Dock hands burned up water pump

Todd320

Well-Known Member
Jul 21, 2016
1,508
St. Petersburg, FL
Boat Info
2007 Sea Ray 320DA
Engines
Twin V-drive 5.7L 350 Horizon
Well, there goes a great boating day. Got to the boat, started loading it up and 2 dock hands came up to me to explain that the port engine was not pumping water. They explained they put the boat in the water this morning, discovered it was not pumping water out the exhaust. They checked the footage (why check footage?) from the cameras, they believe the guy who put the boat up left the engine running while flushing, but csomehow the water supply was cutoff. Water pump fried, most likely, and the belt is broken. My guess is the belt broke when the water pump seized? I have 5.7L horizon 2007 engines, FWC. Does this make sense. This is the third time they have fudged* up my boat.
And they want to raise rates by 10%.
 
The whole story seems a bit fishy. I'm assuming you keep the boat in a dry stack storage facility. I've never used one but I understand all you do is get in it and go and when you come back you get out and go home. If that is correct and they are responsible for the boat the rest of the time then anything that happens to it would be their responsibility.

If I was the owner/manager of the facility and I had to pay for repairs that my employees were causing, I think it would be time to evaluate employees. If they've "fudged" up your boat 3 times they've done it to others as well. Maybe all of these repairs are why they are raising the rates.

Seems to me that a conversation with management is due but the sad part is if your facility is like the one near me there is a 3 year waiting list to get in. A threat to leave doesn't really have any teeth to it unless you were able to poll other tenants on damage they have had caused by the storage facility. Might be useful info. Tough situation....and frustrating.
 
I hate to bring this up, but is there any chance that the engine experienced an overheat condition due to lack of cooling water flowing through the heat exchanger? Just how attentive were the dock hands in checking for water flow after starting the engine in the water??

I also think it to be unusual for a water pump to seize while running dry. The friction generated within the pump would cause the impeller veins to melt/burn but unless a piece of the impeller broke off and jammed into the exit port I'd think it would keep spinning. I'd suspect the pump's bearings to have seized from seawater intrusion causing the belt to break. Either way, it probably squealed like a pig before snapping which should have altered the dock hands of an issue.
 
Yes, sounds like they diagnosed the cause properly. In the water with the pump primed as it normally is, you almost never hear of a pump locking up.

Yard hands are the lowest level of skilled worker in a coastal marina, but they are still the responsibility of the marina management. You should talk to the dockmaster and calmly explain what happened and that he owns this problem and you expect them to repair the boat before Friday.

In the future, can you have the marina put the boat on a rack and you flush the engines to avoid having the unqualified help even touch your boat?
 
I usually bring the boat back after they have stopped running the lifts. I could flush the engines while in the water but I need to get my sea cocks working, so I’m following Frank’s instructions from the other thread to get the sea cocks un stuck. So frustrating, not the first time, but wife loves the location. They sheared off the port exhaust tube with the lift, and they forgot to flush the engines on at least one occasion.
 
I NEVER let anyone else flush my engines - in fact, i put a sign that says "do not start this boat or flush engines" OVER the ignition switches - especially important on my boat as it has outdrives but the supply to the motors is from seacocks.....i just shut the seacocks, take off the cap to the strainer and run a hose into it with the boat running (and still hot so the thermostat is open)
 
Obviously not a good idea to let them touch your boat unsupervised. I would figure out a different arrangement where you could be present before and after launch. Too many things can go wrong.
 
I’m not paying them to store my boat AND then I have to babysit them, that’s ludicrous. I’ll find out tomorrow when my mechanic can get out there. Still don’t understand what prompted them to go look at the security footage. Just because an engine is not pumping water, that can happen for any number of reasons, why would they think “we should check the footage”? Seems odd.
 
Mechanic will check on it today, start work next week. He is pretty certain the lack of water fried the sea water pump, which in turn caused the pump to seize, and the belt to break, and because they kept it running, the coolant overheated and sprayed coolant over the engine.
 
Thanks, good things to check. Mechanic is on his way to the boat tomorrow morning to start work. Alternator is frozen as well as the sea water pump, when the coolant sprayed on the engine 3 weeks ago, it destroyed the alternator. Most of the clamps on the front of them engine have to be replaced as well, showing signs of rust. Rust on the pulleys on both engines. He is also going to check the flame arrestor to see if there are signs the coolant got into the intake.
 
Thanks, good things to check. Mechanic is on his way to the boat tomorrow morning to start work. Alternator is frozen as well as the sea water pump, when the coolant sprayed on the engine 3 weeks ago, it destroyed the alternator. Most of the clamps on the front of them engine have to be replaced as well, showing signs of rust. Rust on the pulleys on both engines. He is also going to check the flame arrestor to see if there are signs the coolant got into the intake.


sounds $$$$$.......

good luck....

cliff
 
Call your insurance and report the incident. Marinas do not like it when you call as their premiums go up as your insurance will go after them. One marina damage my boat. I put in a claim. agent talked to marina and they fixed it. Up to the point I called my agent the marina was refusing to fix the boat.
 
...would seem odd for raw pump to lockup. bearings dont lube by water.
...sounds more like alternator locked due to corrosion.

will the pump without belt not turn by hand?

and yes, i would be concerned of overheating issues
 
The sea water pump without belt will not turn. The mechanic determined this today. The alternator will not turn either.
I’m really concerned the engine overheated and no person (or thing) shut it down. Would have thought the computer would shut down the engine once it reaches a certain temperature knowing damage is imminent, maybe it just sounds alarms knowing that an operator is present and they will take action? Or maybe the computer just doesn’t let you go over a certain RPM?
 
Seems odd that both would lock up at the same time. Maybe somehow one seized and caused the other to then seize??

Maybe the water pump failed, engine overheated, alternator got really hot and the bearing failed?
Just a guesstimate.

That raw water pump can be difficult to turn by hand but the alternator should freewheel with the key off.

If things were a little rusty to begin with, then I would carefully inspect the grooves on the 2 pulleys in question. Whichever failed first may be polished clean by the belt as it slipped across the seized pulley before breaking.
Find the super clean pulley and you’ve found the culprit. (Actually the dockhands are the culprit!)
 
The tech believes the alternator was fried by the spewing coolant and subsequent corrosion over the following 3 weeks. I have to believe someone knew of the damage 3 weeks ago when the boat was flushed, but put the boat away anyway without contacting anyone.
 
Can you view "the footage"? Maybe it will show how long the boat was running without pumping?
 
Can you view "the footage"? Maybe it will show how long the boat was running without pumping?
Thanks, I was thinking the same thing this morning as I was waking up. also going to find the compression tests from 2016 when I purchased the boat. If they rerun compression tests on both engines, and compare to 2016, any degradation on port engine which is also not on starboard would likely indicate damage done by the overheat. Does that make sense? A friend at work suggested a bore scope. Sounds like this is something not horribly expensive but could pinpoint damage from overheating?
 

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