20 Hour Checkup - My List of 1st Service Trip Items

LaurencetheAdventurer

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Los Angeles / Lake Havasu
This was my list of service, upgrade and warranty items after my first 20 hours of run time . about 15 days on the lake:

Maintenance Service / Upgrades:

  1. 20 Hour Service
  2. Replacement L emblem – shore tree reached out and bit my rear Model Emblem
  3. Docking Lights Install: Set of Lumitec Caprera2 LED Deck lights installed under the front deck (existing ones not adequate for late night re-entry).
  4. Prop Repair: I drifted into shore on my first day and nicked the prop. Can you sand the rough edges on the prop?


Warranty Service:

  1. Engine Cowl, Lower correct install: Starboard lower section overlaps Port side
  2. Power Steering Loss / Check: On two trips I lost power steering. Switch batteries it seemed to solve the issue.
  3. Prop Slippage: Noted the prop seemed to be slipping last two trips, primarily after sitting. Running the boat in reverse for a about 10 feet seemed to solve the issue. Issue with the Hub?
  4. Engine Fail / will not stay running: Last day out: Engine would not remain running past a few minutes at a time, with 5 to 10 minutes between starts. Possible vacuum / fuel feeding issue?
  5. Gas Tank Filling: About our 4th fill using the same pump, take was overfilling with the overflow spilling onto the deck. Vapor / Venting issue?
  6. Capacity Tag: Install correct Capacity Tag (12 on sticker, specs are 16)
  7. LED’s: Colors of all the lights are not always coordinated, particularly Blue.
  8. Engine Mount Position: Boat with Merc 350 sits very deep in the water. WOT produced 44mph trimmed in the 20 to 25 range with a max 6,100 RPM’s. Benny Owner posts suggest we should get closer to 50 in the 6,300/6,400 RPM range. Let’s raise the engine 1 hole (currently in hole #3) and try an Enertia 14.5x17.
  9. Co-Captain Seat Loose Noted this seat is a tad wobbly.
  10. Floor Storage Seal: This was falling off when the boat arrived, repair was attempted, but it came off again. I believe the seal was stretched creating constant pull that in hot sun failed.
  11. Active Trim: My Simrad says the Active Trim module is missing, so this feature is either missing, not programmed, or not working.
  12. Bilge Pump Wiring: We leave the Benny in the water with the mooring cover on and double Bimini up – 2 to 3 weeks between visits. Heavy monsoon rains hit the front deck and drain down the boat into the floor storage / gas tank – there must have been 30++ gallons built up at our last visit, the pump ran for 7+ minutes. The Bilge Pump is wired through the master power switch under the throttle helm and then the main power switch in the battery compartment. This means I can’t turn off the batteries to prevent any residual / phantom drain BUT I need the bilge pump on to prevent build up and mold from the rain. Can you / any issues with getting the bilge pump wired directly to the batteries, ideally with a separate A/B switch next to the battery?


Maintenance Advice:

  1. Gas Treatments: Over the summer we are using the boat about 6 days per month, 3 days every other weekend. Then Sept until May/June best case is one use every month or two. Gas is reported as 91 premium non-ethanol. Do you recommend the Quicksilver additives?
    1. Quickcare Fuel Treatment – every fill?
    2. Quickcleen Fuel & System Cleaner – 1x per year before summer season?
    3. Quickstore Fuel Stabilizer – when filling in winter months when the boat might sit for a couple of months without use?
    4. Recommended Detailing: Any feedback based on your observation / experience on Wax vs Ceramic coatings in the hot Havasu Sun?
 
Dayum LaurenceTA! Thats quite the list, sometimes "new" doesn't always mean "problem free"!

Good choice on the Enertia, my bet is you will be happy with it. Could even try an 18p depending on results. Only downside is there will be less diameter than similar pitched props so it's about tradeoffs - you'll get more top speed at the expense of a little bite. Not much but noticeable in my case. I still love it.

You can gently file down any large burrs but there is a science and art to the edges that prop shops will put on there for max performance. What I read is that specifically the trailing edge needs to be square and very sharp, and if you hone that down it could lead to excess slip. If the nicks are in the leading edge I think you can just work it out as you would a lawnmower blade. After a few seasons if it's real beat up send it to a shop and have them re-balance as well. Reportedly getting this balancing work (or the full labbing or blueprinting) can pick up another 100-200 RPM in addition to other benefits. Makes sense given anything rotating that fast needs balancing.

Fuel treatment - most of those out there are pretty much the same if you look at the MSDS, but I run Techron Marine which is generally regarded as good or better than something like Ring Free Plus from Yamaha. Not cheap but a lot of folks swear by it including my mechanic who sees valves with and without it and it makes a difference. I believe running the piss out of your motor every now and again is even more important than detergents to burn up and prevent carbon build up.

