Hi all, new guy here. Tons of great info I've found so far.
I have a new-to-me boat with an '03 Optimax 225. 0T665281. Has smartcraft tach and speedo combo. Was not well taken care of so I'm trying to give it some love. New air filter, fuel filter, and plugs. Was out for a run the other day and started getting the following alarms after about 30 minutes.
"Check Engine"
"Guardian mode active - 65% power; and then
"Oil reserve 92%".
I immediately turned back for the marina and the alarm kept reporting lower and lower oil till it reported 40% and it throttled back to 5% power. I stopped, checked the reserve tank and it was about 75% full. I unscrewed the vent cap and tried to run the motor, and didn't really see it fill at all. Pulled the remote tank sender/float and checked to make sure it was not stuck (wasn't sure what the alarm was referencing), unplugged the sensor to the reserve tank and suddenly the smartcraft reported 100% reserve... started heading back in and again got the guardian error with reduced power. Made it back to my slip still showing 67% oil reserve. This time it did look about at that level.
Got online and did some research and started troubleshooting. Found that the sender/float cap on the remote tank was leaking pressure, not sure if it was an existing issue or one I caused when I removed it. So I pulled it again, cleaned some sludge off the screen, removed and wiped clean the oring and the tank and reinstalled - no air leaks now (sprayed soapy water around the sender cap, tank fill cap, and the external fill cap, no bubbles).
Removed the oil feed line at the remote tank and added on a spare piece of hose I brought with me that i fed into a clear bottle. Started up and oil started flowing. Good there.
Removed the reserve tank (kept the bottom engine-side line connected), feed line brass fitting and filter and did the same thing at the other end of the feed line that went through the rigging tube. Oil flowed there as well.
So I replaced the in-line filter and brass fitting/check valve, and hooked it all back up to the tank. Started it up and it finally filled the reserve tank.
The problem (?) is that it fed very, very slowly. So from approx 65-70% full to overflow out of the vent cap it took easily 15-20 minutes at idle. That seems like a really long time to me... before I start digging deeper (crankcase check valve, reeds?) does that seem right? I haven't tried to take it out again for an extended run since I got the reserve tank to fill up all the way.
I'm afraid the engine might be pulling more than what is being pushed from the remote tank. How fast should the reserve tank fill up when the vent cap is loose?
Thanks in advance.