Outboard Engines – The Basics

Outboard Engines – The Basics

Basic Two-Stroke and Four-Stroke Cycles

Two-stroke outboards are still around, but more and more four-stroke outboard engines are appearing. Suzuki outboards are amongst the market leaders with a huge range of four stroke outboard motors. Each kind has its advantages and disadvantages but the four-stroke, with its leaner exhaust emissions, will set the standard for the future. In any case, to be an engine troubleshooter you need to know how both kinds of engine work.

Remember the four basic needs: Whether it’s two-stroke or four-stroke outboard engines, they need a fuel/air mixture delivered to the cylinder; it needs to compress it; the mixture must somehow be ignited; and, when it’s done burning, the exhaust gases must be removed. This process occurs repeatedly as the engine runs, and the order in which these things happen must be exact to within a fraction of a second.

Four-Stroke outboard motors

It may help to think of an internal combustion engine as a pump of sorts.

Let’s take a look at how the four-stroke works:

Stroke 1-The piston travels down the cylinder, drawing the air-fuel mixture in behind it.

Stroke 2-On its way up again, the piston compresses this mixture to help make a more efficient explosion. (Incidentally, the piston rings stop the mixture from leaking out of the slight gap at the sides.)

Stroke 3-When it’s nicely compressed this mixture is ignited and the resulting explosion forces the piston down the cylinder. The piston has a connecting rod attached to an offset on the crankshaft, and that forces the crankshaft to turn.

Stroke 4-So, finally, while the piston is being pushed back to its starting position by the revolving crankshaft, it’s also pushing out the burned gases and preparing to start the cycle all over again. Thus, the engine has converted the reciprocating (back-and-forth) motion of the piston into something more useful for driving a propeller: rotary motion.

Two-Stroke outboard engines.

The significant difference here is the absence of conventional intake and exhaust valves. In fact, there are valves in a purely technical sense: The moving pistons alternately reveal and cover up ports (holes) in the cylinder wall, thus acting as valves. The ports are the means of gas entry and exit from the combustion chamber. The other big difference is that two-stroke outboard engines actually combine, the intake and compression strokes into one operation, and the power and exhaust strokes into another. As we’ve already seen, this enables it to complete all four necessary functions intake, compression, ignition, and exhaust, with just two strokes of the piston in its cylinder, and only one revolution of the crankshaft instead of two.

Two-stroke engines don’t have crankcase oil. In addition, a four-stroke engine’s valves will need adjustment now and then. A two-stroke gets along fine without valves-at the cost of reduced efficiency and increased pollution.

Suzuki Outboards

Suzuki have been so confident in their product that they have been offering 3 year warranties.…

Swimming – How To Swim Butterfly

Swimming – How To Swim Butterfly

Those who are good swimmers will tell you that the butterfly stroke is known to be one of the toughest competitive swimming strokes among the different swimming stokes. If you are a beginner, it may not be very easy to learn the stroke in the beginning but with practice one can hope to perfect this swimming stroke. Most people say that it is incredibly difficult to learn butterfly stroke quickly. But one thing everyone agrees upon is that it is great fun to learn this stroke.

The beginners have a difficulty in synchronizing the movements of the whole body and that is why they find it to be a difficult stroke in the beginning. This proper synchronization is important for the butterfly stroke. In the beginning, you will have to learn kicking with your legs. In order to learn the butterfly stroke, a swimmer has to perfect the dolphin kick. You can begin with 1 small kick first. After that do the 2 medium sized dolphin kicks. Finally, there has to be a thrust where you must learn to kick the hardest with bended knees.

You will have to gradually work your way to the top with every kick. Once you hit the surface, you will have to learn the arm movements. The arms will have to move in a circular motion at the same time. If you learn how to do the stroke correctly, it will help you to add an extra boost of power. That will take your body forward. In this stroke, the water has to be scooped away from the torso. While doing so both arms have to move simultaneously at the same time. You have to learn to break the surface to take a breath when your hands are outstretched at the sides. When you are completing your inhale, try and rotate your arms forward and get them back into the water.

Anyone can master the butterfly stroke. For this stroke you have to learn the right body movement and the kicking technique. This can happen only if you strengthen your entire body. Remember, when are doing the butterfly stroke, you are moving using your arms, legs and the upper party of the body to push you forward through the water. Here if you learn the proper technique, you have won the battle. Do not give up unless you have tried. It will just require a bit of practice.…

Recovery From Stroke – What to Expect During Stroke Rehabilitation

Recovery From Stroke – What to Expect During Stroke Rehabilitation

In order for a stroke victim to recover fully from stroke, rehabilitation is an important part of recovery. The length of rehabilitation depends on the severity of the stroke. Some patients need months or even years to recover fully, while some recover very quickly.

