Advice on what to do with my empty engine bay.

[VinnyVincent]

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?

PO did that. Looks like a jigsaw/sawzall would have made short work of it and all he did was slap some fiberglass cloth over it.
I sanded it and painted a white border on that and the whole back of the boat. Came out pretty good. Then all I did was put an aluminum backing plate on there and that was it. Did it all on 2 afternoons.

Originally Posted by Sailmonkey

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

Small world. Were you on J dock?
So you know Rocky? How about Chris in "Lady Mary"? He was a cool guy. Ended up taking his boat to the Honduras if I remember right.
What was he trying to do with that cut out? Mount for a swim ladder?

[VinnyVincent]

Originally Posted by Sailmonkey

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


Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum

Originally Posted by HappyMdRSailor

Hey Fat Stick....

Originally Posted by HappyMdRSailor

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... )

LOL! I'll have enough trouble just getting in there myself to clean it.

[HappyMdRSailor]

Originally Posted by VinnyVincent

LOL! I'll have enough trouble just getting in there myself to clean it.

Guess we'll put another checkmark in the "wanted" list for the next boat...

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by VinnyVincent

A little background, then a couple questions:

I got this boat for 2500 and have since put an outboard motor on. I also bolted the prop shaft in place to keep it from freewheeling.
My original thought was to leave all the wiring, exhaust, ect. in place so that I can advertise as "ready for re-power" when I go to sell.
My new method of thinking is that no one is going to be interested in putting an inboard back into this boat ever again and it would be more appealing on the resale market if I cleaned out, sealed off and re-purposed that area.

1) What is your opinion on the above? I would really like to clean that area, remove all the wiring, the exhaust, close the holes in the transom up so water can't get in, seal the shaft hole off, seacocks, ect...

2) This is my first boat with an engine and there is a foul smell inside the cabin. At first I thought it was the head. I cleaned that out, not the problem...so then I went to the bilge, cleaned that, not the problem.
I am currently thinking the spell is coming from very old diesel inside all the lines that remain, gas tank, diesel soot from what appears to have been an exhaust leak, grease and other gunk built up in the engine compartment.
I want to clean all this out nice and squeaky clean, hopefully getting rid of, or reducing the smell in the process.
Any advice on tackling this job? What's the best way to siphon out the sludge that is likely built up in the tank? How about sealing the hose coming from the tank so no more fumes get in?
What type of cleaner should I use to get rid of the gunk, grease and soot?
Do they make some type of deodorizer to apply to the fiberglass in this area once the gunk is gone?

Thanks!

I removed everything on my boat. I pulled the (last) diesel engine and gear box using the boom and a come along. The diesel was a 352 lb Bukh 10 HP.

Removed all copper fuel lines, removed the old fuel tank, prop, drive shaft, stuffing box, exhaust pipe, and removed all unused wiring.

I then dug out all the slug in the bilge and wash the entire compartment repeatedly.

Then I had the yard fiberglass in the shaft hole and mount a bracket on an angled extension on the stern so I could raise and lower the outboard I planned to buy and so it would be straight/vertical.

Between this and cutting out and capping off all unused hoses on my head, there are no more oily diesel smells or other bad smells on the boat.

[VinnyVincent]

Originally Posted by 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.

That's got to be it! I am really hoping this takes the smell out. I don't mind it too much, but I hate that everything in the boat smells like it when you take it out.
I didn't make it over there last night, but will likely head over there today and see how well scrubbing works, before I break out the power washer.
I'll probably end up power washing it at some phase anyways, because hey, why not?

[jimbunyard]

Originally Posted by VinnyVincent

...but it still has soft decks, some blisters that need to be fixed eventually

If those soft decks are balsa cored, I wonder if the smell could be from
rotten, encapsulated wood? By all means clean up the old engine bay and use it for something useful though.

I can assure you when wood starts looking like this it smells pretty funky.

[VinnyVincent]

Originally Posted by jimbunyard

If those soft decks are balsa cored, I wonder if the smell could be from
rotten, encapsulated wood? By all means clean up the old engine bay and use it for something useful though.

I can assure you when wood starts looking like this it smells pretty funky.

I actually just finished replacing my chain plates and when I did that, I took the opportunity to hollow out several inches of core to refill with thickened epoxy and it definitely had a different smell to it. It may be contributing, but I don't think that's the main cause. It has to be diesel and I am thinking in addition to the dirty engine bay, whatever is left in the tank is also leaking somewhere.

[S/V Alchemy]

Originally Posted by FamilyVan

Maybe somebody who paid more attention in their ship construction classes than me might be able to correct me, but I wonder if the weight from your engine is of vital importance to your trim and stability? If it is, no doubt you can put a similar weight chunk of lead in the engines place, but it's something you might want to consider.

I would imagine that a 9.9 HP longshaft outboard on the transom would pretty well account for a 250 lb. diesel and 50 pounds of shaft and prop just aft of the keel. The chunk of lead might go in the bilges forward of the mast or under the V-berth.

