www.iFourWinns.com

Yes that's normal. It is designed to be drained to the point where there's not enough water left inside it to fracture or even distort the tank when it freezes. They likely bypassed it, and then drained the heater and then reconnected the lines back up at some point before you got it back.

Good to know about the fume detector. I didn't know there was one down there. I'll keep that in mind!

Bypassing the hot water tank and leaving it empty saves 5gals or more of antifreeze when winterizing.

Installing a bypass value such as this one from Camco save you undoing the fittings to the hot water each year.

http://www.boatersworld.com/product/178050209.htm

I found that the plastic fittings on my old Maxum got very brittle as it aged. The bypass value is well worth the effort of an afternoon project.

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Dave
"Wasting Time"
2005 Four Winns 348 Vista
Noank CT
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My fume sensor got ruined too. I've yet to replace it. The wiring for it runs very tightly into a bundle, which in turn has some hoses right on top of it. I'd prefer to re-use that existing wire but I need to be able to get at least some part of it to splice in with a new sender. It's very low on the To Do list...

There are several ways to bypass a heater. One is to just disconnect the hoses from the tank and connect them together using a short pipe nipple. This requires screwing and unscrewing the hoses each time. This is a bit hard on the hoses and plumbing connectors.

The other way is to use a bypass kit. I've seen two kinds. The one in the link uses a single valve and a backflow diverter valve. The other uses two valves. Both do the same thing, they re-route the incoming water to the tank right over to the return line, effectively bypassing the tank. The single valve kind is what I got for my inboard 348 because it's a royal pain in the ass to get over to the tank. I can just BARELY reach the single valve. Folks with stern drives have better (or is that 'less worse'?) access to the tank.

Not putting pink in the heater also save you from the stink of heated antifreeze. It's nasty enough getting the smell of antifreeze out of the lines. Cooking it makes the smell/taste a good bit worse. Not unsafe, just nasty smelling. But my main motivation was making sure the tank was EMPTY and could not freeze. Saving the $$$ on 5 gallons worth of pink is nice too.

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-Bill Kearney, 2005 348 Vista

I doubt that the guys that did my winterizing took off the hoses and bypassed the heater and then put it all back togther but it's possible. I bet they have another trick. I'll have to ask.

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2008 V358 Two-tone Blue V/P Dual Prop 320 HP
Lake Winnipesaukee, NH

In all honesty it's the easiest route, you grab a short run of the water line and tie the H&C together. Then reconnect after purging the lines w/pink. That's how mine was winterized when I picked it up (my 248) and it took me a while to figure out what they had done since they left the lines together.

As requested from the post: viewtopic.php?f=6&t=3431

Another user asked me how to get the starboard cockpit seat out, in order to gain better access to the vacuum pump. I've posted some pix on photobucket.

As an aside, it really helps everyone when questions and their answers are posted in the forums instead of via private messages.

First thing is remove the forward seat back. Then lift up and remove the hinges underneath that seat. This is what it'll look like when that seat is out:


(note, I didn't remove the forward seat base, I should have as it would've made the last step a lot easier).

Then do the same thing with the starboard seat back and base. The back is attached to the gunwale with screws (four, iirc). They're buried tight inside the seam. Once those screws are out the whole L-shaped back lifts straight up and out. A task made MUCH easier if two people are involved. Then you remove the hinges to the base and you're left with this:



Once you have the seats out you can remove the inward upright side of the starboard seating base. There's a couple of screws holding it down around the perimeter. Once they're out you then have to open the engine hatch. Once the hatch is open you can lift the whole assembly (front face and attached shelf) straight up. You REALLY want to have two people for this as it's pretty heavy. You'll need to cut a bead of caulk holding it down along the forward edge where it meets the engine compartment (and reapply when you put it back). When you remove the assembly you'll then be able to see the engine compartment:


This will let you have much better access to the hot water heater, vacuum pump, trim tab pump, waste tank filter, and the outside of the starboard engine.

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-Bill Kearney, 2005 348 Vista

Just had the mechanic down to check on my ongoing circuit breaker popping issue when on the hook and the battery needs to be re-charged. He found several loose ground wires that were attached to the starboard engine mount. He theorizes that since the exhaust blower is getting power from the house battery which is standard wiring for FW, that that is drawing lots of amps and with the battery charger trying to charge it causes the circuit breaker to pop because it was getting hot from not being grounded properly. Sounds somewhat logical to me. This coming weekend we shall see what happens, since we will likely be on the hook! Fingers crossed.

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2008 Four Winns V358 (T 6.2L Merc Bravo III's with DTS and SeaCore)
2006 Sea Ray 340DA
2006 Sea Ray 320DA
2005 Maxum 3100 SE

Which reminds me to go through and make sure all my wires and hoses are properly tight. Things work loose over time, so it's good to re-check them now and then. Like the screws around all the porthole windows, check yours if you haven't already... If they get loose there's the potential for water getting into the hull layers around them. This, suffice to say, is a BAD thing. So make sure they're tight.

