Sail Life - diesel engine maintenance & AIS transponder installation, BHA #1

[@brucekratky7993]

I am working on finding a boat for my retirement. I am intimidated by few aspects of sailing. It is the electrical systems that are the most threatening to me. Your going through the process of finding, testing, and connecting the correct wires...still intimidates me;)

[@chipbhi]

I don't think I've ever seen you sail, but I do like watching you work on your boats!

[@dochonk961]

I become a skilled sailer just by watching your videos, without sailing a single mile yet! Thank you!

[@felipebouzonnoexperienceon1160]

OMG who could imagine that she was fast becoming a new boat in 2016, now in 2020 Athena is becoming the perfect boat. You are great and always have been Mads

[@sar4x474]

You have a very unique and attention-grabbing approach to your videos. Apart from merely sharing your sailing adventures, you devote a lot of time in producing your videos in a quality way. Nice work! I now following your adventures back to your home port.

[@MrFurriephillips]

Hi Mads, I love that you're showing your working-out the AIS transponder and chart plotter bit - that was really helpful (I imagine - if I was following your lead and buying a boat). Keep up the great videos.

[@loftygoals4514]

Now that is a clean engine & engine room. I hope you have a great 'boat warming' party and smooth sail back home.

[@alasdairsinclair8675]

Good to speak with you in the canal locks, have a safe passage home with your new boat.

[@pulpopower]

You make things look easy! I can see some people following your lead and not acieving the same success! Really like your videos, can't wait for the crossing!

[@steedharold]

An informative video for a newbie boat owner like myself. Thanks for the hard work putting it together.

[@queenofyeay]

Having a new engine is awesome, no used engine ever looked so nice!

[@roboxenham7590]

Thanks so much for the new video Mads! I'm very excited about your new boat. It looks a lot like my 73 Coronado center cockpit 35 and you're projects will be more relevant to the projects I need to do on my boat. Happy Sailing!

[@ktobias63]

Thanks for taking the time to make this video, all while preparing for a big trip in a new boat, so much going on! Safe travels home and fair winds.

[@daranleighton9813]

Looks like you had a busy day. Nice walk through of the engine service. "Righty tighty, lefty loosy", haha!

[@AndyUK-Corrival]

Great to see you getting jobs done on Athena and no doubt writing down a todo list as you go for when you get back. I spent yesterday doing jobs on my Rival 32 and got lots done but equally have more to do. Looking forward to following your trip home.

[@savuudthimran6293]

Nice boat! I am in the process of buying a sailboat myself that needs a bit of tender and care, so it's very inspiring to see your attitude and your problem solving skills :)

[@ronharbin6678]

Just spent the last two days viewing all 165 of your videos. Many, many thanks and kudos on such a good job in so many areas of video production. Obviously, I'm now a subscriber and looking forward to your adventures with/on Athena.

[@timformer2110]

That was a fun video! Bummed that I couldn't come for the boat warming.

[@myblueocean2]

Ha, good one! Wish I could be there for the boat warming. A tip for the impeller: You might want to check/replace the the seal on the impeller shaft (usually 2 faceing eachother), they hold tight via a metal spring that can rust away unnoticed and then water might leak into the engine. Too bad they are quite expensive. Haha, my last boat only had a cable tie as a dipstick and this one is empty when it reads 1/2 full. Comes in very handy.

[@sailingspokojny7014]

I'm sure you write the hours and date that you changed the oil filter in a log, but when I used to work a marina we also used a sharpie and wrote the date and hours on the new filter as well. Great video Mads.

[@arewethereyet139]

Terrific news on getting set up. Congratulations on all your work and success.

[@Bacoprah]

great stuff. have a safe and fun journey home with Athena. Cheers, Bryan

[@SailingMonea]

Ok, I'm gonna be straight with you. I envy you man!! Wow what a boat! Looking forward to a more detailed tour of the beauty. Lots of love! / The Monea crew

[@svDansleau]

Smiling for here for you Mads. Working on my own boat here in Canada (Edel 820) and I'm going to get myself one of those temp wire connectors. Thanks for the idea. Derek

[@jimporter]

Those temp wire connectors are perfectly good for permanent connection, look up Wago connectors

[@WakeforMe]

Wow that diesel looks immaculate! The filter: others may argue but grease on the o-ring will allow an easy spin-off. Oil will squeeze out and leave you with rubber on metal making them difficult / impossible to take off. I know, oil is easy but from experience I'd much rather not have to fight with a filter in a tight space.

