I just had installed a P.Y.I. packless sealing system on our boat and before sailing I'd like ideas about what to do if it starts to leak (either slow or fast!) when we are out on the water? Thanks, Kerk
Send an email or call the manufacturer.... They would be your best resource for this answer.
Great question. Fortunately this hasn't happened to me yet...But the main potential source is the bellows: at either end, or by a rip or tear.
The manufacturer recommends replacing the bellows every 5 years or so. It is a good idea to do this preventive maintenance! (I did, a couple of years back).
That being said, a leak is most likely to come from a loose hose clamp. So I would just stop the engine and tighten up the clamps. If it still leaks, look for the rip or tear and wrap or tape something around the bellows to stop or slow the leak.
If all else fails, remember that the emergency exits are located over the rail at port, starboard and aft.
Keep floating
Tony
Follow the advice given by the two previous owners and add mine:
Make sure that you know on your route, where the marinas are that have travel lifts!!
If the billows ruptures (for any reason) you'll need to get pulled !!
I kept looking, and found this. It is really worth reading.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/12011159/Shaft-Seals
Tony
My PYI packing gland started leaking this week after 20 years. I (my son did it while I pointed and waived my arms around)loosened the set screws and compressed the bellows just a little more. Leak fixed and a repair kit on the way which will be installed this winter on haulout.
I've been thinking that a dripless box would be great, but that article does make me think twice. I've seen them at the boat show, but its true about how the sales pitch does make you forget about the maintenance and vulnerabilty of the unit. The recommendations at the bottom of the article are gold:
• Inspect the bellows every six months or before spring commissioning.
• Allow the bellows to relax whenever you haul the boat.
• Place a safety hose clamp in front of the rotor on the prop shaft.
• Carry a spare bellows.
• Protect the bellows from accidental damage.
• Remember that the water injection hose is really a through hull fitting with no seacock, and install it with that in mind.
• Replace the bellows every six years, no matter what condition it's in. (keep the old one as your emergency spare)
• Read and follow the manufacturer's instructions. Read them a second time.
These are great replies. I really appreciate them. If anyone additionally has had to fix a leak while underway, what have you done? Kerk
Guys : It's so simple to use the Gore Drippless packing, I'm not sure why someone wants to pay that much for a billows which by definition needs to be replace periodically and could have a catistrophic failure (for what ever the reason)??
The packing gland is almost flawless and as I have said many times if you get a severe leak/dripping - you can ever use a shoe lace to stuff in there and slow it down!! A thought
Been using Gore Packing for the past 6 seasons. Dry bilge, no issues!
We should be careful when we discuss the Gore Packing. There are 2 types marketed with the Gore name. A green goop you add to the old flax. It does not work well. The good stuff is called "Gore GFO", it is a braided packing material. I have always got mine on line, but I think West Marine now caries both.
Replacing the packing with the Gore GFO was the best thing I've done to the boat. No water in the bilge, and no having to move EVERYTHING out of the aft cabin to get to the packing to adjust it once a month.
Even if you had a spare bellows, how are you going to replace it out on the pond?? You have to back the shaft out of the coupling to get it on.
Like Stu says, your boat, your choice.................
Ralph
Good point Ken!
I used the 'green goop' and what a mess it made, and it didn't work well at all.
Switched to GFO the following year and have been very happy.
Just checked the WM site and they have "GTU Gore Shaft Packing'. Looks exactly like what I have.
Thread drift from the OP, but Ultra X has been recommended by Maine Sail and I have installed it. I also included it in the Tech wiki under my Stuffing Box article.
I've also kept with the old style stuffing box because I think it's safer, but to the original question...
It might be prudent to have a dedicated bag for sealing system repair. It could include a roll of really good butyl tape. My son works in HVAC and gives me a tape with a metalic backing and thick butyl adhesive. (Or some other type of tape??) This tape could be a fix for a minor leak. I might also include a pre-cut sheet of rubber, and some clamps, which could be wrapped around the bellows if it completely blew out. This piece could be clamped, and then taped. Just as we wire in plugs at our through-hole fittings, this kit could be mounted (safely) in the area of the shaft.
Your question is good because we should always have a plan for what to do when (not if) gear fails. I don't know if my ideas would work, but you got me thinking.
That's a good idea. Rescue tape, sold at hardware stores would work, too. Trouble is that you most likely wouldn't be able to motor if you had a catastrophic PSS failure, but you could always sail and anchor.
So, I spent some time thinking about this. Here's an idea: You could make a thick rubber pad that would enclose the bellows. It could be secured along the long axis (along the shaft) by a pre-made closing device. Think two stainless tangs, with holes for bolts. Put it around the shaft and bolt it closed. One (or two) clamps around the aft shaft tube, and clamp(s) around the forward rotor. This would make a water tight seal, and posibly even for use of the motor?? McGiver Lives!
Never used this, I read somewhere, that wax rings for toilots are good for sealing low pressure large leaks. Sounded workable to me so I carry a couple for emergency.
Jim
Guys : I the past 25 seasons that I've had my C34, there were 3 times that I had to shut the engine OFF.
Only one of those times was I able to sail to the dock.
The other 2 there was not a breath of wind and my 1st Mate refused to man the "long boat" (dink) and row as a tow!!
when we bought Voyager 12 years ago we had the dripless PYI/PSS installed and have been very happy with it. we only use the boat 8-9 weeks every summer and then have a 10 month layup. we have not relaxed the bellows in the off season, thinking that all that undoing and doing might cause more problems. we are very careful about not getting fuel or fluids on the bellows. last year we noticed more carbon spray and I just talked to the yard after reading all this and will have new bellows and collar replaced this off season. I like the comments about a rubber kit to clamp over the bellows, even if all it did was slow the leak until I could get somewhere, but frequently we are days away from a yard when out cruising for 2 months. had I known at the time of the other product that works well with the traditional shaft coupling, I might have tried it, but had just come out of a "bad relationship" with the traditional type on my Newport 30 that required constant attention and adjustment, and I always worried if I had too much or too little drip. But I sure like a dry bilge. (of course, the condensation often adds a few drops in the northwest.)
Guys : Actually the Green goop and the Gore threaded packings have both worked for me.
I used the goop starting in 1989 and only took it out - because "Curious Ron" had to see if it was still there!!
The Gore GFO is much easier to deal with!! My thought
I put GFO in during our haul out in February. Had a bit of warming on our motor back to the Marina, did one small adjustment after that and have not had a bit of problem since. It is nice not having to move the aft cabin stuff every three weeks just to adjust the packing a bit. Would highly recommend the GFO.
Ralph