Hello. I’m new to the forum and I have recently purchased a 2000 Carver 350 Mariner which my wife and I love!
We started boating about three years ago with a 32ft express cruiser.
We’re in lake Simcoe and look forward to boating through the Trent Severn waterway and area.
Just wanted to say hello and if anyone has any advice I would be glad hear from you.
Cheers!

Does anytone know how to install new bilge blower hoses to the side vents of a 1996 Carver Santego 380? They are extremely difficult to access?

Came across this and thought it could interest some. This is not a small portable at 84lb but non the less manageable, the reviews are good and the price is really great. Kinda big for boat use but no bigger or heavier than any other 3000w unit out there. Anyone with an RV or wanting a good sized unit for home, this is really a great buy. Costco Canada has this on sale right now and we all know how great the Costco warranty is. @ $600 for a 3000, watt inverter based unit it really is a steal. https://www.costco.ca/Firman-W03081-3%2 ... 98808.html

Hi,
We are first year with the Carver mariner and seeking some advice on where the drain plugs go on the Crusader 5.7 mpi engine. There are six in total and i am attaching a picture of 3. Particularly interesting is the one with a hole in it. Just want to make sure not to use it at incorrect drain plug location and block any water flows.

Much appreciated.

I have an older (1983) 3607 and it didn't come with any heat or AC (or genset!). I've been toying with putting one (or two or three) units in. A couple years ago I adapted a portable to put in the salon to keep the dog cool when we're away from the boat and to give us a little heat early and late in the season. It works great but now I'm thinking of doing something more permanent.

I'd like to see any pics you have of your AC installations... where hoses route, how the units sit in their cabinets, etc. Anything you can provide could be helpful. I know where the units go (v-berth, salon and port side of aft cabin) but looking for how the duct plumbing was done, how the units sit (which way they face) and where the ducting splits and exits. The boat came with many pre-cut holes in the bulkheads and various compartments, but i'm not sure if all were done or if I'll need to cut a few more. I think I'll have to cut a couple to go from the salon unit to the salon registers.

If I do this, I'll also probably add a second 30A inlet and main panel for that. I'm exploring options on doing that too.

Grafunkus went in this week!!! Yeah!!! Turned on the generator, because we had it tuned up over the winter, and the ac unit (to create load for the generator) Noticed that there was no water discharge. Fan was blowing. Not that I was worried about actually turning the air conditioning on, there was frost on the docks on Sunday morning. Just wondering, is there a pump that has maybe blown???? Is it an issue if I run the unit without water pumping through it to either cool or heat? Where might the pump be if I have to find it. We have a 1982 33ft Carver 3396 Mariner.

Well, our boat went in this week!!! Yeah!!! engines didn't start, boo!!!! I was, however able to cut, stitch and finish the exterior window coverings for Grafunkus. This is intended as a "temporary" fix to help keep the rain out. We have noticed in the couple of years that we have owned the boat that during a heavy rain it rains inside generally at one point from the window. These coverings will hopefully slow any rain penetration and keep us dry on the inside!!

The oil pans seem to be mirror image (same from one side to the other), with a small boss on both sides of the pan, near the bottom. These bosses seem to be where the factory installs the dipstick tube (both of my dipsticks are in the middle of the boat). Is the boss opposite the dipstick tube the drain plug? It has approximately a 1/8" allen head bolt in it, but it looks like there's some welding around it, or epoxy. I can't tell if the weld/epoxy extends to the bolt or not. It's also painted shut.

Didn't know if I could unscrew the allen head screw to drain anything that may be left after using an evac pump, or if the factory somehow seals that hole with an allen head and permanent thread sealer, or a tack weld.

I need to replace the black plastic door latch on electrical cabinet. It has a built in light that comes on when door is opened. I have looked at Great Lake S. but no luck. Any suggestions?

This year I am replacing my garboard drain plug. Why? My own fault, and the story might help prevent someone else from doing it.

The plug is located between the engine and the batteries and with the engine hatch open, it looks easy to get at… but it’s not. One has to reach way down, with arm straight out and try to turn it. Not much leverage that way.

Now installing it isn’t too bad. It only needs to be firmly snugged down. A little grease on it helps keep it water-tight and prevents corrosion from jamming the two together.

Nonetheless, the plug seems to get firmly stuck over the season (maybe from vibration?) and is very difficult to remove by hand.

After going through this for many years (using various tools that kept slipping and falling into the bilge) I decided to make a tool. Being experimental, I didn’t get very fancy and used an old tent pole, some threaded rod, a bit of copper tubing and some nuts. It’s really just an extension made to fit the plug. And “Hey!”, it worked! It removed the plug easily.



The next Spring, I made an error. Due to the ease of use, I used the tool to tighten the plug. I thought I did it gently, but perhaps not as in the Fall, it was very difficult to get out. So difficult in fact, I could feel the plug starting to experience a torsional failure. So I stopped, and had to remove the batteries (a good idea anyway for winter storage) and use an open-ended wrench on the square part of the plug. A very awkward thing to do, but I got it out.

The lesson is if I want to use the tool to tighten the plug, use it very, very gently to try to obtain the same torque as if doing it without the tool.

In the picture below, the old plug is on the right with the new one on the left. Notice the longer, more spindly neck on the old one. The new one looks tougher so that ought to be a good thing.



The old one was bent slightly when I bought the boat, but never had the spiral twist to it (hard to see in the picture) that it does now.

So… a long winded and not very interesting story, but it might help someone… someday.