Ten Commandments of boat maintenance
I just found my notes from a diesel mechanics course I took at Mack Boring in NJ years ago. According to Larry Berlin of Engine City Technical Institute, the following points are the critical things to do with a diesel engine, specifically a Yanmar: Follow the engine manufacturer's Operations Manual. Get a service manual. Operations Manual tells you what. Service Manual tells you how. Keep fuel oil (diesel) tank full at all times. Top off from 5-gallon spare to keep condensation down and keep algae from growing. Fill water in lead acid batteries even if they are labelled maintenance free. Clean wire connections with wire brush or sandpaper, put on dielectric grease , and cover with electrical tape. Tighten all nuts, bolts, and hose clamps at 50 hours. Every 50h retorque cylinder heads. Head gaskets blow at about 400-500 hours if you don't retorque the heads and adjust valves. New service manual (15 years ago) says its no longer needed to do. Tighten hose clamps