OFFICIAL 250 DANCER THREAD

'89 250DA here in the Seattle area. Just had our shakedown cruise this past weekend and all systems checked out fine except the manual Jabsco head. Needs a new pump unit - on order will be here soon. I posted a bit on the old Club SeaRay forum but I'll get some pics of projects we've done once I get back into things. We took most of 2009 and all of 2010 off of boating and were this close to getting rid of the boat this year. We got the bug again and took a 180 and have been jamming to get the boat ready for SeaFair 2011 on the log boom - Aug 5-7.
 
Here are a few pics of the new to me 250.

searay-unf0.jpgsearay-unf9.jpgsearay-unf1.jpgsearay-unf6.jpgsearay-unf3.jpgsearay-unf7.jpg
 
lakeway, She looks like she is in very nice shape! congradulations. Curious on the fuel usage, my 7.4 has drank over 400g this year. I usualy cruise at 3100 rpm at 26mph but feel like she likes her drinking. I do not have a mpg figure but am working on that now, we have a few days up the through Canada coming and I should get a good idea.
 
Recommendations on carpet and boat covers? I've been out of the boating world for about 15 years and just want to get some input on carpet for the new to me 250 and a boat cover???
 
My preference is to engage a local canvas shop and get one custom made. In my experience they aren't more expensive. Most canvas shops will take care of your carpet too.


Lakeway TX Sea Ray said:
Recommendations on carpet and boat covers? I've been out of the boating world for about 15 years and just want to get some input on carpet for the new to me 250 and a boat cover???
Click to expand...
 
I've been spending quite a bit of time going through the boat and I have some questions. This is the first boat I've owned with shore power and plumbing... Today I totally emptied everything out. The previous owner had quite a bit of stuff packed in every locker. I found some keys and thought hey.. I wonder if one of these goes to the deck locker? sure enough... I found the carpets, the shore power line and several other goodies.. ( I bought the boat from and estate and assumed the marina lease..nobody ever mentioned that the locker was mine too!)

Plugged in to shore power and as far as I can tell everything works..

How am I supposed to leave the electrical system when she is hooked up to shore power? do I leave the battery switch on? if so on one or both batteries? how can I check to make sure the system is keeping the batteries charged when connected to shore power?

Anything else I need to know? like I said never had a boat with shore power or plumbing so this is all new to me.

Oh... can I change out the alcohol stove for an electric one? maybe it's a newbie thing but the idea of an open flame in the cabin doesn't make me feel very good.
 
Sounds like you are back in town! Thank God for that & thank you for your service.

When I leave my boat, I leave the battery switches off. Thought process here is that if by mistake any switch (that can draw from the battery), is left on, it will not drain the batteries. Your bilge pump should be wired directly, so the full supply of power should be on standby for that.

As for the gas/electric stove swap. I'm sure it can and has been done. I will make a suggestion though; before you spend any money, be sure that you will use the stove enough to justify the cost. I bought an electric skillet for about $25 that I can use both inside the boat and out on the dock on a table as well. My concern was not so much the open flame in the boat(although I don't like the idea) but rather the amount of heat generated by the gas stove was just too much.

A suggestion for your water system... Fully empty the system by simply running the hot & cold faucets. Remove and clean any screens/aerators at each water faucet. Remove & clean the same at the water pump itself. Add a half of a cup of bleach to the water tank & fill it with clean water, then open all faucets allowing the tank to empty again. Repeat this process without the bleach,& your system, which by now after going so long unused, has become stagnant.

ps.... Check and or replace your fire extinguisher!
 
Last edited:
Hi , Ive got a question about my switchs on the dash panel , regarding the Acc. switch , probably different on all boats , but when i switch it on I get a short beep comming from under the dash , cant pinpoint it , anyone have any Idea what this could be ? thanks , Rich
 
On the 95-98 250's - What would you guys reccommend? A small block or a big block? I am kicking around the idea of purchasing one and was wondering if the small block pushes it OK - Is the BB needed?

LK
 
The beep is the fire alarm/fire suppression system alarm... also if you turn the ignition swich to on but don't actually start the boat the alarm should go off in 10 seconds or so.. it's a self test. There should be a panel right below your steering wheel with a light and an explanation of the fire alarm/suppression system. If you haven't already down loaded the manual from sea ray you should it's a generic manual for cruisers for that year but it covers all the systems, some of which you may or may not have.
 
Thanks , I do Have the fire supresion system and i do have the long beep when ignition is on , but I do have another beep , when i turn the Acc. switch on on my dash board ill get a short beep , I dont know what else that could be , and the beep is not comming from the piazo horn that is for the fire system , and i cant finf another piazo horn anywhere lol I almost thought it may be a co monitor , but wghy would it be on a switch ? so I forgot that idea , any thoughts?
 
The small block does a great job, the big block wouldn't be too much engine. I get a 25 know cruising speed with the 5.7l and that works for me. I'm not convinced that I would get much benefit out of the 7.4l for the trade off in fuel consumption.

alwhite00 said:
On the 95-98 250's - What would you guys reccommend? A small block or a big block? I am kicking around the idea of purchasing one and was wondering if the small block pushes it OK - Is the BB needed?

LK
Click to expand...
 
I do prefer my big block , not bad fuel consumption as long as you dont hammer down all the time , Ive had other boats ,same size with the small blocks and they just dont compare , but i guess it all depends on your lifestyle and cruiseing habits
 
A boat's top speed has a lot to do with the hull design, the 7.4 will give you the ability get on plane faster, pull skiers better or be able to load the boat heavier and still plane but it will do very little for top speed. The biggest advantage is the 7.4's come with bravo's and the 5.7's come with alpha's.

Like fasttoys said it really depends on how you like to operate your boat, I seldom cruise at WOT, I just think that a 23 year old boat with the original engine and drive needs to treated gently.
 
Last edited:
Phlorida said:
The small blocks were available with either the alpha or the bravo. The boats I have seen, including my own, were purchased with the Bravo drive.
Click to expand...

My mistake, I guess they made that change on your series of 250's, the earlier 250's like mine didn't have the 5.7L bravo option.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Forum statistics

Threads
113,172
Messages
1,427,834
Members
61,084
Latest member
AntonioJamm
Back
Top