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1.Heater box leaking hot water/ 2. hole shot-changed


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I'm new to the site and the proud owner of an 04 'Bu. This is my 1st boat, so I've already spent countless hours reading helpful advise from everyone. I'd appreciate any help you can provide with 2 issues I noticed this weekend.

1. My boats equipped with a heater, which started leaking hot water from the grey heater box under the passenger side storage when the engine was running. Water also dripped out of the heater vents where you would expect hot air. Could this be a bad heater coil? Or could the seals on the box have gone bad? Any ideas? Since I don't really need it where i live, Can you just bypass the heater if it's a big expense?

2. The hole shot on my boat was great the first 6 weeks, until after I had my ACME 537 prop repaired. The prop shop repaired it back to factory specs ( 16 pitch ). I'm not sure if the prop had been altered to a different pitch by the previous owner and that's the difference or if something else is causing the problem. Would a 15 pitch make a big difference? Could it be a spark plug? or that not all the piston's are firing? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

They also sold me a back up ACME 537 prop, I read where some of you like the ACME 1235. Would it make sense to have that instead of 2 - ACME 537's.

Thanks for your help!

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Sounds like your heater core is leaking. This often happens if the heater is not winterized by blowing air through the heater hoses from the engine to get the water out. Or, it could be just something loose in the heater core. You should be able to plug the holes on the engine if you don't need the heater. If you want to replace the core, contact Heatercraft. They can also tell you the size plug you'd need to plug the holes.

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Welcome.gif

Yep, your heater core is leaking. Probably only cost you $100 or so for a replacement direct from Heatercraft - really great company, BTW. Not sure where you are located, but if you ever have those chilly morning ski runs, the heater is worth its weight in gold.

As for disconnecting it, one option you might consider is to install garden hose fittings (5/8" barb) in both the feed and return hoses (near the engine end of the hoses), then put a standard garden hose shutoff valve at each fitting. This way the water flow to the heater can be shut off, which eliminates the problem of hot water pouring out on your feet. And it leaves the whole thing installed if you ever decide to get it repaired. Easy fix, takes like 10 minutes and costs less than $10.

Here's a link with some pics that might help. Not exactly the same, but it gives you the idea.

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Could this be a bad heater coil? Or could the seals on the box have gone bad? Any ideas? Since I don't really need it where i live, Can you just bypass the heater if it's a big expense?

You mean heater 'core.' And yes, that could well be the issue. You can bypass by disconnecting the hoses from the back of the housing and using a simple garden hose repair crimp fitting (5/8).

As for the prop, once repaired it is no longer perfect. You should expect a performance drop. Keep it as a spare and get the 1235. Why have two props that are the same? Unless the original was optimal performance for your application.

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Sounds like your heater core is leaking. This often happens if the heater is not winterized by blowing air through the heater hoses from the engine to get the water out. Or, it could be just something loose in the heater core. You should be able to plug the holes on the engine if you don't need the heater. If you want to replace the core, contact Heatercraft. They can also tell you the size plug you'd need to plug the holes.

Thanks for the link to heatercraft. I spoke with them this morning and it is the heater core that's leaking. They are going to replace under warranty. Sounds pretty easy to reinstall.

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Thanks for the link to heatercraft. I spoke with them this morning and it is the heater core that's leaking. They are going to replace under warranty. Sounds pretty easy to reinstall.

Like I said, they are a great company. They really stand behind their product. They replaced mine under warranty earlier this year, even though it was beyond their 2 year stated warranty (mine's an '03). If I had been paying more attention and caught that you had an '04, I would have told you that right off. Glad you got it taken care of!

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our heater core leaked. local radiator first tired repairing it but it leaked after a while. So under their warranty they made a whole new replacement. Apparently easier as original cores ends are difficult to solder well because of the way they overlap

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a quick fix at the lake for a leaky core is to remove the pipes from the heater box and join them together using a tube socket from your tool box :-)

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a quick fix at the lake for a leaky core is to remove the pipes from the heater box and join them together using a tube socket from your tool box :-)

Or you can plug the hoses with a AA battery. ( I had to this during a trip last week.)

BTW, for those that are well beyond the warranty period, Skidim lists the cores for a few bucks less than purchasing from Heatercraft plus you can get an additional 10% off using the promotional code "MALIBU". Skidim called me after I placed my order on-line to tell me that the core would be drop shipped directly from Heatercraft, so there doesn't seem to be much incentive to buy from Heatercraft.

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our heater core leaked. local radiator first tired repairing it but it leaked after a while. So under their warranty they made a whole new replacement. Apparently easier as original cores ends are difficult to solder well because of the way they overlap

yeah, same thing happened to me when i got the my second core from heatercraft repaired at a local shop. Unless someone can testify otherwise, I don't think the heatercraft cores last any longer than one from an auto parts store. The water here is pretty nasty - even with shutoff valves and blowing them out, I've had problems with the life of the core.

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Thanks for the link to heatercraft. I spoke with them this morning and it is the heater core that's leaking. They are going to replace under warranty. Sounds pretty easy to reinstall.

Like I said, they are a great company. They really stand behind their product. They replaced mine under warranty earlier this year, even though it was beyond their 2 year stated warranty (mine's an '03). If I had been paying more attention and caught that you had an '04, I would have told you that right off. Glad you got it taken care of!

Did you reinstall yours or have the dealer install it? He made it sound very easy to do.

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Thanks for the link to heatercraft. I spoke with them this morning and it is the heater core that's leaking. They are going to replace under warranty. Sounds pretty easy to reinstall.

Like I said, they are a great company. They really stand behind their product. They replaced mine under warranty earlier this year, even though it was beyond their 2 year stated warranty (mine's an '03). If I had been paying more attention and caught that you had an '04, I would have told you that right off. Glad you got it taken care of!

Did you reinstall yours or have the dealer install it? He made it sound very easy to do.

I did it and I'm not very handy....it is pretty easy.

if you don't have the unit out already: you just need to remove the hoses. in my case, I needed to cut the wires to the blower to get the unit out completely. (I changed the connections after that to make it easier to remove in the future). unscrew the entire unit from the wall under the driver seat.

once you get the unit out, there just a set of screws to open it up and get the core out. the core should slide ride out, and then you can put the new one in. hardest part is you are working under the dash and getting the screws to catch through the carpet can be a pita.

I also installed shutoff valves to/from the heater, all the quick connect hose suggestion earlier in the thread is a better way to go.

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