[@bigfoot1307]

Great video as always Madds looks like you got a great boat deal an engine in as good a shape as that says alot about the owner and how well the rest of the boat has been cared for in most situations good luck on the sail home looking forward to the next Video fair winds and calm seas

[@royandlorainenorthwood9971]

Lots of good luck in your new boat Athena.

[@wallacegrommet9343]

ABYC calls for two clamps per junction at pipes and fittings, in reversed orientation for stress cancellation. Gorgeous enfine, by the way!

[@2LV855]

I love your since of humor, your videos and your do it your self skills are awesome sail on young man, sail on!!

[@karenherman8653]

Great video, and best sailing on your new sailboat! Just wanted to let you know that I really freak my husband out, when he is doing work on the engine I say things like "do we need to replace the impeller " or " when was the last time you replaced the oil filter?" I wish you could see the look on his face! Can't wait to learn more from you.

[@MaverickSailing]

Wow Mads, that engine looks like it is brand new, the previous owner must have taken really good care of it as we know that you will!

[@littledoms]

Great Video - I really appreciate the more in depth videos of sailing - showing things like engine maintenance and how to do things. Thank you for making these videos and please keep making them!

[@samcgill]

Excellent when things work as you expect them too!

[@Unwrittentimeline]

Great video as always. I recently did some maintenance to my Yanmar with one of the kits from Niemic. You seemed much more smooth than I was. I also had to chase wires down when I installed a VHF and connected it to my chart plotter. Wiring through a sailboat is always a good time.

[@wsmcmc3864]

Great video. Thanks so much for taking the additional time to include us in this work. Awesome camera and audio work.

[@samlowrey63]

Congrats on your new boat Mads! I can't wait to see the improvements you make to it!

[@chrisbamford2196]

Hi Mads, glad to hear from you.

[@bobdouglasssr.3864]

Hi Mads, good luck with your trip home.

[@nbadhorse]

I use to own an airplane that had a sight gage similar to the one on your boat. It had a small red ball floating in the tube making the fuel level much easier to see.

[@youngypaul]

i love the near new volvo. The teak decks... I predict a 10 part series on those. Dont get me wrong. Teak is a labour of love and I won't remove mine ever until they get the once in 30 years replacement.

[@jimmcdonald9244]

Hi Mads. I just love the way you breeze through your vids with such a positive attitude. Very inspiring!

[@nicholasbrandon1801]

Looks great Mad's. Athena certainly will make a difference to your comfort living aboard. I mean look at all that space. Cheers

[@cyclingwithkiwi3956]

im happy for you and your new sailboat and i hope you have lots off fun on it too

[@ddm220]

Lots of luck with the new boat !

[@wilsnich02]

Hi Mads..... when ever you speak with delivery skippers, they nearly always have a problem with dirty diesel tanks clogging the fuel filters. Make sure you take several spare filters and know how to change them. Great work on the AIS and I hope your boat warming goes great.

[@DonHarden]

Happy for you and your new boat. This weekend I complete my first sailing lessons which was the ASA 110 small boat class. It was a lot to learn but a lot of fun. Step one done now I have to schedule class 2 ASA 101 keel boat.

[@chuckhoover5269]

Good job! Glad you're aboard and making good progress toward getting underway.

[@Knuud72]

Great video, Mads! Your absolutely right about the oilfilter. When I bought my present boat I did the same engine-service right away. Also on my boat I had to use tools to get the oilfilter off. When tighten it like you did you usually get it of by hand at the next filterchange. Hope your schedule works out. Then, maybee, I can have a tour of Athena in DK when your back. Regards, Håkan.

[@douggwatkin2670]

Congrats on the new yacht. I really enjoy watching your vids so keep them coming. The clear pipe fuel gauge might be old fashioned but it is also 100% accurate unlike most electronic gauges.

[@ismzaxxon]

I have a plastic pipe also. They tell me it is dangerous drilling a hole, so i am thinking of a plastic 1cm tube. Floating a magnet on top of a small float inside the tube. Butting reed switches outside the tube. Next wires go from reed switch to LEDs to an easy viewing location. I am working on a NMEA0183 sender which will send the data to a chart plotter.....i will see how the LEDs go. Great work and love your vids.

[@steveadams4009]

Don't know if anyone has told you yet but the best thing to use when changing the oil filter is throwaway diaper. It drinks a lot more oil than paper towels.

