Blow out plugs in or out while in the slip?

[Thunderseye]

For those of you that keep your boat in the slip do you pull your plugs out or do you leave them in? I rebuilt them last year but was having issues with them at the beginning of the season after I haven’t lifted in over the winter. Today as we pulled the anchor I got an over heat warning on the Port engine. Went to go pull the plug it was stuck was able to finally get it out pulled out the other two just to double check could not get either of them back in. Limped it back to the slip. Rebuilt them Sprayed the shit out of them both of them would drop easily into the starboard Tube but neither one would go all the way into the port side tube. Fight and fight and fight scrubs with wire bristles tried to clean out as much as I could and I could not find where it was sticking I eventually got it but I was struggling to get it past this point

 

[Zizzou 192]

O rings are made of rubber. Rubber is polar. Polar molecules are attracted to each other. That’s why the plugs swell. Keeping the o ring coated and recoated with silicone spray, marine grease, or keeping it out of the water when possible helps prevent swelling by physically keeping the rubber away from our favorite polar molecule, h2o.

There are many ways to shrink o rings. Physical force, ice, boiling,throwing them in the trash and replacing them with new, and applying some chemical agent to shrink and clean the o ring.

O rings get stuck aka seized all the time in the swimming pool world. Their engineered clearances can disappear quickly while in use and seize inside PVC joints. There are chemical agents available to unstick the o ring by applying the shiz to the outside of the joint. I have used Lubegard Zer0 to perform this trick with the cleanout plug stuck in the tube.

Good Luck!

 

[mrcleanr6]

if they are rebuilt and they stick and assuming the metal hole and the edges of the plug have been sanded smooth, i find that the sticking is almost always from some sand that washes down into the port. it only takes a couple few grains and will get between the plug and metal wall then just lock the whole thing up. when you wash the boat ALWAYS pull the plugs first. dont wash then try to remove the plugs to drain the water. all the sand or any dirt is just getting washed down into the port and will seize that plug right up. just food for thought.

 

[mrcleanr6]

O rings get stuck aka seized all the time in the swimming pool world. Their engineered clearances can disappear quickly while in use and seize inside PVC joints. There are chemical agents available to unstick the o ring by applying the shiz to the outside of the joint. I have used Lubegard Zer0 to perform this trick with the cleanout plug stuck in the tube.

Good Luck!

i can certainly attest to this. i have an oring on my cartridge holder for my hot tub. holds the mineral and chlorine cartridge. after a month or two i cant get the holder back inserted into the spa. i have to change the oring since it swells up.

 

[Beachbummer]

So are there home remedies that might help? Say Rice or Salt to dry? Is the water chemically bonded or just absorbed? Intriguing!

 

[mrcleanr6]

Just sit them out i the sun for a couple days to dry out. Wipe off all silicone or grease and degrease them really good so your not sealing water into the rubber. If they shrink back then great. If not then replace.