engine will not start

[kevMar]

Ok so today  i go to the boat get ready to do a overnighter ... engine will not turn over.... change the racor furl filter amd bleed it at kurl knob 3 times... still will not start. the boat has started evry  time. the only thing different was i insttalled a volt meter .... any ideas yes i have fuel and the knurl knob has a good flow of fuel..... the engine turns but does not start   and to top it off the stairs gave way and i fell into the boat !!!!! not a good day... do need some sugesstions

[chuck53]

At the beginning of your post, you say the engine won't turn over.  At the end of your post, you say it does turn over but won't start.
So, if it does turn over, does the starter seem to be turning over at it's normal speed?

[Roland Gendreau]

In the process of installing the volt meter (I assume in the cockpit panel?) did you somehow disconnect the wire that provides voltage to the glow plugs?

Roland Gendreau
#1183 Gratitude

[Ted Pounds]

Don't forget to drain the muffler after cranking for a while (I think 30 seconds?).

[Stu Jackson]

Good points.

How did you install the voltmeter?  What wires did you connect it to?  As with all electrical issues, check the connections, check the connections and then check the connections.

Have you also looked into the Critical Upgrades topic which discusses some of the "it won't start" issues?

[Ron Hill]

Kev : If you were a power boater - stating that your engine turned over, your glow plugs heated, my next question would be "Do you have fuel" ?

[kevMar]

I put all the wires on the volt meter  that were on the amp meter BECAUSE the thick orange wire is attached to the buss bar and not to the alternator. i did check to make sure that the glow plug wire was connected. I was able to get it started by taking the top hose off of the fuel pump and spraying eather into the air intake... Ran the engine for 15-20 min .... turned it off then restarted.... 2 days later i go to start and same problem...  Yes i have fuel... ??????????  any thoughts...

[Ron Hill]

kev : NEVER use a starting spray of ether to try and start a diesel.  REASON - the ether will combust before the piston is at top dead center.  In other words the piston is coming up and the ether explosion is trying to push the piston down, but it can't !!

You have either got a glow plug problem or a fuel problem.  I suspect glow plugs as you did get the engine running abit using starting spray. 

Use the key switch and then engage the glow plugs in the spring loaded position for 30 seconds.  Go below and feel the top of the glow plugs which should feel warm to very warm.  If they are cold then you need to check the glow plug circuit starting at the spring loaded pole of the key switch.  Maybe new glow plugs are needed?   Good luck

[sailaway]

Kev I have had starting problems to, I have to run my glow plugs for 45 to 50 sec.  Then it will start . 30 sec is not enough for my engine. Charlie

[Tom Glennon]

Obvious, but... is the "kill"  switch engaged??  Happened to me once while approaching a Harbor... couldn't figure out why the engine would not start... then I saw the handle was pulled!

[Ron Hill]

Charlie & Kev : If you have not modified the glow plug circuit with a solenoid, then you definitely need 45 to 60 seconds of glow plug heating. 

Rather than 10 to 15 seconds with the rerouted wire and the solenoid modification.  A thought

[kevMar]

it was the metal part of the racor fuel filter that somehow got clogged .... heck if i know how that happened

[Stu Jackson]

Glad to hear you found a solution.  In "Critical Upgrades" there is a recommendation to correctly re-plumb the fuel hoses to the Racor first.  Have you done that?  I recently read on another forum (C36):

I've been going through my new boat which had sat an unknown amount of time with just occasional go-outs and declining maintenance as the previous owner lost interest. There was plenty of algae in the water separator bowl and housing. So much so that when I opened the drain, some water came out but no fuel - the layer of algae was so thick that it supported the diesel above!

From previous experience I knew that simply changing the filter element and wiping the bowl would be insufficient, so I completely removed the housing and disassembled the entire unit. All surfaces of the centrifuge assembly, as well as every nook and cranny, o-ring, etc., were coated with algae buildup. After washing each piece in diesel and reassembling, that thing is really clean! There's little point in changing the filter element and not breaking down and cleaning the housing assembly if there is algae growth in there to begin with.

Nick
s/v Erika V.
C36 #0255 tr/fk
Santa Barbara, California

I understand from your post that the "metal part of the Racor fuel filter" is the part that holds the filter.

Good luck.  Thanks for reporting back to us.

[Stu Jackson]

...the only thing different was i insttalled a volt meter ....

Seems like he already has done that.  What we don't know is if he did it correctly.  There was a recent post, maybe not on this board, about a skipper thinking he just had to reconnect the ammeter wires when he put in the voltmeter.  NOT.

As we've said, oh maybe a few times, the wiring harness upgrade consists of a few parts:  the wiring (which doesn't always need to be replaced); swapping out the ammeter with the voltmeter; and replacing the trailer connections with either the Euro strips or hard wiring.

Always check the links on the Critical Upgrades topic.  The "instruction manual" for the change is linked back to the C34 Tech wiki.

[sailaway]

Put the amp meter back in your problems will go away. Volt meters and amp meters are two differant  types of meters you cannot inter change them. Your  new volt meter is  problay toast. Charlie