Coolant leak

P

PhilR

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 3, 2011
Messages
416
Fluid Motion Model
C-28
Vessel Name
TUGALONG
The first nice boating weekend of the year is lost to a coolant leak on the port side of the engine. We're going to pressure test this morning to find the source of the problem. I've read a lot on the evils of using the wrong antifreeze.....there is no Yanmar antifreeze available here.....anyone know what to use?
Thanks, Phil
 
Look in your owner's manual for the coolant specs (search for 'coolant' or 'fresh water' if you have a digital copy). You will find JIS, SAE, and ASTM numbers for equivalent coolants. Mine also suggests several alternatives from Texaco or Havoline. Find a coolant with the proper numbers specified and you will have done your duty. You may have to look on the product's web site since some do not print the numbers on the actual container because they confuse people. You will find that most "Extended life"/"Long Life" coolants will meet the specs you need, but be sure to check them.

Most recommend a complete flush when changing brands. I am skeptical about that being essential as long as the identical numbers identify the product, but I do it anyway ("belt and suspenders" type here). It can't hurt to do a flush anyway. Use distilled water for the mix to be sure you aren't introducing any minerals/salts.

Saying use only "Genuine Yanmar...." is like saying use only "Mr. Goodwrench...." or "Genuine MoPar...". If the parts/products are identical, the name on the box is only good for advertizing purposes.
 
Phil,

See my story on a coolant leak at http://www.tugnuts.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=1710. On a classic R25 the coolant (radiator) cap is nestled under the frame of the door. I actually had to saw off fiberglass to get my hand in to get a grip. There is no way a pressure gauge will fit on it, unless you go to a hardware store and first buy a 90 degree elbow to place between the gauge's cap and the rubber tube that goes to the meter. On an R27 it's probably much easier.

Look under the cabin deck with a mirror once you pressurized the system (which allows you to keep the engine off) for ripples in the bilge water which will be pink with escaped antifreeze in it. In my case we pulled out a hose (there are two) that goes from the engine to the cabin heater under the helm seat's step. It was damaged and leaking not near the SS clamp's. Andrew has followed this and tells me that there have been other Yanmar hoses that have failed. I never would even think this, except for possibly damage at the SS clamps. Anyway check all the hoses with pressure in the system.

I had a h__ of a time finding Yanmar coolant. Ranger finally had the Washington area Yanmar distributor ship me some and I got a bottle of Chevron instead. I complained, but Andrew contacted the distributor who said it was OK to mix Chevron with Yanmar... Well I intend to replace the coolant at 250 hours anyway, as you should too if you mix. Darn Yanmar stuff is over $20/gallon. If you're desperate I can ship you a bottle or two as my local Cape Cod dealer bought some. No dealers outside of their assigned Yanmar catchment area will ship it to you. With the problems in Japan I don't know when any more will be available. Stuff often leaks if any weight is put on the bottle's side. I use big O-rings under the cap to seal it better and constructed a special box with dividers in case the box (marked UP THIS SIDE) flops over on UPS' conveyors. Look for the Chevron coolant locally for now, its your best bet.
 
It was a split in one of the heater hoses right by the dipstick. We pressure tested. It now has Dex-cool in it...for better or worse. Same color orange as was in it from the factory. Now if I can find the toilet leak I'll be a happy camper.
Thanks for the input.
Phil
 
I have R-25 with 110 HP Yanmar/Turbo. My Yanmar qualified/factory trained mechanic switched me to Chevron Delo Extended Life Coolant/Antifreeze, prediuluted to 50/50. I've been using it 2 years now. He tells me It's good for 4 years (but the lable says 1.2 million kilometers). It is CAT EC-1. I bought a case of 6 x 1 US Gallon jugs here in Victoria for $71.34 before taxes. My jug bar scan has the number 23968 39047.

I was having coolant leaks -- coolant lying on the deck in the bottom of the engine room. Turns out I was putting too much coolant in the resivoir and when the engine was hot it was overflowing. Reduced the amount, no extra coolant yet the resivoir has coolant in it when engine hot.