For a stroke victim, getting back on his feet is most probably his top concern after a stroke. After stroke, the lifestyle of the patient changes completely. Things that are easy to do in the past seem impossible now. Therefore, one of the objectives of a rehabilitation program is to help the patient relearn skills and gain back his confidence once again. Participating in a rehabilitation program helps the patient to regain independence and improve his quality of life.

After a stroke, the patient should begin attending rehabilitation program immediately once his medical condition has been stabilized. The later the patient attends the rehab program, the longer it takes him to recover from stroke. The rehab program should start during his hospital stay.

So what is involved in a stroke rehab? A typical stroke rehab program includes some or all of the following therapies:

1. Regain or strengthen motor skills. After a stroke, the patient loses his motor skills. The rehab program involves using exercises to help improve his muscles strength and coordination.

2. Mobility training which involves using walking aids to help patient to relearn how to walk.

3. Communication therapy session to help patient regain lost abilities in speaking, writing and listening.

4. Motion therapy to help patient loosens tension in muscle and regain range of motion.

5. Psychology therapy to help patient to regain confidence and stay away from depression which damage recovery.

As I have mentioned earlier, stroke rehab should begin while the patient is still in the hospital. The hospital has social workers and care team to take care of the patient and help him through the rehab program. The patient can choose to use the inpatient or outpatient rehabilitation units. For inpatient rehabilitation unit, the patient will stay at the facility for several weeks as part of an intensive rehab program. For outpatient unit, the patient will use the facilities located inside of a hospital or clinic and spend several hours a day relearning skills before returning home each night.

Stroke rehab should not stop after inpatient/outpatient rehabilitation program. The patient should continue to have therapy at home to ensure a faster road to full recovery. Another way to help a stroke patient to recover faster is to take stroke medication. There are many advanced medications today that help patients to recover from stroke.…

Nutrition As A Tool In Fitness Marketing

Are you struggling with weight loss? Despite fat having more calories per gram than protein or carbohydrates, diets that are high in fat do not make people fat,” Lambert explains. Unfortunately lots of these “muscle builders” or “weight loss” bars are crammed full of corn syrup, sugars, or even the dreaded high fructose corn syrup (all of which cause fat flabby stomachs).\n\nThe foods you eat make up your body. Her no-nonsense tips help people re-develop a healthy relationship with food for life, so we spoke to Lambert to find out five of the most common nutrition lies and what the truth really is. Some nutrition software programs will also calculate the Percent Daily Values of nutrients in the meals you eat.\n\nIts all about everything in moderation, if you stop eating anything with even a little fat in it your body will just go into shock the minute it touches your lips again. Fill two sections with plant based foods and the third section with healthy proteins like fish, chicken or turkey.\n\nThese are the more energy and calorie dense carbohydrates that will help provide your body with the fuel it needs. Whether you are trying to lose weight, maintain a healthy weight, or gain weight, the relative amounts of protein, carbohydrates and fat can make a difference.\n\nIf you take the time and use a little bit of effort you can educate yourself about proper nutrition and healthy eating. Compared with meats, vegetables have a higher vitamin content as they absorb the natural elements from the soil. If you give your body what it needs, when it needs it, and in the amounts it needs – you will experience sustained healthy energy and more PASSION in every area of your life.…

Organic Whole Food Vitamin Supplements

Organic whole food vitamins are the most convenient way to ensure a healthy, balanced diet with all the nutrients your body needs to operate efficiently. At Rutgers University, New Jersey, nutritional and food science Professor Paul A. Lachance headed up a study, published in the Journal of The American College of Nutrition, to evaluate 29 popular fruit, and ranked them in descending order of value according to the benefits they confer.\n\nAdditional diseases that may be related to a lack of appropriate nutrients other than simple vitamins in American diets may include a wide variety of conditions ranging from immune disorders implicated in conditions such as Rheumatoid Arthritis, Lupus and Cancer to psychiatric and neurological conditions such as ADHD, Autism and Depression.\n\nIn addition, Dr. Royal Lee, claims that vitamins isolated or synthesized under laboratory conditions, are toxic and are the main cause of chemical imbalance in our body. You want carefully portioned out vitamins that come from natural sources. Good sources include potatoes, bananas, lentils, chile peppers, brewer’s yeast, whole food supplements, molasses, tuna, animal livers and meat.\n\nIt becomes counterproductive to over think your nutritional and vitamin intake, but it is also unwise to ignore it. While we can live without enough of a certain vitamin for a while, in the long term a vitamin deficiency is a precursor to all sorts of health problems.\n\nI am impressed with nutrition companies such as Garden of Life, Mt. Capra, and New Chapter, because they follow these health promoting principles of using only whole food ingredients and a culturing probiotic process in their vitamin and supplement formulas.…

