MD2030 overheating and empty strainer. Surely there must be a simple fix!

[PetiteFleur]

From the fact that the system runs properly when you prime it, it is clear that the water loss over time is problem. Do you have the black volvo strainer? The seal on this strainer is created by an inner plate that seals on a rubber gasket on top of the white sieve. When you unscrew the top you should have to pull quite hard on the inner plate to break the airlock. If you do this without closing the seacock you will have to re-prime the system in the manner you describe as you will when you dismantle the pump. If the inner plate is not sealing or is missing then the water level will drop. Although the system will self prime in theory, as you have found it can take a long time during which time damage can occur.

I had this problem with my 'new' strainer when I re-engined - the strainer cap had to be really tightly screwed on - I well greased the threads and made a 'tightening tool' from scrap plywood as I couldn't tighten it enough by hand. Not sure who the strainer manufacturer is but believed to be Italian.

 

[penfold]

Good point but do u think that likely on a 2004 engine with 300 hours?

It's quite feasible for the pumpshaft seals to go bad in 300hrs, particularly if the water you sail on is turbid(and having sailed out of West Mersea a couple of times it is). There may even have been a manufacturing flaw in them. I wouldn't think the shaft will have worn, but it is possible if the water is very silty. You will have to dismantle the pump to change seals anyway, so it can be inspected for grooves at that point.

 

[Marsupial]

Good point but do u think that likely on a 2004 engine with 300 hours?

If you sail in the east coast "grinding paste" (North Sea) then yes it is, take the pump off take it apart if its OK put it back together at least you'll know. But from what you have posted shaft wear seems to be the problem. Somehow air is getting in on the suction side of the pump, when all other components have been checked and double checked it comes down to the shaft and seals.

 

[Bilgediver]

Your anti-syphon is working as it is supposed to; you don't make it clear where it is, but the anti-syphon valve should be mounted between the saltwater outlet and the exhaust water injection elbow. It sounds like the gasket on the strainer could bad, but that's a side issue. I would suspect that either the saltwater pump has a problem(bad impeller, running the wrong way, worn housing), or there's a blockage or restriction in/around the seacock. Is there an internal or external strainer on the seacock?

My thoughts exactly.....worn sea pump impeller and housing allowing the water to flow back to sea aided and abetted by the anti syphon valve.

 

[Robatbradwell]

Penfold, Marsupial, neil, bosun higgs, tranona and bilgediver, you were all correct. I had the pump removed and inspected for wear, hoping that a new seal might be needed and was advised that it was worn on the shaft, face plate and back plate and a new pump was needed. Although the pump wasn’t leaking, the wear was allowing it to suck air in.

Unfortunately, fixing this problem just lead to another drama! I was on route to Ostend on Friday and the engine revs faded off and spluttered but stayed alive on tick over in neutral. So I went to inspect the engine only to find that there was loads of oil under the engine and in the bilge. I stopped the engine and went to work on fixing it, whilst still sailing on to Ostend. I found that the pump had been fitted badly and part of the O ring sealing the pump against the engine casing was sticking out of the bottom of the pump, thus allowing the oil to drain out under way.

I managed to remove the pump and re-fix it with liquid gasket and replaced the lost oil and carried on to Ostend. However, returning from Ostend yesterday the engine kept dying. The revs would just drop off and it would splutter to a stop.

Upon complaining this morn to the Volvo specialist at Titchmarsh marina that fitted it, I am told that the engine would not suffer from loosing half its oil and the engine problem must be a fuel problem which just coincidentally alerted me to the oil leak!

Would you agree that the engine might not be damaged in some way and the problem I now have is a fuel problem?

BTW. Just loved Ostend, we had a blast.

Rob

 

[VicS]

I think you would have been alerted by the low oil pressure warning light and buzzer as soon as the oil level fell to a level that would have caused any distress to the engine.

Piss poor that a volvo specialist could not fit a water pump properly.

Don't go there again!

 

[Robatbradwell]

That's a very good point that I had not thought of. Thank you. Hopfully then, the engine has not suffered from the oil loss.

 

[Heckler]

Penfold, Marsupial, neil, bosun higgs, tranona and bilgediver, you were all correct. I had the pump removed and inspected for wear, hoping that a new seal might be needed and was advised that it was worn on the shaft, face plate and back plate and a new pump was needed. Although the pump wasn’t leaking, the wear was allowing it to suck air in.

Unfortunately, fixing this problem just lead to another drama! I was on route to Ostend on Friday and the engine revs faded off and spluttered but stayed alive on tick over in neutral. So I went to inspect the engine only to find that there was loads of oil under the engine and in the bilge. I stopped the engine and went to work on fixing it, whilst still sailing on to Ostend. I found that the pump had been fitted badly and part of the O ring sealing the pump against the engine casing was sticking out of the bottom of the pump, thus allowing the oil to drain out under way.

I managed to remove the pump and re-fix it with liquid gasket and replaced the lost oil and carried on to Ostend. However, returning from Ostend yesterday the engine kept dying. The revs would just drop off and it would splutter to a stop.

Upon complaining this morn to the Volvo specialist at Titchmarsh marina that fitted it, I am told that the engine would not suffer from loosing half its oil and the engine problem must be a fuel problem which just coincidentally alerted me to the oil leak!

Would you agree that the engine might not be damaged in some way and the problem I now have is a fuel problem?

