Prop Shaft Hose Replacement?

[GeorgeJW]

Need some advice: here is a picture of my port shaft hose. During winterization, I noticed some cracking in the rubber due to age/heat. Is it time to replace (boat is pulled) or can this go another season? Might be a stupid question as if this thing cracks, I imagine I would get a pretty good flow of water. However, appears to require shaft pulling (i.e. someone other than myself doing the work which I hate). Guess I just need some experts here to confirm it is a must do now thing…Thanks

 

[Maynard Rupp]

You should not have to pull the shaft. Disconnect the flange from the tranny, remove the set screw holding the shaft coupling from moving, slide the coupling forward and off as you slide the shaft aft. Someone outside could help pull the prop aft. Now remove the hose clamp and pull the stuffing box assembly off the end of the shaft. Replace the length of hose. Remove the shaft packing nut and the old packing. Install the stuffing box on the shaft and connect to the new hose. Cut 3 packing rings of the correct size, install the rings, then the cover nut and adjust roughly. Flange back on the shaft, set screw tight and safety wired,(don't bypass the safety wire), bolt flange to tranny. When in the water re-align shaft, adjust packing nut for about 1 drip every 20 seconds or so. Job done

 

[Genesis]

The shaft doesn't have to come completely out but it does have to back off significantly - the wheel has to come off first to ge the clearance and the coupler has to be split.

How much pain this is depends on how hard getting the coupler off the shaft turns out to be. That's usually the hardest part of this job.

If you see deterioration in the hose CHANGE IT - you do NOT want that to fail in use.

 

[GeorgeJW]

Thanks guys,
As always, terrific advice and how-to. This will go on the winter project must-do list. I will attempt the repair with my son's help and see where we get.

 

[GOLE IV]

In the photo I see only one clamp on one side and two on the other. I have three clamps on each end. Maybe an extreme but two is a minimum requirement.

Make sure you use a hose without steel reinforcement and 5 ply.

good luck

 

[Genesis]

Yep - two clamps on each end. I recommend using the premium (enclosed, not through-web) ones. Far better quality and this is a demanding application.

BTW, there's quite a bit of torque on that hose during operation as the stuffing box packing bears on it. Its not uncommon to see torsional misalignment on the hose over time (the stripe is not straight any more!) which is why its REALLY a bad idea to keep running the boat with a deteriorated stuffing box hose.

 

[67hat34c]

check the wear surface of the shaft, you can make the hose a little longer to get clean shaft for the packing surface, this will keep from leaking. we did this last year on ours

 

[Don Charland]

While going though the trouble, go to a dripless shaft seal. Coupling comes off, slide shaft back old stuff out new stuff on. Clean shaft and use dish soap to slide new shaft seal rotor on.

 

[SKYCHENEY]

I have dripless and they are fine, but I would not have installed them. The PO had them put on so that is what I have, but I don't like the risk of failure with dripless. If that boot fails, you've got a big hole there that is going to be hard to stuff. My advice is to stick with the original packings, especially with the new GFO available now.

 

[Fanfare]

I went to dripless because I couldn't get one of my stufffing boxes to stop leaking. Hatteras now uses dripless as stock, as does Hargrave Yachts, which convinced me. Third year, no problems so far. Here's what they use: www.tidesmarine.com

I think the chances of a catastrophic failure are really about the same with either stuffing box or dripless. The failure point is really the space between the end of the fiberglass shaft log and whichever seal--it's the same sort of a rubber hose and hose clamps. Tidesmarine uses a replacable-in-place rubber seal which bears on the shaft. I have two more seals in a plastic protective keeper installed on my shaft (this has to be done at the time of the original installation as the seals go onto the shaft at the same time). I have not had to change one yet, so who knows? Other dripless seals use ceramic parts. I have not heard of problems with either. As I mentioned, they are good enough for Hatteras. Unless the whole seal comes off the shaft log any failure should start small, giving me the chance to catch it early. I look at all of this hourly with my flashlight on my routine engine checks while under way.

 

[Genesis]

Well there have been several boats that have sunk underway from failed dripless seals. I've yet to hear of one SINKING from a failed stuffing box underway - at the dock when the batteries go dead, yes, but not while underway.

There was a fatality earlier this year that was blamed on a dripless seal failure, in fact - I think it was off NC.

 

[34Hatt]

I know of a boat came real close to sinking they kept it a float but it was due to stuffing box. It got hot jamb and ripped the hose apart. THEY ALL CAN FAIL. Most of the time due to lack of care or improper Installation I went with the PSS very simple design can run slow with out water injection. But every 7 years you want to change the bellows like they TELL you too

 

[egaito]

I know of a boat came real close to sinking they kept it a float but it was due to stuffing box. It got hot jamb and ripped the hose apart. THEY ALL CAN FAIL. Most of the time due to lack of care or improper Installation I went with the PSS very simple design can run slow with out water injection. But every 7 years you want to change the bellows like they TELL you too

If you do go with water cooled units, have them run two "T"s in the system so that the shafts are cooled when an engine isn't running. I burned one out running with one engine, not thinking about the cooling coming from the water pump (yes, the transmissions are rated to freewheel for awhile).