There is a good thing about getting a mechanic who's good at what he does and there is a not so good thing about getting a mechanic that is good as what he does.
When you find a good diesel mechanic, one that knows what he is doing, the good thing is that he is going to fix the beast. He will check the whole engine out, learn what needs fixing and then fix it. He is not going to fix the doohickey and have you pay for it if it doesn't need fixing. What needs fixing gets fixed correctly.
The not so good thing about getting a good diesel mechanic is that he name has spread far and wide and everyone want him to work on their doohickey and, as a result, he's busy. Busy! Busy!! Busy!!!
When it turned out that problem was not biological but mechanical, it meant that I would run up against Eric the Diesel Engine Shaman's reputation and the demand for his services. Thus it is that as this Sunday passes away, ABISHAG's engine is still not functioning as Eric has been unable to find the time to fix the doohickey. I am hopeful that Monday will be a different story.
AH! THE JOYS OF BOAT OWNERSHIP!!!!!
Sunday, August 12, 2018
Wednesday, August 8, 2018
GETTING THE ENGINE FIXED - DAY1
Dealing with mechanical things for me is right up there with dealing with electricity. Eric, the Engine Shaman, came by today after deciding last week that the problem was " a biological infestation" of the fuel system. Dosing the fuel with magical potions and letting them mix with the fuel should solve the problem. I did that last week and when he was able to come by today, I expected that the engine would fire up with no problems.
After examining the engine and tinkering here and there, Eric sprayed the air intake with another magic potion, "starting ether" I believe, we made five attempts to start the engine and get it to turn over. No joy, despite many invocations and incantations. This caused eric to do some more tinkering.
As I mentioned, dealing with things mechanical is not high on my list of fun thing because there are parts, lots of parts. And with lots of part, most(all) of which I don't understand, there is the potential of something going wrong with them. SO naturally Eric discovered that the exhaust system was leaking exhaust. Of course, it wasn't out in the open, rather it was a piece of pipe wrapped in insulation tape. He discovered two wires, unconnected to anything, just there! He thought that possibly, maybe, they were connected to ignition system and were part of the shut down (kill) system for the engine. Turn out not so. We also discovered a leak in the discharge hose for the bilge pump. It is small and I wiill fix it tomorrow, but when the pump is used, it does spray water in various places. And soooooooooooo that has got to be fixed.
As I said, lots of parts, and the one I thought was the fuel pump wasn't. Eric finally figured it out and , crawling over the top of the engine, discovered the "real fuel pump" on the unexposed side of the engine. He had to get into the "in-law apartment" ( cockpit locker), lift up the floorboards to get at it. It was/is mechanical ( of course) fuel pump that is at east 20 years old and looked it. Based on all he had discovered and how the engine reacted, Eric deduced that the fuel pump was shot and had to be replaced. Of course.
After discussing it with Eric, we decided to replace it with a new fuel pump, electrical not mechanical. He will attach it to the fuel system leaving the old one in place until it is absolutely clear that the old pump is the problem. He will make the attempt at the fix. I am certain it will be fixed as Eric is one of those guys that hates to fail.
AH, THE JOYS OF BOAT OWNERSHIP!
After examining the engine and tinkering here and there, Eric sprayed the air intake with another magic potion, "starting ether" I believe, we made five attempts to start the engine and get it to turn over. No joy, despite many invocations and incantations. This caused eric to do some more tinkering.
As I mentioned, dealing with things mechanical is not high on my list of fun thing because there are parts, lots of parts. And with lots of part, most(all) of which I don't understand, there is the potential of something going wrong with them. SO naturally Eric discovered that the exhaust system was leaking exhaust. Of course, it wasn't out in the open, rather it was a piece of pipe wrapped in insulation tape. He discovered two wires, unconnected to anything, just there! He thought that possibly, maybe, they were connected to ignition system and were part of the shut down (kill) system for the engine. Turn out not so. We also discovered a leak in the discharge hose for the bilge pump. It is small and I wiill fix it tomorrow, but when the pump is used, it does spray water in various places. And soooooooooooo that has got to be fixed.
As I said, lots of parts, and the one I thought was the fuel pump wasn't. Eric finally figured it out and , crawling over the top of the engine, discovered the "real fuel pump" on the unexposed side of the engine. He had to get into the "in-law apartment" ( cockpit locker), lift up the floorboards to get at it. It was/is mechanical ( of course) fuel pump that is at east 20 years old and looked it. Based on all he had discovered and how the engine reacted, Eric deduced that the fuel pump was shot and had to be replaced. Of course.
