A Good Day Of Work

SHIP'S LOG:


     After three days of rain, I finally got up to ABISHAG and there is both good news and bad news. First the Good News: the hatches in aft cabin and the fore cabin, both newly reset, are working just fie to keep out the rain. The Bad News, it would appear that the main hatch in the Saloon did not. Right under the main hatch is the saloon table. The has two leaves that drop when not in use an a central central space between them sporting fiddles (raised edges).  When I got there yesterday, this raised area was awash, filled to overflowing with water. Evidently, the water is still getting in but exactly how I can't figure. The same procedure was use to seal it and reset it as was used for the other two hatches, so it would seem that it should be as tight as they. There was also indications (more water) that water reached as far as the port-side settee as there was water in the toolkit and a locker box that rested there. Unfortunately there was no linger clues as to where the water was making its entrance as the main hatch itself was dry as was the area around it. There didn't appear to be any leakage around the ports so I am at a total loss to explain it. It appears that I am going to have to resort to "the hose" -  soaking down the deck around the hatch  and see if I can spot how it is gaining entrance.  Some good news for this procedure is that the ceiling tiles are all down so this procedure should make clear who it the water is getting in.

     At little more bad news came in the form of the death of my Shop-Vac. I had left it sitting on the table in the saloon right under the hatch and water evidently dripped on it big time. On the top cover of the Shop-Vac, there is a vent for the cooling of the electric motor and as a result, water dripped into the vent and onto the motor and when I attempted to start it it shorted out and died. So it is that I had to purchase a new one. O joy!

     I spent the first part of the work day cleaning up the effects of the leaks. The tools had to be WD-40-ed to keep them from rusting and the interior deck had to be cleaned as I tracked wet muddy feet all over. I had to pump out the bilge and the sump. When all that was done, I could get down to work.

       The prop had to be cleaned of barnacles and dried out marine growth, which took about an hour with a wire-brush on the drill. Boy, once those little bastards adhere themselves to something they really don't make it easy to get them off. And you have to get them off as they really, and I mean really, affect the boat speed.  A fouled prop can really make the engine work hard. In addition, they attract new barnacles and marine growth as they provide the perfect medium for new growth, so they have to go.  I have to stand at an uncomfortable angle and manipulate the drill with the wire brush and literally burnish the prop free of all growth. When it is over, the prop looks great, all bright and shiny, but with in a couple of hours the moisture in the air causes it to dull completely. Still, it is free of the growth and that's the  main thing.

     The old shaft zinc had to be removed as well.It is about half way gone and so it has to be replaced. It is weird to toss out what looks like a barely used zinc but once it has "melted" away more than half way, it really doesn't provide the protection one needs. So if it is a choice between a $13 zinc and a $850 prop or a $1,000 prop shaft, it is $13 well spent.

     Last summer, during a storm that took place while I was in a slip at the club, ABISHAG rubbed a rail against a protruding dock piling. It partially ripped out a section of the toe rail and it had to be replaced. I tried to pop the bungs with the intention of removing the screws that help it in place but I did too good a job setting it in place. This was one of the sections I had replaced last year and over-kill came into play, for while, after a lot of effort, I was able to get the bungs out and the screws exposed, the screws simple would not move no matter how much force was applied. In the end, I had to finish the job the piling started and ripped the section of the toe rail off. This revealed why the screws would move as they were bent out of true and so would unscrew. It also revealed that the epoxy base that I set them in pulled out as well. Once the toe-rail was off then, I has to fill the gaps with some marine filler The next step will be to sand it down, re-drill the holes and put in new screws. Of course, now I need to find the new screws, sand off the repair, put down an adhesive and them reset the rail. Ah the fun of boat ownership!