A customer recently said he’d heard ‘horror stories’ about plastic clogging saidrive intakes. Due to this he wanted to by pass the water intake located in the sail drive and switch to a regular thru hull with strainer.

I did some thinking and inquiring on this. Unfortunately plastic items are a fact of modern watery life. They can clog any intake you put on a boat. A sail drive intake might actually be less affected as it is nearer the prop and it’s turbulence.

Should you decide this is really a problem, you might want to connect the sail drive and normal thru hull with a t-fitting.

All in all, considering the odds on a plastic clog, the money would probably be spent with a clean water advocacy group rather than modifying your engine. The problem isn’t with the engine, but with the plastic in the water.

If you’re a Lake Michigan sailor consider spending a little time working on the Lake Michigan Federation’s Adopt a beach program. Involvement in this program will help clear up debris which clog engine intakes.

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