Hourmeter

[Lazy Flamingo]

Any suggestions on where to actually place an hourmeter ?
I have been told different locations by the dealer, and he said
that one place is as good as the other.

I want one to show the true hours that will be put on the engine,
so I will know when oil changes etc. are due, plus know exactly
how many hours on the engine if I sell the boat.

I was told if mounted on the instrument panel which ties it to the
key switch, that will activate it even if you just put the key on to
play the radio, CD player or use the 12v converter.

On the other hand, he can mount it to the engine which according
to him, gives it a more accurate reading, BUT again, he says the
key must be turned on to activate it. To me, it seems that it will be
doing the same thing as panel mounting it ?

Any suggestions are where to actually put it ?

Mine was mounted on the panel beside the battery switch inside the engine compartment. One place is the same as another. They're both just borrowing power off the ignition "run" position. Anytime the key is on, you get the hours.

[Lazy Flamingo]

SS,

Thanks for the help .... I will just tell him to mount it by the engine,
that way no making another hole on the dash.

The VHF radio will be mounted from under the front of the dash near
the sidewall, so again, no cutting out holes.
I purchased the Icom IC-402S because it is compact and has built-in
DSC capability, and can remember up to 30 DSC id's.
I also purchased the new Shakespear 5400XT antenna to go with it.

I purchased a Garmin E-Trex Legend for GPS because it is small, can
fit in a little pouch, and I can plug it into the radio which has the DSC
capability. I recently sent in the form for my MMSSI number ....

I will get the registration numbers to you as soon as I get them from
the RMV here in Massachusetts, and the sizes for the Flamingo.
Thanks for all your help, it is appreciated .... 8)

Sounds great Al. Looks like you'll have a great boating season ahead.

[tolly28]

The Etrex is a great little GPS! I've had one for several years and have had great luck with it!

A friend wired his boat's hour meter through an oil pressure switch. This gives him accurate engine time because it only runs when the engine is running,

Raul

[Lazy Flamingo]

tolly,

Glad to hear from someone who has the e-Trex ....

Not long ago, I purchased the basic e-Trex (yellow one) just to play around with. When
looking for one for the boat, I wanted something a little better that was compact, but
would serve the purpose I wanted in a decent small size GPS.

I frequent BoatersWorld, so I asked the manager to show the differences between them.
I told him what I wanted to do, and he said I will save you time and money, showed me
the Legend, and I bought it.

I asked him the difference between the 1 color Legend, and the full color model,
and he said basically the only difference was $$$.

In the fall I purchased a new Jeep Grand Cherokee to haul the boat, and I had the
RB1 navigation system put into that. If I get lost either on the road, or on the water,
I am in trouble .... :lol:

EDITED TO ASK QUESTION:

Raul,

I/O engines are new to me as I have always had outboards on the
antique boats ....

You mentioned that a friend wired his boat's hourmeter through an
oil pressure switch ....

The boat that I purchased has the MerCruiser 4.3L MPI engine. Is the
oil switch you talk of on the engine, or is that something that has to be
added to the engine ? If it is an add-on, is that an automotive part ?

A friend wired his boat's hour meter through an oil pressure switch. This gives him accurate engine time because it only runs when the engine is running,

Raul

Actually that's a great idea. Planes are wired that way. They call their hour meters "Hobbs" meters (after the company that makes them). They have to measure hours in a very specific way for different things.

"Hobbs Time" - Is pure clock time... Master Switch on... clock ticks

"Tach Time" - Everything above 2400RPM counts as 100%, the clock slows below that. It is activated by oil pressure and fed by the tachometer.

"Maintenance Hobbs" - Measures Time In Service (TIS). TIS is from the point of leaving the earth (weight off wheels) to touching back down. It doesn't include any taxi or runup time. Just pure flying time.

Engines have to be tracked on Hobbs Time, Airframes can be tracked by a separate Maintenance Hobbs, but there are very strict restrcitions on this.

