445 said:

Not sure what its function is but it looks ready to be replaced?

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It appears to me to be a strainer connected to a seacock. The wires are the bonding wires.

It should be easy to figure out it's function (besides straining debris out of the water) by tracing the hose to see what it feeds.

bfloyd4445 said:

Not sure what its function is but it looks ready to be replaced?

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H'mmm ... aren't you the same guy who just posted "I've been boating for a gazillion years in all kinds of vessels up to about 60 feet ..."?

So in all those gazillion years on such a range of vessels, you've never seen a sea stainer?

Looks like a troll to me ...

markpierce said:

If so, I'm mighty happy with my sea strainer.

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Mark: Stop embarrassing the rest of us with your polished engine compartment. Oh, to have one item so spic-n-span. I don't think I've even got something that clean on the outside of my boat.

Anyway, I concur with all the above.

We call that a hot mess!

RickB said:

H'mmm ... aren't you the same guy who just posted "I've been boating for a gazillion years in all kinds of vessels up to about 60 feet ..."?

So in all those gazillion years on such a range of vessels, you've never seen a sea stainer?

Looks like a troll to me ...

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It just goes to show that you can do something for years and never understand what you are doing. Some folks are like that.

markpierce said:

If so, I'm mighty happy with my sea strainer.

Gratuitous picture deleted

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M too Me too Me too

Looks the same as mine, without the salt and kooties. Mines laying down too, I haven't tried to clean it out yet, as I can see through the glass it's not clogged.

I think Northern Spy got it right. It's a Perko Strainer screwed onto an Apollo seacock. Good hardware. The strainer should be cleaned up and rebuilt with a gasket set. I bet the seacock is frozen from lack of exercise.

BS Floyd

After several months of reading your posts, suggest a re-boot.

sunchaser said:

BS Floyd

After several months of reading your posts, suggest a re-boot.

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dhmeissner said:

Looks the same as mine, without the salt and kooties. Mines laying down too, I haven't tried to clean it out yet, as I can see through the glass it's not clogged.

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You might consider moving that strainer.

On my boat the sea strainers are all mounted so that the top of them is above the water line.

Actually all the boats I've owned were like that. The strainer top has always been above the waterline.

Is that a "standard", or is it just my boats?

markpierce said:

If so, I'm mighty happy with my sea strainer.

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Mark, that looks like a sea chest. It is a great way to get the intakes where they can be serviced from inside the boat. Does this one have a strainer integrated into it, or are the strainers down stream of the sea cocks?

K Sanders said:

"You might consider moving that strainer.On my boat the sea strainers are all mounted so that the top of them is above the water line.

Actually all the boats I've owned were like that. The strainer top has always been above the waterline. Is that a "standard", or is it just my boats."

Why is it a problem to have strainers below the WL? All 4 or mine are below the WL (on a sea chest) as well as engines and genset RW pumps. You have no choice but to have strainers below the WL on boats with deep draft. Working valves make it safe IMHO.

ksanders said:

On my boat the sea strainers are all mounted so that the top of them is above the water line.

Actually all the boats I've owned were like that. The strainer top has always been above the waterline.

Is that a "standard", or is it just my boats?

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Our boat did not have sea strainers when we bought it. We had them installed as soon as the boat came off the truck. Both of them were installed vertically with the tops just above the waterline.

ksanders said:

You might consider moving that strainer.

On my boat the sea strainers are all mounted so that the top of them is above the water line.

Actually all the boats I've owned were like that. The strainer top has always been above the waterline.

Is that a "standard", or is it just my boats?

Click to expand...

I intend to. I don't like it where it is anyway, I'm paranoid I'm going to slip and step on it when I'm getting down there to check things. This summer I'm hauling the boat and will be upgrading several systems including the sea strainer. Thanks.

The hose on that thing is pretty scary. Would not want to be tied up next to whatever that gear is on during a freeze.

Seems like a sideways strainer would make a mess every time you went to clean it out. Mine are all vertical and all below the water line. I'd have to raise them all two feet to get them above.


Dave

sunchaser said:

Why is it a problem to have strainers below the WL?

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I don't know that it's actually a problem. It's just more of a convenience, I think, in that if you remove the top of the sea strainer with the raw water seacock still open the water won't overflow the sea strainer if the top of the "bowl" is a bit above the waterline.

Now we were taught by the experienced GB broker and charter fleet operator who found our boat for us and helped me run it north from Tacoma after its truck ride from California to never do that, but to always close the raw water intake seacock before doing any sort of work on an engine's raw water system.

But others might prefer to service their sea strainers without closing its associated seacock. So not having them overflow would be an advantage.

bfloyd--- What kind of boat was the "thing" in your photo in, and what was the rest of its condition?

Hey Mark,

Is that a sea strainer or some form of sea chest?

OOPs someone already commented on it.

SD

That "thing" in post#1 is supposed to look something like this 3/4" Perko which feeds seawater to my a/c's. The strainer is mounted slightly below the water line so that it self-primes and vertically so it can be cleaned without pushing a slug of air into the pump which then becomes a PITA to burp.