340 SUNDANCER THREAD

Rob, it might your IAC valve about to go out. That is a symptom when you get on the throttles a bit, try swapping them and see if the problem moves to the other engine. It's gonna run a little rougher than normal.


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Robf said:
Transmission Temperature - Does anyone know how to tell if your transmission is overheating? According to the manual, one of the buzzer alarms that can sound is for overheating transmission, but I have no way of knowing how to tell if I have a problem. The other buzzers, lack of oil pressure, overheating engines, etc, can easily be checked by gauges. The reason I ask is that I had the buzzer go off intermittently last time I was out and the only thing I could tie it to was each time I advanced the throttles, it would sound for a few seconds and then quit. All my gauges read normal ranges. If there was a problem, should the buzzer continue to sound? (Mine did not.) Or, do I have a screwed up buzzer that has me chasing my tail??
Rob
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Rob it might be water running to the back causing bilge pump to come on. Watch the little light on switch to see if it lights up. Its hard to see. Rich
 
bone354 said:
Rob it might be water running to the back causing bilge pump to come on. Watch the little light on switch to see if it lights up. Its hard to see. Rich
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I will check that, something I never thought of!
Rob
 
Dale
Do you have any pics of your battery setup? I reviewed your blog again for more information, and there doesn't seem to be too many details on this area. Did you put any type of circuit isolation in such as relays? I would like to isolate my starting batteries from the house. It appears that Sea Ray did isolate most of the house to the port side with the two battery setup, but the starboard side still carries the stereo. My concern is sitting on the hook for an extended time with the fridges pulling down the port side and the stereo pulling down the starboard, and no power when time to leave! I believe the gen battery is isolated and I could start the gen and power up the charger and go from there, but makes me uneasy to think about that if for some reason the gen battery would go bad. I would be interested in your take on this area.
Rob
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Rob,
My 340 was originally a 4 battery setup from Sea Ray. 2 batteries port side, one battery starboard, and one generator battery. To increase capacity, I added a 5th battery on the starboard side, mimicking the port arrangement. If I recall correctly, Sea Ray offered this as a "5th battery option" from the factory. I also switched from wet cells to large Optima blue top AGMs, which is a requirement when placing the batteries outside the engine room space.

I do not employ any battery isolation between the individual port and starboard batteries - they are simply paralleled. If my wife and I are on the hook, the generator is typically running in the evening, while we may be cooking or watching a movie, so battery depletion is not an issue. When we go to sleep, I'll shut down the generator (it is a gas unit after all), and the port side battery bank keeps the refrigerators going with no problems. I've run the refrigerators before for more than one day off the batteries, and they still started my port engine.

The key here is active management on your part. You know your batteries are being drained, so you have to be responsible and monitor their condition. There is a voltmeter on your panel for just this purpose. You could employ some isolation relays, but then your house loads will be confined to one battery, resulting in half the time before that battery is run down. It also results in uneven loading and wear on the batteries. If you keep the generator running while you are listening to music during the day, at least some of the time, you shouldn't have any issues. I do strongly recommend the 5th battery though.

I'll be at the boat later today, and I'll take some pics of my battery setup for you.

Dale
 
Hey, who let the guy with the 410 in here?

Dale
 
LOL


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MasterFab said:
Rob,
My 340 was originally a 4 battery setup from Sea Ray. 2 batteries port side, one battery starboard, and one generator battery. To increase capacity, I added a 5th battery on the starboard side, mimicking the port arrangement. If I recall correctly, Sea Ray offered this as a "5th battery option" from the factory. I also switched from wet cells to large Optima blue top AGMs, which is a requirement when placing the batteries outside the engine room space.

I do not employ any battery isolation between the individual port and starboard batteries - they are simply paralleled. If my wife and I are on the hook, the generator is typically running in the evening, while we may be cooking or watching a movie, so battery depletion is not an issue. When we go to sleep, I'll shut down the generator (it is a gas unit after all), and the port side battery bank keeps the refrigerators going with no problems. I've run the refrigerators before for more than one day off the batteries, and they still started my port engine.

The key here is active management on your part. You know your batteries are being drained, so you have to be responsible and monitor their condition. There is a voltmeter on your panel for just this purpose. You could employ some isolation relays, but then your house loads will be confined to one battery, resulting in half the time before that battery is run down. It also results in uneven loading and wear on the batteries. If you keep the generator running while you are listening to music during the day, at least some of the time, you shouldn't have any issues. I do strongly recommend the 5th battery though.

I'll be at the boat later today, and I'll take some pics of my battery setup for you.

Dale
Click to expand...