[@FirstFlyte]

Another excellent vid Mads...thanks for sharing!

[@patrickscarr]

Yay! DIYing on your new bigger boat! Congratulations!

[@Rottingboards]

Love that engine, defiantly an upgrade. That boat is going to be great! So happy for you!

[@francescocellerini5477]

I believe that you must be very proud of yourself!

[@chipbhi]

Congratulations on your new boat!

[@jaseastroboy9240]

Mads, that oil you lubricated the oil filter seal with looked a bit black. When i do an oil change on my car i use the new oil for lubricating the seal. No idea if it is required to do it like that but i feel better using the new oil. To make this easy I invert the new oil container once before opening it (shaking it probably works too). Then when i open the lid there is some easily accessible oil on the inside of the cap which i use to lubricate the new filter seal. I realise this tip is too late for this filter change but maybe it will be useful for the next one or for one of the comment readers.

[@petejohnson1724]

hi mads good luck with your trip home fuel gage , well it won't ever give you a false reading and remember the more gadgets the more things to go wrong on my last boat i had a marked glass finer rod that you put through the filler cap it was always accurate pete j

[@patrickmaloney6440]

Top tip on your spares... if you're unsure whether the new spare fits, such as your drivebelt, fit them straight away and keep the old one as the spare. That way you have a new unit fitted that should last ages, and you can guarantee that your used/spare one fits if you need it and will get you home! Even better, buy two identical new ones, fit one, and keep the old as a spare spare.

[@francoisloeweistein6671]

Great vid as usual! Good thing you managed to get your AIS up and running. Looking forward to track Athena on vessel finder :-) Fair winds

[@marinoldus]

nice job hooking up your AimS.

[@vomKuckucksfelsen]

Mads that is a very nice boat! Congratulations! I absolutely love your videos - keep them coming, I can´t get enough :D Regarding the antenna - a low VSWR is a good thing but it tells you absolutely nothing about the antenna. I have used antennas with a quite high VSWR and they worked brilliant. As well I had antennas with a perfect VSWR but didn´t hear a thing. A dummy load also has perfect VSWR :D You are right - it should be low but in fist place the antenna should be working good. Sometimes it helps to vary the cable length to get good VSWR. A reason for bad VSWR could also be a bad / rusty / wet conector or a kink in the coax where the power is then being reflected back to the radio. Maybe there´s a Ham around which could help you with a antenna analyzer... ? Whenever you´ll install a new antenna also swap out the cable and get the best quality coax you can get your hands on. A good coax makes a lot of difference compared to a bad one. I hope you still have the plan to make your ham radio license! Would be great to get in touch with you over the air! Fair winds an following seas! 73!

[@fishin4bogey]

Wow is that engine bay clean!! You definitely scored a great boat! No fuel guage? Here in the states there's a unit called a flo-scan. You punch in how much fuel you have added, and it records how much you use. See if you can get them where you are! Can't wait for all the videos with the new boat!!

[@SailBeforeSunset]

Happy for you, dude! Such an exciting time buying a boat!

[@Two-aboard-tuuli]

You got some much accomlished in that day, that is awesome! :-) The GRIB files look great for your crossing!

[@Pulltabporter]

Good start sir! Love the new boat

[@onemanoutfit]

I always grease the impeller so it's well lubricated until the water primes back in. also grease the old one if you are keeping it as a spare

[@OutsideAndStuff]

Another great video Mads! Hope you are enjoying your boat warming party. :)

[@legend343]

Great video, I hope you don't have too much of a heavy head today.... Warren

[@nikkearley1]

Always worth priming oil filter with oil

[@passmeby9398]

Basic reliable technology, site glass! No dials, electricity, floats just an eyeball. BTW the SWR is a bit high. Not sure but it may interfere with transmission of your AIS data. You may have to match the impedance but check all connections first. Great to see you on your new home!

[@ethanpoole3443]

Pass Me By An SWR of 1.7 is perfectly fine, it is not going to cost much in the way of signal strength and is well within the safe range for any practical transmitter (i.e. peak voltage should be well within the safe range for the RF power amplifier when fed into, typically, a 50-ohm transmission line) -- in fact, with some antenna types that are more broad banded an SWR of 1.7 is about as good as you will get without a matching tuner, not that there is any need for such with an SWR of 1.7. But it is great that SWR is reported as that can be a good diagnostic indicator for failing antenna or coax connections or water getting into the coax itself as the SWR will begin to increase significantly if that happens (both a dead short and an open connection are infinite SWR, for example).

