Aftercooler cleaning (Cat 3116)

[GnrlPatton]

Just reached out to a radiator shop that works on diesels to get a quote for taking my aftercoolers in and getting them cleaned and tested. This is what I got back, just checking to see if it sounds reasonable, especially the part about cutting them open.

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We do Cat aftercoolers.

These type plug up on the raw water side to the point we cut off the end tanks to rod-out the units and tig weld the tank back to the unit.

If we do a cleaning and test without cutting open price would be $275.00 ea.

I would not bid the cutting open price until we see the units.

Right now for a clean and test estimated time would be 5 to 7 days.
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I'm looking to do this because I'm not sure if it has ever been done on my boat (this is my second season with her), the previous owner kept pretty detailed notes on maintenance items but I don't see anything about cleaning the aftercoolers. I'm getting really bad sooting on the transom and inside the cockpit, so I'm pretty sure they need to be done. I have changed my oil to Cat SAEO SAE 30 (previous owner used 15w-40 Rotella from what I can tell), and cleaned the air filters, so I think this is the next step to eliminate the sooting.

Does that sound reasonable? This was through Seattle Radiator, so if anyone else has experience with them or other radiator shops, I'd love a referral.

I have new gaskets and hoses picked out for when I do the job, anything else I'll need? What do the bolts need to be torqued to when reinstalling?

Thanks,
Kevin

 

[fwebster]

Sorry, but my B.S. alarm is screaming on this one.

The 3116 after cooler is not seawater cooled, it is jacket or antifreeze cooled so there is no need to rod out the interior tubes. A good acid cleaning is all that is needed. Even the $275 looks high for just batting 2 after coolers, so I think I would ask the guy at the radiator shop to explain his bid and why it is going to take $550 to vat your coolers.

 

[ttmott]

Engine coolant could gel in it but very unlikely if you have kept up with the CAT ELC.
The air side tends to crap up with oil residue from the crankcase ventilation system or worse if someone used multi-viscosity oil in the engine.
Have a radiator shop cook it then pressure test it. Pressure test the air side and verify no bubbles from the housing or coolant tubes. Don't have them paint it as they will use the cheapest black paint; instead clean them with a good solvent like lacquer thinner then paint with a quality high heat paint.

 

[HUMPH]

Cut them open? Find another shop. Check with your local Cat dealer to see who they use.

 

[peterkvs]

I had mine done at a radiator shop here and I think they did them for $30 each. I painted them with the white paint from Cat and they looked great.

 

[peterkvs]

Oh yeah, there are a few coolant hoses and the turbo hose that you can only get to with the aftercooler off, so go ahead and replace those while you have the aftercooler off.

 

[carterchapman]

Those hoses are cheap at your CAT dealer BTW. Just go in with your serial #'s...

And this is the time to change your coolant to CAT ELC.

 

[GnrlPatton]

Thanks everyone, my BS meter was going off as well Frank. I'll find another shop, I like the suggestion of contacting my Cat dealer to see who they use/recommend.

I'm going to my dealer to get new gaskets, ELC and hoses, I'm assuming I should replace the hoses in the attached diagram marked 8 and 9, anything else that I should do while they are out?

 

[carterchapman]

Replace the turbo hose (about 3-4" long) under your aftercooler while it is out...

 

[The Bill Collector]

Thanks everyone, my BS meter was going off as well Frank. I'll find another shop, I like the suggestion of contacting my Cat dealer to see who they use/recommend.

I'm going to my dealer to get new gaskets, ELC and hoses, I'm assuming I should replace the hoses in the attached diagram marked 8 and 9, anything else that I should do while they are out?

I know it's super close to you, but I use Federal Way Radiator Shop on hwy 99 by Lake Union Sea Ray Fife location. New shop but old school radiator tech's that know their stuff !!

 

[GnrlPatton]

I know it's super close to you, but I use Federal Way Radiator Shop on hwy 99 by Lake Union Sea Ray Fife location. New shop but old school radiator tech's that know their stuff !!

That's not too far away, I did reach out to them yesterday and haven't heard back yet. I'll keep them in mind, thanks Mark!

 

[The Bill Collector]

Great and sorry I meant to say NOT super close to you.... They have done my heat exchangers & oil coolers. You get them back with a red/brown primer and their little brass tag affixed.

 

[GnrlPatton]

Thanks for all of the advice. I got to the boat this weekend and pulled the port side off on Saturday and Starboard side on Sunday. The biggest pain was dealing with the coolant, I only drained down the port side a little bit and then had a big mess on my hands when I took the coolant hoses off the aftercooler. For the starboard side, I drained all of the coolant first, then the rest was pretty straight forward. It was still messy because the location of the drain is less than ideal, I ended up just letting it drain into the bilge and then pumped it out with a drill motor pump before it triggered the bilge pump.

The aftercoolers are in the hands of Federal Way radiator, thanks for the referral Mark. They figure I'll have them back on Thursday or Friday, and estimated $150 total for both. I stopped by the Cat dealer on my way home and picked up the parts - gaskets, inlet / outlet hoses, turbo hoses, high temp paint, plus ELC coolant. Parts total was just under $400. I'm hoping to get everything installed this coming weekend, and hoping to not have any more sooting on the transom!

Kevin

 

[The Bill Collector]

Sounds great Kevin... You can assist me when I need to do mine !! lol......

 

[GnrlPatton]

Sounds great Kevin... You can assist me when I need to do mine !! lol......

You bet!

I picked up the aftercoolers yesterday, they hot tanked them, pressure tested, and primered them. I picked up some high temp white paint from Cat earlier in the week, so put 3 coats on last night. I need to cure the paint by putting them in the oven, so I'll do that tonight and get ready to install them on Sunday. Hoping it goes smoothly, I think it will.

Thanks again for all of the advice on here, definitely took some of the stress away of doing this myself!

 

[The Bill Collector]

Kevin, where do you keep your boat moored ?

 

[GnrlPatton]

Kevin, where do you keep your boat moored ?

Parkshore Marina on Lake Washington. We're members of Rainier Yacht Club, and our club house is also at that marina, so it's very convenient for us there.

 

[The Bill Collector]

Parkshore Marina on Lake Washington. We're members of Rainier Yacht Club, and our club house is also at that marina, so it's very convenient for us there.

Great and we keep ours in the Hylebos Marina and our members of the Tacoma Yacht Club. On a professional note, I do collections for the Parkshore Marina....

 

[Blkbird]

"I need to cure the paint by putting them in the oven, so I'll do that tonight and get ready to install them on Sunday"

Oh my wife would not be happy if I put them in alongside dinner.

 

[GnrlPatton]

"I need to cure the paint by putting them in the oven, so I'll do that tonight and get ready to install them on Sunday"

Oh my wife would not be happy if I put them in alongside dinner.

What could possibly go wrong, they are clean after all.