Salvaging Angelica now to save the engine Help!

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cyberpunx

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Hi there all with regards to my motorboat Angelica which was sunk on wednesday morning i have now recovered her from the seabed. thanks to all who gave time and advise to me on recovering her i would like to thanks each and every one of you.
so a BIG thanks next on the agenda is salvaging the petrol engine im sure it's a volvo penta 105 petrol engine whats the best thing to do straight away to the engine? i got some advise on it if there is any mechanics out there who could point me in the right direction . here's what ive been advised so far :

The important thing to remember is that the moment the engine surfaces the

clock starts ticking in terms of getting the engine running.
Here is a suggested approach to sorting out the engine.
Drain carbs then remove the spark plugs
and spin the engine over to clear water from the cylinders. Drain the engine

oil and replace. Once the engine has been spun over to clear the water spray

inside the bores with WD40 or diesel and leave in while you dry out the

alternator and other electrics. You may have to strip down the starter motor

and dry it first but the important thing is to get the engine running as

quickly as possible where its own heat will dry it out. If you can before you

start hose it all down with fresh water to get rid of the salt. Use loads of

wd40 to spray all over the engine and electrics ( you will be surprised how effective it is).

Thanks for that info (you know who you are)
so any further advise appreciated and again THANKS to you all it really did make me feel better. I cant believe how bad i actually felt honest i was amazed how bad i felt.
anyway there's a pint at the bar for you all.
regards John
 
I would make a high priority of getting the starter and alternator off and into a bucket of fresh water before they have time to dry out and salt to deposit. wash them with copioius fresh water and then rinse with alcohol which wil help remove the remaining fresh water. In my limited expereince salvaging electrics that have been immersed in seawater is a pretty hit or miss affair and you should be prepared for the possibility of having to replace at least the starter and alternator.
 
Not an expert - but sounds like you have got good advice.

My only thought is on whether the batteries will still be useable....I have no idea...but would be a real fooker if these were the weak link in restarting her....
 
Get the carbs off and into fresh water then a bucket of petrol before having them stripped.

Engine wiring loom and any instruments off and washed in fresh water, then drain and put them in the airing cupboard. Anything electrical in fact you can remove, do this with.


I personally would recommend stripping the whole engine, as salt will bugger all the bearings if the water is in there. Check to see if there is any evidence of water in the bottom end of the engine by lifting the dipstick. Do that several times and wipe the stick clean each time. You may be lucky.

Hose down all the upholstery and leave it to dry. If you leave any cushions or curtains they will go mouldy underneath.

Go hire a couple of good sized dehumidifiers and leave them running for a week or two if possible.

I wish you the very best of luck with the outcome.....
 
The electronics people told me the best thing with immersed equipment is to bring it to them in a bucket of water, they have the magic stuff to cure it.
 
Following on from the notes above, here's what I've done in the past and found successful.
1) The first priority is to get the engine running to warm itself up and help dry itself out.
Let it run for 30 minutes or so then stop it and give everything another good generous spray of wd40 and then change the engine oil ( don't worry too much if you don't have a new oil filter that can be changed later).
2) Strip the starter motor and wash in diesel and allow to dry out. If you can dry out the alternator now is a good time.
3) Run the engine again and hopefully the oil will be showing only small signs of emulsification.
4) Don't forget when spraying the electrics with wd40 to open all the fuse covers and other protective covers so the wd40 gets to everything.
5) Once you have done all this give the engine a good run gradually building up the revs for 45 minutes or so .
6) Now is the time to deal with the details at your leisure. You should have saved the engine. Now do all your domestic electrics etc etc. Don't forget to check the outdrive.
Good luck.
 
You will need to open up the distributor (remove if possible) to clean it out and pay special attention to cleaning the coil and high tension leads.
I think the concept of running to heat the engine is good but perhaps not so important. If can't get it to start which is likely. Turn it over as much as possible (plugs removed) with oil in the cylinders and new oil in the sump. Turn it over enough to get oil pump to move new oil around. It may be worth removing the rocker cover to clean out that cavity which could hold a lot of salt water. If you do all these then immediate running is not so important IMHO. good luck olewill
 
I just remembered my old dad was a mechanic. I remember him being asked to fix a Volvo engine like yours that had been emersed for a long time. In that case the pistons had seized (rusted) into place. The engine was dismantled and each piston disconnected fromn the crankshaft and bashed with a hammer via block of wood to move them. The motor was eventually saved and returned to service. So don't despair too much. olewill
 
One of my Land Rovers was immersed in the sea . It took a week to fix everything on it but I had the engine running the first day , So do not worry unduly . The alternator and starter motor were flushed with fresh water and refitted . They dried out while the engine was running . As far as I know they kept going for years .
Obviously with a boat you need to be 100% sure for reliability .
Batteries were totally Knackered due to the sea water .
Good Luck
Paul
 
WD40 is the best emergency treatment. Gallons of the stuff -everywhere!

I retrieved a Johnson outboard which had fallen off into 3m of water and lain there till the tdie went out.

I stripped the carb, and soaked everything else with WD, including filling the (2stroke) crankcase with the stuff. I then kept turning over the engine on the pull start until it had amost all drained out. Electrics too were soaked thorugghly in WD.

I then put the plug back in, connected the fuel, and to my surprise it started 1st pull. It hade never done that before! Always second or third from cold.

It consistently started and ran better after the dunking, and survived nearly ten years of continued abuse before it was sold on with the boat.
 
[ QUOTE ]
The electronics people told me the best thing with immersed equipment is to bring it to them in a bucket of water, they have the magic stuff to cure it.

[/ QUOTE ]

Can they work magic on a vhf 7200 and a navman tf6500? immersed for 3 days in salt water?
 
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