hector

Thanks Tony, I'll head slowly up the canal. I've tracked down an available engineer a few miles away. I'll monitor the fuel and batteries, but yes I've often suspected the lights and alarm sometimes come on when we are heading out from being on shoreline for a while, and fully charged. We have no solar but the inverter was off so batts were reading 14.3 and not really any load on them. Maybe the fridge came back on! PS Yes, I've been on multi-issue threads on other forums... total nightmare, my original one was bad enough!

So... in the course of various investigations for the last question I asked, I now think there is a slow diesel drip under the engine which I only noticed (heard) after I switched the engine off, and I am fairly sure that... 1. It slowed to a stop as the engine cooled 2. That it *wasn't* coming from what the last thread identified as my fuel return pipe. It seemed to be coming from nearer the gearbox end, below the sump pump on my Barrus Shire 40 (04 build). However it's a trad stern boat with a compartmentalised bilge and so it's really difficult to see what's going on around the engine anywhere below half way down. Engine sounds a little farty and rhythmical out the exhaust to me, but I have been listening to it a lot, and just had the fuel cleaned so it's possible I am either just listening too hard or I have got used to the sound of dirty/wet fuel... If it's not the fuel return, what are some other problems? It's not pouring out, as there's only a few mm under the engine in a puddle to one side which I've only just properly noticed (it can often be damp down there, and only a torch revealed a pinky colour...) I'm about 5 miles out from our base marina with more skilled friends and mechanics, or a couple of miles from a usable mooring spot, so I suppose the other question is can I proceed up the canal with caution, or is there a possible cause of this that means I should definitely stay put? The engine is running, and doesn't seem to be spluttering or smoky or overheating or anything else. One (only one) of the battery lights briefly came on and went off again earlier today. Irrelevant? Thanks, Hector.

Yeah I think this could have been a factor for sure. I need to stand on the same side as the take off point in order to change the filter and prime it, so I could have been sucking up fuel then, and then standing across from it, or levelling off, to leave the engine running. At the moment we seem to be running (only one cut out since, dropping to idle when mooring, and it restarted straight away)... however immediate investigations after led to another issue I'd better restart a new thread on 😕 Thanks for you help everyone!

I’ve definitely been looking at the feed - but if there’s a return that would make sense. I didn’t realise there would be a return (or a reason for one). Thanks!

Yeah this was a first thought of mine too after having gunk stirred up… but I figured that would affect the filter priming process if it was jammed on the intake. I must have drawn a couple of litres through there over last couple of days. I’ve just put 60 L in and it seems to draw into the filter with the primer very easily. Engine not yet run long enough to know if problem gone though 😕 I have just done this, excellent idea! I’ve had another look and pretty sure there isn’t a lift pump. Fuel line seems to go from side of tank to the filter, then on a flexi hose to what I think is the throttle, then the distributor. something that I’ve taken for granted but someone pointed out is anomalous is that the feed to the heating is not on its own pipe from the tank, it branches off the same supply as the engine, between tank and filter (it has its own cartridge filter). I’ve currently got that line switched off on a stopcock though, as I figured it might be drawing rubbish or air backwards out of the heating system filter? weirdly, though, there is a second copper pipe coming out of the tank, which meets a flexi hose and then disappears under the engine… (but doesn’t seem to be hanging loose, I just can’t see where it goes). Any thoughts what this is? Would a diesel tank have an overflow outlet into the engine bilge?

Thanks both - that’s interesting it was doing this below half tank… Our engine is a Barrus Shire 40. It’s a brand new filter, which I’ve since checked is seated properly and have bled that, and the injection points a few times. there’s no independent water trap just a drip point on the bottom of the filter. I’ll put 40L in in the morning and see where I get to if I bleed and prime the whole thing again. in terms of fuel pumps what am I looking for? Bit of a novice with engine stuff. I don’t think there is a pump in the fuel line to the engine… but is there always one? The filter needs primed by hand on the filter header, and the engine needs turned over to check if the injection points are spitting (as opposed to just having the ignition on… which I gather is sometimes the case). h.

Hi everyone - we’ve been stuck with an engine cutting out after about half an hour yesterday and the day before (stationary boat, cuts out quicker under load). This is actually after having the fuel cleaned so assumed that we just had some crud kicked up into the pipes that needed worked through, or air trapped. the problems persisted through several attempts though, since Sunday afternoon. the fuel cleaners actually took about thirty litres of filthy fuel away though and I’ve been running the engine for a while… so it suddenly occurred to me to actually check the level. At first I thought it was fine as a good four inches left but after some further research it seems like the take up pipe could be that high? I had thought maybe an inch or two at most… so I guess the question is, have I solved the gunk/air in pipes issue and run out of fuel in the process 🫣 Thanks for any thoughts! h.

