Need Advice from Camano Owners

[camanosunnyside]

Just joined the forum hoping to get some advice from a Camano trawler owner who has experienced problems with the generator fuel supply. Any suggestions for an effective fix?

[SkiprJohn]

Aloha and welcome aboard!
Maybe a change to one of the other forums here might help. If it is a diesel then clean fuel is very necessary and air leaks in the lines will not allow you to run your generator.
kind regards,

[bruce richardso]

Hi Camano owners, I have hull # 88 and am the second owner. Love the boat and everything has been great. I live in Vancouver and brought the boat up from Anacortes 5 years ago. Some hints I share are

Always make sure the key on the bridge and the key in the cabin are in the off position, which is the position one back in a clockwise position back from where you turn the key to shut off the motor. One day i couldn't start the motor and it was because the key on the bridge was still in the shut off position......I was surprised this wasn't in the manual somewhere. i had to get towed in and it took my 2 days to figure this out.

Another important feature I notice is that the batteries ( I have 4 house and 1 starter ) were each grounded....This prevented the batteries from being wired in series which produces more amps and helps the batteries last longer. I have since wired the batteries in series and put a battery monitor on. It has made a huge difference as now only one battery is grounded and now the cabin lights don't dim when I turn other lights on. Also, the batteries are in plastic boxes which is not super but if you are careful to not spill any water when filling the cells otherwise the acid leaks through the bottom screw holes of the plastic boxes and drip out and erode important wiring in the engine room.

Another hint I recently found out is that to test the tightness of the alternator belts try turning the fan blades by hand on the outside of the alternator. If you can turn the fan blades by hand the belts are too loose. Several mechanics test by pushing the belt down but this is not accurate.

Another hint for keeping barnacles and mussels from growing on the propellers especially the bow thruster blades is to buy a product called anhydrous lanolin
which is bought at most drug stores. It is a product that breast feeding ladies so that the baby does not get stuck on the nipple. This is not a joke as I have used this product for 4 years and it saves an hour of propeller scraping each haul out but more importantly the bow thruster is still efficent after sitting 4 months over the winter. It is important to use a propane torch to melt the product on as it is thick and you have to melt it onto the propeller blade after you spread it on with your fingers. Try it you will be amazed.

One question I do have is the best way to empty the holding tank? I push the button suggested in the manual in the head behind the doorbut it takes several tries and I have to flush the toilet at the same time someitme 4 or 5 times with the valve turned to the holding tank position. Once it does start emptying it goes for over a minute it is just difficult to get the flow going. Any hints?

In summary, check that each battery is not grounded individually and if so change it. Keep an eye on the key positions if it won't start ( it turns over but if the solenoids are off because the key is in the wrong position the motor won't start ) and try the anhydrous lanolin (breast feeding product) it comes in a tube and I buy it at London Drugs. Very important to use the propane torch so it runs all over the propeller

I love the Camano Troll and it is so well built and unbelievable fuel efficicency ( I divide fuel up cost by number of hours and it is usually $15/hour). I have a Volvo TAMD41Pturbo 200 hp. I find the most efficent RPMs are 2500 or 3100 and it tops out at 4000. I would love to hear from others about their experiences.

Bruce Richardson of Fjord Dancer.

[stevensc]

I owned a 2002 Camano from 2004 to 2008, they are great boats, very well made and fun to cruise. I believe the generators were add ons by the selling dealer or by the individual boat owners so the fuel systems are usually routed differently. As mentioned earlier air in the lines might be a problem you may need to bleed them, what are the symptoms? is it a new problem was some work done on it recently?
Steve W

[Cheechako]

Another important feature I notice is that the batteries ( I have 4 house and 1 starter ) were each grounded....This prevented the batteries from being wired in series which produces more amps and helps the batteries last longer.
Am I missing something here? 4 x 12volts =48volts in series...?

[Don1500]

I have a '97 troll and need information on the bow thruster. Anything will add to my knowledge since I have never seen anything. One of the two propellers broke off and I need to find out how to replace them.

All help gratefully accepted.

[Adelie]

Welcome.

I would suggest updating your profile with your general location and your boat make & model or “Looking” in the "Boat" category. This info shows up under your UserName in every post in the web view. Many questions are boat and/or location dependent and having these tidbits under your UserName saves answering those questions repeatedly. If you need help setting up your profile then click on this link: https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...ml#post3308797

I would happily help more if the link above is not enough.