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly – From Omega 3 to Trans Fats

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly – From Omega 3 to Trans Fats

On the other hand, saturated fats increase the cholesterol levels as they have negative effect on the body, and diet containing saturated fats should not be taken because they are bad fats. Animal and some plants are key causes for increasing the saturated fats and the diet that contains dairy products, red meat, and palm and coconut oils should not be taken in high quantity, or even better should be avoided as much as possible. The unsaturated fats are good ones that have Omega 3 fatty acid and are beneficial and the saturated fats that are bad ones and are found in fatty meat steaks, and block your blood vessels with loads of cholesterol that decrease the blood flow. And then there are the ugly fats, known as trans fats, and, in addition to your heart getting harmed, your waistline and nerves also take a hit. Trans fats are man-made for the purpose of enhancing the shelf life of the food items, thus they are contained in almost all the packaged foods, cakes, cookies, popcorn and many restaurant foods as well, such as, donuts, French fries and other fast food.

However, it is virtually impossible to entirely do away with bad foods and consume only foods having good fats. You can, however, improve the ratio by applying some simple rules to the way you cook and eat. Begin with checking the labels of the food items. You can avoid products having trans fats just by checking their labels because law requires all the manufacturers to give full detail of the ingredients of the food articles. You can also minimize the intake of trans fats by eating food prepared at home and avoiding packaged and tinned food. That way you’ll know exactly what you can find in your granola bars, for example, making sure they are rather full of Omega 3 rich nuts than saturated fats from coconut oil.

To limit your saturated fats intake opt for lean meats and trim fat from juicier pieces, and reach for reduced fat dairy, preferably vitamin D fortified for extra benefit. It is important that you should not only decrease the bad fats in your food but also increase the quantity of good fats, for which you would have to take foods containing olive oil, salad containing nuts and seeds, and diet containing fish. In case you can’t follow one of the steps in the routine, you should compensate that by the supplements rich in Omega 3 that will replenish your mind and senses, keep your body healthy and strengthen your heart.…

Do You Know There Are Vitamins From Whole Foods?

Some big news about vitamins not working – and even causing harm – has been all over the airways recently, Whole Food Nutrition is the answer to this question by offering a new meaning of nutrition. Crops grown organically have higher levels of vitamins and they reduce the chances of heart disease and cancer. Null The key is whole food vitamins What are whole food vitamins and what can it do for us? Though the FDA doesn’t do an adequate job of monitoring the food supply or pharmaceutical industry, they have established standards of labeling which include appropriate identification of all ingredients contained in a supplement.\n\nBut all else held constant, whole food vitamins obtained from a natural whole food diet will provide the optimal nutrition for the human body, as it was designed by nature. The underlying premise of alternative health practitioners and the health food industry is that only by treating the whole person can we support optimal health – hence the term Holistic Health.\n\nSynthetics literally pull nutrients from the body rather than restoring these vital substances because they contain only a portion of the entire nutrient. The best and easiest way to obtain this is by taking exceptionally pure, cold processed oils in whole food supplements.\n\nLarge doses of some vitamins can be toxic to some people. It is this combination of essential nutrients that make it a whole food and a food supplement all in one. Whole food supplements are foods that haven’t been processed or refined, or have undergone as little processing as possible for preservation or human consumption.\n\nYet the worst part is, man has the ability to make these items then, put them in our food and even our vitamins. If you consider an example: it is known that tomatoes are good for health as they are rich in Vitamins C and E. But to get your full quota of these vitamins you would have to eat nearly a dozen tomatoes everyday, which is not possible.

Why Are 4 Stroke Outboard Engines More Popular?

Why Are 4 Stroke Outboard Engines More Popular?

As a majority of you must know, outboard motors are mainly of two types, i.e., 2-stroke and 4-stroke. Each of these types has its own advantages and disadvantages. However, due to rising pollution concerns, 2-stroke outboard motor engines are now being replaced by the 4-stroke ones. Even though the purpose of both of these types of motors are same, i.e. to propel the boat, still there is a vast different in their mechanism.

The 4-stroke engines are much quite and smooth then the 2-stroke ones. They give far more comfortable and pleasurable ride. With better fuel efficiency that produce less smoke and pollution. The reliability of 4-stroke outboard engines is also high as compared to the 2-stroke ones. These engines are better suited for bigger boats. There are some waters which require the use of 4-stroke engines, i.e. a 2-stroke engine will not be able to propel the boat, and thus in this case you have no other option then to go for the 4-stroke engines.