Hi everyone, well thanks for all this - the basic Q answered, but plenty more to think about I've had my eye on an all-in 200W kit from Renogy which afaik is 12v only, and I'll consult with them about if/where/when I need to be able to break the circuit. I agree that where that problem exists it seems like wilfully bad design, but I've bought plenty wilfully badly designed technology in the past. But the fact I can add panels onto the system without completely reconfiguring it is good news, I can proceed with caution. Cheers! H.

Hi everyone, I know this gets asked a lot, but the answer always seems to involve a certain amount of "every boat is a one-off" so I am asking again... Our narrowboat currently has no solar panels and I want to install a basic 1 or 2 panel kit, which will come with an MPPT, to keep the leisure batteries up. The starter battery has it's own alternator so I'm not planning on trying to have the solar charge it. My question is simply whether I can just connect the MPPT directly to the + and - of the first battery, with an appropriate fuse in line with the + (they are 12v batteries connected in parallel), or whether I have to worry about some more complicated integration with the shoreline charging controller (not an invertor combi) or charging from the alternator. So, I will have the alt, the charger, the MPPT and the batteries all wired in parallel, and in this case am I right in thinking they will all just 'see' the highest individual voltage and behave accordingly... so to speak. I have attached (I hope) to this post, a rough block diagram of the domestic power set-up as is. Many thanks, Hector.

Cheers Alec, that's v helpful!

Oh great! I actually have loads of those little pads lying around, I'll have them to hand in case the nylon turns into a faff.

Good to know this worked! I had mentioned oak only because there were some cheapish strips of it exactly the right dimensions in my nearest B and Q, but I have a couple of pals who do woodwork, kitchen building etc. and a decent timber merchant nearby so will look into teak or iroko... Hadn't heard of Quebracho, I can always ask! Thanks, H.

Ah, I didn't know this, thanks!

Thanks Tracy - I can see that would be a problem, yes, but just to restate the plan, I'd be putting either blocks or strips of the old nylon / acrylic runner material under the hatch, fixed to the plywood lining, so the movement would still be wood against nylon, just the opposite way round.

Hi there, our stern hatch is lined with ply (underneath) and runs on nylon runners which are screwed onto the steel runners - has worked fine, but ply needs replaced and nylon is quite worn and has come lose so at least needs reattached. Anyway, having the job to do made me think it would look much nicer to fix small bits of nylon to the ply under the hatch and have the long runners be strips of wood. Can't really find any evidence of anyone else doing this though, always a plastic or brass if not bare steel. Is there a reason why it wouldn't work? It's the same two materials sliding against each other after all? Obviously even with many layers of oil the wood will be a bit sacrificial, but I can get the strips in oak for £20 where it seems to be £100 for brass right now... and imo wood would look nicer. Any thoughts on something I'm overlooking very welcome before I give it a go! H

@Tony Brooks and @Sir Nibble - apologies, I've been away from the computer (and the boat)... I can do some basic soldering and certainly have more experienced friends if I find anything that makes me lose my nerve. Definitely up for giving this a go, I'll just have to wait until I have time to remove the alt again. But that photo is very helpful! I'll report back! Many thanks again both. Hector.

Thanks so much for your help with this @Sir Nibble - I went through these yesterday evening with an unhelpful mixed bag of results! I did the voltage reading comparison three times with different results... First time the reading from the alarm wire seemed to be jumping around quickly between 10v and 14v - possibly a loose connection as once I cleaned the contacts I got a reading that matched the main terminals, but later in the day it was reading consistently a volt lower (14.3 at mains, 13.5 between alarm wire and common ground). I'll come back to this a few times this week, but not sure what behaviour to expect from a bad diode. Would it jump around, or just be steady but different? Disconnecting the alarm wire stops the alarm, and the voltage readout on the control panel drops to around 13v. I didn't have a spare length of wire to get the alarm connection to reach the main -ve (it's on a banana plug in an awkward place) but I'll be able to check that. The whole system seemed to behave itself at times, then consistently give lower voltages and alarm when idling. At one point the V across the alternator started dropping off below 14v on idle. Can't find any obvious loose connections in the control panel, but the alarm going off does definitely correlate with a dropping voltage, it's not sounding randomly: i.e. sometimes I get 14.3 or more with engine idling and no alarm so I don't think it's a mechanical bug connected to engine vibration. Anyway - for now, I have a workaround I hadn't noticed, which is that the on-board genny powers the same charging circuit as the shore line, so as long as it's on as the 240v power source whenever the engine is running, the domestic batteries stay up at 14.7 - 14.8 and all is well... Hope some of this makes sense, but I'm not sure if it's useful intel ? H

