Before returning home for Xmas it's time to change the engine oil, oil filter, antifreeze, clean out the heat exchanger tube stack and replace the anode. All routine but I must confess that last year I didn't clean out the tube stack......something I won't do again!





As you can see from the pictures there was a significant amount of salt build up which blocked something like 50% of the tube stack. Whilst we haven't experienced any cooling problems to date I don't believe it would have been long before we would have, with perhaps serious consequences.

Removing the salt was pretty straightforward but rather time consuming using copious amounts of boiling water and careful use of a small screwdriver and wooden BBQ sticks which just nicely passed through each of the tubes without causing any damage. Finally the end caps were soaked in white vinegar to remove the final traces of any salt.





Reassembly was straightforward with new washers and then a quick test for leaks with fresh water before final draining and filling with new antifreeze.

....so my advice to any sailors who have an engine that has a heat exchanger, make sure you check/clean it at the recommended service intervals!