ROBDEN

Hey! These would do a treat.

Thanks Cat'. If it's a donut, I onlt eat the centre and throw the outer away. That way I don't put on too much weight. Rob....

Is it worthy of a greenie or even a donut? Rob.... Oh! I forgot to add. It was paid in Euros. So on a good day with a good exchange rate, it's even better. Rob....

I've ordered the parts I need. All in stock. Genuine Mitsubishi parts. 3 to 5 day delivery. Including shipping, under half the price I had to pay last time. Rob...

That's what I thought. I've just emailed them for a price on their head bolts. About three years ago I bought some from Vetus and then they were £7.20 each plus vat. I'll let you know what they say. Rob....

Hey, I've just answered my own question. I found this: http://www.det-mitsubishi.com/en/mitsubishi-diesel-motoren/toepassingen/vetus Thanks Rob....

No. They wont. They want to sell the parts. Thanks anyway. Rob....

Morning all....again. Going to change head gasket and need new head bolts. I need 14 of the little buggers and don't really want to pay Vetus over the top prices. I thought I'd try Mitsubishi dealers. Does anyone know if the Vetus 4.17 is based on the S4L or S4L2 or whatever? Thanks for any input. Rob....

Morning all....again. Going to change head gasket and need new head bolts. I need 14 of the little buggers and don't really want to pay Vetus over the top prices. I thought I'd try Mitsubishi dealers. Does anyone know if the Vetus 4.17 is based on the S4L or S4L2 or whatever? Thanks for any input. Rob....

Oh thanks very much but no I'm in the middle of the Shroppie. I have a friend not too far away annnnnd he has a car. But many thanks anyway. Rob....

Thanks everyone for your time and input. Unfortunately is does look like it's the head gasket. I'm out in the sticks at the moment so I'll have to work my way back to civilisation where I can get transport, deliveries, etc. Rob....

Just tried it. Engine run 3 hours ago. Just took the cap off, "hissss" started engine. within a minute it started foaming. So it's starting to look like it's the head gasket. Hi Chalky. Yeah I've been reading about them and from what I've read they seem to be a bit hit and miss. Not really a definitive answer. Rob.... Hello Tony. Yes, two skin tanks. I did wonder about this as the coolant level always seemed to be more constant when it was 1/2" -3/4" below the filler neck. Now it's looking more and more like the head gasket but none of the usual blown gasket signs like constant boiling up, white exhaust, water in the oil or a sludgy mess. Could there be a problem with exhaust header tank? I've never heard of one before, just clutching at straws I think. Rob....

Thanks Lee. I'll try that later. Rob....

Hi Daniel. Oil is good, no sign of water or sludge. This morning I undid the filler cap and got the usual "hiss" that I've been getting. The water level was down a bit so topped up to about 1/4" below filler neck as per the manual. I then started the engine with the cap off. After about a minute, foam started pouring out of the filler indicating that there was a lot of air (possibly exhaust gases) in the system. After 10-15 minutes of this purging it stopped, then returned to normal. As everything had settled down, I then topped up again with hot water. This brought about another round of foam purging (coincidence?) . Five minutes later all was well again so, replaced the cap and left it running.Still running an hour later and it seems ok.....until the next time maybe. If the head gasket is on its way out and letting gases into the system, why would it stop doing so after a few minutes? Rob....

What if a new bolt was capable of being torqued to 100 ft/lbs and one used it only to 40/50 ft/lbs? Should you throw it away and buy another for £8-9?.... Yeah right. Rob....

Hi Chalky. I've been worried about that. Had a head gasket go about three years ago but then I kept boiling up with a lot of pressure in the system. Being a Vetus engine it was obviously quite expensive. £80 for the gasket, £7.20 per new pre-stretched bolt....14 of those, plus a few bits and pieces. All plus vat. Maybe I should check the torque settings on the head bolts in case any are a bit loose and allowing a small amount of water through. Rob....

Hi Tony. What would you expect the coolant pressure to be then? Rob....

It's pressure.

Hi PJ. Very interesting. Not even ten minutes ago I was thinking along those lines. I've been wondering where the pressure is coming from. Not really looked at the hot water. It's only used for cleaning....clothes, dishes, bodies and the like. Think I'll compare a glass of hot water, to one of cold. Now that the stove is alight and can get hot water via a kettle on the top, I'm wondering about by-passing the calorifier. If I do and the water stops disappearing, that would indicate that your thought was correct, yes? Rob....

Hi Mike. I don't know. I haven't missed topping up ...yet. I'll have to see. Rob....

Thanks Leo 2. My bilges are bone dry and can see both skin tanks and all the pipe work. But I'll double check anyway. I'm afraid I'm looking for some straw to clutch. Thanks Lee. Even more than what's in the system already? Rob.... Rob....

G’day y’all. Where could my water be going? As a live-a-board on the cut, the engine is run every day apart from really bright days when the solar panels do the charging. Every 2 or 3 days I have to top up the cooling system with ¼-½ a litre of water. The expansion bottle is always dry and empty. I run Ankersol in the system which turns the water bright green so it’s pretty easy to spot any leaks. I’ve tried looking for a fine spray of steam/water, in the light and in the dark with a powerful torch but can’t find anything. There’s no water in the bilges or in the engine oil or even the fittings on the calorifier. When I remove the cap to check the water (even after two days), there is always a “hiss” as the pressure is released, which to my way of thinking means there is no leaks. I must admit that I haven’t checked the water, then left it for a couple of days to see if it still drops, as I need power and hot water. The engine is a Vetus 4.19 with twin skin tanks holding about 33 litres. Any help or advice would be much appreciated. Rob Edited 1 hour later to add: Don't know if it has any bearing on the problem but just remembered that the hot water is not as hot after running for an hour, as it used to be. Rob....

I once sent a young apprentice to Woolworths for some "sky hooks". The trouble was he came back about 45 minutes later.....with some. They were something to do with holding curtains up. I just said "Thanks very much". Rob....

Be vigilant yes. This nearly happened to me early one morning on the Wigan flight. Dropping down the flight, only boat in the lock. Suddenly realised that the water was going down but I wasn't and was well away from the cill. Thinking only took a few seconds but in those few seconds a lot of water had gone. Started screaming to the wife to drop the paddles, which she did by knocking the ratchet pawl up with her windlass (good thinking I thought) and stopped the exiting water. I was at a hell of an angle. I could nearly walk down the side and black the water line. I couldn't get off the boat so the other half started to slowly re-fill the lock but the boat refused to right itself.....at first. Just about to tell her to drop the paddles again, when the boat started to move. Suddenly it shot upright and I could here breaking glass inside the boat as it rolled over one way then the other till all was still. Not too much damage inside. Nothing major. But very, very scary!!! We stopped people using the lock and called out BW (as is was then) and they were there in 20 minutes. Anyway it turned out that some scrotes had pushed two, yes two, motorbikes in the lock and that's what the edge of my boat had been sitting on. Since then I've tried not to be the first one to use a lock in the mornlng. Rob...