Practical – tips and tricks – please add yours

Presentation

Well-Known Member
TECHNICAL Contributor
Oct 3, 2006
4,404
Wisconsin - Winnebago Pool chain of lakes
Boat Info
280 Sundancer, Westerbeke MPV generator
Engines
twin 5.0's w/BIII drives
Cabin door lock it has three positions, not two.

From the cockpit side put the key in the lock. Turn it all the way clockwise and its locked.

Turn it all the way counter clockwise and its unlocked.

From locked if you turn it counterclockwise until the key is parallel to the floor then pull out the key you can lock and unlock the cabin door from inside the boat with that tiny little switch next to the handle inside the cabin on the door.

Pull out / slide out lounge chair (280 Sundancer) Incase the clumps come to visit you and want to sprawl out there is a support leg underneath the seat cushion. You cant see it unless you pull the seat out in the lounge position. Lay on the floor, look underneath and you will see it.

Will not start at all

The keys are in, turned and you have power because accessories do work. Check to see if the throttle is in the full straight up position. Then try to start it again.
 
Good idea Groucho. I take it one step further with a little dish soap.

My tip - when the grates and stuff in your gas grill get grungy, take them home and run them through the self-cleaning cycle in your electric oven. Much easier and neater than Easy-Off........

Cheers,

Bill
 
Cabin door lock it has three positions, not two.

From the cockpit side put the key in the lock. Turn it all the way clockwise and its locked.

Turn it all the way counter clockwise and its unlocked.

From locked if you turn it counterclockwise until the key is parallel to the floor then pull out the key you can lock and unlock the cabin door from inside the boat with that tiny little switch next to the handle inside the cabin on the door.

Pull out / slide out lounge chair (280 Sundancer) Incase the clumps come to visit you and want to sprawl out there is a support leg underneath the seat cushion. You cant see it unless you pull the seat out in the lounge position. Lay on the floor, look underneath and you will see it.

Will not start at all

The keys are in, turned and you have power because accessories do work. Check to see if the throttle is in the full straight up position. Then try to start it again.

^^^ or you blew the fuse located in the starter :)
 
For the trailering crowd...

When you back the trailer in to retreive the boat, back it in until the bunks are under water then pull forward to load the boat. Wetting the carpet on the bunks will help reduce some of the burn marks from the hull hitting the dry bunks.

Also, I keep a magnetized plug wrench (plugsucker) on the back of the trailer. It's always right there when installing & removing the plug.

Never take your mother-in-law on the boat......ever :thumbsup:
 
If your motor turns over and over and over but no fire; replace the ignition sensor (4.3 EFI) located under the distributor cap. Easy DIY if the rotator is not corroded on.
 
For those with bungee type kill switch cords (the 240 had one) if your engine cranks without starting and the smartcraft doesn't have juice, you just might have the kill switch partially dead.
 
for the dinghy owners who don't keep the engine on the dinghy: tie a line to the engine and to your cleat when mounting / unmounting the engine. Easier to recover it when you finally drop it...
 
for the dinghy owners who don't keep the engine on the dinghy: tie a line to the engine and to your cleat when mounting / unmounting the engine. Easier to recover it when you finally drop it...


Thats the tip of the day... Never thought about possibly dropping it. Probably wouldn't until I did drop it. Thanks!
 
Winterizing trick:
Drain fresh water tank then, fill with some antifreeze.
40PSI of pink from your freshwater wash down hose.
Makes for easy work....(i like easy)
Mark.
 
Winterizing trick:
Drain fresh water tank then, fill with some antifreeze.
40PSI of pink from your freshwater wash down hose.
Makes for easy work....(i like easy)
Mark.


Are you saying that you use the freshwater wash down hose to run antifreeze through the engines? If so, is the pressure enough to keep up with the required flow?
 
Are you saying that you use the freshwater wash down hose to run antifreeze through the engines? If so, is the pressure enough to keep up with the required flow?

No I think he's talking about winterizing the fresh water system
 
Winterizing trick:
Drain fresh water tank then, fill with some antifreeze.
40PSI of pink from your freshwater wash down hose.
Makes for easy work....(i like easy)
Mark.

Drain everything, air can't expand when frozen...

Use candle wax on female snaps to keep them from getting gnarly and nasty with salt and stuff and not working well. Fill in the male snaps with white silicon
 

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