I think this depends on a couple variables. How is the gel coat on the hull? Would you ever paint your hull? How long do you plan to keep your boat? If the gel is really good and you plan to keep your boat, then paint. However if the gel is starting to get thin in spots and you might need to spray the hull then I would go with vinyl, or if I was not planning on owning the boat for more than 3 years. JMTC.
I would also raise the bottom paint. I am going to raise mine on the next bottom paint.
decisions of a captain... lolThis follows up on the question about weight capacity on the fly bridge. Here’s the label at the top of the stairs on my 2003 480...
View attachment 102186
Now I have to decide who stays below so the cooler can remain up on the bridge.
Ace hardware for the carriage bolts
Be careful with the ACE Stainless fasteners most of it is 18-8 which won't survive the marine environment.
I removed the sound shield from our generator because it was horrible to do any maintenance. The noise level seems to be the same to everyone in the cockpit and when we are sleeping at night we don't hear it. But you might have another issue if your generator is losing fluid. I would start by removing sound shield and start seeing if you can see any fluid anywhere or else you have a bigger issue and the shield will need to be removed anyway for repair.Kohler Generator issue.....
I have a 13KW Kohler in my 480. It's in a sound enclosure. The genset starts and runs fine but I am getting an "LCL" error on the panel which is "Low Coolant Level". So, what's the problem? Adding more coolant. The sound enclosure's top is less than an inch above the filler cap for the coolant and, there's insulation there to boot. I've tried everything I can to access the cap and finally got it loose (but never off) after scraping the sound insulation from from the inside top of the sound cover. I used a fluid pump to squirt coolant into the partial opening of the cap. Closed it up, ran OK and the error was gone. As I was leaving the boat tonight, I heard a "beep, beep" from under the stairs and the generator gauge/panel there was showing "LCL" again.
From a design standpoint, it's just plain bad - I cannot conceive of how one is expected to fill coolant into the generator. Am I missing something? Is there an alternate means to add coolant?
I purchased my boat with the gen removed.I bought a mdkdl replacement and it doesn’t have the NIM. Does that have to be ordered directly from cummins ? I saw someone mounted the new remote controller in the bridge next to the smartcraft display. Would make the controls in the main panel inop ?
It is a Cummins option (Cummins Onan Marine Accessories). I think the MDKBL needs to be Spec sheet number A-1476 for the option.
LCL error update.... there is a small valve in a coolant tube just below the circulating water pump. Since I could now open the cap, I did so, attached a fluid hand pump to the valve and added the coolant “from the bottom up” until there was a slight overflow. So, the coolant is full, the genset runs fine (no errors or shutdown due to temp) but, within a minute of shutting down, the LCL error recurs!
Interestingly, I can find no reference in the Kohler docs to a low coolant sensor so I’m curious as to its origin. I did find a sender of some kind inline near the thermostat that was not on the Kohler parts list. Maybe it senses coolant level. I’ll be contacting Kohler...
), the Norcold was DOA. One of my first projects was replacing it. We chose a dual voltage Vitrifrigo and it worked flawlessly for the entire time we had it. I have not looked to see if Vitrifrigo has a model that will fit the 480 but if they do, I would have no problem recommending it. The option to not run the generator to maintain cold is very nice and, saves fuel, genset hours, and provides that rare commodity... quiet!
When we bought our 370DA 7 years ago (sold and delivered last week!
A further note... Vitrifrigo offered two configurations: one with the compressor within the dimensions of the refrigerator for tight fit locations and another with an external compressor. I chose the latter since it offered incremental refrigerated space within the unit. Although not researched, my guess is that the external compressor was more efficient too; I built a platform for it to ensure good circulation. See photos.
I’m going on about this here because I’m curious about 110/12v too since the replacement and benefits were so successful in the 370 and my current Sub-Zeros are 110 only and aging and often the only reason we run the genset.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/amegmtyduskzxbe/Photo Sep 22, 10 40 52 AM.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/3xje2sx4vtz4bi3/Photo Sep 28, 3 12 19 PM.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/frcg3s1acqpmnq3/Photo Sep 28, 2 57 24 PM.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/a320g9jv37009as/Photo Sep 28, 6 07 32 PM.jpg?dl=0
