CS34 Technical Issues

Mechanical problems and breakdowns are part of any boat-owner's experience. In my case, I generally enjoy performing routine maintenance and other mechanical and electrical upgrades. It's part of the fun of boat ownership. After a long day of working on abstract computer software design, implementation and debugging, there is something fun about getting your hands dirty and seeing direct, immediate results in the physical world.

This page relates some of the unexpected problems that I have run into with my boat. It also describes some modifications I've made that have improved the operation and/or enjoyment of the boat. Hopefully these experiences will be of some help or interest to other boat owners.

Problems and Solutions

  1. Freshwater Plumbing Problems (Quest Tubing)
  2. Electrical - Starting Problems
  3. Electrical - Starting Panel Cable Harness
  4. CS Support Links
  5. Broken Filter Support on M3-20
  6. Cracked Stainless Prop Shaft Strut

Equipment Installations

  1. Installation of Anchor Windlass
  2. Inboard Autopilot
  3. Refrigeration
  4. Access Hatches

Freshwater Plumbing Problems (Quest Tubing)

Problem:
While resting at anchor in Desolation Sound, my fiancée Linda urgently called me below decks. She reported that the freshwater pump sounded wrong when she turned it on. Indeed, the water pump ran continuously, and the sound of rushing water was heard coming from under the sink in the head. Fortunately, Linda's acute hearing had saved us from pumping all of our freshwater into the bilge.
Upon returning home, a second fitting broke (this time in the galley) while the system was pressurized. Fortunately, once again someone was nearby who heard the sudden gush of water, and shut off the pump. [Sounds like we're right at the MTTF for over-torqued fittings.]
Diagnosis and Jury-Rig:
Looking under the head sink, I found that the back of the supply-line compression fitting appeared to have 'blown off'. [see photo] The plastic fitting had simply failed catastrophically. Besides the tank-source valves, the CS34 does not have any shut-off valves to isolate the various branches of the supply system [head, galley, water-heater). Without a spare, or some way to cap it seemed that we would be without pressure-water for a while.
The solution seemed to be simple - scavenge a compression fitting from the non-pressurized tank-vent line. However, I was amazed to find that the compression on the (unpressurized) vent line had failed in the same manner!
Research and Analysis:
Clearly it was not the water-pressure that had caused the failure of the fitting. Upon my return to Seattle, I found out that this problem is typical of Quest fittings that have been over-torqued. The stress on the fitting causes it to fail catastrophically. It was thought not to be a problem with the material or batch of fittings. It probably isn't worth completely replumbing the system - if properly installed, the Quest tubing should perform well. (At least that's the advice I've obtained from the local 'gurus') Apparently, it is vital that the fittings be tightened just enough to make a seal - preferably hand-tightened.
 
Solution:
  1. Remove all existing (and hence suspect) compression fittings, and replace them with new (unstressed) ones at the proper torque.
  2. Carry a few spares (they are small and light)
  3. Add a manual-pump faucet as a back-up. [I'll get to this someday]
  4. Assess whether branch-shut-off valves would be useful.
  5. While I'm at it I'll probably install a compression-tank to smooth out the flow and ease the burden on the water pump.
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Electrical - Starting Problems

Problem:
The Universal M3-20 has always been a little reluctant to start. When the start-button was pressed, the starter would not instantly engage. The engine would always eventually start, but you were never quite shure just when.
 
Diagnosis:
1. Grounding Location
When the boat was delivered, CS had connected the main ground line to the Universal M3-20 engine near the aft-port engine mount. Unfortunately, CS had not removed the paint in the vicinity of the hole, so the electrical contact was marginal at best. When some coolant or condensation caused a bit of corrosion, the resistance in the ground path for the starter and glow plugs caused too much of a voltage drop to properly energize the starter motor.
 
