The electrician came back, this time on our dime. Dave wanted
him to check our boat for any stray currents since we were going through
zincs so fast. He put a meter on anything that touches the saltwater.
Our bonding system (grounding) for the mast, rigging, keel and engine
are all good. He recommended bonding all of our through hulls, pump
motors and anything else that come in contact with sea water into our
existing bonding system. Otherwise, a metal that goes through the hull
can be dissolved and you have a hole in your boat. Not good! We
already knew that there were stray currents from other boats or the
docks in a marina, but if you are sitting where there is a tidal flow or in a river (we have both here), then the movement of the salt water can increase the charge between any positive or negative. If we have everything equal, it won't eat the metal off of our boat. Any small amount left should be taken care of by the zincs. That's their purpose. So periodically you check your zincs and replace them. They are supposed to last 3-4 months and ours were gone in one month. So it was nice to know what was going on before we started taking on water from some metal being eaten through the hull.
Today, Shelly and I started looking at material to recover our cushions. Sumbrella is a strong material that is used for the outside "canvas" that is durable and can take the sun better than other materials. They also make indoor Sumbrella. Shelly knew there was a Sumbrella dealer in Wilmington, so we started there. First we looked for a material that would be comfortable to sit on and then would see what colors it came in. When we asked the price of the one we liked, it was $184/yard!!!!! I just looked at Shelly and said "I have a lot of yards." We made up some excuse to get out of there and never went back.
We talked about finding a similar material to what we have and just recovering the 5 pieces that are showing the wear. We stopped at a grocery store and headed back to the boat for lunch.
After lunch, we took one of my cushions with us. Before leaving, we went to the BBY office and asked where they would recommend going for material that would be in stock. If we have to wait for material, Shelly would run out of time. They recommended a couple fabric outlets and gave us addresses. The first one we stopped didn't have anything that would match. But we found two that were close and they were only $12 and $8 /yard. So we were back to recovering all of them at that price. They gave us samples from both of them and we went to the second outlet. They didn't have a close match either, but they had 3 to choose from that I liked better than the first two. These were $13/yard but you could tell they were better quality than the other two. So I took those three samples and we went home to look at the colors inside the boat and to sleep on it.
For the piece we want to add outside, Shelly had a piece of isinglass that we will be able to use. And we have pieces of Sumbrella that came with the boat for covering woodwork that we will never use. So we can use that material for the outside curtain. All we'll need is the zipper for the top and snaps for the bottom. Shelly and my friend, Cheryl, would get along great. But I am actually going to help with this project, not sit back and drink beer, like I do when Cheryl is working on a project.
When we got back to the boat, Dave felt like going out. He hadn't left the marina since we arrived a week ago. We made a trip to West Marine. I just stayed in the car and googled restaurants in the area. We found a great Italian restaurant called Osteria Cicchetti. The entrees were only $13, but of course we added an antipasto, one salad and wine. So it could have been a cheap date, but you know how it goes. They had an interesting antipasto option. They listed about 6 vegetable choices, 6-8 cheeses and 4 meats. You could pick any 3 for $12 or 5 for $17. It came out on a board and we ate it with their great bread. It was a fun, lively place. And we each brought home leftovers.
Saturday, July 26, 2014
July 22-24, 2014 Surveyor and Electronics Technician
Tuesday: Brian, our insurance surveyor, came to the boat at 2:00. All 3 of us went over the timeline of events and what we have noticed not working or different or strange. Then I left to do laundry and get out of the way. He and Dave went through the boat looking at the various problems. Brian would write up his report tonight and "get the ball rolling" or should I say "get the sails sailing"? But he did want to have the boat hauled out of the water to check the hull. So that is planned for Thursday.
Wednesday: We talked to Al, boat yard manager, if we want to have the boat painted while it is out, we may as well wait until Monday to haul out the boat. They can't start the painting until then anyway. AND we can't stay on the boat when it is out. The painting will take about 5 days.
There was a canvas man working on another boat, so Dave asked him to stop over at our boat before he left. We asked him about adding a curtain on the stern to protect our backs from wind or rain. We didn't do this from the start because we have so many things mounted there. But we decided we could just to a center piece that is 45" wide. And maybe we will check with him about doing cushions.
