warm stuffing box

[Marty Levenson]

Sunday we motor-sailed for three hours at 1250 RPM, and I got a chance to use my infrared thermometer. Stuffing box showed 35 degrees C. Ocean water temp is about 16. Should I loosen my stuffing box? I have no dripping.

BTW she is running really smooth: earlier vibration must have been caused by either the zinc being wacky or the growth on the prop. Felt good!

Thanks!

[Dave Neptune]

Marty, depending on the type of packing it is a hard question to answer. A bit hot for std flax and it should drip!! If it is a synthetic like Gore etc running warm is normal and it should drip also. Mine is synthetic and drips about every 30~40 seconds running and when stopped the drip drops back to almost nothing after a couple of days IE 1 drip every 2 1/2 ~ 3 minutes when cool and slower after a few days.

Not sure what to say if you are a dripless style.

Dave Neptune

[JOHN COOKSON]

Yes, you should loosen the packing nut just a bit. You should see some water dripping through the packing into the boat. Probably just one flat looser will do the trick. Where the problem comes about is that if the packing tightens up any more you could burn the shaft and possibly ruin the packing. There is a lot of opinions about what is the proper drip rate is. I like one drop every 10 or 15 seconds. The packing should be at or near the temperature of the water. Hit the packing nut, lock nut, and threads with PB blaster or your favorite goop for a couple of days before trying to loosen.

TRUE GRIT

[Easy Rider]

Marty,

Check this out at Compass Marine. http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising/stuffing_box&page=3 He has an excellent description of how much and why the stuffing box should drip. One of the reasons he suggests that all stuffing boxes should drip besides keeping it cool is to release air that could work it's way in, possibly cause damage. I never would have thought about air in there. I like my stuffing box to drip about one or two 2 drips per minute where it keeps it cool to the touch and with a quick peek into the lazzarette I can actually see working.

Chuck