Season ending numbers & other useless stuff

searay40dad

searay40dad

Active Member
Oct 23, 2006
1,161
Western KY/Panama City FL
Boat Info
2001 480 Sedan Bridge w/ Novurania RIB
Engines
660 hp CAT 3196's
We bought a house for my daughter a few weeks ago (one kid out of college; one to go) and have been spending a lot of time doing a major remodel so we probably won’t have a chance to make it back to the boat before its time to finally put her to bed for the winter. I filled and treated the tanks this weekend, changed the oil and dropped off the oil samples at the local CAT shop yesterday, so, it looks like the fat lady has sung and the final numbers are in for ’13 --actually for the past 12 months to be exact. We left for a winter in Florida almost one year ago to the day so i'm including those costs in the final calcs.

Miles covered: ~2,800
Engine hours: 204
Diesel fuel used: just over 4,600 gallons
Average diesel cost per gallon on FL trip: $3.98
Average diesel cost per gallon in KY/TN this summer: $4.09

So, here's my year-end summary maintenance/service-wise:

I had the hydraulic lift serviced (salt corrosion addressed); CATs serviced (error codes checked, pressures and other specs checked); port impeller replaced (port steaming due to two missing vanes); hull & topsides buffed/waxed; port shaft/coupler reset; 2nd set of props reconditioned/balanced and put on; other props reconditioned/balanced; aluminum window frame re-coated; VIP head duckbills replaced; and bottom/running gear cleaned monthly while in FL. My yard also put on a new bottom paint job on their nickel after I had some abnormal 'peeling' on the two-year-old paint job.

I went thru 3 sets of racors (before/after FL & 3 weeks ago), a new CAT priming pump to replace one that was leaking a bit, mag & salt zincs, and a gray water sump float/pump (replaced with integrated pump/switch model—HIGHLY recommended if your sump smells or has a bunch of water left after the float turns the pump off because the integrated design keeps the pump running another 10 secs after the float kicks off). I also replaced the thruster’s 2 8Ds (and bought a new back brace before I pulled the old out & put new ones in), K&N cleaning kits for the CAT air filters, and put in a new water heater (changed the day before I left for FL no less). On the gen, I changed gen oil 3 times, both gen oil pressure switches, air filter and impeller, and flushed the HEX. The cruisairs went wacky one weekend and a tech found the gen throttle body locking nut had vibrated loose changing rpms, thereby dropping the AC voltage causing some things to go erratic.

Other stuff this year incl'd new trailer for the Novurania, raymarine e-series MFD, 2nd VHF, and we replaced the all-important sun pad. I think that about covers it.

Nothing big and preventative maintenance kind of things for the most part. All in all, it’s been an enjoyable and very memorable year.
 
Almost 20k in fuel.....you da man! ( I know this math problem should never be done...ha ha).
 
Tim- can you give me the mfgr and model of the sump float & switch integrated unit, my sump always has water laying and stagnating...th..don
 
sfergson727 said:
I ended the season with 122 hours on the Boston Whaler, 25 hours on the 340. I didn't total the amount I spent on fuel, but it was probably around $700-$1000, and the only maintenance was on the 340, which was $600 (new plugs and fluid change materials). $3000 for the slip and $2200 for storage.

All in all, a pretty cheap year for me.
Click to expand...

Maybe you do not want to know, or the Admiral to know, are you sure your guess is even close? I'd have thought 25 hours on the 340 would be near $1500 on its own. The Whaler at 122 hours and $1000 spent would be running at 2 gallons an hour, can it do that?

Seems like a great year Tim. The addition or replacement of pillows was omitted from the report, any expenditures there?

MM
 
We are max'd out on pillows Mike. No more room. I told her we'd have to get a bigger boat so that ended all new pillow initiatives. We're holding steady at a third of a hundred.
 
Tim,

What a great year - I enjoyed reading your travel log! If I can ask, how many boat $ was the CAT bill?

I put a Rulematic in my aft sump - works great. The only 'glitch' - it is too tall to put all four corner screws in the sump box cover. You 480 may ahve a deeper sump than my 410...

But it sure works great.
 
Thanks Carter. That service call was about $900 iirc. I don't really have easy access to quality Cat marine service so while in FL I had Cat come over to make sure the ECM software was updated, check and clear error codes, check the boost/fuel pressures, and so on. It wasn't a scheduled a service call, as in a 1,000 hour work up. I just wanted to make sure all was still to spec and the motors were healthy. They did hook up their diagnostic equipment and ran the boat under various loads. I was seeing some steam on the port side too and wanted it checked out. Ended up being the impeller, even tho it was less than a year old. Good piece of mind for me.
 
I'm going to do impellers, oil/filter changes, and oil/AF samples in November. Mine are strictly mechanicals, no ECMs. I'm lucky - if I need them, Stowers CAT is across the street from the marina.
 
I bought my last 2 boats out of Chattanooga and had Stowers do the CAT inspections. They bent over backwards to fit me in and were very helpful. I've called them a couple times since and they've been super each time. You're lucky to have them close. Good people who know their stuff Carter.
 
Thanks Tim. They've been great so far on parts and oil samples. Had a couple of fuel lines made and they knocked those out in 15 minutes while I waited.
 
Tim, Sounds all too familiar.... Good Job !! Tim
 
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