TMI - Too Much Information in the digital age

I was just looking at the thread "AIR PRESSURE AFT FILTER IN WC -MAN https://www.yachtforums.com/threads/air-pressure-aft-filter-in-wc-man.33567/
and was struck by this phrase: "I have no idea what the heck Air pressure Aft Filter in WC is or why we have this disparity and if i need to fix this and how. Everything seems to run normal but I am curious of what this is".

As I looked at the digital display I wondered how many owners have a clue what all those numbers meant. What are the normal parameters and what means trouble in each of those readings, and is a minor fluctuation worth the cost of exploring.

Yes I'm old and now retired. I'm from the days when we had displays for oil pressure, temps, and RPMs. We listened to the sound of the motors and looked at the color and quantity of smoke. Were our motors running at 100% efficiency? Probably not, but we also didn't spend money on mechanics until something was actually evident. Then the mechanic came on board, plugged in his diagnostic equipment and got all the numbers today shown to every skipper who has no idea what he's looking at. We also didn't spend enough on these displays, the supporting hardware and software, the increased cost of the motors and the cost of chasing down things of little consequence to buy a new motor. Go back to the pre-computerized days and even the mechanics weren't concerned with the readings from the 20+ engine sensors currently installed on most motors. Now not only are we concerned about a myriad of numbers that nobody but an engineer understands, but then the question arises of whether there is actually a problem or is it just a bad sensor. I remember when we didn't even have readings for load. We knew the max RPMs and ran at 80%-90% of that.

Now I understand the desire to have all this info for the boat that has an engineer on board although an engineer would/could/should have his plug-in diagnosis equipment or engine room displays. But how many people have an engineer on their boat? Seems to me that the guy who owns a 40' boat that he uses for weekend fishing trips is paying for the a mega yacht's or commercial ship's wish list.

I'm drawn back to the day when my old 35hp motor quit. It's a simple motor the one should be able to get going with a paper clip and some tape, but I couldn't do a thing. The problem turned out to be a $2.50 sensor, and it had me dead in the water.

My favorite motors. Now you can spend your time perfecting the craft that allows you to afford your boat, and when a real problem comes up afford to have it fixed by a professional, instead of pretending to be or trying to be a marine engineer or computer tech. IMHO it's more important to learn to trouble shoot (to keep people honest and figure out what's small stuff and what's bug stuff) and learn to fix the things that won't take you 5 times as long to fix as it does the guy who does it every day for his living. My doctors insist on telling me about everything they do. My response is 'Don't tell me how to run a boat and I won't tell you how to fix my body. I can't know everything, and believe me I tried.

Wonder how that balances out against the additional cost of the motors with sensors on everything, gauges with TMI and the additional maintenance over the years. Seems to me the old DDs didn't suffer that many premature failures. As for the smoke, diesel is like perfume to a boater. Kind of like my car that gets 27 mpg. My '76 Plymouth with a V8 only got 18mpg but it also only cost me $6K. P.S. I used to do most of the maintenance on my cars. Now they have to go to the dealer.

Did you happen to read the thread https://www.yachtforums.com/threads/air-pressure-aft-filter-in-wc-man.33567/. Now read it with the eye of the lawyer or doctor or everyday joe who managed to get up the money for a 40'er instead of the eye of a professional. That's you average boater. 6 days a week he's at work and it's not on a boat. First he has to learn a new language, then he has to empty his bank account to pay for mechanics to do everything at $125 an hour + travel time.

You give lawyers too much credit. There are many selling real estate, flipping houses and working regular jobs. Not everybody buys a boat with an extra $100K or $200K in their annual budget to support their summertime weekend diversion. Not everyone has the aptitude or even the desire to become a marine engineer or mechanic. They just want to cruise on a boat. Take them out of the equation and watch what happens to boat sales. Granted it won't affect the guys with the 80 or 100+ footers, but it risks knocking the base out of the industry. I know that many in your situation would prefer not to share the waterways with peons, but a lot in the industry count on them.

What does that -5 mean? What happens at -3 or -7? What's to be done if it reads +1 as opposed to +9 or -9? I've yet to meet the boat owner who, after watching an injector changed once, couldn't do it themselves or at least know it needs to be done and be able to supervise the job. Most people don't want to read the instructions for putting together IKEA furniture and you think they're going to read, understand and absorb a MAN engine manual? Most don't even read their chart plotter manual past how to set a waypoint and maybe make a route. You see those boaters right here every day. They're the people who ask the questions. In fact they're the reason for the cited thread.

Here's a prime example (didn't take long to find):
"New to this forum and recently acquired an interest in an older (93) Luhrs 290 Sport. Just about done with engine workovers (harmonic balancer, raw water pumps, hoses, belts, alternators, pulleys, carburetors, heat exchanger etc).

Won't be back on the boat for another week and am looking to replace the fresh water pump. Does anyone know the location/access area for the fresh water pump (I think it's accessible from the lazarette panel at the stern but haven't had time to look yet). TIA for any info on where this pump is located."

I guess that rather than helping him we should tell him to just get out of boating cause he's too stupid or to poor to share this activity with you.

No "Capt" J why don't you give it a rest. So you're saying the numbers have no meaning unless they're over 15? That shows how little you know about it. Were that the case there'd simply be a red like that comes on at that point. So lose your 'I know everything' attitude and elitism to say that anyone who doesn't know as much as you "shouldn't be boating". Obviously you're on here for one reason, i.e. to spout off and impress yourself with yourself. Many of us here are here to pass on what knowledge we have gain through lifetimes of boating to help those with less knowledge stay safe and not go broke because they have a love of boats and boating. For every 100' boat there are thousands of under 35' boats. Those are the real boaters. Those are the people who hope to buy a new boat 3 years from now and actually use it instead of buying it as a tax dodge or status symbol.

Are talking about that giant sucking sound coming from our boats?[/QUOTE]
That would be it. It sounds something like moooooore mooooooney.