We were invited to Miami and Shelly's boat for happy hour. We discussed the boat, canvas work, and getting a rental car. Shelly has done lost of canvas work/upholstery and offered to do ours. Also they were interested in sharing the car or putting Miami on as a extra driver. So we went home and measured all of our cushions and the space we want to add outside. Tomorrow we'll get the rental car car.
Thursday: Dale, the BBY head electronics technician, came to the boat to go over the insurance list of concerns and check out what needs to be done so BBY can give the insurance company an estimate for the work to be done.
Miami and I went to get the car. Enterprise will pick you up from certain locations. And BBY clients get a 5% discount. So came out pretty good. We decided not to put Miami on and they will just run errands with us.
I went to an Urgent Care clinic to have them check out what I thought was a bug bite. Last Thursday, we noticed a red area on my chest. On Friday it had little bubbles like poison ivy and was really itchy. On Saturday it was one big bubble. On Monday it broke open. By Wednesday, it looked like it was spreading. They gave me an oral antibiotic and antibacterial cream, and a steroid to cover all bases.
Wednesday: We talked to Al, boat yard manager, if we want to have the boat painted while it is out, we may as well wait until Monday to haul out the boat. They can't start the painting until then anyway. AND we can't stay on the boat when it is out. The painting will take about 5 days.
There was a canvas man working on another boat, so Dave asked him to stop over at our boat before he left. We asked him about adding a curtain on the stern to protect our backs from wind or rain. We didn't do this from the start because we have so many things mounted there. But we decided we could just to a center piece that is 45" wide. And maybe we will check with him about doing cushions.
We were invited to Miami and Shelly's boat for happy hour. We discussed the boat, canvas work, and getting a rental car. Shelly has done lost of canvas work/upholstery and offered to do ours. Also they were interested in sharing the car or putting Miami on as a extra driver. So we went home and measured all of our cushions and the space we want to add outside. Tomorrow we'll get the rental car car.
Thursday: Dale, the BBY head electronics technician, came to the boat to go over the insurance list of concerns and check out what needs to be done so BBY can give the insurance company an estimate for the work to be done.
Miami and I went to get the car. Enterprise will pick you up from certain locations. And BBY clients get a 5% discount. So came out pretty good. We decided not to put Miami on and they will just run errands with us.
I went to an Urgent Care clinic to have them check out what I thought was a bug bite. Last Thursday, we noticed a red area on my chest. On Friday it had little bubbles like poison ivy and was really itchy. On Saturday it was one big bubble. On Monday it broke open. By Wednesday, it looked like it was spreading. They gave me an oral antibiotic and antibacterial cream, and a steroid to cover all bases.
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
July 21, 2014 Rain check day
We spent some time this morning discussing our marina and boat yard situation with the office today. Since we came in after hours on Friday night, they took our credit card # and said to settle things on Monday.
Everyone in the Cape Fear Marina/Bennett Brothers Yachts boat yard has been very nice and helpful. Since we were having a survey done this afternoon, they are going to let us wait until then to decide how long we want our slip, a week or a month.
Al, from BBY talked us through how a survey and then the repairs usually go. He said that he has worked with this surveyor, Brian, and that he is really fair. But to remember that he works for the insurance company. Then Al said to remember that he "works for the boat". He will recommend what is best for the boat. Especially if he sees lightning damage that the surveyor may have missed. He will discuss it with them. Sounded like a good professional.
Did I mention that it had been raining all day? Because of that, our surveyor postponed his 2:00 appointment to 3:00, then to Tuesday at 2:00. So we started some new projects.
I cleaned the heads and made supper.
Dave decided to "pickle" our water maker again. We haven't been using it because at a marina, we can get water from their dock. And if we have to take the boat out of the water for repairs, he wanted to be sure it would be OK sitting for awhile longer. After starting the process of running a 5 gallon solution though the system, he decided to see if there was water in the bilge. Still trying to track down the "mystery water". And there was! He couldn't find a wet hose where it would be leaking, so he ran it again, and we didn't get more water in the bilge.
