Raw water Sea Strainers

[NIchole]

What is a good replacement for my plastic raw water Sherwood Sea Strainer? Looking for a much sturdier model.

 

[Len Fagan]

Sea Water Strainers

I have change all my cheap plastic ones out with Groco ARG series strainers.This is what most premium boats use.Len Fagan

 

[Al STORY]

I like the cheap ones

Yes, it seems the big boys like Groco. I has a Groco strainer installed on our previous 326 and decided quickly that I didn't like it. The arrangement did not allow for easy cleaning of the bowl, since the bowl was permanently attached at the bottom. Cleaning of the bowl was done with a manual bilge pump and toilet brush. Yes the strainer was much larger. Yes the strainer was of superior materials. Yes you could go a lot longer without cleaning it. But we are on the boat frequently and slipping the small plastic ones off and on is a snap (spin?) We bought two extra strainer bowls and filters and fill them with water and replace the previous ones at the time. System down time is less than a minute. I like the cheap ones better. Now having a cheap fuel filter is a different story.

 

[Steve O.]

Perko

Perko makes a strainer that is pretty easy to clean.

 

[Fred Ficarra]

Took out my Perko about 15 years ago

In the northwest (like the southwest) we have seaweed. The setup, on our h34 did nothing to prevent the thruhull and hose to the strainer from plugging up with weeds and overheating the engine. (We run the engine for charging/making water/refer/ac) One nasty weed even went past the strainer all the way to the raw water pump. Must have not seated it properly. Anyway, I found a external strainer that covers the outside of the thruhull and prevents weed from entering. The engine intake has been perfect since and the Perko became a treasure of the bilge. As far as drag is concerned, the strainer is probably smoother underway than the thruhull without it. (it is kinda like a upside-down mushroom)