Carver Owners Forum

Eyeballing the exhaust risers on my Carver 405 for replacement. All runs well, however I noticed a little corrosion along the gasket seem to the manifold. I do all my own work and was looking for suggestions of the various factory replacements available, Crusader, BARR, Sierra etc.... If anyone has favorable reviews of replacements I would like to know. Obviously cost is a consideration as I have seen $50/$75 difference between vendors per unit.

I was just going to cite cost as a factor, as I've seen (I work in a servicing marina) aftermarket brands cost as much or more in relation to OEM...Plus, the OEM will be painted in the correct color of blue...OCD thing on my part, LOL

Wayne; Got a picture of ur concern? U may need to just replace the gasket! At that time u can check the riser out for any problems, clean it up, repaint it and reuse it maybe? A picture would really help. But in the mean time keep shopping for a replacement. Now if ur in salt water, I'd be looking for a new one and price would dictate purchase, cause in the salt water it's going to be a on going issue I'm afraid. Mike

I've used all of those brands and while some prefer OEM others are cost driven/conscious. In those cases, cost dictates more than anything. Except for one failure with a Barr, I've had good luck with all of those brands.

As a purchaser, I think I'd be looking for OEM so resale considerations should not be dismissed. Having said that, if they are raw water cooled in a saltwater application, longevity is diminished and depending on conditions, you could be replacing them every 5 years or so. If the current ones are original from factory, you're running on borrowed time. It's the cost for new manifolds, or potentially major engine work if a manifold fails.

Thanks to all for your responses. My Carver is in salt water, the previous owner said the risers were removed and inspected and replaced with new gaskets prior to my purchase October 2015. I didn't trust that story then because the previous owner provided absolutely no maintenance records including not knowing what type of oil he used in the engines and when the last service was. I'm a little OC too when it comes to my equipment. I think I am going to era on the side of caution and get the risers for when I inspect, if needed I will be prepared to correctly do the job. I plan on running this season with no issues. If anyone has found good prices for OEM risers, let me know the vendor. I will shop around for the best price for now. Thanks

Wayne; I think ur plan is solid, I've seen a lot worst, shop around and get ur ducks in line for when u may need new risers. If u find a deal on a pair or two, grab them, running in salt u know its only a matter of time and they will need to be replaced. The picture shows a gallon of engine antifreeze sitting there so I assume its a closed cooling system? As far as engine oil, up north here we use a lot of Shell Rotella. I'm guessing the manual and the oil filler cap recommends 40W as my 1998 355 crusaders do. Keep an eye on things and enjoy her. Mike

Thanks Mike,
The coolant is for the Westerbeke, the engines are unfortunately cooled with sea water. I posted a spot in the forum previously about engine oil. I use Lucas Magnum 15w-40 because it list's zinc and other important properties where other oils fail to let you know whats in them. I have 454's, any way you look at it they are hot rod motors. Guys with street rods are replacing cam shafts because motor oil producers are conforming with green uses and removing or lowering essential metals for lubrication. The oil I use cleans, protects and has the stuff I want in it.

Completed port side exhaust risers. Engine seemed to be a little lite on water flow compared to the starboard side at the exhaust discharge prior to replacement. Photo's show why as the water jackets in the manifold were a little crusted below the gasket. A pick and shop vac did the trick. Engine manifold and riser temps dropped by 10-15 degrees on startup with new riser. Starboard side next up, then I'm flushing both engines with barnacle buster. Before shots indicate pending gasket failure with rust on manifold.

Hi all, looking for some theory's here on exhaust coolant blockages.
Last January, I replaced the port engine risers on my 1997 405 with 454 Xli's and the boat ran great all year. Last week, I turned the engines over which is regularly done and quickly noticed a heated paint smell as the port engine warmed up. A check of the risers found the inboard side of the port riser extremely hot. I shut the engine down, inspected and flushed with barnacle buster. On re-start, I had the same problem. So before I tear down the inboard side again, I am looking for theories other than seawater calcification in the manifold that I may look for. I also plan to replace the thermostat and raw water pump at the same time. Attached are the temps taken at shut down. The engine ran for about 5-10 min.

Wayne , is it possible that the manifold itself is partially restricted leading to there being not enough flow thru the riser thereby letting the salt separate out sooner.......just spitballin here. Seems you should get a little more than one season but........