Notes on using a single battery

[Boblee]

I actually hadn't looked at the container since we pulled the boat out of the water but did just a few minutes ago and it's right down below the outer cover but still pleny, the worrying did stop us getting right to the ends of the estuary where we were (fishing), especially knowing how the conditions can cut up travelling up the Cambridge Gulf we also had a small tide 2m to ride in where they are normally up above 6m.
Just a point raised by this it is probably a good idea to put a mark on the oil container and run it for x k/s/hours at y revs so that you are comfortable with how much oil it actually uses we did this but knowing I may have had to raise the revs at some stage was a worry as the higher revs really take a toll on fuel/oil as can be seen by the figures Mastreb posted.
Even being caught in limp mode (1200rpm) in that water could be a disaster.
On another related point seeing as we are off topic, anybody had their oil reservoir crack?, ours did at probably 300hr's the one their now was on the new powerhead but is getting well up if not over the 300 hr's..

[seahouse]

Because of the convoluted shape of the E-tec oil reservoir (made to take up any remaining space after everything else was crammed under the cowling), and because a large portion of it is buried out of sight, I found that it is tough to visually estimate how much oil is remaining, so marking it at some known point, as you suggest, is a great idea. (Forget a dipstick.)

And a visual check (like I did) after the warning light goes on could lead you believe that you have no oil left at all, if you didn't look closely enough!

I don't consider it to be a best practice to just keep adding oil (with, say, every x amount of gas fill ups) and never let it fall below the ¼ full level. Seeing the red light on confirms that the system is functioning as it should. If it were constantly filled so it didn't get below that level, there would always be a question of whether or not it works; and then you might only find that out on that one occasion after it's too late.

I keep a 1l spare container in a heavy old sock (to absorb any seepage and to cushion it from puncture, and to use as a cleanup rag to clean up drips if you actually use it) inside a heavy clear plastic bag. This is easy to keep tucked in some out-of-the-way obscure spot in the boat that can (and does) stay there for years if need be.

Where did your oil reservoir crack, near the top... bottom, Bob?

[seahouse]

And to maintain some thread relevance, I'll point out that the above-mentioned lack of space under the engine cowling makes it difficult to store the pull-cord there; the location which some other outboard manufacturers use.

[Boblee]

Seahouse
Never had the warning light come on even with the cracked reservoir on the old powerhead which was broken pretty close to where the oil is in this one (from memory) so fairly well down.
Our problem here is even when the first reservoir in a populated boating area (gippsland lakes)I had trouble sourcing oil and in fact it was a Honda shop that had some the evinrude joint was out.
In this last instance plans got altered but I had a full reservoir and a bit in the bottle (leaking) after spending two weeks poking down and back on one river 200k's ? I decided to top it up and found the leak but still enough to just fill the reservoir.
Even if I had known that I needed more there was nowhere during the trip from the south east of the country to the top central/west to get more oil but as the mates from Darwin were coming over to show me how good their Jet Ski's are for fishing in the unpredictable and croc, stinger infested water I had organised for them to bring some over as Darwin is the only place between the East and West down to the South coasts where it can be obtained.

[EZ]

My oil reservoir developed a crack on the neck where the cap screws on. The threads hid the crack very well.

Fortunately this happened while the engine was still under warranty. My dealer sent me a new oil cap, but it didn't resolve the issue. I temporarily limited filling the oil to just below the cap (with engine tilted up) until the dealer replaced the whole reservoir. I looked like the plastic in that area was a little thin.

[mastreb]

I keep a spare quart onboard at all times, along with whatever remains in the bottle from the last fill. I too only refill when I get the low-oil warning light--I find that I get about four 12 gallon tanks through per quart of oil. When the light goes off, I fill with what I have on-board, then buy a new quart the next time I gas up.

However: DO NOT STORE TCW-3 OIL IN THE FUEL LOCKERS ABOVE THE GAS TANK. It's tempting because the bottle fits, but I had one get squeezed by the lid and leaked a small amount of oil on my port fuel locker, and everywhere oil touched it the plastic has turned white, flaked off, and is now dangerously thin, requiring me to replace that tank. The oil has destroyed the plastic of the fuel tank.

It doesn't seem to have any effect on gel coat, thankfully, but it is an aggressive attacker of the plastic used in gasoline containers.

I don't keep any fuels or petroleum products inside the boat. I put the oil, oil rag, and my funnel in a plastic watertight container and leave it in the engine well. The funnel is made of the top half of a quart bottle cut in half--it fits perfectly and firmly in the ETEC oil reservoir spout and makes an opening more than large enough to pour into without spilling. Only problem (with all funnels) is it's easy to over-pour because you can't really tell how full the bizarrely shaped ETEC oil reservoir actually is.

I find you can lift the motor about half way out of the water to get the cowl off easily and more easily pour into the reservoir.

[Blowboater1]

Power management for cursing is as important as fuel & maintenance management.A duel battery system is very necessary if you are a heavy AMP user IE. auto pilot/VHF/Running Lights/Chart Plotter & Sonar/Radar/refrigeration/ water pump /water maker/Cabin Lights and other options some of us expect from a cruising sailboat. A rule of thumb is to calculate your total daily amp consumption. Take that number and double it for the amps of each bank of deep cycle AGM batteries needed.
Now figure out how to put the juice back in, Engine Alternator-Generator-Solar or a combination thereof. Remember a general rule of recharging is you will need twice the amp hr input to achieve your need.Your second bank of batteries will be used while charging bank one.
Good luck and enjoy living on the hook!
Fair Winds and Our Lords Blessings

[raycarlson]

Someone got to the game a little late.

[topcat0399]

Someone got to the game a little late.

That was the first thing I noticed about this forum when I originally began perusing.

Threads can run over the span of years. Boats are so distracting.