So he went hunting some more. He went into a bilge compartment further forward and found water that seemed to flow to the area of the bilge pump. So he took off the panel that covers the forward shower and could tell there was a little water following the hose back to it's connections, but not a lot. So he checked the air conditioning unit right below that area and found a pool of water in that area!! The filter needed cleaning! So we discovered another maintenance issue. If we are using the air conditioner continuously, we need to clean the filter on a weekly basis. Add that to our list. We will continue to check the bilge to be sure that handled it.
Everyone in the Cape Fear Marina/Bennett Brothers Yachts boat yard has been very nice and helpful. Since we were having a survey done this afternoon, they are going to let us wait until then to decide how long we want our slip, a week or a month.
Al, from BBY talked us through how a survey and then the repairs usually go. He said that he has worked with this surveyor, Brian, and that he is really fair. But to remember that he works for the insurance company. Then Al said to remember that he "works for the boat". He will recommend what is best for the boat. Especially if he sees lightning damage that the surveyor may have missed. He will discuss it with them. Sounded like a good professional.
Did I mention that it had been raining all day? Because of that, our surveyor postponed his 2:00 appointment to 3:00, then to Tuesday at 2:00. So we started some new projects.
I cleaned the heads and made supper.
Dave decided to "pickle" our water maker again. We haven't been using it because at a marina, we can get water from their dock. And if we have to take the boat out of the water for repairs, he wanted to be sure it would be OK sitting for awhile longer. After starting the process of running a 5 gallon solution though the system, he decided to see if there was water in the bilge. Still trying to track down the "mystery water". And there was! He couldn't find a wet hose where it would be leaking, so he ran it again, and we didn't get more water in the bilge.
So he went hunting some more. He went into a bilge compartment further forward and found water that seemed to flow to the area of the bilge pump. So he took off the panel that covers the forward shower and could tell there was a little water following the hose back to it's connections, but not a lot. So he checked the air conditioning unit right below that area and found a pool of water in that area!! The filter needed cleaning! So we discovered another maintenance issue. If we are using the air conditioner continuously, we need to clean the filter on a weekly basis. Add that to our list. We will continue to check the bilge to be sure that handled it.
July 19-20, 2014 Generator Day
Dave spent the day working on the generator. Between Saturday and Sunday, here is an abbreviated list of what he did. Checked all lines. Cleaned out the mixing elbow, Cleaned out the heat exchange tubes. Sunday he had it running after running water through each step. But when he put the casing back on and tried to start it, it wouldn't start. So he thinks it may be bringing in air and creating an air lock.
I spent most of Saturday afternoon catching up on this blog. We have had an active week, but not the wifi or power to post the blog.
We had a wonderful phone call from our son, Pete. That always makes our day. Love that guy!
After dinner, we invited our friends that we met in Charleston, Alex, Seng and Kaya, over for adult beverages in our cockpit. It's so fun to have friends here and having the time to get to know them better.
Sunday I took a taxi to St. Mary's Catholic church in downtown Wilmington, about 3 miles by road. Kaya was planning to go to a museum this afternoon, so I asked Alex and Seng if they could give me a ride back to the boat. They have a rental car. It worked out with perfect timing.
They were going to West Marine and the grocery store and offered to take me along. I was able to return a part and pick up some things at West Marine. Then we started talking about grocery stores and it came up that I had never been to Trader Joe's. So we went there for my first experience. I only needed fruit and vegetables, milk and eggs. Then it was fun picking up some unique food items.
After getting back to the boat, I helped Dave with a few things until about 6:00. Then friends that we met in Marathon, FL arrived by boat after waiting for the 6:00 bridge opening, Shelly, Miami and Ryan Phillips. We decided to order pizza to be delivered and have all 3 boats get together for the evening. You learn so much from each other. And they all get Dave's sense of humor. If not, guess we wouldn't still be friends :)
I spent most of Saturday afternoon catching up on this blog. We have had an active week, but not the wifi or power to post the blog.
We had a wonderful phone call from our son, Pete. That always makes our day. Love that guy!
After dinner, we invited our friends that we met in Charleston, Alex, Seng and Kaya, over for adult beverages in our cockpit. It's so fun to have friends here and having the time to get to know them better.