There are some negative sides of a 4-stroke engine like complex design, difficulty in repairing, expensive etc. but still with technology being improved these drawbacks will surely become a thing of past soon.

4-stroke outboard motors consist of an engine block which is made of machined still and on its centre there is a hollow cylinder. This cylinder is critical to the functionality of the engines. There are some other parts attached to the engine block.

The piston is this engine is a can-shaped part designed so as to fit in the cylinder precisely. The rings that are there on the piston are to fit tightly against the walls of the cylinder. In the engine block, there is a crankshaft at the base. In order for the motor to operate, the piston should be connected to the crankshaft. The crankshaft of the engine is akin to the crank arms. In fact, it functions more or less in the same way.

Due to internal combustion the piston is pushed down with force. Carburetor is another important component of 4-stroke engines. Carburetor consists of butterfly valve for air and also needle valves which are there for fuel. Both these components work together to provide a proper and perfect level of air and fuel into the cylinder.

Valves play an important role in making this system work. The valves in the 4-stroke outboard motor engine are mainly of two types and that is exhaust and intake. In the intake valve, when it opens it allows the air-fuel picture to enter in to the cylinder. Whereas the exhaust valve when opens, it allow the burnt fuel-air mixture to exit the cylinder. All this happens during the course of 4-strokes.

When you look for these motors, you will find a wide variety. Just make sure that you know each and every detail about the product that you are buying.…

About Organic Foods, Whole Foods And Nutritional Supplements

The Standard American Diet (SAD) is lacking in many vital nutritional components. Commercial supplements are aimed at increasing the vitamin and mineral intake using minerals like calcium carbonate, calcium citrate and other mineral derivates taken from rocks and sea shells. Unfortunately, synthetic vitamins and commonly marketed forms of minerals often create more problems than the nutrient deficiencies they are supposed to address.\n\nThese nutrient rich vegetables and fruits are non-toxic and seek out the various nutritional deficiencies that we have in our bodies. This amazing discovery explains why vitamin and mineral pills just do not work as well as whole foods and whole food supplements.\n\nGood plant sources of fiber include psyllium seed husk, bran flakes, legumes, oats, rye, barley, prune juice, plums, lentils, beans, quinoa, berries, bananas, broccoli, carrots, artichokes, potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, whole grain foods, wheat, corn bran, flax seed, green beans and tomatoes.\n\nThey’re derived from natural fruits and vegetables such as carrots, whole grains, sea vegetables, grapes, black cherries, celery, aloe vera, and cranberries to name a few. Hunger signals are further strengthened when a person suffers from common nutritional deficiencies (virtually all Americans are deficient in zinc, vitamin D, various B vitamins, magnesium and other important nutrients).\n\nRegular or synthetic vitamins are produced in laboratories and are actually simulated vitamins. Visit any local health food store or even grocery store and you will find a variety of whole food supplements from garlic supplements to fish oils such as the omega fatty acid supplements.

Do You Know There Are Vitamins From Whole Foods?

The reason why whole food supplements have started quickly gaining popularity is because many people are finally beginning to educate themselves on the supplements they’re taking and how their bodies process them. It is still not known whether the synthetic nutrients have the same potency as nutrients from whole foods. Even some of the fiber found in the fruits and vegetables shows up in these products. Experts say that a healthy diet incorporating a variety of so-called superfoods will help people maintain their weight, fight disease, and live longer.\n\nSynthetic ingredients are not going to give the same healthy benefits as the whole food ingredients. They have the whole complex, unlike the unnatural vitamins. In fact, just like other synthetic vitamins, synthetic vitamin C is a fractionated vitamin. It can be difficult to eat properly in a busy world and often people will turn in the direction of nutritional supplementation to increase their chances of good health.\n\nWhen we say essential nutrients, it means that the body can’t create these elements on its own. Once thought to be a single vitamin, these were later discovered to be a group of chemically distinct vitamins that frequently coexist in particular foods. Only intake of naturally-occurring vitamins, found in wholesome organic foods can most benefit our body’s performance.\n\nAmerica has become a convenience food nation consuming much of the diet from unnatural food sources. A profusion of evidence has recently come to light suggesting that ordinary synthetic multivitamin supplements may be hazardous to your health. And there will never be any synthetic or chemical ingredients that were developed unnaturally in some lab someplace.\n\nCod liver oil is one of the only sources of natural vitamin D, an essential nutrient for bone health and many biological functions in the human body. The net result of this new phytochemical-rich diet was an induced drop in total cholesterol of 13 percent – meaning less risk of heart disease and stroke, statistically still the biggest killers of people in first world countries.…