Niall Parker
New member
Hello,
I've been trying to sort out an overheating problem with a Westerbeke 4-91 (25 Hp diesel inboard, 1975) and after moving from raw water side (replaced impeller, flushed hoses etc) into the fresh water side I drained the heat exchanger and had it cleaned and tested, then pulled the fresh water pump and thermostat. At the thermostat housing I discovered a wire (solid steel, looks like an old coat hanger) rattling around under the thermostat. It had been in there at least 18 years and > 1000 engine hours but didn't look like it belonged so I tried pulling it out, the other end is stuck pretty good and all I managed was to break off about 10 mm of it.
I brought my borescope webcam to the boat today to see if I could find out more, unfortunately the camera head is a bit fat to go in very far but I did get a glimpse of a couple more wires in deeper. I've uploaded a couple photos, in one you can see my finger pushing the original wire to one side, the other is a clearer shot of all three.
Can anyone think of a valid reason why these wires might belong inside the cooling passages of the head ? I've been quoted $4.5K+ to have a head job done, doesn't seem worth it on an almost 40 year old engine (though other than this latest overheating it has been pretty good).
Any thoughts appreciated, thanks.
... Niall
I've been trying to sort out an overheating problem with a Westerbeke 4-91 (25 Hp diesel inboard, 1975) and after moving from raw water side (replaced impeller, flushed hoses etc) into the fresh water side I drained the heat exchanger and had it cleaned and tested, then pulled the fresh water pump and thermostat. At the thermostat housing I discovered a wire (solid steel, looks like an old coat hanger) rattling around under the thermostat. It had been in there at least 18 years and > 1000 engine hours but didn't look like it belonged so I tried pulling it out, the other end is stuck pretty good and all I managed was to break off about 10 mm of it.
I brought my borescope webcam to the boat today to see if I could find out more, unfortunately the camera head is a bit fat to go in very far but I did get a glimpse of a couple more wires in deeper. I've uploaded a couple photos, in one you can see my finger pushing the original wire to one side, the other is a clearer shot of all three.
Can anyone think of a valid reason why these wires might belong inside the cooling passages of the head ? I've been quoted $4.5K+ to have a head job done, doesn't seem worth it on an almost 40 year old engine (though other than this latest overheating it has been pretty good).
Any thoughts appreciated, thanks.
... Niall