Dale
Thank you for the information and look forward to seeing the pics of the setup. First things first, I need to replace both bilge blowers! Returned from a day out and realized I couldn't hear the blowers. On further inspection, the blower motor was running with no fan blade on the shaft! Apparently I was already running on only one blower as the starboard blower was not running at all and the blade had come off the shaft on that side as well. Just ordered two new blowers and hope to get them replaced this week. I will then turn my attention to the steering as I feel the fluid may be low. When the steering wheel is oriented with the correct side up, the boat turns to port, so not sure if fluid low or wheel is improperly mounted. I will determine that when I top off the reservoir and purge the air from the lines. The battery setup will probably be a fall/spring project.
Rob
 
Hey Robb,

Your wheel will not center up like an automobile steering system - the hydraulic steering system will have fluid bypass in the cylinders and it will not perfectly center - or if it does once, the next time out it won't be centered.

Non-centered wheels are the norm.
 
Another 410 owner!!! We're being overrun.....

I think I have to sell the 340 and buy a 410.

Dale
 
carterchapman said:
Hey Robb,

Your wheel will not center up like an automobile steering system - the hydraulic steering system will have fluid bypass in the cylinders and it will not perfectly center - or if it does once, the next time out it won't be centered.

Non-centered wheels are the norm.
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Should it even be close?? Mine is 180 degrees off.
rob
 
I have SeaStar tilt helm and hydraulic steering on my 2005 340 Sundancer. I checked the hydraulic fluid level and it looks low. Does any one know if I can use Quicksilver Power Trim & Steering fluid to top it up?
 
OK, here is a pic of my stbd side battery bank, now located in the stbd side mid stateroom storage locker. It can't be seen in the pic, but the aluminum hold down bars are insulated with plastic on the side that is adjacent to the battery posts. The posts are insulated as well, with the plastic post covers. Finally, there are stops built into the base, to prevent the batteries from moving. This is not a place you'd ever want to allow a short circuit to occur....

PDR_3198.jpg

Dale
 
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ianlockwood said:
I have SeaStar tilt helm and hydraulic steering on my 2005 340 Sundancer. I checked the hydraulic fluid level and it looks low. Does any one know if I can use Quicksilver Power Trim & Steering fluid to top it up?
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My mechanic was adamant that only a fluid specific to the SeaStar hydraulic steering system be used; i.e., the Quicksilver fluid should not be used. A quart of the SeaStar stuff set me back $25 at the local marine store. Fill the reservoir to within 1/2 inch of the top and you're good to go.
 
Divot said:
My mechanic was adamant that only a fluid specific to the SeaStar hydraulic steering system be used; i.e., the Quicksilver fluid should not be used. A quart of the SeaStar stuff set me back $25 at the local marine store. Fill the reservoir to within 1/2 inch of the top and you're good to go.
Click to expand...

The owners manual for the steering system is also very specific about using the Seastar hydraulic fluid as well! I also purchased the hose that screws onto the reservoir on the steering column (another $21) to prevent air in the system to allow you to bleed the system. Another weekend project while I am standing on my head changing out the bilge blowers! :)
Rob
 
MasterFab said:
OK, here is a pic of my stbd side battery bank, now located in the stbd side mid stateroom storage locker. It can't be seen in the pic, but the aluminum hold down bars are insulated with plastic on the side that is adjacent to the battery posts. The posts are insulated as well, with the plastic post covers. Finally, there are stops built into the base, to prevent the batteries from moving. This is not a place you'd ever want to allow a short circuit to occur....



View attachment 31020

Dale
Click to expand...
Dale
Is it a direct shot from the compartment here into the engine compartment? (i.e. any concerns about what you are drilling through when routing cabling?) I like this idea and will definitly be moving my batteries over the winter months. Is that a fuse I see in the pic off to the left? Did you also move your gen battery over by the Gen? Did you downsize the gen battery? Mine came with a 31 on the gen which seems like overkill and pointless since this battery would never be cycled. I would think a basic starting battery would suffice.
Rob
 
Rob,

It is NOT a direct shot from the engine room. The cables have to run through the fresh water tank compartment, so the fresh water tank has to be removed for access, and to properly loom and retain the cables. There is a large ANL type fuse to the left, which is for the stereo system amplifier. I did not move the gen battery - it is located in a custom tray right next to the generator, as seen in my blog (there is a specific entry or two for the generator install). My gen battery is an Optima blue top, group 27.

I have some info on my blog about pulling and re-plumbing the freshwater tank. The fittings are hard to get to with the engines in place, but it is doable. You will have to make up all new battery cables, re-route the ground cables, and gain access to the main electrical panel in the engine room. I did it all with the engines out, but it can be done with them in place - it'll just be a bit harder.

Dale
 
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