Getting there at last, after 2 1/2 years. Hopefully

[PeterCr]

Hi all, so we have a boat at Debdale and sad to say it's been sitting on hard standing now for 2 1/2 years. That's because we live in Australia and because of this rotten virus we haven't been able to get over there for all that time. And we've missed 2 cruising seasons!

 

Hopefully, fingers crossed, we can get there this year. If we can then I do have to work out a couple of things.

 

So when we put it on hard standing 2 1/2 years ago I filled the fuel tank up, as you do. It's now had 180 litres of diesel sitting in the fuel tank all that time. I have no idea how long diesel is good for but I'm wondering about using very old diesel. What do you think?

 

And of course the oil is 2 1/2 years old, etc etc.

 

What issues do you see in all this, and any suggestions?

 

Thanks
Peter

[john.k]

Wont hurt...my old crane sat for 17 years after the radiator was stolen......got it going again ,and believe it or not,it ran for 6 months on that tank of fuel..............anyhoo,scrapping out the yard,I found a derelict Osgood crane,and was  cutting it up.....the fuel tank is inside a cast iron counterweight ,and glory be ! it was full of diesel.....brown and smelly for sure...but who wastes 100 gallons of diesel.............You need good filters,which you should have on a boat..............,did you open drains in the hull..........it might be full of rainwater?

[PeterCr]

Hi John, thankfully the hull was pretty watertight and I've had someone take a look at it and all seems good on that count.

[Alan de Enfield]

Diesel will be fine.

I filled up my boat with 2700 litres 5 years ago and due to wifes 'accidents and injuries' and C19 we still have half of it left, and, it still fires up and runs fine.

 

On the other hand unless you changed the engine oil before 'winterising' the boat your engine has been sat in dirty, acidic oil and the acids (in the oil from running the engine) can etch into your important metal bits (bearings etc).

1st job - drain oil, fill with flushing oil**, run engine, drain,  change oil, run engine for an hour or two, and inspect oil. It may need changing again. 

Obviously change filters each time you replace the oil.

 

 

** 

Flushing oil

Golden Film Flushing Oil is a combination of highly refined light mineral oils and detergent/dispersant additives to enhance removal of sludge and lacquers. Golden Film Flushing oil can be used where a system's history is unknown or the service fill lubricant may have been used beyond its oil drain interval.

[BEngo]

The engine oil should be changed.  Have a 

Just in case.  Dip the diesel tank and drain the filters to check for water and/or bug.  Then change the filters anyway.

 

Renew the engine coolant.  The inhibitors are probably knackered by now.

Check all the belts carefully. They don't  like sitting in one position  for years, then being expected to work hard.

Batteries may or may  not be knackered if they have been on float charge.  Almost certainly nearly dead if just sat there.

 

As it has been out of the water for a couple of winters I would be a bit chary about the water system inside, in case it was not perfectly drained.  All you can do there is start up normally and see if it leaks.  If you are not keen on plumbing jobs perhaps a good idea to do it during Debdale opening hours...

 Ditto any water based central heating system.  Probably worth changing the liquid to renew the inhibitors.

N

[frangar]

I’d also treat the water system either with thin bleach diluted to correct amount or puriclean..available from mid chandlers…they both sterilise but use different chemicals to do so. Work the solution through all the pipes/calorifier etc. brim the tank and leave for about 4 hours if bleach or over night with puriclean…the bleach shouldn’t be left overnight as it might attack any metals in the system. Drain it all out and flush with clean water. 
 

also be aware that the woodwork may move a bit when back in water as the stresses will be different on the shell. 

Edited March 4, 2022 by frangar

[Jen-in-Wellies]

That the diesel tank was full before you left will have minimised the amount of water that has condensed inside. Worth syphoning, or pumping any water out of the bottom of the tank till you get (hopefully) clear diesel.

 

[frahkn]

It depends on how "hands on" you wish to be.

 

I would ask Debdale to service the engine and put the boat back in the water the day before you expect to arrive.

[LankyStreak]

I agree with the above comments on diesel.  In 2000 there was a fuel tanker drivers' strike and the filling stations ran dry so I couldn't refuel my car.  At the same time my father died so I needed to keep the remaining fuel in my car's tank so that I could drive across the country to the funeral fortnight later.  This meant I couldn't drive to work, and being self-employed I lost a lot of money on what should have been a well-paid project.  I was determined never to let that happen again so when fuel supplies were restored I bought a plastic bunded tank and had it filled with 1,200 litres of duty-paid diesel (DERV) as an emergency supply.

 

That fuel is now over 20 years old.  I visually inspect it and dip samples every few months to check for diesel bug but it's always been clean.  I've taken off perhaps 100 litres in recent years when my van's tank was low and the engine has run without missing a beat just as if it was fresh diesel.

[roland elsdon]

If its any help our vw van that had been sitting in a paddock in garfield for 24 months with a full tank of bio diesel has been good to date, no fuel issues.

your boat is a lot cleaner than our van was when we got back! Gum trees!

we changed the oil and checked the hoses and tyres and she has now done 1200 kms.

the leisure battery was stuffed inspite of a panel being on it.

course now with the storms and rain in uk i have the boat to worry about!!

Liabilities 13000 miles apart…

Might catch you in uk we are heading back for the summer

[john.k]

The big risk with stored fuel is someone will nick it.

[dmr]

I "found" a car that had sat in a car park for ten years. I put in a spare battery and it started. But this story, and some of those above, are about events many years ago when diesel was proper. I suspect the modern FAME stuff is not too stable so maybe expect to change fuel filters a bit more often than usual?

[blackrose]

My Isuzu engine instruction manual tells me to change the engine oil after the first 50 operating hours and every 250 operating hours thereafter. No non-operational oil change interval is given so I can't help thinking that this aspect is being somewhat overstated.

 

In contrast, coolant changes are stated as every 6 months in the manual and who changes it that frequently? I eventually changed my original blue 2 year coolant after about 5 years and the red 5 year coolant I replaced it with has been in there for more than 10 years so I guess that needs doing again! 

[Alan de Enfield]

1 hour ago, blackrose said:

My Isuzu engine instruction manual tells me to change the engine oil after the first 50 operating hours and every 250 operating hours thereafter. No non-operational oil change interval is given so I can't help thinking that this aspect is being somewhat overstated.

 

I think all of the engines I have had (well the manuals for them) has said change the oil at X hours or annually, whichever come first.

 

Edit to add - the BMC manual says if the engine is not to be run at least 2 hours per month during the winter, the engine should be 'laid' up' to the method shown (which includes draining and replacing the engine oil)

Edited March 5, 2022 by Alan de Enfield

[Momac]

If the oil was freshly changed when you left the boat - no problem. However oil is cheaper than metal so if in doubt change it.

 

 

The diesel - who knows . It will have some bio diesel content which will have deteriorated . 20 year old diesel mentioned  above was different stuff , High Sulphur, which now it isn't. . lus now they are putting FAME in it .  So fuel has changed considerably. Diesel now has a much shorter shelf life. Unless treated it will certainly have  deteriorated . But best thing is to see how it goes . Be sure to have spare fuel filters on board.

Example to back up what I am saying as follows

 

I flush my water tank and pipework  in the spring with nothing more than fresh tap water . Maybe two tankfulls in your case .

 

If the batteries have not seen any charge they might be deceased .