If you’re thinking about purchasing a boat, but you’re not that savvy when it comes to marine and automotive mechanics, it might be helpful to learn about a few parts. If you experience problems with your new boat or yacht, you might have a harder time pinpointing the issue than you might with your land vehicle.
Just as an automotive engine needs a cooling system for the engine to stay cool enough to drive, a boat needs marine engine fuel coolers and marine engine oil coolers to keep your boat running properly. These cooling systems work, both in cars and boats, by circulating water through the engine cooling systems. There are two main types of cooling systems, raw water and fresh water.
Raw water cooling systems draw water in from the outside of the boat and run it through the engine’s cooling system. The only long-term problem with these types of marine engine fuel coolers is when you use salt water for coolant. Over time the salt in the water corrodes the engine and blocks the exhaust manifolds which will cost you a lot of money to replace. A rusty engine will not run well on the water and won’t last long at all. These types of cooling systems are simpler and often less costly, they tend not to last as long as fresh water systems.
Fresh water marine cooling systems utilize a marine engine heat exchangers that acts like a car radiator. The coolant goes through one side of the engines cooling system and the raw water goes through the other side and comes out the exhaust. A fresh water marine system is a more reliable way to cool your boat engine, because it lasts longer.
Even though the types of engine cooling systems may not be of concern to you, you will still need to know your options if you ever need to replace this piece of equipment. No matter the brand of engine you have on your boat, you can usually find a company that will have the right kind of cooling system to fit your specific engine. The best place to look for these kinds of boat parts is on the internet. You can find most boat parts on the internet for great prices. Internet auction websites, manufacturer websites, and discount part websites are the best ways to get the lowest price for the replacement part you need.
Once you’ve found the part you need, you may want to consider taking your boat and the part to a boat mechanic. This will save you more money than if you buy the part directly from the boat mechanic. If you’re really daring, you can find forums and websites that will tell you exactly how to install and replace parts of your boats. If you’re a do-it-yourself kind of person, this may be the most inexpensive option, but if you’re not so handy, you might cause yourself more harm than good by trying to do everything yourself. |