Hot water leak...

[MinnesotaNautique]

Johnsongc and company...

The input is greatly appreciated.

[Rick]

There will be some pressure albeit slight from the block drain. The water will take the path of least resistance which in your case will be out the leaky core. 2 valves will prevent that. You could also take a piece of hose and loop it between the inlet and outlet of the enine as an inexpensive way to stop the flow until you replace the core. I beleive it's 5/8 radoitor hose available at any auto parts store.

[EchoLodge]

Shut off valves are easy to install and nice to have when a problem occurs! I have them on my shower and heater.

[ag4ever]

OK, so some of y'all have your heaters set up a little different than me. I have mine tied into the intake for the supply water, and then tied into the water pump as the return. I am not sure, but if I had a leak, I think when I throw my valve it would cause the leak to at least slow down, but with the water pump creating a vacume, it might even stop the leak, but cause some cavitation in the water pump. Just a possibility.

[EchoLodge]

Valves

Simple.... You put one on both ends!

[Dr.John]

This is what I used on my '01 GT40:
2 - 1/2" ball valves
4 - 1/2" X 5/8" barbed nipples
1 - 1/2" close nipple
1 - 1/2" T
1 - 1/2" X 1/4" bushing
1 - 1/4" plug
4 - hose clamps
Total about $15 - $20 and 15 minutes installation time.

I put the "T" in to allow an air fitting to blow out the lines and heater core. (Really you can blow hard enough with your mouth to evacuate the water in the lines). It also allows you to add antifreeze if you want extra protection (another reason to use two valves, is that you can trap the antifreeze)
Should be standard equipment on all heater equiped boats(hello CC), imho!
Hope this helps! :lol:

[SWCC-PART-MAN]

just to let you guys know why most of you are having this"hot water at the drivers feat" problem. when you lay up for the winter you must drain the heater core (the peice thats leaking the hot water). the quick way to do it is to look in the engine bay and find the red hot water hoses 5/8" i.d. then remove both ends and blow (with your mouth will work but compressed air is easier) until there is no more water coming from the other red hose. then pour in about a quart of pink antifreeze and LIGHTLY blow till you think the antifreeze is in the heater core.

[SGY]

There is a good posting on malibuboatowners.com regarding this issue. Check under the maintenance thread and look for a topic on winterizing the heater and shower. I guy over there is using quick disconnects. This looks alot easier than pulling the hose off of the barbed end.

[SWCC-PART-MAN]

the only thing with quick-disconnects is they too can leak....but leak air in or let water leak out depending on where they are in the system. i dont know if you've ever had an o-ring go bad in your water seperater but air leaking INTO a cooling system can cause problems too. in the end it could chop your cooling efficency lets just say 70% water and 30% air instead of 100% water. malibu has used those fittings for some time now and i personally have replaced a few of them. if your wanting the best of both worlds add a couple of valves (DONT USE PLASTIC) to shut off in the summer and crack them open in the fall. BE SURE TO DRAIN YOUR HEATER CORE!! it could freeze along with your block!

[SGY]

I have brass valves on both of my lines for the heater. Both valves have drains. I use air to push the water out.

Someone needs to come up with a quick drain for the block and accessories. I would love if I could push a button and all the water in my system gets sent through the bilge pump. You'd think someone would come up with this using a vacuum or air pressure.

Necessity is not the mother of invention, laziness is. And, I'm lazy.

[Dr.John]

Necessity is not the mother of invention, laziness is. And, I'm lazy.

Well put! I certainly can identify with that also!

[SWCC-PART-MAN]

i hear you on the lazy factor. but the thing is there is so much that is already crammed in the engine bay as it is now. with that being said...lets say you have a 210,211 or 226. from a technictions stand point and your wallets also, have you ever had to adjust the shaft packing or replaced the impeller in a boat with ballast tanks? its almost next to pulling teeth to me. so if we had the creature feature to push a button and the boat be detailed or waxed or drained the cost of the initial price of the boat would be driven up along with labor times to perform simple tasks that lie behind all of the new "inventions". its a darn good thought though.

[ag4ever]

I have a SANTE, so I can identify with the changing the impeller, and draining the block.

Hence the reason we want to push a button to do the tedious work.