Kohler 5e trouble

Black_Diamond

The coolant in the reservoir will be as warm as the air around it. Just like your car, the heat exchanger pressure cap controls the system pressure and relieves if too high and conversly pulls coolant from the reservoir back in as it cools.  If the reservoir is too full it will just overflow. 

You should be adding 50/50 antifreeze mix too. Not just water. 

Liberty44140

Thanks BD. This thread also started and talked about rough smoky start and choke adjustment. I'd mentioned that I had my choke assembly replaced and the tech needed to dial it in as you really can only make adjustments when cold. Last weekend when started cold it would fire right up and then bog down for almost 2 min before smoothing out so way too rich. He went back and made lean adjustments last week and this weekend was much better. When starting the genny cold but the engine room was hot (engines had been running to get to anchor spot) the cold genny fired right up and took less than 2 sec to smooth out. Then Sunday afternoon I did a cold start at the dock and it took maybe 6 or 7 seconds to start and then again 2 seconds to smooth out. Very happy with these results, tech said any leaner and I would be back to longer time to start. Was considering a proactive carb rebuild but with the ads coming out very clean i think I may not goof with it and wait until winter for that. 

craigswardmtb

It will leak out of the cap and into your bilge. 

Dream_Inn

Liberty44140 said:

It's easy to add coolant to the overflow bottle with the sound shield on and service door open, just use a long skinny funnel. Be careful as it fills up quick, I had to sponge some out, I keep it around 60% full when cold which I think is probably too high. Where does it go if the bottle is too high? 

It will run out of the cap if it is too high.  60% is definitely too full.  I keep mine right at the low mark when cold because when she is warm, it comes up close to the top.  Again, the most important thing is to have some in the bottle and the hose to the bottom, so no air gets drawn in.

Liberty44140

Thanks. I will try to get more out with a small hose. It really filled up fast! 

Liberty44140

checked my 5e coolant today and the heat exchanger was full, but the overflow bottle had just a few drops in it. There was coolant in there but maybe a half ounce at most. I topped off the bottle in early June and actually I think I over filled it. Was surprised to see it pretty
much empty today but it’s only 50 degrees in there now. When i filled it it was 75 degrees out and I had been running it. Is it normal to have to add a few ounces every year? Zero signs of a leak and I actually did pressure test the cap last June after my backfire, all good. Probably ran it 25 hours since I filled it last June. Thanks 

Dream_Inn

I've had to add some every year as well, not sure where it goes. I know a few others that I boat with that does the same.

Liberty44140

Thanks Dream!

Black_Diamond

Yeah. Mine had a slight leak at the pressure cap neck. I added some stop leak when I redid things and holds fluid now.  

Liberty44140

Thanks bd, so you put the stop leak in the radiator or you just put it around the rim of where the cap goes in to. Leak at the cap or leak in the actual neck?

Black_Diamond

In the heat exchanger (pressure cap opening). 

Dream_Inn

Interesting.  I guess it wouldn't hurt to add some stop leak to see if it helps.  I don't go thru much for how much I use the generator, but I've always wondered if there could be a leak and it going out the exhaust thru the exchanger.

Liberty44140

I’m going to just do a better job monitoring this summer. Could just be that it’s cold and sucked in to heat exchanger. Also, the rubber hose and water bottle are not exactly water right at the bottle. Believe there is a vent on the bottle cap? I know coolant doesn’t completely evaporate but being a water mix I would think that after a summer of running in that super hot engine room and sitting in the dry winter the vent could easily evaporate several ounces? Good tip though watching to see if any is coming out under the cap. Will monitor.