Advice on what to do with my empty engine bay.

[jreiter190]

Swing by a car wash and load up on Xmas tree air fresheners. Get the new boat smell ones.

[VinnyVincent]

Originally Posted by jreiter190

Swing by a car wash and load up on Xmas tree air fresheners. Get the new boat smell ones.

I tried those lol...the yellow trees anyways. they worked for about 4 hours.
It's a strange smell, because it doesn't SEEM overpowering or unbearable...yet it overpowers everything I try to cover it with in no time. Also if you leave any clothes/towels in the for more than about 4 hours they will start to smell the same way.
I am about 99% sure it's really old diesel. I noticed the smell got stronger when I was in there moving things around in the engine bay this weekend.

[VinnyVincent]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

And, IMO predicating these decisions on what some future buyer might prefer is a bad way to go. Do what you want, when you want... there is just as good a chance that the buyer will see it as an advantage as a disadvantage, and meanwhile you have the use of the boat as you would like it to be.

Jim

Wise words! I think your post just solidified my decision to seal everything off.

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

vinny, if the grease is old and caked on the degreasers etc may not do th job easily. If so, another approach is to rent a steam cleaner for a day. The hot steam will quickly get rid of the really bad stuff, and you can then use a wet/dry vac to clean up the relatively small amount of foul water thus generaed. Then, after the heavy lifting is done, the household cleansers can hack the detailed cleaning and de-smelling.

I own a motorized pressure washer. I thought about using that, but that is going to be extremely messy...However I am thinking this is going to be a very dirty job with a lot of elbow grease involved no matter what, so I may try it.

[jreiter190]

Originally Posted by VinnyVincent

I tried those lol...the yellow trees anyways. they worked for about 4 hours.
It's a strange smell, because it doesn't SEEM overpowering or unbearable...yet it overpowers everything I try to cover it with in no time. Also if you leave any clothes/towels in the for more than about 4 hours they will start to smell the same way.
I am about 99% sure it's really old diesel. I noticed the smell got stronger when I was in there moving things around in the engine bay this weekend.

We were once selling a really nice little steel boat at a brokerage in San Pedro that had the same problem. No matter what was done to it, it stank, and everything that was exposed to the interior picked up the smell. The boat sold cheap because of this. The new owner finally tracked the smell by process of elimination to the PAINT that had been used to freshen up the boat prior to listing it with us. Maybe?

[Cheechako]

I second getting a pressure washer. Having seen the pics now and the engine mount on the stern. Yes , I would probably just clean out that whole engine area and freshen it up.
TSP will go after grime as well, or a good strong detergent. Old fashioned Tide powder laundry detergent sprinkled on oily areas works well... then scrub. I think it has TSP in it... not sure if they still sell it or not.
Smell: Look at any wood areas , floor undersides etc to for evidence of oil or diesel... if it gets in that bare wood you need to apply detergent to the area involved. Maybe you could pressure wash under there!

[Steve W]

Vinny, thanks for posting the pic that shows the trolling motor mounted in a stern cut out. I can see now that you have would have good access to the motor. That is much different than my N28 which has no stern cutout and is solid across the stern. I've never seen a N28 with the cut out before. Did the PO notch out the stern or was it originally built that way?

[Sailmonkey]

Originally Posted by Steve W

Vinny, thanks for posting the pic that shows the trolling motor mounted in a stern cut out. I can see now that you have would have good access to the motor. That is much different than my N28 which has no stern cutout and is solid across the stern. I've never seen a N28 with the cut out before. Did the PO notch out the stern or was it originally built that way?

That stern was notched a few slips away from me. Not originally built that way.


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[onestepcsy37]

I took the inboard out of my 27ft Albin Vega and put on an outboard. Cleaned up the engine room and made it into storage space. Sold the boat a few years later, then met up with it in the Bahamas a few years after that. The new owners had installed a large water tank">fresh water tank there, an excellent idea for a Bahamas boat.

[haiqu]

Have a similar situation with a 27' ferro I bought with no engine. I decided to leave the shaft and prop in place, never know what someone might want do do in future and it isn't eating any grass. But yeah, take out all the old wiring, hoses, grime and whatever from down there and either install more water tankage or extra batteries. One other possibility (at least for a cruising yacht) is to turn it into a cool place to store canned goods.

[Siberianhusky]

Not a solution but maybe some help.
Really old spilled diesel has kind of a musty smell with a hint of the original oily diesel stink.
Doesn't really smell like you'd expect it too.
Hope this helps with smell identification.
If you've ever been in the basement of a house with an oil furnace that kind of musty smell is old furnace oil.
Think I would be looking at scraping the heavey build up then laundy soap and a scrub brush for the remainder. Anything petro chemical will spread it around, when the solvent evapourates you will be back in the same situation except it's spread out more! Let the soap/water run into the bilge then pump it out. Hopefully the crud stays in suspension.
It will probably take a couple sessions to get it to the point where you are happy.
If you use a pressure washer please make a video! That would be great to watch. Last time I used mine in an enclosed area I ended up covered from head to toe with blow back! LOL blackface with bright white eye sockets from the goggles.
It will work but it will be dirty!
Got a kid? Perfect job, get filthy and play with machines!
Not sure I would be happy dumping laquer thinner in there and working with it in an enclosed area. Without a fresh air respirator you may come out of there a few IQ points lower than when you went in drooling out of one side of your mouth!

[Hobie_ind]

You say you cleaned up the head. Did you change out the hoses? They become permeable after awhile and will smell even though they look ok.

If it was me and I was keeping the boat for a while, I'd clean it up and remove all the hoses, wiring, remove the shaft and glass it over. Not a hard job and it would turn the area into a good storage area for lots of stuff. From what you've described, it's not a boat someone's going to put tons of money into to re-power anyway, but cleaning it up won't hurt its value and may actually enhance it. Plus it would make it more enjoyable while you're using it.

[Hobie_ind]

PS....I second the request for photos if you decide to use the pressure washer! I've used them in tight places before. Make sure you wear eye protection if you choose to try.

[HappyMdRSailor]

Hey Fat Stick....

The route decided is a good one... I also have a $2500 boat that will never be worth more than that... Me likes the purple power as suggezted by the pilot iff'n ya run outta simple green... (or better... use the green after)

Score some points and repurpose the space into something usable for the GF... Or better yet... Maybe a monkey love dungeon (no offense CF monkeys... )

[Sailmonkey]

Originally Posted by HappyMdRSailor

repurpose the space into something usable for the GF... Or better yet... Maybe a monkey love dungeon (no offense CF monkeys... )

Hahahaha...huh......WHAT!?!?!!? I'm a touch nervous!



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[HappyMdRSailor]

Originally Posted by Sailmonkey

Hahahaha...huh......WHAT!?!?!!? I'm a touch nervous!

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Can't you picture bright white glossy bilge paint... some red lighting... maybe a strobe or two... a few stout D-ring pad eyes... and a leopard print throw pillow???