[@merlindsbest]

And just as quickly as u wrote that it started working! 👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾

[@toddabrahamsson1797]

I viewed a previous video which was the install of your cabin heater. I understand some people can write in and be very nasty. That is not me. While viewing this video I noticed during the raw water pump service you neglected to mention a few service items within the raw water pump. These items are; 1. The Cam, found inside the pump housing. This item is responsible for the volume of water the pump generates. 2. The Cover Plate, the cover looked worn when you had it off. Two ways to reuse the cover, sand the worn side down to get to a clean flat surface with no wear. The other way is to flip the cover over and use the side with the manufacturer’s writing. You must get rid of the paint and sand the surface incase of any high spots due to the embossed writing. 3. Shaft & Seals. On this pump there are two seals “ water & oil “ when working on the pump like you have done there are typically two windows cast into the pump, the windows are between the two seals. The windows are there for a reason ? If the water seal dies the window will let the water escaping from the seal go out the window instead of damaging the oil seal. If you are a good boat owner and check the engine oil on a regular basis you will most likely see the water dripping out of the window. People are not aware of this, for that reason you will see on a lot of engines with all kinds of corrosion around the raw water pump / timing gear housing. Now you know why ! The big problem with letting the seals get so bad as to poor water out of the window is ? On a gear driven pump like you have once the oil seal is damaged water will no longer go out the window cast in the pump housing it will now pass through the oil seal into the engine oil sump. At this point as a boat owner when you check the oil ( if you do ) you will notice the engine oil has turned to mayonnaise ? Now have you destroyed the engine by lack of service of the raw water pump ? Not likely but I have seen this happen. Make sure when you are doing your videos that you make viewers aware of the pit falls of no doing the proper maintenance or doing your own work ( DIY ) if one does not know what they are doing it can cost them a lot of money ! 4. Shaft, these type of seals are lip seals. When servicing the pump check the shaft to make sure it has no groves in it from the seals. If I where doing the service on the pump, every other service I would take the pump apart including the shaft. I would replace the seals both oil and water. I would use a good pump lubricant when installing the new seals and old shaft into the pump housing. Service on a pump like this should be done once a season or every time you change your oil.

[@davem5333]

When you change the oil filter make sure that the gasket from the old filter comes off the filter before you put the new oil filter on. Unless you like oil spraying all over the engine compartment.

[@patricktremblay9029]

As always, another great vid.

[@JakeSpeed1000]

Love your new boat

[@derynmccrickard1254]

Will you be visiting Whitehaven on the Cumbrian coast? We have a large marina and historic town you may like.

[@queenofyeay]

Hmmm I might have to try and find a way to install some type of fuel level other than that clear tube. At the very least I might have to install a wireless camera and an LED light that I can turn on and see the fuel level perhaps through a cell phone! Although I do suppose if you have a large fuel tank it's less important.

[@tubekrek]

Don't know if it has that built-in, but maybe place a bypass of some sort in case your isolation transformer goes bzzz? Great vid as always

[@ethan5577]

Very cool - can you do a walk through of the new boat?

[@ethan5577]

+Ethan Fermanis --- Never mind - I must have missed the boat tour video

[@CruisingTheCut]

Transparent pipe? Pah! Count yourself lucky. I have to dip a wooden stick into the fuel filler and see how far up the fuel comes! Excellent video (did I miss you changing the fuel filter?)

[@brianrichardson7631]

Excited for you!!!

[@briandeering9737]

Love the video! Be safe!

[@joshbascom8618]

Great video! I know you have a mountain of work ahead of you with this boat and I feel sympathy for that but I'm sure looking forward to all the DIY videos! When does your crew arrive? Do we get to "meet" them?

[@sokoleoko6539]

wow you are so smart :) best of luck

[@petejohnson1724]

not sure about the volvo but on a lot of marine engines the air filter is just there to reduce noise check it out before you throw the old one away

[@HarksModding]

thanks for sharing do you happen to have more info on your diy fuel pipe gauge id be very interested to do something similar to my tank

[@michaelwaegemans6802]

Hey, I've been dreaming of having my own ship and sailing the world. Your obelix is the kind of ship i'm looking for. But sadly i don't know anything about boats. what would really help is if you could make a video recommending books and or video's to know what to buy and what to look for. I know right now you probably don't have alot of time to do so, so i won't get my hopes up. (i've been binge watching your channel last night and i love it). (sorry for my spelling)

[@kevinegan6876]

again great video mads

[@wjurgen66]

Interestingly your AIS transponder signal is still shown up as active in Skive. ??