Sunday I took a taxi to St. Mary's Catholic church in downtown Wilmington, about 3 miles by road. Kaya was planning to go to a museum this afternoon, so I asked Alex and Seng if they could give me a ride back to the boat. They have a rental car. It worked out with perfect timing.
They were going to West Marine and the grocery store and offered to take me along. I was able to return a part and pick up some things at West Marine. Then we started talking about grocery stores and it came up that I had never been to Trader Joe's. So we went there for my first experience. I only needed fruit and vegetables, milk and eggs. Then it was fun picking up some unique food items.
After getting back to the boat, I helped Dave with a few things until about 6:00. Then friends that we met in Marathon, FL arrived by boat after waiting for the 6:00 bridge opening, Shelly, Miami and Ryan Phillips. We decided to order pizza to be delivered and have all 3 boats get together for the evening. You learn so much from each other. And they all get Dave's sense of humor. If not, guess we wouldn't still be friends :)
Saturday, July 19, 2014
July 18, 2014 Wilmington, NC
We checked out marinas in the area. We are closer to the coast and the ICW in Wrightsville Beach, so the marinas are more expensive. So we checked out marinas in Wilmington and decided to go to Cape Fear Marina. They also have a boat yard if we need to have work done on the boat. We have friends from Charleston that are there right now. And we have friends from Marathon that are considering heading there next week. Such a small world.
We spent some time this morning talking to the insurance company and sending in the claims form. So we didn’t leave our anchorage until about 11:00 am. We had to back track about 10 miles (2 hours) south on the ICW. Then we headed north on the Cape Fear river about 10 miles into Wilmington. This marina is on the north side of the historic downtown area. There is one draw bridge right before the marina that only opens at 10:00 and 2:00 between 6 am and 6 pm. Well with the insurance business this morning, we missed the 2:00 opening. We arrived at 3:15, bummer. Our marina had said they would still meet us at the dock after 6:00 if that happened, even though they close at 5:00. I’m sure it has happened before. We asked our marina about tying up somewhere to have something to eat. They suggested we contact the municipal dock’s dock master to see if we could tie up while we went into town. We did, and they were very accommodating. We walked a few blocks and found a fun diner and had great hamburgers.
While waiting for our burgers, we heard “our song” and started holding hands. The waitress noticed and thought it was so cute. We told her how the first time we had heard this song was on our first date, Black Water by the Doobie Brothers. Then we realized that it will be 40 years since our first date on 10-31-2014. She went all mushy and said she hoped she and her boyfriend would be celebrating their 40th anniversary someday. So we told her we have been married almost 37 years and now live on a sailboat. She couldn’t believe it because it is her dream to live on a boat. We really made her day. We gave her inspiration.
We made it back to the boat and through the bridge and were docked by about 6:30 pm. Our friends, Alex and Seng and Kiya met us at the dock. That was a first, to have friends greet you at the dock. They left for dinner and we spent time getting the boat settled. First we positioned the boat to steady it against current from 2 directions. The tide changes the current. So you have to run lines accordingly. Then we hooked up to the shore power, which involved moving the boat again to get the power cords to reach. Then we shut the hatches and turned on the air conditioning. I filled our water tanks while Dave put out extra zincs to protect our boat from stray currents in the marina. Marinas are hard on boats. They are actually safer when we are anchored by ourselves. Besides the electrical current, you can bang against the docks in high winds. We have fenders, but they can’t protect everything. Also, if your boat is rocking side to side, your mast can hit the mast of the adjacent boat if you don't stagger them in the slips.
I am reading a book that has excerpts from the log book of a couple that built their own boat in retirement and sailed form South Carolina to Maine and back. The author was a writer, so his entries are descriptive and philosophical. Here is a quote from it that hit home this week.
“A lot of people wanted something else, or didn’t have good enough luck to acquire a cottage, a fireplace, or a boat. That doesn’t mean such things are bad. Sort of a movable place is my boat. She’s individual, she’s a place that gives the world significance for me. Of course I love her good qualities, her ability to fight to windward when the going is tough. But I have a certain fondness even for her faults.”
And we will repair these “faults” and continue our adventure. We may be in Wilmington for a while, but we will make the most of it.
