Boat Repairs

Weather: It sounded as though we had a shower or two last night, but the decks were dry when we got up at 0730. The day started out very overcast, and there were showers on the mainland, but none here in the marina. The sky cleared by 1200 and we basked in the bright sunshine and 80 plus degree temperature.

Comment: We were up at 0730, had pancakes for breakfast and made it to the bus stop at 0900. We took bus route 1 to the mainland and transferred to bus 2 for a trip to the super WalMart. We purchased some supplies, among them spare fuses (mini 5A’s) for the refrigeration cooling pump/fan. For some reason, the fuse blew. We bought ice yesterday because we shut the refer down until we could get the cooling apparatus working today.

We were back to the boat by 1200 and after a brief lunch, set about repairing the refer and the water heater. After running a few tests, we found that the refer cooling water pump was the culprit. Apparently it has developed a short which blew the fuse. I disconnected the pump, allowing the refer to be cooled by the internal fan. We’ll order a new pump and install it when we return after the holidays.

The water heater was problematic. There’s not much to go wrong with it and certainly not much to repair. After checking the propane line and joints, it looked like we might need to call in a professional. Andrew and I discussed the problem and he asked about the solenoid. I only checked the wires to the switch. While talking to him, I checked the solenoid itself and found that both the positive and negative wires had become dislodged. After crimping them and reconnecting, the water heater problem was solved. We toasted Andrew with frozen Margaritas!

Anna Marie and I rode the dinghy back to the marina to check out the cruiser’s lounge and to visit with our friends. They are leaving tomorrow and we wanted to be sure to say good bye. Problem is, they aren’t home. We’ll check back later.

We rode over to tell “Reflection” that we are going to try the theater tomorrow. They’re interested in attending the show as is the crew of “Tally Ho.” “Duetto” motored by in their dinghy and said they were interested and that they were hosting a cocktail party tomorrow. After a full day, we returned to “SUNSHINE” for dinner and some down time. We talked to “Tally Ho” for a bit and among the four of us, we have plenty of detail questions about the Thanksgiving bash. We'll try to get answers to our questions tomorrow.