4. Knowing that your freshwater cooling system requires at least two inches of space in front of the flywheel cover to accommodate the belt drive for the sea water pump, how much space does the system require above the engine?

Our system actually requires no space above the engine. The very top of the fill neck of the heat exchanger itself should be an inch or so above the highest point in the engine's cooling system, simply to avoid water spilling out of the exchanger when you remove the fill cap.

Many people are misled by the photo of our freshwater cooling kit in our online catalog, which seems to suggest that the exchanger is somehow mounted on the front of the engine. This is not the case. The heat exchanger can be mounted in any convenient location. In very small boats, the heat exchanger is sometimes mounted as far away as the lazarette.

In cases where folks have a hot water heater on their boat, the heat exchanger is usually mounted beside the hot water heater, and plumbed in series with its heating coils. - Updated: December 22, 2003