I see a lot of boaters coming to the forum with problems asking for help. They get lots of suggestions and immediately tear into their boat and often replace things that don?t require it, and have a very hard time repairing the real issue. My feeling is the problem is most folks don?t really understand what troubleshooting is or how to approach it. I?d like to see if I (and others feel free to add) can help get you started in the right direction.
Troubleshooting, believe it or not, is more about finding what DOES work in any system and by doing so eliminating them as the possible cause of failure. Let me say that again, finding what doesn?t work is done by eliminating the things that are working. Further, many tests require that you have KNOWN GOOD COMPONENTS to test the other components. As an example, it does no good at all to test electrical components until you know you have a charged and working battery. Checking the battery and its charge would be the first troubleshooting step for almost any electrical problem to eliminate it as the problem AND to allow you to use it to test the rest of the boats electrical.
Troubleshooting any system should be done in a linear manner. By that I mean starting at the beginning (or end) of the system and moving to the next component after testing the previous component. Which you start at depends on the system itself to a large degree, however it also often a matter of convince. As an example lets say you have non-working light. You could start at the battery and follow the wiring, switches, etc. to the bulb, or you could start by checking if the bulb is bad first. As checking a bulb is much quicker and easier than chasing wires it makes sense to start there. In other words, eliminate the easy things first.
The most important tool in troubleshooting is using common sense and reasoning, the second most important tool is the right manual! Yeah, you can spend vast amounts of time tracking things down and figuring out what?s what but it isn?t very productive when a manual can show you everything within a few minutes. Second, the manuals more often than not will give you a troubleshooting guide along with the needed information to determine what is good from bad. An example, someone tells you to check your engine compression. Do you know off hand what it should be? The manual does.
The most common mistake many people make is they ?jump around? trying to find the cause of a problem. Replacing multiple parts at a time (unless they are interdependent) is a sure waste of money; you only want to replace what you need to. I even see many ?jumping? from one system to another and back and forth as they replace parts. An example, engine isn?t running quit right so it must be fuel or ignition or cooling, let?s check a couple things in each system and buy parts for all three and see if it fixes it. Again, my advice here is to look at one system only, eliminate it as the cause of the problem, then move to the next system. Again, pick the easiest one first.
Another biggie, know your limits and the limits of the tools you have at hand. An example, if you have never ran a set of engine compression tests (set meaning a compression, a wet, and a leak down test) now is not the time to try and learn. Find a buddy or a mechanic that can show you both how to do it AND how to interpret the results and how those results layout your next steps. If you don?t have the tools to perform a test the correct way don?t waste your time generating results that you can?t trust. Get a hold of the right tools or take it to someone that has them and knows how to use them. An example, guessing at an ignition coils resistance is a waste of time. If you can?t measure it within a few ohms you have no idea if it?s good or bad.
Take note of when the issue happens. Is it a knock you only hear in a hard turn? Is it overheating at a certain RPM range? Problem happens only when it?s hot/cold? When other lights, etc. are on. Understanding when and under what conditions the problem shows itself is a big help in troubleshooting and repairing it.
Last but not least, keep records. Keep records of everything you do to the boat, when it was serviced, what was done and records of any tests performed. An example, I do a compression check every fall as part of the winterizing process. I have a history of the engine and should something happen and a new test has results that vary from the history it is very apparent and helps in the troubleshooting process. (By the way, having a full record of the boats service does ad significantly to its value come sell/trade time.)
In closing, it?s like the old fable, ?How do you eat an entire Elephant?? Answer: One bite at a time?
Troubleshooting, believe it or not, is more about finding what DOES work in any system and by doing so eliminating them as the possible cause of failure. Let me say that again, finding what doesn?t work is done by eliminating the things that are working. Further, many tests require that you have KNOWN GOOD COMPONENTS to test the other components. As an example, it does no good at all to test electrical components until you know you have a charged and working battery. Checking the battery and its charge would be the first troubleshooting step for almost any electrical problem to eliminate it as the problem AND to allow you to use it to test the rest of the boats electrical.
Troubleshooting any system should be done in a linear manner. By that I mean starting at the beginning (or end) of the system and moving to the next component after testing the previous component. Which you start at depends on the system itself to a large degree, however it also often a matter of convince. As an example lets say you have non-working light. You could start at the battery and follow the wiring, switches, etc. to the bulb, or you could start by checking if the bulb is bad first. As checking a bulb is much quicker and easier than chasing wires it makes sense to start there. In other words, eliminate the easy things first.
The most important tool in troubleshooting is using common sense and reasoning, the second most important tool is the right manual! Yeah, you can spend vast amounts of time tracking things down and figuring out what?s what but it isn?t very productive when a manual can show you everything within a few minutes. Second, the manuals more often than not will give you a troubleshooting guide along with the needed information to determine what is good from bad. An example, someone tells you to check your engine compression. Do you know off hand what it should be? The manual does.
The most common mistake many people make is they ?jump around? trying to find the cause of a problem. Replacing multiple parts at a time (unless they are interdependent) is a sure waste of money; you only want to replace what you need to. I even see many ?jumping? from one system to another and back and forth as they replace parts. An example, engine isn?t running quit right so it must be fuel or ignition or cooling, let?s check a couple things in each system and buy parts for all three and see if it fixes it. Again, my advice here is to look at one system only, eliminate it as the cause of the problem, then move to the next system. Again, pick the easiest one first.
Another biggie, know your limits and the limits of the tools you have at hand. An example, if you have never ran a set of engine compression tests (set meaning a compression, a wet, and a leak down test) now is not the time to try and learn. Find a buddy or a mechanic that can show you both how to do it AND how to interpret the results and how those results layout your next steps. If you don?t have the tools to perform a test the correct way don?t waste your time generating results that you can?t trust. Get a hold of the right tools or take it to someone that has them and knows how to use them. An example, guessing at an ignition coils resistance is a waste of time. If you can?t measure it within a few ohms you have no idea if it?s good or bad.
Take note of when the issue happens. Is it a knock you only hear in a hard turn? Is it overheating at a certain RPM range? Problem happens only when it?s hot/cold? When other lights, etc. are on. Understanding when and under what conditions the problem shows itself is a big help in troubleshooting and repairing it.
Last but not least, keep records. Keep records of everything you do to the boat, when it was serviced, what was done and records of any tests performed. An example, I do a compression check every fall as part of the winterizing process. I have a history of the engine and should something happen and a new test has results that vary from the history it is very apparent and helps in the troubleshooting process. (By the way, having a full record of the boats service does ad significantly to its value come sell/trade time.)
In closing, it?s like the old fable, ?How do you eat an entire Elephant?? Answer: One bite at a time?