After discussing it with Eric, we decided to replace it with a new fuel pump, electrical not mechanical. He will attach it to the fuel system leaving the old one in place until it is absolutely clear that the old pump is the problem. He will make the attempt at the fix. I am certain it will be fixed as Eric is one of those guys that hates to fail.
AH, THE JOYS OF BOAT OWNERSHIP!
Wednesday, August 1, 2018
IT COULD BE WORSE . . . . .
We spent a beautiful day on my mooring, enjoying the sun and the breeze and the sea and, of course, not moving except to swing with the wind and the tide. One tends to do that even when on a cruise. After all,part of the reason for the cruise is tyo enjoy wherever it is you drop your hook.
I took the opportunity to take care of a couple of easy things that needed to be fix. They were not particularly important, but now that they are done, there are less thing on my "to do" list.
Eric the Mechanic, who works on the club launch, stopped by having been called by several people in the club even before I got the chance to do so myself. After a five minute discussion, he said that the problem wasn't the injectors. The problem was bacteria. There is some bacteria that lives in petroleum products, like diesel fuel and when pump from a marina's tank into a boat's tank, they go along for the ride. If there is water in the fuel in either tank or both, and there always is some from condensation, it starts to grow and grow and grow. If not biocided it can get sucked up into the fuel lines and and any piping and hoses the fuel passes through. According to Eric, this is what happen, blocking the flow of fuel from where it needs to go and so it starves the engine. So Eric came up with a plane.
First, put a large amount of bio-side into the fuel to kill the bacteria and literally melt the bio-masses. Secondly, load the fuel with "CETANE," a fuel additive that raises the octane level of the fuel. Thirdly, use a fogging agent in the air intake and start the engine and keep trying to start the engine until either it starts or we need to charge the batteries. He says that this should work. It should blow out any problems and the engine will run fine. It will be interesting to see if it works.
AH! THE JOY OF BOAT OWNERSHIP!!!!!!
I took the opportunity to take care of a couple of easy things that needed to be fix. They were not particularly important, but now that they are done, there are less thing on my "to do" list.
Eric the Mechanic, who works on the club launch, stopped by having been called by several people in the club even before I got the chance to do so myself. After a five minute discussion, he said that the problem wasn't the injectors. The problem was bacteria. There is some bacteria that lives in petroleum products, like diesel fuel and when pump from a marina's tank into a boat's tank, they go along for the ride. If there is water in the fuel in either tank or both, and there always is some from condensation, it starts to grow and grow and grow. If not biocided it can get sucked up into the fuel lines and and any piping and hoses the fuel passes through. According to Eric, this is what happen, blocking the flow of fuel from where it needs to go and so it starves the engine. So Eric came up with a plane.
First, put a large amount of bio-side into the fuel to kill the bacteria and literally melt the bio-masses. Secondly, load the fuel with "CETANE," a fuel additive that raises the octane level of the fuel. Thirdly, use a fogging agent in the air intake and start the engine and keep trying to start the engine until either it starts or we need to charge the batteries. He says that this should work. It should blow out any problems and the engine will run fine. It will be interesting to see if it works.
AH! THE JOY OF BOAT OWNERSHIP!!!!!!
Tuesday, July 31, 2018
That Was A Short Cruise
Fred and I left TYC about 9am Saturday morning for the run to Newport and the Folk Festival. There was no wind to speak of and since it was a 42 mile trip give or take, it meant that we had to motor. Everything went well until we were off of Point Judith RI. The sea had been rather choppy and we bounced around a lot, rolling side to side as well as up and down and off of Point Judith, the engine started running rough and loosing power. Eventually it stall out and would not run. I checked the fuel filter and found that it was clogged. I got out a spare and replaced the clogged one and ABISHAG started right up.
We rounded Pt. Judith and had been headed up the Bay when the engine started acting up again. Eventually after about and hour she shut down again. I checked the filter and it was clogged again. Since there was was only one more spare filter, I knocked the filter against the side of the trash can and knocked out as much of the "grunge" that I could. I put it back in and we decide to let it run a bit. Good thing too as the dingy we were towing turned turtle: ie was upside down. I had borrowed a dingy from a TYC member and it was a hard, sailing and it had shipped water and that put it out of balance and it went over.