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-Bill Kearney, 2005 348 Vista

Not sure if this should be moved or not...so feel free to move if needed. I thought this might help someone. Ran across this ad on cragslist for 2008 V358 canvas. I have no affiliation with this ad, just thought I would pass along as it seems like a decent deal. http://nmi.craigslist.org/boa/1183309779.html

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'99 Horizon 200

As promised, here are some more shots of my newly installed dinghy and davits. Of course, I forgot to shoot some pictures with the dinghy completely off the boat but will if anyone wants to see what it looks like. To consolidate all of the info from my original post in one place, here are all of the details...

-Dinghy is a 2009 Achilles LSI-290 inflatable (9'6" LOA/5'2" Beam)
-Engine is a 2009 Tohatsu 8hp
-Davit system by Weaver
-Swiveling engine mount is the Weaver Lever

Weaver Part List:
Weaver Lever System
Weaver Adaptor Kit - Quick Release Shoes
Weaver Arc RBD100 Kit
Weaver Stand Off Brackets - out and down
Weaver SO24/30 Stand Off - bow support for inflatable

The pictures show only the stand off to the engine and a line securing the bow of the dinghy, but a bow standoff is on the way and will mount to the clip next to the transom door show below. This leaves the door unobstructed for boarding with a port-side tie with the dinghy in place. It also only needs to be secured at the bow while underway.

The dinghy held solidly while underway, albeit in calm seas. But it got a few good shake tests crossing some large wakes and didn't falter. I am sure it will be rock solid with the metal bow stand off in place.

The lever engine mount is awesome (and the envy of my marina ). I haven't tried it alone but once I'm ahead of the learning curve I'm sure I would be able to lower or raise everything myself if absolutely necessary. You can't tell from the pictures, but the stand off brackets do not touch the rubrail. I will be putting some kind of protective piece there anyway to avoid any dents if there is excessive movement. And the dinghy and motor - they too are awesome. I am very pleased. Let me know if I've missed anything...

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Previously:
2008 V358/Volvo 5.7 GXi Inboards

Sierra,

Thanks for the pictures. I'm taking a serious look at both your setup and the Hurley Marine setup mentioned by Cap'n Morgan in the Boating Banter thread. I've already exchanged emails with the people at Hurley but their closest dealer is in NJ. My marina is an authorized Weaver installer. (See where this is leading).

I'll post back with where the winds blow.

Dave

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Dave
"Wasting Time"
2005 Four Winns 348 Vista
Noank CT
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Hey Sierra, how tough is it for you to lift out of the water 'alone'? Is that something that you will definitely be able to do once you get the hang of it?

Is the setup light enough that your kids or wife could do it by themselves?

And lastly... are the mounts offset from centerline on the swim platform - or are they centered and offset on the dinghy to balance weight?

I'm trying to get a balance for just how far one can go with size/weight and still manage by themselves.

Looks awesome.

If anyone is looking for a new inflatable -- There is aguy over at http://www.boaterhouse.com who has some sweet deals on Walker Bay Hypalon air floor inflatables... I really want the 10'2'', but I think that's a bit too big for a 10'9'' beam on the 318 (which it narrows at the back) - especially if I still need to be able to use the swim platform.

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2008 318 Vista -SOLD, but I am still around!
All Night Long, Seattle WA

Dave, also take a look at Nautley Dinghy Ramp. Same concept as Hurley, but even easier to load the dinghy with the roller ramps, and easy to remove lifting arms when not in use. A one man job.

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One of 4 Previous (Sold) Boats:
2000 Four Winns 268 Vista

Current Boat: 2004 Chaparral 235 ssi cuddy

I'm also looking at the Nautley setup, but holy cow are they sure proud of their product based on the pricetag.

It makes the Weaver look cheap (until you think about the Weaver Lever)

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2008 318 Vista -SOLD, but I am still around!
All Night Long, Seattle WA

As I mentioned, I haven't tried it alone yet but I do believe I will be able to manage it alone if necessary. It's hard for me to imagine a situation where I wouldn't have someone around to help, but I'm not worried that I won't be able to do it. Perhaps this weekend I'll give it a shot just to see.

No frame of reference there (no wife and kids). And my dog never offers to help. But I wouldn't rule out their ability to do it if you set up a good, safe team procedure.

The position of the mounts is based on a few things, but the primary constant with this system is the arc that's attached to the dinghy transom. To keep the dinghy and motor essentially centered behind the boat, where the arc lands dictated the placement of (in my case) the starboard mount. As a result, and this is where the curve of the platform changes things, everything is not perfectly symmetrical and squared. It's not enough to make me crazy despite being as anal retentive as I am about these things, but it's definitely a case of function over form. But look at the pictures - it still looks good and there will always be compromises in boating.

I would agree that a 10'9" dinghy is too big. Mine's 9'8" and I wouldn't want it to be an inch bigger - particularly with this engine mount system - and that's with a 12' beam on the V358. It can handle four adults and my 85 pound dog comfortably.

Thanks for the compliments!

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Previously:
2008 V358/Volvo 5.7 GXi Inboards