We used to enjoy playing the game Whack-a-Mole with our kids at Ryan’s Arcade in Newport, RI. We don’t enjoy playing it with Breeze On’s engine problems. The good news is that we made the entire trip from Beaufort to Brunswick without the overheating engine alarm sounding once. The bad news is that we now have a new engine problem. Yesterday afternoon we noticed the odor of diesel fuel in our cockpit. It was definitely the smell of fuel and not exhaust. George looked around the areas of the engine that are most likely to have a fuel leak and found three out of four of the injectors were leaking fuel. The reason the odor was so strong in the cockpit—instead of the cabin—is because the blower moves air from the engine compartment to the cockpit. After arriving at Brunswick Landing this afternoon we spoke to the manager of the boatyard at the far end of the marina. He gave us a few ideas but said he is scheduling work two months out. We then looked into what parts we might need so they c
We left our slip this morning at 6:37 am, hoping that the engine was truly fixed. Less than ten minutes from Homer Smith Docks and Marina, though, the engine overheating alarm sounded. We were motoring at 1000 rpm. George checked the engine temperature using the infrared thermometer and found that it was lower than 181°, the temperature at which the thermostat opens and allows coolant to flow. We increased the rpms, the temperature went up, but the alarm still sounded. We were confident that the new thermostat was functioning and should have opened so we turned around. Breeze On was back in her slip within a half hour. With a new water pump, new thermostat, new sensor, and new hose reducer, we both wondered if the problem could be due to a poor electrical connection. The sensor connects to an engine computer—called an MDI, Marine Diesel Interface. The primary function of the MDI is to collect information from sensors and send it out to the engine display. We have been carrying a spare