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Problemd with my Ebispacher


Wyn2joy

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Our 11 year old Ebispacher was replaced in January 2016. I use it once a month in hot weather as I have been told it is necessary to run it regularly.  As the weather cools I use it for an hour in the mornings to warm the boat and give me hot water. It worked fin up until three days ago at which time it began belching white smoke and it shut itself down. Any ideas on what might cause this and does anyone know of an Ebi repair engineer near Great Haywood/Tixall Wide?

Jaqueline Biggs

NB  Valerie

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Belching out white smoke is unburned diesel, does it continue to run and belch out smoke or do it for a while and shut down? It is worth mentioning that if you had it installed it may still be covered by warranty and the local Eber dealer (Certainly would be if it was a Webasto) should come out and rectify the issue. It is unlikely to be coked up after such a short time but it could also be poor fuel, have you taken on diesel lately? What was the usage pattern last winter, did you run it for long periods?

 

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Unlikely to be low voltage with Valeries solar array.

My 13 month old one has currently similar issues. It was ran on a test bed and showed no faults. The installation hasn't been changed since the last one did many years.

The engineer,technician fixity bloke says it can only be down to tighter emissions controls and maybe too much fuel set. ....however,  he's not sure either and has seen this on a few new ones.

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3 hours ago, matty40s said:

Unlikely to be low voltage with Valeries solar array.

My 13 month old one has currently similar issues. It was ran on a test bed and showed no faults. The installation hasn't been changed since the last one did many years.

The engineer,technician fixity bloke says it can only be down to tighter emissions controls and maybe too much fuel set. ....however,  he's not sure either and has seen this on a few new ones.

During a bench test when this type of symptom presents, the following procedure should be used in order to replicate the install as closely as possible:

Along with the heater also use the fuel dosing pump from the vessel, draw off 3 or so litres of fuel from the vessel and run on that, temorarily remove the exhaust system from the vessel and attach to the heeater during bench test. Anything less than the above is not a realistic bench test. Also the voltage at the heater should be checked during start up and that voltage should be replicated during the bench test. Sadly few people follow this procedure or even know about it especially general fix it people and boat mechanics, and why should they? Accordingly they are not really the people to be doing it as it is not fair on them or the owner as it is just groping around in the dark.

 

 

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9 hours ago, Wyn2joy said:

Our 11 year old Ebispacher was replaced in January 2016. I use it once a month in hot weather as I have been told it is necessary to run it regularly.  As the weather cools I use it for an hour in the mornings to warm the boat and give me hot water. It worked fin up until three days ago at which time it began belching white smoke and it shut itself down. Any ideas on what might cause this and does anyone know of an Ebi repair engineer near Great Haywood/Tixall Wide?

Jaqueline Biggs

NB  Valerie

You could try Ed Shiers (Four Counties Marine Services). He does Eberspacher work and came out to look at a problem with ours in Great Haywood.

 

Edited by Rob-M
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On 9/3/2017 at 11:01, Wyn2joy said:

Our 11 year old Ebispacher was replaced in January 2016. I use it once a month in hot weather as I have been told it is necessary to run it regularly.  As the weather cools I use it for an hour in the mornings to warm the boat and give me hot water. It worked fin up until three days ago at which time it began belching white smoke and it shut itself down. Any ideas on what might cause this and does anyone know of an Ebi repair engineer near Great Haywood/Tixall Wide?

Jaqueline Biggs

NB  Valerie

It happens when the starting cycle on the heater doesnt complete, it tries to start a few times before shutting down, the 2 main culprits i have found that cause this are air in the heater unit itself which can be bled with the big upright screw on the unit itself ... you just loosen it with a flat blade screwdriver until water comes out ... if it blows bubbles first thats your problem sorted, or the other one is where the heater hasnt run for long enough causing it to choke up in which case you need a service kit.

I service mine every 12 months and always run it for a minimum of 2 hours after initially making the mistake of running it on a room stat (now dispensed with) that caused it to cycle and choke up.

A service kit is around 35 quid on ebay and it only takes about an hour or so with a tea break so no big deal to do yourself just a case of changing the fuel pump filter and stripping and cleaning out the burner chamber and glow pin.

Rick

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Thanks to everyone who responded to my query. I have learned a lot of useful info! I called Ed Shiers and he came out and sussed out the problem: while the Ebi itself was newly installed a year ago the old pipework is still in place and the diesel intake pipe has filled with scale over a decade, narrowing it to a point that the unit is not getting sufficient fuel to run; the exception being when the diesel tank has just been filled and there is sufficient pressure to force diesel through the narrowed pipe. 

Since my husband Les died, the learning curve for me on mechanical things has been huge. I took him and his knowledge and experience with these things for granted. I wish I had thanked him more often for all he did that kept us moving. Les loved this boat (as do I) and he loved all the tinkering he did so I just let him get on with it while I baked bread, washed clothes, and tidied the boat inside. Les used to tell me frequently that I made our boat a lovely home but now I know that what he did down in the engine hole is the crucial stuff that kept us going.

I am not mechanical and I despise fiddling with nuts, bolts and bits and getting my hands dirty but I will do whatever it takes to take care of our boat and keep things running properly. I've done my first oil change and other than being a messy job to clean up, it was actually a dawdle once I knew how to do it. I hope to feel as confident some day about the stern gland!

My deepest thanks to everyone who posted on this topic. It helps tremendously and I don't feel so alone. 

