[C320-list] Perkins M30 Owners - Exhaust Mixing Elbow

[Warren]

It seems I did not have as much carbon build-up as you describe, and it was 
concentrated at the opening to the housing. Looking inside beyond the 
opening I saw no apparent build-up. I did chip away most of the carbon at 
the opening but was careful not to impact the casting. I didn't remove the 
housing so I can't say what is the condition of the exhaust ports you 
describe.

I bought my elbow from WelandPower.com in GB. They were very helpful and 
responded quickly. Use PayPal to send dollars as Euros. It works well and 
if far less expensive than wire transfers.

Any brand of high-temperature gasket cement is appropriate. You will find 
it at West Marine or any auto store.

Given that the cast Perkins elbow lasted 20 yrs without maintenance, I'll 
stick with Perkins parts.

Reconnecting the elbow was not a problem. I attached the hose first to the 
elbow. I used a tail pipe expander with heat gun to expand the hose to 
accept the elbow. Then, it was not hard to get the hose on the muffler, and 
it was flexible enough that I could get the elbow on the studs with a 
little effort. Just be sure there is enough hose on the muffler pipe to 
allow two hose clamps. 

I learned, too late, that Vetus makes a corrugated 2-wire hose that is 
rather more flexible than the single wire rubber hose that Catalina used. 
Next time, I will use that. Being more flexible means less stress on the 
muffler, and less vibration transmitted to the hull.

Sorry to hear you are selling the boat. I trust you are buying another.
Warren

On Sunday, April 19, 2015 at 9:22:10 PM UTC-4, JeffWi... at aol.com wrote:

> Hey Warren, 
>   
> I am finishing the same project.  I did not have a failure but pulled  my 
> Perkins elbow to  check for restrictions due to low engine  RPM's.  It 
> turned 
> out to contain a lot of build up reducing opening  size by about 50%.   
> What concerned me just as much was the build up  and reduced opening in 
> the 
> heat exchanger housing.  The metal near the  elbow seemed "swollen" and 
> covered 
> in rust/carbon goo.  Like a goof ball, I  decided to scrape some of the 
> rust and carbon loose and very quickly scraped a  hole in the bottom and 
> busted 
> through into a water jacket beneath and obviously  ruined my housing.  So 
> I 
> pulled the housing and found quit  a bit of  carbon inside the exhaust 
> port 
> of the aft most cylinder.  Did you clean  that out as well?   If so, how? 
>   
> Gently wipe out with rag or  paper towel or some kind of chemical? 
>   
> I purchased  new elbow from TA Diesels for $380 or so.  Looks  like you 
> got 
> a better deal but I did need mine very quickly.  the new  housing came 
> from 
> TADiesels as well for only $270.  The problem is the 4  studs that screw 
> into housing that the elbow mounts to are  not available  from Perkins in 
> the 
> US.  I am trying to complete the repairs as quickly as  possible because I 
> have sold my boat and trying to resolve survey issues and  close the deal. 
> The new owners are anxious to take over. 
>   
> What type of sealant did you use on the new gaskets?  Do you recommend   
> sealant on gasket between heat exchanger housing and the block too? 
>   
> There was a vendor on ebay selling a "stainless" elbow for about  $230.   
> Anyone with experience on the stainless elbow I would like to hear  from.. 
>   
> It should be noted my Perkins has 975 hours on it according to Hour 
>  meter. 
> I will post some of my photos on the website as well.   
>   
> Warren, did you have any trouble reconnecting the elbow to the  muffler? 
>  I 
> am very concerned about using the very stiff exhaust hose on  such a short 
> run.  I worry about putting too much pressure on muffler tube  when trying 
> to wrestle the hose onto it.  Any tips you have on this would  be very 
> helpful. 
>   
> Thanks, 
>   
> Jeff Willis 
> Esprit, #174 
>   
>   
> In a message dated 4/19/2015 6:02:19 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,   
> wupdike at hotmail.com writes: 
>
> Back to  serious posts. Just completed replacement of the exhaust elbow. 
> Unlike some  of the later engines, the Perkins elbow is cast iron and ours 
> has been  in-place 20 yrs and over 2,000 hrs. Knowing now what I learned 
> with 
> this  project, I wouldn't have waited for a failure. I recommend pulling   
> the 
> elbow every 5 years, having it cleaned, and de-carbonizing the exhaust 
>  port 
> in the block. (Replace with a new gasket and sealant.) 
>
> What  happened was not a catastrophic failure. There is a burn-thru in the 
> side  of the casting that allowed hot water and junk to run down the side 
> of 
> the  elbow into the pit below with nothing more than some rust stains on   
> the 
> block. I got prices in the US for $400 and up for the elbow. I found  a 
> distributor in GB and save myself $100. I made the payment in Euros  via 
> PayPal and the transaction was as easy as poop through a goose. Now we 
>  are 
> waiting our spring launch to test it out. 
>
> I have lots of  pictures and plan on doing an article for the web site and 
> maybe for the  Mainsheet. Now, we are up to our ears with boat duty and 
> home 
> duty, so it  may take a while. 
>
> If anyone has specific questions, just  reply. 
>
>
>
> Warren and Pattie Updike 
>
> 1994 C320 "Warr de Mar"  #62 
>
>
>
>
>