We dropped anchor, in the fog and in the middle of the channel, and spent an hour righting it and getting the water out. It required that I actually get in the water to accomplish this amazing feat but we got it done, a lot of straining and swearing later. The engine had continued to run just fine so rather than go into Point Judith, I decided that we would head off to Newport. It was about 6 miles away and I had spent $160 for a mooring for two nights at the Ida Lewis Yacht Club. Right off Castle Rock Light, about 3 miles from Ida Lewis, the engine quit again. By this time the wind had picked up and we raised sail and went forward that way.
I contacted the members of the cruise and they promised to send some dinghies to guide us in and help us moor. Did I mention that the Newport Folk Festival was going on at this time? There were boats anchored all over the place listening to the music and drinking was too much. With Fred at the helm we had to weave our way though the anchored boats to find a clear spot in the channel where we could wait for the dinghies to show up. Which they did. They latched on and propelled us to out mooring as neat as you please. We were finally safe at 7pm within spitting distance of the New York Yacht Club "Clubhouse." While Fred cooked I took the launch in to register and get ice ( which we had forgotten leaving TYC.) After dinner and wine, we were not moving, even though the members of the cruise gathered for a gam on VOYAGER. we were just too beat. We tried starting the engine with no joy, so we went to bed.
I figured that the crap that usually resides in fuel tank had been stired up and that a night of not moving or rocking would settled it back down. I tried starting again in the morning but again nothing.
In the afternoon, having had several members in the fleet come by and make suggestions that also didn't work, I called tow members whom I knew were very knowledgeable about diesel engines and their secrets. They came by and worked for two hours but even they couldn't get it going. They came to the conclusion that the injectors were clogged and that the fuel was not getting to the piston chamber. It was beyond their ability and tools to work on them, especially since they might have to be replaced.
After a steak dinner and several glasses of wine, I decided to call BOAT/US for a tow back to New London. I pay $149 a year for unlimited towing and I haven't used it since the ICW, so it was tome to use it. I called and set up a tow for the next day. I would get towed out into the Bay to a place where there was wind that would allow us to sail. If there was no wind, the tow would take us all the way to TYC. It would cost $3,000 . . . . if I didn't have the towing insurance, but I did, so it was FREE and I went to bed and slept the sleep of the just.
Next morning, the tow boat showed up at 8:45, hooked on and towed us to the wind, which turned out to be all the way down at Point Judith. We were able to sail all the way Watch Hill where the wind died and I had to call BOAT?US again. They towed us the last 8 miles to TYC and again, by 7pm, we were safe on a mooring, my very own mooring.
Tuesday will be boat cleanup day, contacting a diesel mechanic, and spending a lot of time in prayer that I have the funds to cover the repair, whatever it is.
AH!, THE JOYS OF BOAT OWNERSHIP!!!!!
We rounded Pt. Judith and had been headed up the Bay when the engine started acting up again. Eventually after about and hour she shut down again. I checked the filter and it was clogged again. Since there was was only one more spare filter, I knocked the filter against the side of the trash can and knocked out as much of the "grunge" that I could. I put it back in and we decide to let it run a bit. Good thing too as the dingy we were towing turned turtle: ie was upside down. I had borrowed a dingy from a TYC member and it was a hard, sailing and it had shipped water and that put it out of balance and it went over.
We dropped anchor, in the fog and in the middle of the channel, and spent an hour righting it and getting the water out. It required that I actually get in the water to accomplish this amazing feat but we got it done, a lot of straining and swearing later. The engine had continued to run just fine so rather than go into Point Judith, I decided that we would head off to Newport. It was about 6 miles away and I had spent $160 for a mooring for two nights at the Ida Lewis Yacht Club. Right off Castle Rock Light, about 3 miles from Ida Lewis, the engine quit again. By this time the wind had picked up and we raised sail and went forward that way.
I contacted the members of the cruise and they promised to send some dinghies to guide us in and help us moor. Did I mention that the Newport Folk Festival was going on at this time? There were boats anchored all over the place listening to the music and drinking was too much. With Fred at the helm we had to weave our way though the anchored boats to find a clear spot in the channel where we could wait for the dinghies to show up. Which they did. They latched on and propelled us to out mooring as neat as you please. We were finally safe at 7pm within spitting distance of the New York Yacht Club "Clubhouse." While Fred cooked I took the launch in to register and get ice ( which we had forgotten leaving TYC.) After dinner and wine, we were not moving, even though the members of the cruise gathered for a gam on VOYAGER. we were just too beat. We tried starting the engine with no joy, so we went to bed.