Jaq xxx

Edited by Wyn2joy
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1 hour ago, Wyn2joy said:

Thanks to everyone who responded to my query. I have learned a lot of useful info! I called Ed Shiers and he came out and sussed out the problem: while the Ebi itself was newly installed a year ago the old pipework is still in place and the diesel intake pipe has filled with scale over a decade, narrowing it to a point that the unit is not getting sufficient fuel to run; the exception being when the diesel tank has just been filled and there is sufficient pressure to force diesel through the narrowed pipe

That is very interesting and may well be the issue with mine, I will now strip it down and check and maybe replace.

Glad to hear you are carrying on boating, everything seems daunting the first time until you do it, then you have a sense of great achievement and think ...what was I worries about.

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On 9/5/2017 at 09:35, matty40s said:

That is very interesting and may well be the issue with mine, I will now strip it down and check and maybe replace.

Glad to hear you are carrying on boating, everything seems daunting the first time until you do it, then you have a sense of great achievement and think ...what was I worries about.

Thank you. Les loved the canals our boat, and me. I love Les and this life aboard NBV. I don't think I could go back to land and I am willing to do whatever I have to to stay on our boat and carry on cruising. It's not so daunting now but apparently I was on the "get all the hard shite out of the way in one go" plan.

I left Cowroast marina on my own on April 21st. My second day out I came out of Church Lock on the G. U. and picked up a wide beam pram cover around my prop. My third day the engine began to overheat. it had never done so in the previous six years I lived aboard the boat with Les, but the entire cooling system had just been cleaned out and changed. Air was trapped in the system. My fifth day out I woke up and decided to go down the engine hole and see how things were doing. I lifted the new aluminium checker plate engine hole cover to find 25 gallons or water under my engine! And the newly replaced bilge pump hose cracked the first time I turned it on so I had to bail it all out by hand. It was the stern gland.

Les was too ill and weak to lift our solid steel engine hole cover, climb down inside and attempt to teach me about the engine before he died so all I knew is that the stern gland is something to keep an eye on but why, what for, and what to do to fix it was anyone's guess! RCR were kindly willing to come out and suss it for me even though it didn't fall under the coverable items, being as I was a newly minted widow and we have been members in good standing for eleven years BUT...they couldn't get it sorted for a week and in the meantime my water tank was running low and I needed to refill. I was frightened of moving the boat but I was moored up at Fenny Stratford just above the stop lock to I reckoned I could tote my five gallon water butty to the water point a few times and that would bring up the water level sufficiently however when I went to fill the butty with water I discovered the water point was broken and had been for two weeks. CaRT knew about it but no one had posted a sign letting boaters know this.

Fortunately one of the residents of the lock cottages remembered me from a previous stop there with Les in 2014 when I had asked permission to pick some marigolds from her garden to make a salve with (I am a medicinal herbalist). Her dog had a skin eruption and I gave her a salve to clear it up. She remembered me and allowed me to fill the water butty with her garden hose. What I learned from all of this in one week is that as the philosopher Nietzsche said "Whatever doesn't kill me makes me stronger." and of course I could hear my darling Les in my head saying, "Jaq, no matter what happens to the boat I promise you won't drift out to sea!"

19 hours ago, dccruiser said:

Glad you got it sorted ... taking mine out tomorrow to service it so will make a note of checking the fuel line while its off, never heard of that before so will certainly remember it, so thank you for the feedback :)

Rick

You are most welcome. It is a good thing to share this knowledge in the hopes it saves someone else some time and trouble.

21 hours ago, Rob-M said:

Glad to hear Ed sorted it for you.

Thank you. He is brilliant!! :)

On 9/5/2017 at 08:44, Naughty Cal said:

They just need treating mean to keep them keen :rolleyes:

Yes they do tend to be temperamental.  Ed Shiers said though that the newer ones liek I have now don't coke up like the older models so that is something to be grateful for I guess.

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On 9/3/2017 at 17:46, NMEA said:

During a bench test when this type of symptom presents, the following procedure should be used in order to replicate the install as closely as possible:

Along with the heater also use the fuel dosing pump from the vessel, draw off 3 or so litres of fuel from the vessel and run on that, temorarily remove the exhaust system from the vessel and attach to the heeater during bench test. Anything less than the above is not a realistic bench test. Also the voltage at the heater should be checked during start up and that voltage should be replicated during the bench test. Sadly few people follow this procedure or even know about it especially general fix it people and boat mechanics, and why should they? Accordingly they are not really the people to be doing it as it is not fair on them or the owner as it is just groping around in the dark.

 

 

Did you see my post re: Ed Shiers sussing out the problem?  I knew it wasn't getting enough diesel but I didn't understand the mechanics of how it all went together, i thought perhaps the pipe bringing diesel to the Ebi didn't reach far enough down into the main tank with the result that the Ebi runs fine when the diesel has just been topped up, but fowls as soon as the fuel level drops appreciably. It turns out that the pipework bringing the diesel to the Ebi has developed scale over the last 11 years, narrowing the pipe sufficiently that without the pressure of a full diesel tank, the fuel cannot actually make its way to the Ebi. Pipework replaced, and its all good.

I ken what you mean about owners trying to undertake the measures you list above. I could never do all that. I am not mechanically inclined in the least. I have had to take notes on every system on this boat so I can review them and follow each step as it is written. 

On 9/3/2017 at 12:35, OldGoat said:

I have the same problem with mine when the batteries are low. Have you tried to start it while the engine is running (and the batteries should be on charge?)

I don't ever have low batteries. I have a fantastic solar array on the roof that keeps my batteries charged even in very overcast rainy weather, but it is good to know that this is one reason why an Ebi might fail to work.

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