[@svguenevere]

GOOD video! Nice work. Does your Link-10 have an LED out? I don't think I have ever saw my LEDs like that. Have you looked into a "Speedseal" for the water pump? We have put the SPeedseal life on ours and it makes the job easy. Last, WHAT are the temp wire connectors you used on the AIS??? Where can I get them? GREAT idea.

[@jimporter]

Wago connectors and they aren't actually temporary connectors although they can be used that way. They are now a preferred method (along with other similar makes) in the UK of making a permanent wiring connection where access is limited ie underfloor, in walls etc where using terminal blocks may lead to the connection undoing itself over time.

[@svguenevere]

+Jim Porter Thanks Jim. I do not want them for a permanent connection. BUT, I do want them so I can assure the connection is correct BEFORE I use a shrink tube butt connector.

[@nknatewood8226]

What horsepower or kilowatt is the Volvo engine? It looks to be on the order of 40 to 50 horsepower, but that could be way off the mark? The engine looks to be exceptionally clean in comparison to those shown on other boats. Would have to say -- you really lucked out! Another question - does the engine compartment have a fire suppression system? If not, you may want to consider that.

[@crazystuffproduction]

Do you have a HF ham radio? Do you check into 14.300 boaters nets?

[@RicardoAmaro123]

and don't you change the diesel filters? are you confident on the state of the current diesel filters?

[@davidrhodes4659]

Blue Orange Green Brown Slate! Inside plant nerds unite.

[@howardwhite9773]

I can tell you are in software development :) I do systems administrations and operations. I see network cabinets full of spaghetti like that all the time! Fair winds and following seas!

[@TheSailingBrothers]

Let the videos begin haha

[@merlindsbest]

It's not allowing me to watch on my phone for some reason

[@kimfucku8074]

+Sir Oglesby You wouldn't be able to see the video in it's full greatness!!

[@hammarsmail]

Devils advocate here again 😈! Do try to open up the diesel tank to check for scrap or water. Switching fuel filters not only give you a hint on the condition of the fuel, but you get to practising airing the system wich is not too fun to do for tve first time in open seas. Dont forget transmission oil and water. A tip on not spilling (as much) oil when swithching the horizontal oil filter is putting a plastic bag around it.

[@aserta]

I've been looking at your stairs and thinking, how could a stair be built there so he and his adorable puppy don't have to suffer on that vertical horrible thing. And i think i've come up with a solution that's both effective in its stored format and in its deployed form. Issue one, you can't have a permanent angled set of steps there, obviously, and you can't have something that's stored some place else or take a different, unusable form as it is stored. Issue two, it has to give enough angle to be comfortable for a dog to get up and sturdy enough for a full grown man to get up and down daily, with added weight of items. With those two basic things the simple solution is a pivot swivel extendable ladder. You know those ladders that full sized yet can be stored in a very small place because they are telescopic? What if you took one of those, added a swivel point on the top section and then installed it in that frame? The idea is that it would have 3 steps and when it would be used in the stored position it would fold in on itself and provide the same step distance as you have now, BUT, when you don't want access to the sides and want to get up and down freely, you just pull the bottom towards you and unfold it. Thus, obtaining a fully angled set of stairs. Now, i know the idea is rough, and certainly can't be done with something that you could buy, you'd have to fabricobble something up, but i think it's the simplest, best solution for a set of stairs that have to be out of your way in certain moments. Also, changing the belt upon new ownership is the best thing to do regardless of how good or bad the previous one is, unless the owner took it upon himself to service the engine completely and has provided bills stating the recent dates for it (the sensible thing to do upon selling a vehicle, land, air, or water) you're better off putting the payment down now then deal with potential damage later. Learnt this the hard way with an engine where i took the owner's word for true and it resulted in a lot of cam damage.

[@aserta]

Before you change the charger, check the battery. Have it checked by someone with a battery tester (or buy one off eBay, EricTheCarGuy (youtube channel name) has a video on how to test your battery and see if it's any good anymore, highly recommended to check it).

[@aserta]

Also, for the future, put some new oil inside the filter as well before you install it. Not enough to drip, but enough to get it started and not have to run without (engine).