Wednesday, August 18, 2021

Marienwerder

We decided to stay in Marienwerder until the engine was properly fixed, instead of trying to limp forward bleeding the injectors constantly. The risk of getting in trouble or stranded was just too high. And Marienwerder was still reachable by a mechanic. Since the newly-installed fuel hose was of wrong diameter, we ordered correctly sized hose and clamps from a local car repair shop. These were promptly delivered to the marina and installed. With some consultation with the mechanic, we tried a few things. Bypassing the primary fuel filter, etc. But always the motor would sputter after the first 1-1.5h. Neighboring motorboater was complaining loudly about the engine noise. The irony! Finally we tried bypassing the fuel tank, running both the diesel intake and the return to a canister. Now the engine ran without issues. Interesting! At this stage we filled the tank with a borrowed jerrycan from the marina. There was a fuel dock, but we decided against maneuvering there due to the high wind and narrow marina. The next day our mechanic arrived. After various other things we tried, it was determined that the issue was with the diesel return line. The fuel inlet pipe used for that in the tank was blocked, which meant a pressure build-up over time in the return system, eventually causing air to leak into the fuel system. After installing a new return inlet, everything was fine. Of course it would still take days to rebuild the trust in the engine…

• Engine hours: 5