I always thought Tach Time would be a more fair estimate of hours, but it's all sort of relative anyways I suppose.

[heymagic]

Hour meters are good for baselining maintainance , oil, manifolds etc. Good for fuel planning also. However as SS got close to with the plane thing..hours ain't hours...500 hours in an old Tolly or Trojan and 2500rpm isn't the same as 500 hrs in a Donzi at 4000rpm....

In Al's case I would have the power for the stereo put on a seperate switch ( what is a 12v cconverter ??) anyway. I don't think it's a good idea to run power through the PCM, coil and sensors when the engine is off. If the key doesn't have an actual accesory position, then make an acc switch. Gene

Lazy Flamingo, my friend bought a pressure switch that screws into an oil gallery in the block. When it senses oil pressure it connects it's terminal to ground. He wired the hourmeter with + 12VDC connected to one terminal and the pressure switch connected to the other. Since he only uses it for engine maintenance, he installed in the engine compartment.

I think in your case the simplest solution would be what Gene suggested: wire the stereo, converter, and any accessories separate from the ignition switch switch and wire the hour meter to the switched side of this switch. Most hour meters on boats are wired this way.

As far as mounting, I recommend somewhere by the helm. I find this the most convenient location.

Raul

[Lazy Flamingo]

Please bear with me here, like I stated before, moving up to the fiberglass
boats and I/O engines are all new to me. The antique boats were very simple
to retore to original, because they did not have all the bells and whistles some
of these new boats have .... :roll:
I joined these forums because I am going to need help with questions with
these new boats we are buying.

I have to say that I ordered the new 2005 195 Sport Capri without seeing it,
only being told that it was the same is the 185 but bigger.
Even when I looked at the 185, I never really paid detailed attention to the
dash on the boat.

Here is a picture of the dash I got off the internet:
http://www.geocities.com/roomnl/BOC/boat_dash.jpg

I called the dealer, he said that there "is" an accessory switch .... I may have
termed the 12V a converter by mistake. Just in front of the throttle there is
a "12V accessory outlet"

heymagic,
You are correct in your advice, that if the engine is not running, and I want
to use the stereo, just put in ACC position. Does the radio/CD player draw
alot of the battery? If so, should I run the engine a little to keep the battery
charged to it's fullest?

I will eventually get used to the modern age bells and whistles on the boat,
and figure out how to use them all. I am glad there are those here who are
willing to help out with answers to questions I have.

Hey Al;

On mine, the switch doesn't have an ACC position like on a car. The stereo is wired through an ACCY switch on the dash. I think the jack you're reffering to is the "cigarette lighter" that isn't politically correct anymore and now they're calling thyem accessory jacks. (Although, I've never lit a cigarette with one in my life either...)

You sound pretty excited about your boat. :P I'm sure you've got an amazing summer ahead. Keep us posted and on't be afraid to ask questions. You'll get the best experience and maximize your time on the water that way.

[heymagic]

I'm winging it a bit here...If your boat doesn't have a battery switch, install one, and then add an extra battery . Wire your accesories to the second battery . Now you will be able to listen to the stereo, watch a small tv or whatever and not worry about getting the boat started later. You also will be able to shut off both batteries when gone and not have to worry about a solenoid shorting and the starter engaging by its self....been there, done that. Have the accessories run through a dash switch, not the key switch. Just as easy as designing a tp holder for a submarine.... :twisted: :argh ( sorry Steve, a shot missed is one you never get again...)

[Tedster]

:blob2: :lol: :D

[Pegasis]

If you have to turn the key to get your CD player to function, installing the meter near the engine won't make a difference. You are still energizing the same purple wire that the hour meter will be connected to, even though the engine is not running.

[Salmon Troller]

LF - Mount it wherever, but hook it to the oil sender. I hit a problem with the former owner of my boat over the true # of hours. The problem was that somehow the hour meters were wired so that depending upon which ignition switch was used (fly or main) the meter would continue to run. This gave a false reading of way too many hours.