Last week on a cruise, we ran the motor while at anchor to warm the water tank for showers. When we started the engine the next morning, I noticed the sound of water from the exhaust seemed off and sure enough, a few minutes later the engine began to overheat. We re-anchored and I went below to check the strainer basket which had a bit of grass in it, but not enough to plug it up. My wife (bless her heart) dove in and saw a big clump of seaweek attached to the hull where the intake should be. She managed to clear it and we got under way with no more trouble. One lesson is to be careful of running the engine when the boat is at rest as I am sure you are much more likely to suck stuff into the intake as opposed to when the boat is moving at 6 knots (that has never happened to me). But the experience got me thinking about how to resolve the problem of a plugged intake without swimming. Is it possible to take the basket out of the water intake strainer and run something flexible and stiff down the tube and clear the intake without diving? I am thinking of stiff wire or something like the fiberglass snake I use for running wires through small spaces. Anyone done this successfully? Dave
S/V Aries 1990 C&C 34+ New London, CT
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