NEW NARROWBOAT OWNERS WORRIES

[CRAGGY]

Hi,i seem to be making lots of basic errors in my first two weeks of owning a narrowboat.Last weekend on my maiden voyage,i manage to evaporate all my engine coolant by not replace the cap properly.The engine cut out,but afterwards after replacing the water seemed ok.Now i,m further worried that my block might freeze tonight,as there is no antifreeze in yet and i can,t get to the boat.What are the chances,as i,m by now a little paranoid,supportive answers please if possible,regards craggy

[Jason Wilson and Family]

I don't know enough to help ease your fears about the motor but as far as the basic mistakes go, practice makes perfect.

[Boatgypsy]

If there's nothing you can do about it, best not to worry.

 

However, it would have to get very cold before the water in your block freezes. I've never had mine freeze up, and I don't use anitfreeze. I think it would take at least a couple of days with the ambient temp not getting above freezing. Think of it like this, if there's no ice on the cut, there'll be none in your engine.

[nigel fryer]

Hi,i seem to be making lots of basic errors in my first two weeks of owning a narrowboat.Last weekend on my maiden voyage,i manage to evaporate all my engine coolant by not replace the cap properly.The engine cut out,but afterwards after replacing the water seemed ok.Now i,m further worried that my block might freeze tonight,as there is no antifreeze in yet and i can,t get to the boat.What are the chances,as i,m by now a little paranoid,supportive answers please if possible,regards craggy

Hi next time your back at your boat put some in .

We have had a few boats ,FREEMAN CRUISERS and now a NARROW BOAT.

Many the time its got cold and we had not put coolant into the FREEMAN and as you now know you panic a bit !!.

Im sure it will be fine.

Just make sure you put in the correct amount per parts water.

NIGE

[gaggle]

some threads about preparations for winter will be worth reading but dont know what you would need to put in the search box to locate them.

only thing to freeze on my boat in few years was the tap adjacent to window in kitchen.

[alan_fincher]

As has been said, you will either need quite a lot of persistent cold over a period of time, or a very cold snap indeed before you are likely to frost damage your engine.

 

None the less get some anti-freeze in there as soon as you can. (If there is any in there at all, you should be caureful not to mix the older green/blue type with the newer red ones).

 

I'm however worried that you say you "evaporated" your coolant by running with the cap not properly sealed. Generally these boat engines don't run at very high pressures, and although it's not good to run them unpressurised, doing so should not usually result in them boiling.

 

Do you know what your pressure cap is rated at, (often stamped on the top - e.g. "15" means 15psi) ? Do you have a temperature gauge, and if so how high is the temperature going, please ?

[CRAGGY]

Hi Alan,i,m not sure if i lost all my coolant.no i do not have a temperature gauge.The engine is a beta marine 20hp,keel cooled,and the exhaust seems to run through the header tank.The engine stopped,but on replacing the water,it stared and sounded and performed ok.It does need topping up each day,is this usual? regards craggy

[dave_2A_]

No. Having to top up every day means there is a problem - might be as simple as a loose hose clip, might be something more serious.

[bottle]

Craggy

 

Not trying to teach you to suck eggs but you are not topping up to the bottom of the filler neck, there should be space (about ½", as a guide, from the bottom of the neck to the water surface) for the water to expand, as per a car radiator.

[CRAGGY]

HI,i top up more than that.might be best if i get a proper check over of the whole unit,

[Malarky]

On the positive side, Ice only happens on the top of the water because the rest is too warm to freeze, so the canal will be helping to keep the boat above freezing point, and if you are in an area with a lot of other live aboards, the heat loss from them is making the canal warmer than it before this trend.

[Guest]

My previous engine was raw water cooled and therefore there was never any antifeeze in the block. Never had any problems freezing. As others have said, best to add some for peace of mind, but I think you would need several days of sustained minus temperatures to do damage.

 

My Vetus used to loose water, which always ended up in the bilges (long story), it has to go somewhere! Any signs of water in the engine bilge that wasn't previously there?

[alan_fincher]

Yes,

 

Needing to top up in anything other that small quantities really indicates all not quite as it should be, (how often do you have to top up a car, for instance ?).

 

As Bottle says, depending on engine type you can need to leave a large air gap for expansion. Engines having just an engine mounted header tank, with the pressure cap on that, may need several centimetres of air above the coolant when cold, otherwise once hot some coolant is ejected, (Cold they can look like the fluid is too low, if you are not used to it).

 

But it sounds more than that, so you really need to be looking for leaks. Often this is no more than a need to retighten all your hose clips, as they do tend to compress the robber over time, and end up less than perfectly sealed.

 

Alan

[Guzziman]

Hi,i seem to be making lots of basic errors in my first two weeks of owning a narrowboat.Last weekend on my maiden voyage,i manage to evaporate all my engine coolant by not replace the cap properly.The engine cut out,but afterwards after replacing the water seemed ok.Now i,m further worried that my block might freeze tonight,as there is no antifreeze in yet and i can,t get to the boat.What are the chances,as i,m by now a little paranoid,supportive answers please if possible,regards craggy

 

 

I wouldn't worry too much as long as you deal with it before the on set of real winter, late Dec, Jan and Feb, I'm confidently told that the canal water will keep most of the boat above freezing, suppose thats why someones tap froze once, coz it's quite high above the water line. if you have any coolant left check it's strength, if you have no fancy gear then touch it with your finger then taste it, if it tastes quite sweet then you still have a reasonable amount of antifreeze left in it.

 

all the best,

 

Guzziman

[Naughty Cal]

We have a small tube heater in the engine bay to keep it above freezing. Obviously this only works when we are hooked up to the electric point. If we have a night out on the boat the heat generated by the engine during the day keeps it warm enough to stop it freezing. We do have anti-freeze in the engine block but the heat exchanger use raw water for cooling so this could potentially freeze during a cold snap hence the heater.

[WJM]

If the engine freezes it should, in theory at least, only push out some plugs from the side of the block. It is a fairly simple job to push them back in.

[scrumpylurcher]

Whilst all the advice given is sound the antifeeze also serves as a corrosion inhibitor. It protects not only the various metal components but also gaskets etc. The chances of an engine freezing are fairly low but the correect strength of antifreeze is advisable for more reasons than just freezing up.

[CRAGGY]

Hi,thank you all for your advice,craggy

[OptedOut]

If I were you I'd be more worried about the original overheating.

Check the head bolt torque if you have a 1.5 BMC.

[Iain_S]

If the engine freezes it should, in theory at least, only push out some plugs from the side of the block. It is a fairly simple job to push them back in.

 

That's not what the core plugs are there for I've seen more than one cracked block caused by freezing (although mainly in cars and quite a few years ago, (before global warming kicked in?

 

Iain

[OptedOut]

That's not what the core plugs are there for

 

Ahh, an engineer, I suspect.

[Iain_S]

Ahh, an engineer, I suspect.

 

No relevant degree(s), so mechanic

[OptedOut]

No relevant degree(s), so mechanic

 

I have no relevant degree either but I did work in a foundry (1964-1969).

 

Core plugs are a bit like the alloy wheel thing, most people think they are there for a different purpose.

Edited November 26, 2008 by OptedOut

[chris w]

i,m further worried that my block might freeze tonight,as there is no antifreeze in yet and i can,t get to the boat.

 

When you do eventually add anti-freeze, be aware that you can't just simply add it, as is. You must first drain the water and mix well the requisite amount of anti-freeze with water before you pour the mixture into the engine.. This because otherwise the water and anti-freeze will not mix properly and so will not give the proper level of protection.

 

Chris