As far as the stabilizer aspect, again many people run it as an insurance policy but then others will say fill up the tank with fresh gas at the end of the season and you'll be fine. Seems to me a bottle of blue stuff is cheap insurance especially if you're going to store for long periods of time where that ethanol/water can phase out. You'll get lots of opinions on this.

You should definitely bypass your main switch for your bilge, if not already. I'd rather have a dead battery than boat full of water and mold, so if you have a house batt wire it direct. But many boats do this already, and come to think of it I should check mine.

Good luck with the list!
 
Dayum LaurenceTA! Thats quite the list, sometimes "new" doesn't always mean "problem free"!

Good choice on the Enertia, my bet is you will be happy with it. Could even try an 18p depending on results. Only downside is there will be less diameter than similar pitched props so it's about tradeoffs - you'll get more top speed at the expense of a little bite. Not much but noticeable in my case. I still love it.

You can gently file down any large burrs but there is a science and art to the edges that prop shops will put on there for max performance. What I read is that specifically the trailing edge needs to be square and very sharp, and if you hone that down it could lead to excess slip. If the nicks are in the leading edge I think you can just work it out as you would a lawnmower blade. After a few seasons if it's real beat up send it to a shop and have them re-balance as well. Reportedly getting this balancing work (or the full labbing or blueprinting) can pick up another 100-200 RPM in addition to other benefits. Makes sense given anything rotating that fast needs balancing.

Fuel treatment - most of those out there are pretty much the same if you look at the MSDS, but I run Techron Marine which is generally regarded as good or better than something like Ring Free Plus from Yamaha. Not cheap but a lot of folks swear by it including my mechanic who sees valves with and without it and it makes a difference. I believe running the piss out of your motor every now and again is even more important than detergents to burn up and prevent carbon build up.

As far as the stabilizer aspect, again many people run it as an insurance policy but then others will say fill up the tank with fresh gas at the end of the season and you'll be fine. Seems to me a bottle of blue stuff is cheap insurance especially if you're going to store for long periods of time where that ethanol/water can phase out. You'll get lots of opinions on this.

You should definitely bypass your main switch for your bilge, if not already. I'd rather have a dead battery than boat full of water and mold, so if you have a house batt wire it direct. But many boats do this already, and come to think of it I should check mine.

Good luck with the list!
Thank you Potomacbassin! That is great detail on the Prop - I feel empowered! Overall I don't find the to do list that intimidating, I wish I had a place at home to pull the boat in and get a lot of this done myself, but alas trying to squeeze a 27' beast into a LA driveway is far from practical. Love the idea of the treatment is simply cheap insurance - DONE! My best.
 
New just means lots of kinks to work through!!! It is an amazing boat, no doubt.
 
Makes me feel lucky. Was able to avoid dealer for the 20 hour because so far any issues are very minor and can be “saved” for another day.

One thing I did notice was a pin size tear in the Bimini fabric, like only the owner would notice it. Debating on waiting until next trip to dealer when having larger issues, put a drop of fabric glue on it and forget about it, or have the dealer possible send a new cover and I can swap them myself

One thing I do know is I won’t be taking it to the dealer for just this micro pin tear.
 
Did you ever check if they wired it correctly?
 
One thing I did notice was a pin size tear in the Bimini fabric, like only the owner would notice it. Debating on waiting until next trip to dealer when having larger issues, put a drop of fabric glue on it and forget about it, or have the dealer possible send a new cover and I can swap them myself
Be sure to use the best marine rated fabric glue. UV exposure will make ordinary stuff ugly pretty fast.
 
Did you ever check if they wired it correctly?
Hi Scott - Yes I did a quick check for the main battery lines and it appeared to be correct, I did not check all the accessories or wiring hub. So far the issue has not re-appeared - so strange.
 
Fuel stabilizer- I use a Stabil Marine with every fill and Seafoam end of year. I use this with both gas that is with and without ethanol (also add this to all lawn and garden machine gas). Especially if your not running regularly.

The gas fill is an issue for several folks (Including me)…. Venting issue that others have fixed by realigning tubes. Others (like me) by trying to figure it out without using our vast mechanical abilities. So my latest solution (if you search this topic you’ll find a few strings about it, and a couple other suggested solutions) is to #1 slow down flow a little and #2 not fully seat the gas spout until it stops. After it can‘t go any further, pull it up about 1/2“ maybe a tad further. Unfortunately you can‘t leave unattended and it takes longer, but I’m glad I’m not dumping gas into lake any longer..

This gas situation was a setup developed to stop the excess fumes escaping into atmosphere. Excess gas into waters was apparently not a concern.
 
Man... do I feel lucky. Nary a single problem with my new boat this season. Sorry you’re dealing with all of this.
 
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