Hi folks -
This is kind of an embarrassing question to ask but I have no choice - so here goes !

The trawler I just bought (1983 36' Monk with twin 4-236) has strainers I can't identify, and worse,?cannot figure out how to clean. I will try to describe them.

These are engine cooling water strainers. They sit directly on top of the seacocks and have no manufacturer markings that I can find. Seawater comes in at the bottom and exits out the side near the top to the seawater pump. They are tall (about 10 inches ? maybe more) and skinny (about 2 3/4 inches (?) in diameter). They are not 'see-thru' but appear to be made of bronze. It has a?'lid' which screws on like a pickle jar lid. When the lid is taken off you see a 3/4 inch hole right down the middle. There seems to be an interior canister of some sort. I can see lots of holes in the interior sides?of the canister through that 3/4 inch hole down the middle so I assume that water comes up the middle and passes through these holes, somehow getting the crud filtered out?on it's way to exiting out the side of the strainer to the seawater pump.

Now for my problem.

I cannot figure out how to get that *&^% interior canister out for cleaning. The top of the canister is smooth, solid bronze (except for the hole down the middle)?and flush with the top exterior sides of the strainer.?There is no lifting strap and there are no holes on the top or indentations that a tool could fit into to remove it. Today I clamped an Allen wrench into a pair of vice grips, inserted it down into the hole and into one of the side holes in an attempt to move it. I was able to pull?the canister up MAYBE 1/32 inch and I was able to 'unscrew' it about 1/8 of a turn. But I'm not even sure that the canister came up out of the body when I 'unscrewed' it.?Actually, what I mean is that I was able to rotate the canister a little bit inside the body of the strainer. That's the extent of my progress at removing this beast.

Don't know when it was last cleaned which could be part of the removal problem. I went to the Groco site but nothing there looks like my strainers (I suspect things may have changed in 25 years).

It appears that a tool with multiple fingers must be inserted down the middle hole and somehow clamp onto those middle interior holes. If that is correct, does it unscrew or do you just pull up ?

So here's my questions:

Can anyone identify the manufacturer ?

Where do I get a tool to remove the inner basket?

How does one remove this inner basket ?

Thanks for any help.

Tim Behan

Email and AIM finally together. You've gotta check out free AOL Mail! - http://mail.aol.com

Some of the old strainers were not made in such a way that one could open it
and clean it out in a couple of minutes...as is necessary for safety in a
seaway, especially with a single engine.  Try to identify the strainer by
googling, then you will have a better chance of possibly finding a new
basket if the old one has deteriorated.  There are strainers that are "self
cleaning" and the basket doesn't remove.  You simply use your hand or a
brush to scrape and remove debris.
If it were me, I would replace the strainers with newer ones that are easy
to clean and safer.  You don't want to lose power at an inopportune time.

There are many manufacturers of strainers..Perko,
Groco,Vetus,Forespar,Sureflo,Flojet,Raritan,Buck
Algonquin,Jabsco,Sherwood,Whale, etc. etc.

Good luck,

Bob Clinkenbeard
24' custom trailer trawler
http://home.bellsouth.net/p/PWP-aboardbobbinalong

You said:

I cannot figure out how to get that *&^% interior canister out for cleaning.
The top of the canister is smooth, solid bronze (except for the hole down
the middle)?and flush with the top exterior sides of the strainer.?There is
no lifting strap and there are no holes on the top or indentations that a
tool could fit into to remove it. Today I clamped an Allen wrench into a
pair of vice grips, inserted it down into the hole and into one of the side
holes in an attempt to move it. I was able to pull?the canister up MAYBE
1/32 inch and I was able to 'unscrew' it about 1/8 of a turn. But I'm not
even sure that the canister came up out of the body when I 'unscrewed'
it.?Actually, what I mean is that I was able to rotate the canister a little
bit inside the body of the strainer. That's the extent of my progress at
removing this beast.

Don't know when it was last cleaned which could be part of the removal
problem. I went to the Groco site but nothing there looks like my strainers
(I suspect things may have changed in 25 years).

It appears that a tool with multiple fingers must be inserted down the
middle hole and somehow clamp onto those middle interior holes. If that is
correct, does it unscrew or do you just pull up ?