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phorvati · 26-11-2019, 08:06

I have a pin hole leak in heat exchanger which i temporarily patched with epoxy and guerilla tape. It held for about 35H of engine runtime and got us from little creek, around Hatteras and to Myrtle Beach Yacht club.
I am leaving the boat here for a month and I went back to work in Rhode island. Before leaving the boat, I took the heat exchanger off to find out that direct replacement does not exist.
Unfortunately my Ford lehamn 2722E is not SP90. Its NE90 which has a weird side mount with a custom welded bracket onto the body of the heat exchanger.
So now I am leaning towards getting a new SP90 heat exchanger but looks like I need to fabricate stuff. Hard to do when you are not there. and if I fly down for the weekend i better have everything ready to install.
is there a good place to order clamping brackets and kits for heat exchangers?
The one I have is 4" (outter diameter 4-1/8") by about 15". has 1-3/4 Fresh water ports and 1" raw water ports. But because the location of ports so far i have not been able to find one that will have ports line up ok without interfering.

Or I use a local welding shop to patch the leak and hope unit lasts until i return back to Rhode island in May. and when i'm close to home i can work on it. i got a recommendation for a local shop that could fix it.

rbk · 26-11-2019, 08:23

Is there room to mount an off the shelf HX on a bulkhead nearby? Hose is cheap, fabricating not so much.

phorvati · 26-11-2019, 08:55

yes there is a lot of room for that.

And it would make things easier to service. like oil filter and lift pump were nearly impossible to get at.

Michael Carroll · 26-11-2019, 08:57

I have sucessfully had my heat exchanger repaired several times at a regular radiator shop.

Cheechako · 26-11-2019, 09:10

Yes, try a radiator shop if you can find one any more. I learned on a Yanmar Heat exchanger while in Trinidad that epoxy is not good with heat like hot water. Lasted an hour. Took it off and got the aluminum exchanger welded. A bit messy but it held.

That one looks like copper (?) so it should be an easy permanent fix. The cast aluminum was not!

Also looks like one of those universal heat exchangers, they are often available new , but old in Used boat parts places if there are any big ones around you.

I have a sturdy SS clamp/support bracket out there that is unused, but old. I can check and see if it's 4" if you want and get a pic. Let me know.

rbk · 26-11-2019, 09:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by phorvati

yes there is a lot of room for that.

And it would make things easier to service. like oil filter and lift pump were nearly impossible to get at.

Pick up any old appropriately sized hx and mount it in a convenient location (not too far from stock) as long as the location allows all hoses to be run without issue. The engine won’t care if it’s not stock. Hope that works out for you. If you’re hating your oil filter location you can always look at doing the same for that’s well. There are many kits for various engines or you may have to fabricate a few pieces to make it work but mig be worth it? Good luck

**JPA Cate** · 26-11-2019, 13:27

Hi, phorvati,

I'd be tempted to have it welded or soldered up for the trip home. Then make the modification and put it on the bulkhead to get it out of the way, at your leisure, and I wouldn't take it to a radiator shop at this time. They are likely to want to give it an acid bath, and you may well wind up with more holes (this happened to us). It's just easier all 'round if you are free to fix it for good where you know how to access *stuff.*

Ann

Stu Jackson · 26-11-2019, 14:32

You could also try Sendure, they make all sorts of different HXs.

Heat Exchangers 101: Sources for replacement Good Guys at Sendure

http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,6920.0.html

Lepke · 26-11-2019, 23:25

This link list a number of Lehman replacement heat exchangers:
http://catalog.orcamarine.com/keywor...orcamarine.com

phorvati · 27-11-2019, 06:49

Thank you guys. Yes it is copper nickle or whatever its called. So I opted for epoxy fix because that section of heat exchanger is right near raw water pump outlet and stays very cool to the touch while engine is running. i can always hold my hand there. that's probably why it held for 30+ hours.
I'm leaning towards a weld repair and really doing it right with new bulkhead mount HX once I get back home. But that is 6+ months and 1000+miles away. Im headed to Saint Augustine for the winter. Then back to RI in May. So I have another Hatteras in between. My instinct wants to just spec out another HX with same hoses. I can get Coolant hoses at NAPA or Autozone. And I have plenty of trident marine raw water hoses. My oil cooler is raw water and sits between raw water pump and inlet to HX.

Below is a pic of a leak as i discovered it. That hole side of HX feels very thin. so i think repair needs to have a full end-cap re-welded. looks like that was done previously as I see silver solder traces along the edge of the rim.

CaptainJohn49 · 27-11-2019, 09:08

I use JB Weld for everything. Works for plumbing and marine. After 24 hour cure JB Weld has 3960 psi strength and can withstand temperatures up to 550 F . If I were in your position that's what I'd try. If you can apply this to the inside of the HX that would be best.
There are also pipe repair clamps for pressure side pipes. These have stainless clamps and a rubber mat that work on hot water pipes to stop high pressure leaks. Very common in the plumbing trade and available in hardware stores like Ace or Best.
Welding involves heating one area and may cause problems in another area later. Most welding shops will make a mess of it and induce stress in the heat exchanger. I'd avoid all but the most experienced fabrication welders.

Gook luck.
CaptainJohn49

Cheechako · 27-11-2019, 09:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by CaptainJohn49

I use JB Weld for everything. Works for plumbing and marine. After 24 hour cure JB Weld has 3960 psi strength and can withstand temperatures up to 550 F . If I were in your position that's what I'd try. If you can apply this to the inside of the HX that would be best.

Heating one area may cause problems in another area later. Most welding shops will make a mess of it and induce stress in the heat exchanger.

There are also pipe repair clamps for pressure side pipes. These have stainless clamps and a rubber mat that work on hot water pipes to stop high pressure leaks. Very common in the plumbing trade and available in hardware stores like Ace or Best.

Gook luck.
CaptainJohn49

Actually the "epoxy" I mentioned that failed within an hour on the aluminum heat exchanger (post #5 above) was JB Weld. I had used JBW on an aluminum V belt sheave that cracked which got quite hot before and it worked. Go figure.

Squanderbucks · 27-11-2019, 09:33

If you plan on keeping the boat/engine a while. Try and contact National Marine Exhaust in Washington state. Lookup on google. Do all kinds of exhaust and heat exchangers. Or buy generic if similar size and remote mount.

boatpoker · 27-11-2019, 09:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by CaptainJohn49

I use JB Weld for everything. Works for plumbing and marine. After 24 hour cure JB Weld has 3960 psi strength and can withstand temperatures up to 550 F . If I were in your position that's what I'd try.

Repaired mine with JB Weld. Put 8,000 hours on it without issue.
Can't remember what it was but don't think it was aluminum.