Green liquid spraying out steen
 

Green liquid spraying out stern of 1973 Ericson 32. Light green colored fluid sprays out of what appears to be an overflow type drain that is on the starboard side of the transom, about 8-10 inches from the top. It seems like it is antifreeze but I am near certain that I have a RWC engine. Any ideas are greatly appreciated.

Can you follow the hose from the transom and tell us where it goes?

Is that discharge from the bilge pump?

Perhaps somebody poured antifreeze into the bilge to keep it from... well... freezing during layup?

The starboard side of my 32's transom also has a fuel tank vent.

That's all that's back there on my boat. Big hole for engine exhaust, small hole for bilge pump discharge, very small hole for fuel tank vent.

If you have a heat exchanger then your engine is fresh water cooled... and to confirm, you will have two pumps and a reservoir One for the raw water and one for the closed system loop.. I to have experienced a colored discharge in my exhaust water at the back of the transom.

Tell tale signs that my closed system cooling was compromised was my engine overheated.

Secondly since I used an orange coloured Prestone coolant/ anti freeze. It was showing up in the exhaust water. My assessment was my heat exchanger core is corrupted and allowed the coolant to mix in with the raw water side of things inside the core.

Third I had to constantly top up the coolant repeatedly and with increasing regularity.

I recently bypassed my heat exchanger.. with the help from Don Moyer's advice.
I made the bypass... right away the water ran clean. On the removal of my heat exchanger I tried blowing into the spigot on the raw water intake it was completely plugged, couldn't even blow air thru it.


Since I needed to travel to bring my boat home back into Canadian waters due to the border closures. I had only one opportunity to get my boat back home. I didn't want to make second trip to Pt Roberts WA... its costly and it requires two Covid tests to fly into US and one to get home.

Fuel tank overflow
 

The mention of a fuel tank overflow leads me to believe it is coming from there. Thinking about this there has not been any discharge the last few times we have been sailing and the fuel tank has not been full during that time. I guess my question would be why would there be overflow? I don't have a fuel gauge, I use a stick to estimate. Why would the discharge be green? it is almost a lime green color. The boat is 48 years old. Is it possible the gasoline is reacting with the tubing from the tank to the overflow?

Thanks to everyone for the responses. Really helps to have the ability to tap the wealth of knowledge and experience here

Who mentioned that? There is a fuel tank vent but no way is there a fuel overflow. Besides, there is nothing in the construction of the fuel system that will react with the fuel and turn it green. Besides #2, if this were fuel related at all you'd smell it 3 slips away from your boat.

No, not fuel.

I am still betting on a bilge full of anti-freeze. Did the OP ever trace the hose back from the overflow to see where the other end went?

Bilge
 

One thing I am certain of is the fluid is not coming from the bilge. I am certain for several reasons. My bilge is empty except for the ice box draining into it. There is zero evidence of anything other than water in the bilge. Boat have not been winterized, nor stored outside for the past 35 years, this year will be number 36 indoors. The fluid is not coming from the bilge discharge.

It has to be coming from somewhere! There are only so many places liquid exits the boat.

Have we had an answer yet to follow the hose?