Necessary to Carry On-Board a Spare Fuel Filter and Water-Pump Impeller?

I just bought an IP27, which I'm sailing in Lake Michigan. Has a 1987 Yanmar 2-cylander engine. Is a wonderful boat, I love her.

Question: Someone I know with some (not lots of) chartering/delivery experience has impressed upon me the general need to carry a spare fuel filter and spare impeller for the engine water pump, in case they get clogged or break down while in use--in order to fix on the spot and so avoid having to come into port and dock under sail, due to a non-functional engine. Seems a little over-cautious to me. One cannot carry the entire marina store on board. But maybe I'm wrong.

Any advice? Thanks.

Okay, many thanks.

Csmith
Hayden is right
You need some spares, and you need to be familiar with your engine
So you are comfortable changing them out
Two spare fuel filters -- there are 2 on most boats , and spare raw water impeller, and the tools required to change them out are a minimum
A volt meter, electric tape sand paper to clean electrical contacts
Would be very useful...

As a reference book,
"Boat Mechanical and Electrical Systems" by Nigel Calder
Is the bible for small boat owners, and is readily available.
You need to be comfortable 'bleeding' your fuel system
And doing other small repairs/ maintenance
Its not hard....
Ed

Excellent advice above guys, a lot depends on where you Sail & how far away from the doc you want to sailing if you're going to be three days versus one day. Two books I would definitely definitely recommend. As a novice to marine diesels I have found invaluable, easy to read, and a great introduction to diesel engines the "Comptons Guide to Marine diesel troubleshooting."
Don't leave home without it!. Easily available on Amazon.
You can see the top half of the book on my avatar photo
It is no accident that I have it as my avatar.
Best of luck, congratulations, and let's talk often., Keith
PS, the other book? The blue book of sailing no added charge for a recommendation of the third book, Don Casey's "this old boat"

CS
I agree with Hayden generally but would add. You don't really need to drag coolant along for emergency repairs if you are in the Great Lakes - the fresh lake water works just fine. If you are in salt water your boat's fresh water will work also. Yes, you do need to replace it when you get to port but it will get you there. The Yanmars run below 200 degrees - about 180 so you don't need the coolant to keep them from boiling.

Also - I second the comments about multiple fuel filters - the great lakes boats generally don't get run much so the fuel gets very cruddy. When you are in a sea way and it is rough the crud finds its way into the filters and stops the engine - - all bad.

If you haven't changed the fuel filters before, practice at the dock where it is calm. The smell of diesel when you are head down in the engine compartment bouncing around in a sea way makes most people sick. This is not the time to do your first filter change.

George
Delicia IP 40

It is absolutely necessary to carry spares on board, even for day sails. The second part of that is your new-to-you IP27 should have a base line of maintenance done for you to use as reference. In my opinion, if you haven't done so yet, change the water pump impeller, water pump and alternator drive belts, fuel filers, oil and filter and the air filter. Document the date(s) and engine hours for each in a notebook you keep in board. The Yanmar owner's manual will give you a general maintenance schedule based on hours which I would consider a "guide". We also change the oil/filter at the end of each season even if we change it during the season. I never liked laying up a boat for the winter without fresh oil. Checking the engine and transmission oil is also a good opportunity to check the antifreeze in the freshwater cooling and eyeball the water seperator for any water in the fuel.

As far as spares, I carry a spare water pump and alternator belt, a waterpump impeller, two each fuel filters, an oil filter and two quarts of Rotella 30w diesel oil. The parts are in a dedicated case in the locker with the engine intake thru hull. I also carry a fairly complete tool box on board. Electrical tape, duct tape, zip ties and a can of WD40, a selection of hose clamps and clean shop rags.

The alternative is not carry anything like our dockmate and his new to him Cal 30. He has been on the end of the Boat US towline twice this past season. Once for an impeller failure, once for a belt failure. Never replaced them initially and does not carry spares.

Where can you buy the Racor Fuel Filter/Water Separators for the Yanmar 2gm20F found in a 1987 IP27? Is there a model number. Are they called 200 Series, 220 Series, 225 Series?

Curt, I agree with Hayden and have purchased parts from them for our boats. One word of caution though, make sure you actually have a Racor fuel filter. Our IP27 and Hayden's IP27 came from the factory with DAHL fuel filters. They are no longer popular for marine applications although parts can be found on line, they are a little more expensive than Racor.