We spent some time this morning talking to the insurance company and sending in the claims form. So we didn’t leave our anchorage until about 11:00 am. We had to back track about 10 miles (2 hours) south on the ICW. Then we headed north on the Cape Fear river about 10 miles into Wilmington. This marina is on the north side of the historic downtown area. There is one draw bridge right before the marina that only opens at 10:00 and 2:00 between 6 am and 6 pm. Well with the insurance business this morning, we missed the 2:00 opening. We arrived at 3:15, bummer. Our marina had said they would still meet us at the dock after 6:00 if that happened, even though they close at 5:00. I’m sure it has happened before. We asked our marina about tying up somewhere to have something to eat. They suggested we contact the municipal dock’s dock master to see if we could tie up while we went into town. We did, and they were very accommodating. We walked a few blocks and found a fun diner and had great hamburgers.
While waiting for our burgers, we heard “our song” and started holding hands. The waitress noticed and thought it was so cute. We told her how the first time we had heard this song was on our first date, Black Water by the Doobie Brothers. Then we realized that it will be 40 years since our first date on 10-31-2014. She went all mushy and said she hoped she and her boyfriend would be celebrating their 40th anniversary someday. So we told her we have been married almost 37 years and now live on a sailboat. She couldn’t believe it because it is her dream to live on a boat. We really made her day. We gave her inspiration.
We made it back to the boat and through the bridge and were docked by about 6:30 pm. Our friends, Alex and Seng and Kiya met us at the dock. That was a first, to have friends greet you at the dock. They left for dinner and we spent time getting the boat settled. First we positioned the boat to steady it against current from 2 directions. The tide changes the current. So you have to run lines accordingly. Then we hooked up to the shore power, which involved moving the boat again to get the power cords to reach. Then we shut the hatches and turned on the air conditioning. I filled our water tanks while Dave put out extra zincs to protect our boat from stray currents in the marina. Marinas are hard on boats. They are actually safer when we are anchored by ourselves. Besides the electrical current, you can bang against the docks in high winds. We have fenders, but they can’t protect everything. Also, if your boat is rocking side to side, your mast can hit the mast of the adjacent boat if you don't stagger them in the slips.
I am reading a book that has excerpts from the log book of a couple that built their own boat in retirement and sailed form South Carolina to Maine and back. The author was a writer, so his entries are descriptive and philosophical. Here is a quote from it that hit home this week.
“A lot of people wanted something else, or didn’t have good enough luck to acquire a cottage, a fireplace, or a boat. That doesn’t mean such things are bad. Sort of a movable place is my boat. She’s individual, she’s a place that gives the world significance for me. Of course I love her good qualities, her ability to fight to windward when the going is tough. But I have a certain fondness even for her faults.”
And we will repair these “faults” and continue our adventure. We may be in Wilmington for a while, but we will make the most of it.
July 17, 2014 The Second Day of Discovery,
Today, Dave made phone calls for our wifi booster, wiri, and to the xantrax dealer (voltage & current monitor) and waited for their return calls, of course. They talked him through trying to reset, but no luck. For the Wiri wifi booster, they told Dave how to test the booster antenna and the router. He opened the box mounted outside and removed these two items. The booster antenna had an USB plug that we put into our computer. But the computer didn’t recognize it as a device, so we knew it wasn’t working, probably a short. Then he found an adapter to plug in the router to 120. We had to turn on our inverter for the power. There was no luck here, so the router wasn’t working either.
Dave also climbed the mast today about 3:00. He replaced a burnt out light bulb and didn’t see any sign of a direct hit by lighting. He had a job years ago climbing radio towers for repairs. So he knew what to look for if there had been a lightning strike. At the time we all just thought Dave took the job for a thrill, climbing those towers. But there is a reason for everything.
We ran the engine for about an hour to charge the batteries again. At that time, he realized that the radar and autopilot were not being recognized. When he went to shut off the engine about an hour later, he noticed it was reading low voltage. Also when he shut off the engine, the alarm and the display lights wouldn’t shut off, even if he removed the key. So he disconnected the engine battery, still wouldn’t shut off, so reconnected that. We shut off the DC Main switch on the switch panel in our navigation station, still wouldn’t shut off. We turned off the ground kill switch and that did it. Of course we had to turn that switch back on, and when we did, the alarm stayed off. Yeah!
