I just bought a 1984 O'Day 28. I'm an experienced sailor but this is the largest boat I've owned. Sailing on others boats was easy but owning one means I need to know more. Is there an owner's manual anywhere containing preferably model-specific info on stuff like the thru hulls - where they all are and when to open of close which ones? Stuff like the bilge is hardwired to the batteries (I think) and what runs off of shore power vs DC batteries? General recommended maintenance schedules, etc?
Owner's Manual
- Thread starter Ran-Dee9229
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The answer is "it depends". My O'Day 28 (1985) had no shore power and so I had it installed. I have it wired to an AC outlet, period. Others may have their's wired to a battery charger or more. You have to have a look to see or get a tech to do this for you. Thru hulls below water line: On my boat, galley sink with lever, port side berth hatch just behind bulkhead (water intake for head with lever) and port side under V-Berth (Waste tank discharge). There is an above water line thru hull for the head sink, no valve on my boat. The you have two thru hulls for the cockpit drainage on transom and your exhaust pipe in the center of course. You might want to get the operating manual and maybe shop manual for the engine as there is where you must be diligent about your maintenance. If you are handy, no sweat, otherwise pay a reputable yard. Basically it is filters, oil change, valve adjustment, heat exchanger anode etc. Not hard, I learned pretty fast. As for the bilge pump, mine came with a switch on the panel and would only run if I left the batter master switch on when docked. Not good, so I rewired around that so it works with its switch on but master off. Does your boat have 2 batteries? One was standard on mine and so I installed a second one pronto. Crazy to go out on one.
Thanks! Mine has 2 batteries. I have a place working on the 10 HP Universal diesel. I'll have to test the bilge hookup by pouring water in it while the master switch is off and see what happens then rewire if needed.
On these older boats, you will want to have a look at the cutlass bearing. If boat is in the water, just do a little dive, otherwise have a look at it on the hard. Wiggle the prop shaft aggressively to and fro, up and down. There should be little or no play at the bearing. We lost ours a couple seasons ago and I should have spotted the play before we did. We limped 2-3 miles with the thing clunking like crazy. Would have been worse if we had been far from home port. Not something to fool with.
Don't know what they are doing on the engine, but getting the injectors re-manned was something I did and it made a big difference in how she idled. The previous owner had overheated the engine and coked up the injectors. Have them adjust the valves, put new fuel and oil filters on it for sure, of course, pull the end off the heat exchanger and clean it out, replace heat exchanger anode. Replace water pump impeller for sure so you are starting new and good with that. In the boat pull the bottom off the fuel pump using an adjustable wrench and twisting off. Put your finger in and remove the little filter screen and clean it good, remove any sludge by pulling the little magnet off the bottom of the inside of the cap. If there is a lot of sludge, ask the previous owner when last cleaned to get an idea of how much sludge may be in the bottom of the tank. If the boat has no Racor type filter and oil/water separator, consider adding one for some extra filtering and peace of mind.