Thanks @Sir Nibble , that's very helpful (and reassuring if it's supposed to be a reliable alternator...). No solar panels and as far as I can tell the starter alternator and travel power generator are completely separate. The only other factor is the shoreline and the Sterling power management thing. There is a voltage display which has been installed under the engine panel which can be flicked up for domestic and down for starter... but I have also checked these readings by putting a multimeter across the battery terminals with the engine and alternators running, and the numbers match for both systems. So I can say for sure that the voltage across the leisure battery hovers around 14.2 - 14.5 and at 14.3 or below the alarm is sounding.

Yes @Sir Nibble, and thanks! - there should be pics below of the alternator while it was out, and the regulator / brush set I replaced (not much writing on either, *just* enough to find that particular part online...) @Tony Brooks - thanks for that, if it's something like that it's definitely above my grade and I'll send it off. To clarify, though - RPMs read fine, it was the LCD display for running hours (I assume... it read 1522) which suddenly came on after I replaced the reg, and then stopped showing anything when the alarm problem returned.

Hi everyone. So, the domestic alternator on my Barrus Shire (a CAV) is causing me confusion... The boat is new to us, so I don't know the history, but with the engine at revving a bit the voltage charging the domestic batteries was around 14.5 and all fine, but at idle it slowly dropped and at around 14.3 - 14.2 the alarm went off... the voltage would carry on dropping below 14.0... rev the engine and it would pick up the alarm would go silent. (NB. the LCD odometer was also not working... see below) This dropping voltage was diagnosed by a couple of people as a faulty regulator, so I replaced the regulator and the brushes while at it. Having done so, I started the engine, gave it a good rev and then when I let it settled back to idle, the alarm stayed quiet! Great. Also: The odometer was now giving a readout! A bonus. Two hours later, I restarted the engine and it had gone back to it's old ways - almost... The voltage seems to stay above 14 even at idle, but the alarm kicks in as it drops to 14.3 again, and the odometer has gone blank again. I wonder what anyone would try next? Is the alternator a red herring, even? I thought that 14.3 - 14.2 volts was fine and shouldn't be triggering the alarm so maybe something else is going on? Any idea why it would work once after a new reg/brushes, then go wrong again? Any idea what the connection with the odometer is? Probably just time to phone an electrician, but if this makes sense to anyone I'd love any other advice. There doesn't seem to be any other loose connections. Thanks! Hector.

Any and all links welcome from me, anyway... Have Gates belts from The Boatyard in Trowbridge, hoping to set about the task this week. @Rose Narrowboats Many thanks, that's very helpful re: EXL version!

OK Great, thanks! I can find plenty AVX profile cogged belts which are 13 x 950 so will go for that and will carefully compare before fitting. @Tony - yes, numbers are off the existing belt, not from docs.

Whoops yes, typo - it's a 40. Edited OP. ta.

Hi everyone, I think my alternator belt (on starter battery) is starting to go... warning light stays on at low revs, but goes off higher up the revs... I tightened the belt a little which sorted the issue but two days later it's back, and the belt looks like it's forming a couple of tiny cracks so I want to order spares for both either way. Anyway, new to boating really, so I wondered if anyone can reassure me what the crucial numbers are for ordering the right spare. e.g., the belt on the other alternator (Barrus Shire 40hp engine, btw) is a Gates 6468EXL avx13x950La - so, what I can find to order is a 6468MC AVX13 x 950... Anyone know what the difference between an MC (moulded cog?) belt and an EXL belt is? Or, as long as it's a 13x950 v-belt, is it fine? Thanks! (ps, any other advice on the issue welcome...) Hector.

Hi everyone, I'm just resurrecting this thread as my partner and I are considering very much the same thing as this... picking up a boat on the Gloucester and Sharpness, possibly spending the coming winter there while we learn a bit about how to boat, and then cruising the long way round to the K and A in spring. Seems like this worked out well for the OP but as it was 8 yrs ago maybe there is new info we should factor in? Thanks for any updates, H.