After checking through what Dave could think of, we decided to give the insurance company a call tomorrow. We waited to see if just simple tweaks would set things right. I had sent an e-mail to the claims department on Wednesday asking for a claims report if we would need one. We will also move our boat to a marina tomorrow for the necessary repairs.
Since we would be leaving this area tomorrow, we decided to take the dinghy to shore and go out to dinner. We walked to a great little Mexican restaurant. After dinner we had a nice walk on the beach to clear our heads. This is a beautiful tourist spot. It reminded me of Gulf Shores, Alabama but on a smaller scale.
Our sailing friend, Gary, continued north on the ICW today and made it half way to Beaufort, NC. He anchored near Camp Lejeune military installation and could hear machine gun fire from his boat.
Hap and Alice did decide to have hospice care come into their home. He has cancelled all future doctors appointments. He and his family are very comfortable with this decision. He has 2 sons and 3 daughters that live in the area. Dave was able to talk to him on the phone today. Kind of puts our problems into perspective.
Dave also climbed the mast today about 3:00. He replaced a burnt out light bulb and didn’t see any sign of a direct hit by lighting. He had a job years ago climbing radio towers for repairs. So he knew what to look for if there had been a lightning strike. At the time we all just thought Dave took the job for a thrill, climbing those towers. But there is a reason for everything.
We ran the engine for about an hour to charge the batteries again. At that time, he realized that the radar and autopilot were not being recognized. When he went to shut off the engine about an hour later, he noticed it was reading low voltage. Also when he shut off the engine, the alarm and the display lights wouldn’t shut off, even if he removed the key. So he disconnected the engine battery, still wouldn’t shut off, so reconnected that. We shut off the DC Main switch on the switch panel in our navigation station, still wouldn’t shut off. We turned off the ground kill switch and that did it. Of course we had to turn that switch back on, and when we did, the alarm stayed off. Yeah!
After checking through what Dave could think of, we decided to give the insurance company a call tomorrow. We waited to see if just simple tweaks would set things right. I had sent an e-mail to the claims department on Wednesday asking for a claims report if we would need one. We will also move our boat to a marina tomorrow for the necessary repairs.
Since we would be leaving this area tomorrow, we decided to take the dinghy to shore and go out to dinner. We walked to a great little Mexican restaurant. After dinner we had a nice walk on the beach to clear our heads. This is a beautiful tourist spot. It reminded me of Gulf Shores, Alabama but on a smaller scale.
Our sailing friend, Gary, continued north on the ICW today and made it half way to Beaufort, NC. He anchored near Camp Lejeune military installation and could hear machine gun fire from his boat.
Hap and Alice did decide to have hospice care come into their home. He has cancelled all future doctors appointments. He and his family are very comfortable with this decision. He has 2 sons and 3 daughters that live in the area. Dave was able to talk to him on the phone today. Kind of puts our problems into perspective.
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| "selfie" taken on Wrightsville Beach, NC |
July 16, 2014 Day of Discovery
Dave decided to call this our “day of discovery”. He needed to start poking around to see what was or wasn’t working. Our wifi booster and external GPS are not working. Dave was noticing a problem with our engine battery. The wifi booster was getting power but not turning on.
Gary, our buddy boater, was looking for a small motor for his dinghy. So we started talking about getting a smaller one, too. Right now, we have to use a lift to get our 100 lb 15 HP Mercury outboard motor off of the motor mount and onto the dinghy with a pulley system. That’s ok when we are going to be using it for a week. But when we stop somewhere overnight or for a couple days, we would rather have a quick way of getting the dinghy in and out. They found a good deal on 2.5 HP propane motors here in Wrightsville Beach at the West Marine. Someone at the store would deliver them here and throw in some free fuel. So the two of them took off to wheel and deal. Dave had to row to Gary’s boat and then row to shore. With the threat of rain, I chose to stay on board the boat. They made it to shore just as it started to rain. The wind and waves made it an exciting trip. Now for their mile or more walk in the rain. So much fun when you don't have a car.