I figured that the crap that usually resides in fuel tank had been stired up and that a night of not moving or rocking would settled it back down. I tried starting again in the morning but again nothing.
In the afternoon, having had several members in the fleet come by and make suggestions that also didn't work, I called tow members whom I knew were very knowledgeable about diesel engines and their secrets. They came by and worked for two hours but even they couldn't get it going. They came to the conclusion that the injectors were clogged and that the fuel was not getting to the piston chamber. It was beyond their ability and tools to work on them, especially since they might have to be replaced.
After a steak dinner and several glasses of wine, I decided to call BOAT/US for a tow back to New London. I pay $149 a year for unlimited towing and I haven't used it since the ICW, so it was tome to use it. I called and set up a tow for the next day. I would get towed out into the Bay to a place where there was wind that would allow us to sail. If there was no wind, the tow would take us all the way to TYC. It would cost $3,000 . . . . if I didn't have the towing insurance, but I did, so it was FREE and I went to bed and slept the sleep of the just.
Next morning, the tow boat showed up at 8:45, hooked on and towed us to the wind, which turned out to be all the way down at Point Judith. We were able to sail all the way Watch Hill where the wind died and I had to call BOAT?US again. They towed us the last 8 miles to TYC and again, by 7pm, we were safe on a mooring, my very own mooring.
Tuesday will be boat cleanup day, contacting a diesel mechanic, and spending a lot of time in prayer that I have the funds to cover the repair, whatever it is.
AH!, THE JOYS OF BOAT OWNERSHIP!!!!!
Friday, July 27, 2018
WIERD DAY
The day before our departure for the cruise to Newport, I had the 9 to 5pm shift running the launch. I knew that it was going to be a strange day as I arrived at TYC and couldn't see a single boat nor the end of the dock. There was serious fog as well as several people waiting to go out to their boats. wisely, none of them asked for a ride out to their craft. And it was hot. And it was humid. I didn't like the "omens."
The one thing I wanted to do today was to bring my boat into the dock so that friend Fred could come down and load all the food and supplies for the cruise and have a place to sleep for Friday night. There were a couple of boats at the dock and throughout the day they kept being replaced by other boats. I had to get one of the other launch drivers to drive the launch for about 15 minutes of my shift so that I I could go out to ABISHAG, rig the dock lines, drive her to the dock and tie her up, and then get back to my shift. Whenever a spot at the dock opened up, it became incredibly busy and I couldn't make the change-over. Three of the launch drivers are going on the cruise and we were all trying to finish up loading and preparing our boats for the cruise. Trying to find the right moment was almost an exercise in futility. It literally took 5 hours to get it done but got it done I did.
And then there was the heat and humidity. Boy, did it suck all the energy out of me. Humid? I drank so much water and juice and despite all that went in, apart from the sweat, so little came out. It was tough to make the 100 yard walk from the club house to the launch and back again and it got worse during the day. Transient boast whop came in last night and now wanted to spend an extra day. we ended up playing a lot of "Musical Moorings" as we had more boats coming in today and we had to match moorings with boats based on length(Swing radius) and displacement (weight) with what a particular mooring can reasonably hold. It is no fun dealing with a "guest," who is on a mooring you need, who is in no hurry to leave or change location. And then there is the heat and humidity. ARGH!!!!!
My shift was to end at 5pm but my replacement was late! Isn't that always the way? I was too exhausted to complain. But tomorrow, I will be off on the cruise and I won't have to even think about driving the launch let alone driving it. Huzzah!
The one thing I wanted to do today was to bring my boat into the dock so that friend Fred could come down and load all the food and supplies for the cruise and have a place to sleep for Friday night. There were a couple of boats at the dock and throughout the day they kept being replaced by other boats. I had to get one of the other launch drivers to drive the launch for about 15 minutes of my shift so that I I could go out to ABISHAG, rig the dock lines, drive her to the dock and tie her up, and then get back to my shift. Whenever a spot at the dock opened up, it became incredibly busy and I couldn't make the change-over. Three of the launch drivers are going on the cruise and we were all trying to finish up loading and preparing our boats for the cruise. Trying to find the right moment was almost an exercise in futility. It literally took 5 hours to get it done but got it done I did.
And then there was the heat and humidity. Boy, did it suck all the energy out of me. Humid? I drank so much water and juice and despite all that went in, apart from the sweat, so little came out. It was tough to make the 100 yard walk from the club house to the launch and back again and it got worse during the day. Transient boast whop came in last night and now wanted to spend an extra day. we ended up playing a lot of "Musical Moorings" as we had more boats coming in today and we had to match moorings with boats based on length(Swing radius) and displacement (weight) with what a particular mooring can reasonably hold. It is no fun dealing with a "guest," who is on a mooring you need, who is in no hurry to leave or change location. And then there is the heat and humidity. ARGH!!!!!