I also found when I first got the boat that a number of hose clamps were not tightened. Check every hose connection you can find and tighten where necessary. This is a periodic chore.

Hope this is of some good.

Dave
"Lobo"
 
Phil,

If the damaged heater hose says 'Yanmar' on it, please send the piece that failed (with the logo printed on it) to Andrew Custis at the factory. Or at least take a picture of the hose with the logo if you just cut out the piece of the hose with the leak in it without the logo on it. I know Andrew is building a case with Yanmar over the quality of their hoses which wind up in our tugs and he would likely put your evidence to good use.

This is important because my local Yanmar warrantee mechanics claimed my leaky hose was a factory problem, and refused to send the large bill incurred in diagnosing and fixing the problem on my boat to the Yanmar warrantee people. Instead they sent me the bill (new boat with less than 40 hours on it). I sent the hose to Andrew as it said 'Yanmar' right on it within a couple inches of the defect that made it leaky! I haven't seen Andrew angry before, but he sure seemed annoyed at the hassle the mechanic's shop was putting up. To keep my only (an hour away) mechanic happy, Andrew kindly via Ranger Tugs paid the mechanic's bill (which got me out of the middle), but I know he intends to take this up with the Yanmar factory and your hose might serve as further evidence.

Mistakes in quality control happen and its important to take responsibility and then fix the problem for future owners. We all know Ranger certainly does this and we can expect Yanmar to do the same. I suspect they will if they see enough actual evidence of hose failures, and I know there are quite a few instances of this. Jeeze, who else is even buying Yanmar engines (now exclusively) to put in new boats these days.
 
Jerry,
I retained the 4" section of hose that was removed and will email a photo to Andrew tomorrow (can't do it now...going boating). It is stamped Yanmar with numbers. It lasted 14 hours before failing. I will be adding hose and clamps to my spare parts box.

Phil
 
Phil,

That sounds almost exactly like my situation, where my heater hose developed a leak a couple of feet from the engine. Its happened pretty often, before, from what I've heard so my question is whether we should all be contemplating replacing all the hoses (especially those out-of-sight) hoses going to the Heater Craft unit under the helm seat? My Yanmar 150 had two hoses (send and return) attached to the engine that ran to reducers followed by smaller (? 1/2" ID) hoses to the Heater Craft. It was in the reduced hose where my failure occurred. Still made by Yanmar. I'm a bit worried as while expect to tighten up clamps I don't expect hoses to fail on new boats with a fair level of frequency.

Might be time for Andrew to chime in here about whether we should take pre-emptive action. Over-heating while underway is a true drag, not to mention: the substantial bilge clean-up and need to replace almost two gallons of expensive and almost impossible to get antifreeze unless you're willing to mix and then flush later and start all over.
 
Jerry,
My heater hose leaked at a point where it was in contact with a sharp edge near the oil filter and it appears that abrasion caused/ contributed to the problem. It happened 20 miles from my yacht club and the mechanic brought Dex-Cool antifreeze out...same color as the factory stuff...so that's what I used. The leak made a sticky mess of my engine room. When I determine what antifreeze is recommended by Ranger Tugs, I'll find some, flush and refill the cooling system. I'll be emailing Andrew this morning.

Phil
 
I would recommend carrying a roll of Rescue Tape in your tool bag on your boat. It is a specialized silicone electrical tape that can also be used for emergency repairs on hot and cold water hoses, fuel lines, oil lines, hydraulic lines, etc, etc. Rescue Tape is a brand name and is expensive. You can find less expensive brands of silicone electrical tape on the internet and at your local hardware and electrical stores. I first started using it back in the 60's in the Navy - works wonders - and is a must have for emergency use on your boat.
 
Bought some of that silcon tape to repair a garden hose and have since used it on several other repairs...works great. I picked picked it up at Home Depot (Nashua brand). Cost around $8.00. Now a permanent addition to my toolboxes and in each vehicle..wouldn't leave home without it.
 