As for what to do with the space, you might consider a box into which a fuel tank or bladder (or to make it easy, two removable six gallon gas tanks) could go, so that you can get some range. Guiding me at all times would be that I had paid a pittance for this 28 footer, and that I would want to lurk around the spot where cheap intersected with safe.

[fatherchronica]

I pulled the Gray Marine 4 cyl. gas engine from my first boat because it was about 40 years old and time consuming to run. The boat was wood. I just made storage from the area, but that was sorely needed. I recently saw a small sailboat repowered with a Briggs and Stratton lawnmower motor. I wouldn't personally go that route. I have a Lehr propane outboard for my dinghy mostly to avoid having gasoline on board. I think a car degreaser would be fine on fiberglass, but I would remove the residue from that with a good oil resolving detergent like Dawn or Palmolive dish soap afterward.

[onestepcsy37]

The engine/tranny/shaft/prop/other stuff I pulled out of my Albin Vega weighed over 300 pounds. Thats about equivalent to a 40 gallon water tank in the same place, so balance should be little affected. I didnt consider storing gasoline there - even though the old inboard was gas. I have an aversion to storing gas in confined spaces and was glad to be rid of the old gas tank.

Adding 40 gallons of fresh water tankage is a big plus on a small boat in the Bahamas.

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by VinnyVincent

A little background, then a couple questions:

I got this boat for 2500 and have since put an outboard motor on. I also bolted the prop shaft in place to keep it from freewheeling.
My original thought was to leave all the wiring, exhaust, ect. in place so that I can advertise as "ready for re-power" when I go to sell.
My new method of thinking is that no one is going to be interested in putting an inboard back into this boat ever again and it would be more appealing on the resale market if I cleaned out, sealed off and re-purposed that area.

1) What is your opinion on the above? I would really like to clean that area, remove all the wiring, the exhaust, close the holes in the transom up so water can't get in, seal the shaft hole off, seacocks, ect...

2) This is my first boat with an engine and there is a foul smell inside the cabin. At first I thought it was the head. I cleaned that out, not the problem...so then I went to the bilge, cleaned that, not the problem.
I am currently thinking the spell is coming from very old diesel inside all the lines that remain, gas tank, diesel soot from what appears to have been an exhaust leak, grease and other gunk built up in the engine compartment.
I want to clean all this out nice and squeaky clean, hopefully getting rid of, or reducing the smell in the process.
Any advice on tackling this job? What's the best way to siphon out the sludge that is likely built up in the tank? How about sealing the hose coming from the tank so no more fumes get in?
What type of cleaner should I use to get rid of the gunk, grease and soot?
Do they make some type of deodorizer to apply to the fiberglass in this area once the gunk is gone?

Thanks!

My guess would be, making it into an attractive, accessable storage area would be more attractive to a buyer in the future. Did I understand that you intend to drag around to prop so you so you did something to keep it from free wheeling. Take it off!

[Scout 30]

You can never have too much storage area & too much fresh water. There are no cleaners that that you can buy in a store that will hurt fiberglass. However, your engine compartment is normally painted. No gelcoat. TSP is probably the strongest cleaner you can buy. You might want to add some bleach to kill any mold present. Once you get everything out of there & it all cleaned up prime & paint it. After it's repainted you won't have anymore smell. This is also a good area for batteries & a bilge pump.

[Don C L]

I would NOT recommend putting your fuel tank in there! Water and lead in the form of batteries. Bilgekote is a good paint choice. Do you have a separate sealed hatch or lazarette for fuel tanks?

[rognvald]

Vinny,
How long you intend to keep your boat should be the determining factor in your decision. Your initial cost you paid is also relevant. The likelihood, based upon value, of someone repowering your vessel is close to zero. So, why not make it an efficient cruiser with your labor and minimal dollars. I would suggest:
1.) Remove everything related to the engine including the shaft
2.) clean with an appropriate cleaner/disinfectant
3.) sand area thoroughly and paint with a monopoxy paint-- I prefer Petit
4.) seal all holes(fiberglass)
5.) install a stern adjustable engine mount with suitable backing plate
6.) buy a used long shaft outboard
7.) convert that useable space into additional water storage(soft bladder)
or general storage.
The first five items/materials can be purchased for $300. or less and your own labor. A good used outboard should be $500-600. The total cost of the project should be about $1000. When you finally decide to sell your boat, you should be able to sell it without the outboard for what you paid initially and then resell the outboard to recoup some of your initial expense. Or, you might be a good guy and sell the outboard with the boat for a few dollars more or a quicker sale. However, you might find that this is all the boat you'll ever need and a great deal as well. Good luck and good sailing.

[hamburking]

After the big cleanup and re-paint, I would put in some batteries. This has two benefits:

1) weight. The batteries will trim you boat as your engine block used to.
2) power. Just because you have no engine doesn't mean you can't have electrical devices. If you put 4 type 24 batteries in there, you'll have power to spare...you could even run an electric drive instead of an outboard!

Also, looks like a nice big space to store a deflated inflatable dinghy.