My shift was to end at 5pm but my replacement was late! Isn't that always the way? I was too exhausted to complain. But tomorrow, I will be off on the cruise and I won't have to even think about driving the launch let alone driving it. Huzzah!
Tuesday, July 24, 2018
ALL MOST READY TO GO! ! ! ! ! !
I spent today getting ABISHAG ready for the cruise to Newport for the Jazz Festival and the Folk Festival beginning this coming weekend. It is a good thing that this is happening, for all the work I did today was stuff that should have been done back in the Spring, indeed before I brought ABISHAG to TYC for the season.
The "stuff" was more clean-up and putting things in their place than really doing some work, but it is all things that need to be done. It freed up lots of space for the trip and living on ABISHAG for about 10 days. I haven't done that in quite awhile and to really enjoy the cruise, it is important to get ABISHAG in cruising form and me as well.
Three 40 gallon trash bags full of trash were filled as I got rid of items that had been hanging around . . . . empty paint and varnish cans ( not quite sure what I was saving them for); wood strips from the take down of the overhead ( which I convinced my self I might need when the new overhead goes up); a bottle of coffee, a box of Splenda & a bottle of non-dairy coffee creamer each of which had morphed in to solid bricks that defied description, old items from the medicine cabinets that I never realized I still had. Most of the items were still left-over from the ICW trip . . . . .in 2010/11!
You have to understand that all sailors, except for serious racers, are pack-rats. Everyone of them has a locker somewhere on their craft that is basically the nautical equivalent of a "what-not" draw. It is filled with items left-over from projects that we done on the boat, kept on the off chance that it will be the solution to a future problem or repair. whenever the time arrives that the "great clean-out" takes place, either just before or just after an items designated for trashing provides just what is needed for a repair. and when that happens, the whole idea of cleaning out the locker get put on the back-burner less another item will shortly be needed. The only way to do is just to do it. If you haven't worn it, used it or eaten it in two years, out it goes.
There was a bit of an electrical problem that seemed to be initially serious but turned out to be no more than a loose connection on one of the batteries. When you have to bring all of your power with you when you travel, even a small problem has to be taken care of immediately because small problems can become big and dangerous very fast. That is why you are smart of have a backup to the backup for every system and its backup.
The "stuff" was more clean-up and putting things in their place than really doing some work, but it is all things that need to be done. It freed up lots of space for the trip and living on ABISHAG for about 10 days. I haven't done that in quite awhile and to really enjoy the cruise, it is important to get ABISHAG in cruising form and me as well.
Three 40 gallon trash bags full of trash were filled as I got rid of items that had been hanging around . . . . empty paint and varnish cans ( not quite sure what I was saving them for); wood strips from the take down of the overhead ( which I convinced my self I might need when the new overhead goes up); a bottle of coffee, a box of Splenda & a bottle of non-dairy coffee creamer each of which had morphed in to solid bricks that defied description, old items from the medicine cabinets that I never realized I still had. Most of the items were still left-over from the ICW trip . . . . .in 2010/11!
You have to understand that all sailors, except for serious racers, are pack-rats. Everyone of them has a locker somewhere on their craft that is basically the nautical equivalent of a "what-not" draw. It is filled with items left-over from projects that we done on the boat, kept on the off chance that it will be the solution to a future problem or repair. whenever the time arrives that the "great clean-out" takes place, either just before or just after an items designated for trashing provides just what is needed for a repair. and when that happens, the whole idea of cleaning out the locker get put on the back-burner less another item will shortly be needed. The only way to do is just to do it. If you haven't worn it, used it or eaten it in two years, out it goes.
There was a bit of an electrical problem that seemed to be initially serious but turned out to be no more than a loose connection on one of the batteries. When you have to bring all of your power with you when you travel, even a small problem has to be taken care of immediately because small problems can become big and dangerous very fast. That is why you are smart of have a backup to the backup for every system and its backup.
Saturday, July 21, 2018
AH SUMMER! ! ! ! !
We have had almost an entire week of beautiful, perfect weather, really what summer weather is supposed to be. Moderate temps, low humidity and even the rain co-operated, showing up only at night. And the sailing has been wonderful. But all good things must come to an end and end this weather will tonight.