2. Voltage drop caused by long harness run between starter and starter panel
The electrical path during starting goes from the battery, out to the starter panel, then back to the glow plugs, back to the starter panel, and then back to the starter. This long cable-run
introduces a voltage drop that provides a marginal voltage level at the starter itself.
 
Solution:
Cleaning and maintaining the grounding location resulted in more reliable starting, but was not the total answer. The voltage drop introduced by the long, high-load circuit was still causing uncertainty/unreliablility in the actuation of the starter. To solve this problem, I installed a marine-grade relay, so that the current does not need to travel all the way to the cockpit twice in order to heat the glow plugs, or crank the starter. This engine now turns over like a dream every time the glow and starter are pressed.
There may yet be an alternate location for the main ground connection on the bell housing which is easier to service, but I haven't felt the need to make this change.
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Electrical - Starting Panel & Cable Harness

Melt-down Incident [we were lucky, it could have been a fire]:
On delivery from CS, the cable-harness from the engine to the starter-panel in the cockpit had been improperly secured. [drawing] A year of vibration later, this allowed the harness to slip eventually out of the cable-tie, and fall onto the heat exchanger. This resulted in melted insulation, and a short-circuit through the harness. Further, there was no fuse installed in the circuit as recommended in the Universal manual. This resulted in a high current flow through the cable harness until the 18 gauge wire finally burned through. By this time, the harness was a melted shorted mess.
Solution(s):
Temporary repairs were made by separating and re-insulating the wires at various problem spots along the length of the cable harness.
Final repairs required installation of a brand new cable harness. This time it was properly routed, secured and fused. Unfortunately, CS had 'ceased operations' due to the great Canadian recession, so there was no one to go after for warranty coverage.
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CS Support Links

CS Owners' Association
CSOA Listserve and Archive
CS Yachts is back in production
CS parts:
   Holland Marine Products
   416-762-3821   fax: 416-762-4458
   orderdesk@hollandmarine.com
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Failed Filter Support on Universal M3-20

Problem
When I was performing my morning check the oil & engine ritual, I detected the smell of diesel and discovered that the fuel filter mounted on the starboard-aft corner of the M3-20 was hanging by its hoses, and had been vibrating against the engine housing.  This had resulted in a small hole in the filter-housing that was just beginning to leak into the engine sump. 
Solution:
I installed a spare filter element, and supported the filter away from the engine with boat tape.   I obtained a new bracket (with a different design) from Wilson Marine in Seattle.
 
Analysis:
The corner of the plate that secured the filter mounting bracket to the engine had cracked off, and although the bracket was designed to be held by two bolts, only one had been installed, allowing the assembly to move, resulting in the filter contacting the engine housing.
       
Recently, I came across the following Westerbeke/Universal service bulletin describing the problem. 
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Cracked Strut

Problem
After hauling for routine bottom-painting, the boaryard discovered a large crack in the prop shaft strut.  It only became visible when a small barnacle on the weld-line was removed and it took some paint with it, revealing part of the crack.. 
  
Solution:
Holland Marine Products in Toronto was able to supply a replacement strut (item number "CS44") which arrived in a couple of days, and was an exact fit.
First, we removed the prop.  The fairing material around the base of the strut was removed to expose the mounting plate and bolt heads.  Inside the boat, there was good access to the 6 bolts securing the strut to the hull aft of the holding tank.  Once the fairing was removed and the bolts were loosened, the strut came free of the hull quite cleanly.  The old strut then simply slid off the shaft so we did not need to pull the shaft.
Analysis:
The crack was several mm away from the edge of the weld.  There is a chip or defect in the middle of the tube near the weld above the set-screw that appears to have original bottom paint in it.  Perhaps this defect had always been present, covered with bottom paint, and was the starting point for the crack.
It is also interesting to note that this crack is on the 'down-spin' side of the normal right-hand prop rotation.
Implementation:
Here are some photos of the finished installation.
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Copyright © 1996-2000  David Cornfield.  All rights reserved.
Revised: August 20, 2001.