Capital suggestion! I'll add it to my boat first aid kit.

Thanks, Phil
 
Guess we've moved on a bit from duct tape! Heck, I think of duct tape as a fashion accessory I use it so often. In fact, my heros from the Red Green Show (Canadian humor, on PBS) use it on everything, except for cooking:
red_harold_bill2.jpg


In fact, here's what happens when the Lodge runs out of duct tape! http://youtu.be/5QFRSjWVTmY
 
That's a hoot, Jerry!! I'm tempted to say "been there, done that"! On my coolant leak problem, I have shared my situation with Andrew and he is being very helpful . I expect that we will be flushing the system and replacing with Yanmar antifreeze and maybe changing out the hoses.

Phil
 
Phil,

That's about my plan too. Changing out the coolant is recommended at 250 hours so I'm going to wait and do it then. I'll decide between Chevron and Yanmar, especially if Yanmar stuff is too hard to find. My local (Cocoa Beach) Yanmar mechanics only use DexCool–go figure! Changing out the hoses sounds smart. Going to get some of that new-fangled tape, too!
 
The reason for that is that if the specs are the same the efficacy of the product is the same, regardless of the name on the package. Does GM suggest FoMoCo or Chrysler suggest Mr. Goodwrench products? Yanmar suggests Yanmar because they have a high profit margin on the product due to name recognition. Texaco, Havoline, etc., crank out millions of gallons of product that meets the same spec but do it more economically, hence $10 vs $20. If the truth be known, there is almost certainly a large supplier which makes the various "brands" for engine manufacturers along with other name brands and packages to various customer packaging. I would be amazed if Yanmar has a coolant manufacturing operation and even if they have a supplier make a "custom" product except for the container (which is the part we throw away!).

Check the spec. If it matches and is more readily available and therefore probably cheaper, to with it.

As a matter of fact, wording on many documents that imply that warranties are void if the manufacturer requires "XXXX" do not hold up if "YYYY" is used instead and is an equivalent product. It's called intimidation..........
 
ALL permanent antifreeze is Ethylene Glycol + Water in a 50:50 mixture...
The only difference is the anti-corrosion and water pump lubricant additives...
We will skip the water pump lubes as they are non controversial...

The classic anti-corrosion additive is a light metal such as Sodium Silicate, or a xxPhosphate or xxBorate, etc... These are Yellow, Blue, or Green colored antifreezes... i.e original PRESTONE green, etc... These have always had the recommendation to change every 2 years or 50,000 miles...

When automakers wanted to go to extended life products they developed the organic acid based anti-corrosion product that they claimed would go 5years or 150,000 mile, to replace the shorter life Silicate-Phosphate-Borate inhibitors...

You can tell the organic acid based antifreeze because it is the day glo Orange colored antifreeze (regardless of brand)...
Actually, these are good products but some engine materials and some gaskets do not like this chemical... GM called this product Dex-Cool... All current GM engines are compatible with Dex-Cool (obviously)
Ford engines have some gasket issues with the organic based acid antifreeze and prohibits Dex-Cool...

GM ran into some Dex-Cool trouble with engines that had the radiator cap allow air into the system... When air (primarily oxygen) was present in the cooling system for extended periods the organic acid molecules broke down and turned into sludge...
My wife had a Blazer that clogged the heater core due to this - at 45 degrees North latitude that is an issue - due to Dex-Cool sludging ...

So the bottom line in my opinion is if you are adding coolant stick with the same color (not necessarily brand) and that will remove the anxiety... Coolants of the same color will always be compatible for mixing...
Change the coolant every 2 years and use the cheapest stuff you can find at the auto store - color is not a factor if you are flushing and filling with new antifreeze...
 
My motor is under warranty. To avoid any warranty issues down the road, I am going to use the coolant, oil, etc. that is specified by Yanmar.
 
I agree with Levitation, again.
But who cares what I think.
 
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