Both the main and auxiliary batteries were reading too high. The main went back to normal with a reset, but not the auxiliary. So before Dave left to get the new dinghy motor, he shut off the solar panels. While he was away, the monitor started flashing because the batteries were too low. So I called Dave and he had me shut down all power but the essentials, like the bilge pump and the refrigerator/freezer.
When he returned, Dave decided to run the generator to charge our batteries to at least make it through the night with the lights, fans and the water pump as needed. Now the generator wouldn’t work. He dug into that and found that the impeller had blown. So he took that apart to replace the impeller. While doing that, he found pieces of old impeller still inside the unit. That is a “no-no”. You are supposed to chase down all the parts so they don’t clog something further down the line. He said we were lucky that that hadn’t already caused problems. Also the internal zinc was missing. So we are getting stray current through here that could now start eating away on other metal parts. That being said, he found salt in the bottom of the generator case, which indicates that salt water has entered the boat somewhere. He replaced the impeller and added a new zinc but wasn’t going to do any more this evening. Now we decided to run the diesel engine to charge batteries. At this point, I was using my phone in the dark and realizing I couldn’t charge it. So I decided to go to bed. Dave spent some time reading up on how to further check out some of our problems.
Along with all of the boat issues, we received an e-mail from Dave’s mom. Dave's step father, Hap, may be starting hospice care. We will learn more tomorrow. He is in his 90’s and still at home with Alice. But it is getting more difficult for him to sleep and he doesn’t have an appetite, and now they found cancer in his liver. They have been married over 40 years, so he has been a major part of our lives. And such a kind, dear man. We wish him comfort in the days to come.
Gary, our buddy boater, was looking for a small motor for his dinghy. So we started talking about getting a smaller one, too. Right now, we have to use a lift to get our 100 lb 15 HP Mercury outboard motor off of the motor mount and onto the dinghy with a pulley system. That’s ok when we are going to be using it for a week. But when we stop somewhere overnight or for a couple days, we would rather have a quick way of getting the dinghy in and out. They found a good deal on 2.5 HP propane motors here in Wrightsville Beach at the West Marine. Someone at the store would deliver them here and throw in some free fuel. So the two of them took off to wheel and deal. Dave had to row to Gary’s boat and then row to shore. With the threat of rain, I chose to stay on board the boat. They made it to shore just as it started to rain. The wind and waves made it an exciting trip. Now for their mile or more walk in the rain. So much fun when you don't have a car.
Both the main and auxiliary batteries were reading too high. The main went back to normal with a reset, but not the auxiliary. So before Dave left to get the new dinghy motor, he shut off the solar panels. While he was away, the monitor started flashing because the batteries were too low. So I called Dave and he had me shut down all power but the essentials, like the bilge pump and the refrigerator/freezer.
When he returned, Dave decided to run the generator to charge our batteries to at least make it through the night with the lights, fans and the water pump as needed. Now the generator wouldn’t work. He dug into that and found that the impeller had blown. So he took that apart to replace the impeller. While doing that, he found pieces of old impeller still inside the unit. That is a “no-no”. You are supposed to chase down all the parts so they don’t clog something further down the line. He said we were lucky that that hadn’t already caused problems. Also the internal zinc was missing. So we are getting stray current through here that could now start eating away on other metal parts. That being said, he found salt in the bottom of the generator case, which indicates that salt water has entered the boat somewhere. He replaced the impeller and added a new zinc but wasn’t going to do any more this evening. Now we decided to run the diesel engine to charge batteries. At this point, I was using my phone in the dark and realizing I couldn’t charge it. So I decided to go to bed. Dave spent some time reading up on how to further check out some of our problems.
Along with all of the boat issues, we received an e-mail from Dave’s mom. Dave's step father, Hap, may be starting hospice care. We will learn more tomorrow. He is in his 90’s and still at home with Alice. But it is getting more difficult for him to sleep and he doesn’t have an appetite, and now they found cancer in his liver. They have been married over 40 years, so he has been a major part of our lives. And such a kind, dear man. We wish him comfort in the days to come.
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| Dave rowing to Gary's boat-second one |
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| Dave showing off his new propane motor |
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