BTW. Just loved Ostend, we had a blast.

Rob

How much oil did you put in the engine, it only holds about 4 pints if my memory serves me correctly.
Stu

 

[oldsaltoz]

Sounds like a fuel tank vent blockage.

 

[Robatbradwell]

It takes 3 litres. I put in 1 litre which just registered on the lower level dipstick mark. I only had 3/4 of a litre and had to yse a tube to suck up a bit more from the bilge. So an oil change is now needed to remove the dirty oil!

 

[Robatbradwell]

A fuel tank vent blockage sounds like a nice easy fix. I will check that and hope that you are correct, Oldsaltoz.

 

[Heckler]

It takes 3 litres. I put in 1 litre which just registered on the lower level dipstick mark. I only had 3/4 of a litre and had to yse a tube to suck up a bit more from the bilge. So an oil change is now needed to remove the dirty oil!

My concern is that you lost most of the oil and the dying of the engine is in fact a partial seizure.
The "engineer" will, IMHO, be trying to cover up his mistake in not locating the O ring properly. An easy enough mistake I must say, I nearly did it myself, however I was aware that it might not locate properly and caught it before any damage was done.
Stu
PS see here http://www.beneteau-owners-association.org.uk/vp2030.pdf for the manual, the VP2030 actually holds 4.3 litres

 

[All The Gear No Idea]

My concern is that you lost most of the oil and the dying of the engine is in fact a partial seizure.
The "engineer" will, IMHO, be trying to cover up his mistake in not locating the O ring properly. An easy enough mistake I must say, I nearly did it myself, however I was aware that it might not locate properly and caught it before any damage was done.
Stu
PS see here http://www.beneteau-owners-association.org.uk/vp2030.pdf for the manual, the VP2030 actually holds 4.3 litres

I was sailing on the said boat for about 35 hours last weekend and have been present for most of the other occasions when Robatbradwell has experienced problems with this engine.

It was definitely not a partial seizure. The engine would recover and went on to run without so much as a flutter for over and hour after the first hiccup. The length of time between the revs dropping off was highly variable and not particularly rpm sensitive. There were no strange noises, or overheating at any time either.

If it had been any kind of seizure, the engine would have stalled on putting it in neutral as the revs tailed off. Increased friction probably would probably have made restarting very difficult, if not impossible.

As the engine recovered every time it was put in neutral, we drew the conclusion that there was an obstruction somewhere in the fuel system and by reducing the revs, we thus reduced the choking off of the fuel supply.

My money is on something clogging one of the fuel filters, or the fuel pump itself. It needs a competent and experienced Volco Penta engineer to investigate, rectify and test thoroughly.

I also don't buy the excuse that the engineer could have missed the pinched water pump o-ring. It would have been evident that the pump wasn't seating correctly before tightening the bolts, but aside from that, he should have inspected the system for leaks after running the engine up. I used to work in a break fix environment for over 20 years and thorough testing before handing something back was a minimum requirement. I'm certain the fitter didn't test for leaks and so put three people at risk 30 miles offshore. Pretty unforgivable imho!

Oostend was indeed awesome and it was a blessing that we were able to sail for the majority of each crossing.

 

[Robatbradwell]

Hi Stuart, that must be you on E pontoon in Titchmarsh. I was on Little Wing down the end but now moved over to G with new boat.

I hope that you are wrong about the seizure thing. The engine spluttered and died many time but seemed fine after a rest, so it did seem to me that it is a fuel thing! We shall see.

Rob

 

[penfold]

If the oil pressure alarm did not sound you will probably not have caused any damage; the spluttering sounds like a fueling issue. Air leak or restricted flow in the pipes or filters.

 

[Bosun Higgs]

It takes 3 litres. I put in 1 litre which just registered on the lower level dipstick mark. I only had 3/4 of a litre and had to yse a tube to suck up a bit more from the bilge. So an oil change is now needed to remove the dirty oil!

The engineers ( if you can call them that) are likely to be right, but given that they made a catastrophic error that could have cost them a new engine, the least you should expect is that they inspect the engine and in the going cure your current problem. Its up to them to prove that it isnt the result of their incompetence.

Whats more |I would ask for confirmation in writing that no damage has been done by their error.

Dont let them fob you off.

 

[MrCramp]

I found that the pump had been fitted badly and part of the O ring sealing the pump against the engine casing was sticking out of the bottom of the pump, thus allowing the oil to drain out under way.


Upon complaining this morn to the Volvo specialist at Titchmarsh marina that fitted it, I am told that the engine would not suffer from loosing half its oil and the engine problem must be a fuel problem which just coincidentally alerted me to the oil leak!

I have always found the people at Tichmarsh to be helpful and good to deal with.

I would not deal with the engineers on site again under any circumstances. I think they know they have a captive market with loads of boats moored in the marina whose owners are used to BMW/Mercedees prices and don't know what a reasonable charge is. I asked them if they could help sort out a leaking waterpump on a BMW engine in my mate's boat. They said it needed to be replaced and it would take at least a week and cost around £250.

Went to Halls (at Walton-on-the-Naze.) at 5pm. They apologised that they could not sort it until morning but would have it ready by 10am at a cost of about £20. Went at 11am and it was ready but they had to send a lad to Colchester to pick up a bearing and would it be OK if they charge £35!!

Go to Halls , they have been there in business for ever and have a very good reputation and I am told that Bedwells have a good engineer as well.