Boat explosion in Connelley

Pete, you are a bit presumptuous here. Have you ever looked under the hood of an old idling car with old ignition wires at night on a hot humid evening? I'd be willing to bet the alternators were low on the list of sources of ignition.
The points in the distributor, or the loose wire on the coil, or the starter motor, or the spark plug wires, or a hot exhaust manifold would seem to be more likely causes. Perhaps a regulator relay on the alternator did the deed if there is such a thing, but there are so many other sources of ignition. Given that, I'd rather wonder about the source of the vapors. That's something that is probably more paramount in the discussion since we cannot guarantee there will not be any ignition.
But, I do agree that redesign to keep vapors in check is a good thing.
 
i hate to see conclusions being drawn based on sound bites quoted in a rag...

bottom line, gas powered boats are VERY safe and will not explode if take minimal precautions like not using automotive parts, using the bilge blowers, AND MOST IMPORTNANTLY IF YOU HAVE A DAMN FUME DETECTOR !!!

$100 is all is would have taken to save this family from this tragedy.

if you are running a gas boat without a fume detector, your are irresponsible.

inspecting parts like fuel hoses is critical too... 5, 7 years... REPLACE !

as to whether or not an empty gas tank is more dangerous, it's really irrelevant since the fumes are in the tank, not escaping into the bilge.. unless you have old rotten fuel filler, vent and fuel hoses.

it's also a very good idea to make sure your ER bilge is sealed from the cabin bilge along with any openings for hoses, etc...

this is tragic, but fortunately it takes very little time and $ to make sure it doens't happen to you.
 
FIRST SAFETY RULE:

VENTERLATORS TO BE OPERATED BELOW CRUSING SPEEDS
AND BEFORE START UP 3-4 MIN. EVEN THEN, USE YOUR NOSE.

We all wish the family our very best.
 
obviously but if you develop a leak while underway, even the blowers may not be enough to clear all the fumes before they go kaboom
 
newyawk speak for ventilator? you know.. like in boston they dont' got to wor-ches-ter, they go to wushter ? :-)
 
Where are the long island cruisers when you need them...
 
I dunno, Dan, they are mysteriously quiet lately - I think something happened to them.
 
My guess would be a bad vent line coming from one of the tanks was the problem. As far as the ignition that caused the spark, like Dan said, it could have come from just about any of the systems down in the bilge area. I see problems all the time with old fuel and vent lines on older boats. PascalG made a good point about replacing them after so many years of use. I still have to wonder about when the last time this vessel was surveyed and what the recommendations to the owner where. There are a good number of old boats up in the Roundout Creek area. I hope this was a wake up call for who ever owns one up that way.
 
i wonder how they even got insurance on that boat without a survey ? most marinas require proof of insurance, especially i woudl guess for a wooden boat.

there may be a surveyor out there who is loosing sleep these days.

marine fuel hose is what... $2 to $3 a foot ? 10 max per engine on a small boat ? fuel filler hose is more of course but the runs are short. Well worth replacing every 5 to 10 years and inspect regularly.

Al, how many gas boats do you see that don't have fume detectors ? I know they're not 100% reliable but they can make a big difference
 
There didn't have to be anything wrong with the fuel hoses for that boat to explode. If the captain flooded the engine trying to restart it there would have been plenty of vapors down there. But of course they needed a readily available spark...

I don't know why you guys are so quick to dismiss the alternators as a potential ignition source, especially if it turns out they were automotive ones. That is a tremendous no-no on a boat. And they were located in the perfect spot, down low on the engine (lower than the plugs) and near the front of the engine room. By all accounts the explosion had to happen somewhere in that vicinity...

Sure, bad wires and all that could be causes too, but again the coil is on TOP of the engine and the fumes usually collect near the bottom...

As for hot exhaust manifolds, I do not believe that to be a common ignition source. Otherwise boats would be blowing up all the time...

IMHO fume detectors are great AS LONG AS THEY ARE WORKING. Too often the sensors get damaged by somebody's foot in the bilge and the light on the bridge merrily glows green anyway. For my money the best detector is one's nose. Use it often and don't be embarrassed by it...

As for operating the blower below cruising speeds, it may be a good idea but its not a requirement. Remember bilge blowers themselves were not even required on boats when that Chris-Craft was built. No, something caused a lot of fumes down there, and something else caused a spark...

BTW boats don't just automatically blow up just because there's a fire in the bilge. I found that out personally about a dozen years ago. Perhaps when there's time I can share THAT story!!!
 
Pascal, You would be suprised how many boats don't have fume detectors. Most smaller vessels don't have them and about 50 percent of the larger boats don't have them. I belive all larger vessels should have them. To include high water alarms also.

Pete, I agree, good chance the alternators caused the ignition of the fuel vapors like you say. It would take a lot of cranking of one engine to get that much vapor in the bilge. You would have thought the owner would taken a look before that much vapor was able to build up. ABYC standards require 1 blower per engine to include a generator if theres one on-board. I have seen to many of these old boats with bad vent lines. In many cases the owner never knows theres a problem with them. Out of sight out of mind. I too agree with the nose being a good test. But as you know on a bridge boat your up high and vapors ride low.
 
Pete, I am not dismissing the alternators. I'm merely pointing out that there are plenty of sources of ignition and that the more important concern is the source of the vapors.
Agreed! The nose knows!
 
Pete I would like to hear that story when you have time. Just start a new thread for it.... Any word on the recovery of the family?.....
 
Haven't heard anything new - will have to check...

I'll be happy to do a thread on my mishap when I get a chance!!!

Al, did I read that standard right - 1 blower PER engine?????? When did that go into effect? Any boat I've ever owned has only one bilge blower whether it had one or two engines. Of course the newest boat I own is 27 years old. Can you please elaborate? What would be the correct setup (cfm of blowers, diameter hose, number of blowers) for my boat if it were built today???
 
Pete, thats right, one blower per engine. Ill look up the standard as soon as i get a chance. Ive been very busy with surveys. seems like we have a surge in the market for used boats right now.
 
Those would be old wooden boats right Al? :D

By the way, our marina like others, requires insurance be carried by the boat owner. That may be a liability policy only although I don't know if the requirement is met by that aspect.
 
Huh, boy. Sounds like there are a lot of below-par boats out there, mine included :( ...

Boat owners should carry insurance (at least liability) whether or not the marina requires it. Its too dangerous to be without it...

Lots of used boats selling, Al??? Sounds about right. We've had a flood of people coming out of the woodwork looking for them. Of course right now I'm nearly out of good used boats because people bought them in the spring, so most of what's left is a lot less desirable. Why the Hell do people wait so long???
 
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