Solenoid shut-off switch

[Claude L.-Auger]

Hi everyone
Have had my 34 for 20 years and today I replaced the plastic Yanmar ignition panel for the 5th time. Seems every few years someone comes on the boat and tries to reach the port side of the T-cockpit directly from the seat. Never fails: they hit the manual choke, bend it and break the plastic panel. So I decided to not run the choke cable there and am thinking of putting it in the starboard side cubbyhole, which would protect it completely. Better yet, I'm looking at the possibility of installing a solenoid shut-off switch, which would eliminate the cable. The Yanmar dealer here tells me it can't be done on my 3GM30F but can't tell me why. Has anyone done it ? And if so, what solenoid and/or part did you use ?

 

[sail sfbay]

These threads might address your question:

Solenoid to replace the fuel shut off cable

Has anyone replaced the Fuel shut off cable on a Yanmar with a electric solenoid? If so where did you find the solenoid? Any pictures would be a big bonus. Thanks Keith

forums.sailboatowners.com

Shut-off Cable

Bought a 1985 Hunter 34 last fall. I'm new to large boats and Hunters.The shut off cable was tough to pull but it worked. This spring it would not budge and I had to throw it manually at the engine to shut it off. Any tricks to get this working or do I just need to replace the housing and...

forums.sailboatowners.com

stuck engine stop cable

Has anyone replaced their engine stop (decompression) cable ? Mine stuck somehow, and I can't seem to free it. It turns when the knob is twisted, but won't move in/out. It worked fine and then it just "stuck". Where is a good (inexpensive ?) place to get a replacement ? I believe it is stainless...

forums.sailboatowners.com

 

[Artey1]

Hi Claude, I'm actually in the process of this right now. I'm having a bit of a challenge in making a connecting rod and actually making sure the solenoid has the power to pull the shutoff the cable normally would at the engine side. But failing ingenuity in making a good mount and connecting rod, it is entirely possible. Here is the solenoid I bought, and I've made a mounting plate out of regular 16 gauge steel sheet metal.

Amazon Link, Solenoid

I'll try to finish this job up and post some pictures after this weekend hopefully.

One with a connection on the solenoid such as this would make it super easy. Better connection idea


There are 2 items which absolutely must be taken into consideration though:
1) Be certain the solenoid has at least a 1" throw and its even better if its a bit longer and adjustable.

2) The amount of force on the solenoid needs to be great enough to actual move the lever. You could potentially measure this with an old spring scale to get the lbs of force then use an online calculator to convert to newtons.

Full disclosure, mine isn't 100% working yet since I haven't made my connecting rod between solenoid end and engine yet, so please make sure you think this carefully before just buying the one I did.

 

[jaysweet]

I went the other way, and replaced the stop-switch-with-solenoid with a good, old fashioned manual fuel cutoff cable. I put it inside the companionway, with the handle mounted right on top of the engine box, so it's out of the weather, and has a very short run to the engine. Quite happy not to have to depend on a finicky electrical part to shut down the engine.