Broken hydraulic tube, Seastar steering

[Ptnomore]

I have been concerned about this happening ever since I bought this boat. 92 210 Explorer with 2 stroke 250 Yamaha. 

Hydraulic steering lines are exposed and loop where the foot traffic is heaviest in the back of the boat getting on/off when swimming, tubing etc.

Only, it was the dog that did it last night. Dog jumped in, and the line broke. Hydraulic fluid everywhere...wife, dog,cooler, etc.  Worst of it was the cooler. It's a really nice cooler and it didn't complain at all.

Had to get towed in. The best fix I could come up with, with what I had on the boat at the time wasn't worth half the time that I spent on it.

For now, I'm going to fix it with a compression fitting. Not recommended, I know. But it'll get me thru the season.

I'll call Seastar to get the right part numbers to replace both lines in the fall, or spring.

But have any of you done anything to help protect those lines better?  I thought about building a small platform 2-3" high to cover them, but then I was worried about the trip hazard.

[Capt. Bob]

One line exposed.



Insert installed adds limited protection while fishing.







Good luck.

[Ptnomore]

 

I got work to do.  Thanks again Bob!!

That one line that you show exposed, is the one the dog snapped. But I have a fuel line, both hydro lines and the engine harness that all loop way over there like that.

I can build the insert, and add a short step to it that goes to the transom to keep the little ones and the dog from stepping on or snagging them, after I shorten and tidy things up back there a bit. 

I'll have to see if I can find a picture.  I have a mess back there, compared to yours. It came that way, so just assumed that it had to be that way.

[Ptnomore]

Trying to attach a pic of my engine harness and steering tubes...