Actually, the weather began to turn this morning as the wind started early and kept building all day. Down at TYC, people came down and all said some variation of, "Wow, great wind. Can't waste this!", and went off for a sail . . . and most came back within an hour of leaving. It was great wind, growing to 20 knots with gusts to 25. It doesn't sound like that much but if you don't sail a lot, that's a lot of wind. Add to it the waves it creates, choppy water when it is blowing against the tide, and even getting to your boat can be a bit of a thrill.
I had some work to do to get ABISHAG ready for the cruise that begins next Saturday and I had to bring her into the dock. The wind and waves made it the first time in a long time that I actually needed help docking. I had to get her propane tanks filled and the thought of transferring the tanks from ABISHAG to the launch to the dock, get them filled and then reversed the process was a bit daunting. So it was best I get on the dock for that task and the others that needed to be done. Being on the dock in a blow isn't all that pleasant. Rather than move with the wind and waves, a boat will fight against them and it is a lot less smooth. Still the dock has access to water and power and so it was a necessity. I only stayed at the dock a couple of hours before returning to the mooring, which was an interesting evolution in itself. Pulling up to the mooring pickup stick, cutting the forward thrust, running to the bow to pick up the pickup stick, hauling it in to get the pennants and put them on the cleats in now 25 knots of wind was "exciting "to say the least. I was able to do it in one shot, but like I said, "exciting."
However, the "gremlins" have struck again. for some reason, there is a problem with the batteries. There are three batteries broken up into two "banks." The battery selection switch (OFF-1-2- BOTH) works on "1" and "BOTH" but not on "2" and this is new, something that showed itself for the first time today. In addition to that, the electric bilge pump is not working, neither in automatic mode or manual mode. That means that it is not just a matter of the float switch being screwed-up, it means there is no power getting to the pump. The bilge pump still works if I use the pump handle, so it is not an absolute emergency but not having the pump work automatically, when I am not aboard, is not a good thing. Troublesome also is that the bilge pump is wired directly to the batteries so that they will, or should, operate whether I throw the power switch or not. So I will spend tomorrow trying to figure that situation out. It should not be a very complex problem but all things electrical are voodoo to me. So long as I get it squared away beforethe start of the cruise, all will be just fine.
Actually, the weather began to turn this morning as the wind started early and kept building all day. Down at TYC, people came down and all said some variation of, "Wow, great wind. Can't waste this!", and went off for a sail . . . and most came back within an hour of leaving. It was great wind, growing to 20 knots with gusts to 25. It doesn't sound like that much but if you don't sail a lot, that's a lot of wind. Add to it the waves it creates, choppy water when it is blowing against the tide, and even getting to your boat can be a bit of a thrill.
I had some work to do to get ABISHAG ready for the cruise that begins next Saturday and I had to bring her into the dock. The wind and waves made it the first time in a long time that I actually needed help docking. I had to get her propane tanks filled and the thought of transferring the tanks from ABISHAG to the launch to the dock, get them filled and then reversed the process was a bit daunting. So it was best I get on the dock for that task and the others that needed to be done. Being on the dock in a blow isn't all that pleasant. Rather than move with the wind and waves, a boat will fight against them and it is a lot less smooth. Still the dock has access to water and power and so it was a necessity. I only stayed at the dock a couple of hours before returning to the mooring, which was an interesting evolution in itself. Pulling up to the mooring pickup stick, cutting the forward thrust, running to the bow to pick up the pickup stick, hauling it in to get the pennants and put them on the cleats in now 25 knots of wind was "exciting "to say the least. I was able to do it in one shot, but like I said, "exciting."
However, the "gremlins" have struck again. for some reason, there is a problem with the batteries. There are three batteries broken up into two "banks." The battery selection switch (OFF-1-2- BOTH) works on "1" and "BOTH" but not on "2" and this is new, something that showed itself for the first time today. In addition to that, the electric bilge pump is not working, neither in automatic mode or manual mode. That means that it is not just a matter of the float switch being screwed-up, it means there is no power getting to the pump. The bilge pump still works if I use the pump handle, so it is not an absolute emergency but not having the pump work automatically, when I am not aboard, is not a good thing. Troublesome also is that the bilge pump is wired directly to the batteries so that they will, or should, operate whether I throw the power switch or not. So I will spend tomorrow trying to figure that situation out. It should not be a very complex problem but all things electrical are voodoo to me. So long as I get it squared away beforethe start of the cruise, all will be just fine.
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