I've seen other boats exhaust blowing steam and thought they must be overheating. Last time out on the way back in, My boat, which temp guage was, as always, 160, was producing some steam along with water discharge. After docking I checked the impeller, OK, cleaned the strainer, little bit of junk but nothing to speak of, heat exchanger less than 1 season old. Anybody know whats going on?
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Remember that the hot coolant water is dumped into the hot exhaust stream, so some steam is to be expected. Anyone know how hot the exhaust gasses are before and after the coolant injection? I'm sure someone must have pointed a digiat thermometer at the elbow?
Steam is invisible - you can't see it!
What you see is water condensation.
This is a common misunderstanding as you know.
What you see is water condensation.
This is a common misunderstanding as you know.
Temperature and relative humidity determine if you will see "steam" coming out of the exhaust. Hot dry days I see almost nothing. But on a cool wet day the "steam" is obvious. You may have noticed the "steam" behind jets flying overhead. If the trails persist that means that there is a lot of humidity up there and rain is likely. If they disappear quickly then it is dry. Same thing with your breath When the temperature is low and the humidity high you can see your breath but can't on hot dry days.
Despite what others have said about temp/humidity visible "steam" is very often a sign of restricted flow or too little water passing through the wet exhaust. I can tell as soon as I see a little steam that I have a restriction in my strainer or inlet hose. Once it is cleaned or the flow or restriction addressed you should not see steam all the time. If you are seeing steam when you can't see your breath there is likely a flow issue somewhere.
I had a Catalina 30 with a 1/2" intake and she always steamed, even after a re-power. I up-sized my seacock and intake to 1" and never had another issue with visible steam.
It can also mean a blockage of the wet exhaust injection elbow..
I had a Catalina 30 with a 1/2" intake and she always steamed, even after a re-power. I up-sized my seacock and intake to 1" and never had another issue with visible steam.
It can also mean a blockage of the wet exhaust injection elbow..
Also check to make sure seacock is fully open
Adding to MaineSail's response: Check your seacock. My old seacocks on a 1977 Pearson 323 have large heavy handles. The raw water intake handle needs to be in the horizontal positiion to be fully open. It often vibrates down to a half closed position. Steam results. It's a PIA, but we have to tie it to the open position (or eventually replace it).
Mike
Adding to MaineSail's response: Check your seacock. My old seacocks on a 1977 Pearson 323 have large heavy handles. The raw water intake handle needs to be in the horizontal positiion to be fully open. It often vibrates down to a half closed position. Steam results. It's a PIA, but we have to tie it to the open position (or eventually replace it).
Mike
This is one of those circular discussions which are the result of the op not providing enough info from which any intelligent response can be made.
Nowhere have I found any indication of the engine about which the op inquires.
If it's a U 5411 (or similar raw water cooled) engine, steam is the only thing he will ever see until the thermostat opens. Not having any info on which to base a comment here, we would do well to simply suggest that we can provide only some wild-ass guess or anecdotal info totally un-related to the problem until sufficient info is provided.
This discussion serves to mislead more than help
Nowhere have I found any indication of the engine about which the op inquires.
If it's a U 5411 (or similar raw water cooled) engine, steam is the only thing he will ever see until the thermostat opens. Not having any info on which to base a comment here, we would do well to simply suggest that we can provide only some wild-ass guess or anecdotal info totally un-related to the problem until sufficient info is provided.
This discussion serves to mislead more than help
Its' a 5432 Universal diesel, sorry. At this point I'm going to believe it's a restriction in the thruhull as barnicles on Rock creek have been out of control this year. Pulling her in another month and will most likely replace thruhull with something oversize. Thanks for all the theorys.
If it is raw water cooled, you likely don't have a problem. If you think it might be a flow restriction, just remove the hose from the thruhull momentarily and observe the flow rate.
Don,
In the OP he stated the heat exchanger was less than one season old so it would seem it's a FWC 5432..
Custom Made Elbow
Hello Trucker,
If you have a high rise exhaust system with a custom made elbow that injects water after the top of the riser, then a little steam may be normal for your exhaust system. The injected water may not be evenly spread out and some hot spots are hitting the high rise exhaust and making some steam. If it is only a few feet of steam and not like a 'con' trail of a Boeing 747, then there is no need worry.
Regards,
Neal
Hello Trucker,
If you have a high rise exhaust system with a custom made elbow that injects water after the top of the riser, then a little steam may be normal for your exhaust system. The injected water may not be evenly spread out and some hot spots are hitting the high rise exhaust and making some steam. If it is only a few feet of steam and not like a 'con' trail of a Boeing 747, then there is no need worry.
Regards,
Neal
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