Blower Install

[Eric Anderton]

Hello,

Completely new to the hobby, so take that for what its worth. I'm looking to add a blower to our 'new' 1952 23' Holiday. I was thinking I would install the blower motor up front to keep it away from the fuel tank transom vents. Anyhow. I would be running flex line then to the doghouse. Would I angle the vent line so it actually would blow air up into the doghouse, or just leave it blow across the bottom of the engine? Also, any recommendation on 12v blowers would be much appreciated. Its not a matter of cost, just looking for the safest way, this is a family use boat.

Many Thanks.

Eric

[tkhersom]

Welcome Aboard Eric!

A couple of things pop into my mind with your question.

1) A quality blower motor should be a sealed unit, so the placement is not as crucial as one would think.

2) Most blowers are plumbed to evacuate the air out of the bilge and flow the fumes overboard, so you will want to get the hose low under the engine. Gas fumes are heavy and will accumulate in the lowest areas of the bilge if there is any sort of leak.

Hope that makes sense to you.

[Bilge Rat]

Available space under the floor is also an issue. Since the blower motor is ignition protected and won't cause a spark to ignite fuel, it can be located in the bilge. On my 25' Lyman there is a lot of room on the inside of the transom above the fuel tank, so I mounted it there for future service accessibility. I then ran a 3" hose down to the bottom of the bilge and connected the blower outlet to an aft facing deck vent. I am glad I mounted the blower for easy servicing because after 1 year, the thing would squeal like a stuck pig when running. Of course, this was after the warranty expired!

[Jim Godlewski]

Welcome Eric,
Great idea to install a blower. I still ALWAYS lift the engine cover after running the blower and prior to starting the engine just to sniff for fumes. A bilge pump with an auto switch is also another addition if you don't already have one.

So, like as stated your blower will be pulling air out and pushing it out a deck vent somewhere on your boat.
I have two vents on the rear deck so I mounted the blower right below that area and ran a length of hose forward just rearward of the engine. I added a piece of wood for a mounting surface for the blower as well.
I hid the switch in a spot where it can be reached but not easily seen. A separate circuit was also added in the fuse block for this.

This may not be the best quality but we installed a Jabsco blower
http://www.westmarine.com/buy/jabsco--1 ... 62_001_506

[WoodenRookie]

I went transom

[tuobanur]

On my 41 I welded in a lateral to the existing down tube vent and plumbed my blower in to that, it blows out the rear port side vent and you don't hardly know it is there, works great.

[Eric Anderton]

Thank you very much for the great information! The pictures are super helpful too. This certainly has answered a lot of questions right from the start. Looks like its time to get the blower ordered. Thank you again! Eric