Can't Motor Without Water

Yesterday, I took my daughter and my wife's Uncle Thom (who is generally the sailing mentor being an old salty dog) out into the estuary to practice motoring and docking. All was going well for the first hour. 

Then we picked up two sort-of cousins who are staying with Thom to motor further down towards Jack London Sq. About a half hour later and past two draw bridges, I heard the tone of the motor exhaust change. Checking for water coming out the back, and not seeing any, I immediately killed the Yanmar. Luckily we were in a relatively wide part of the channel and even though there was a slight tide, there wasn't much wind at all so we didn't have to put in an anchor. 

Thom and I went below, and the cousins (who are in their twenties and very chill guys) played some cards with my kid to keep her busy. 

We localized the problem to the water pump, which I've learned is pretty much the go to culprit. We took off the hoses and pump, after determining that it was further than the intake hose or strainer. The impeller find all looked good and were pliable so the usual broken fin wasn't the issue. 

Unsure how much time we had to test things, we had also called BoatUS, which is the AAA of the water. And just like AAA, they estimated an hour before rescue. Amazingly, our position in the estuary stayed relatively the same. And while Thom and I discussed possible issues,Phil's Vessel Assist arrived. Another amazing thing is that other than sheer abuse of the system, BoatUS has no limit on tows or rescues. Well worth the expense--more so than AAA.

Phil towed us through the two bridge and expertly docked us despite boats on either side of our dock location. Then we called it a day for the boat and hurried to make my daughter's soccer game. 

Then I returned to the boat this morning with Thom, and we got it all figured out. Pulled the pump again and yanked the impeller to learn that the impeller inner ring had somehow disconnected from the rubber fins, so it wouldn't soon. Luckily the previous owner had a replacement impeller and paper gasket on board (I ordered two more of each!). So with another hour on board, the motor fired up and water was expelling out the transom again. Phew. 

(Now, I haven't written about the difficulty in getting the pump bolts off in the first place and my and Thom's idea to start our own YouTube series with tons of swearing and ending with what we expected would be a Yanmar service technician out there finally fixing things. Luckily it didn't come to that.)

I only have photos of the rescue from BoatUS, not the water pump repair. Oh well.

Glow Party Sleepover

My daughter has been anxious for the first sleepover on the boat with a friend, so last Saturday she got her wish. It's winter, and in the Bay Area that still means mostly great weather...but no wind. So we camped out at the dock. 

Which turned out to be a good starter overnighter for me, too, because I learned a couple things. Firstly, our shore power is great, but not for too much at once. It appears we have 20 amps from the house where the dock is, and you can't hope to run a space heater and quick heat water kettle at the same time. After blowing a circuit a couple times and tracing back to two different spots (one at the house and one at the outlet for the extension cable), I know what's what. 

Luckily we brought aboard dinner--pizza and wings--so no power was needed to just eat.

The girls brought a pack of glow bendies for an instant glow party. Again no power needed. Not even an iPad battery was used! Check out the photo if you're not sure what the glow bendies are. 

I also learned that trudging all my camping gear over from the shed at my house to the boat at a different house's dock isn't all that fun. So for $50 or so, I got sleeping bags that can stay aboard Hideaway. And I brought some extra clothes, too. 

I tested the propane grill on the aft transom and it's working but needed a grate, so we got a new one at the hardware store. Thought I'd heat water on that, but the idea of going outside on a chilly morning isn't as nice as staying warm in the cabin. But down there we have an alcohol pressure stove and oven, which frankly intimidates the hell out of me, so I haven't yet tried it. After talking with a few people they all sound confident that we can safely use a small butane canister burner down there (with some hatches open for ventilation) so I have one of those aboard now, too. 

Sleeping on the new cushions turned out good, so that was a little reinforcement of the benefit of that investment in Nov, too. The girls fell asleep at 9, and were up at 5:15 (maybe it was the crew teams going by), but that's cool since I never sleep past 5 or so anyway.  

A good first overnighter. Now I cannot wait to shove off and do this for real somewhere else. 

Proper Dive

Finally, I was able to coordinate with the local recommended diver. This guy is cool. Free dives for all of the services he offers. It means he's a lot quicker and nimble getting right to work when he arrives. So he was in the water and getting the old nut off the prop shaft then the old prop off in no time at all. While our family--including our new pup Ginger--watched from the dock. 

But then we learned that the old prop shaft key would not work in the new Campbell Sailor prop. So the diver went two docks down to do a cleaning on a neighbor's boat while my kid and I visited many marine shops and one great hardware store looking for a 3/16" square bronze key. 

No luck at any of those stops, so we got a file out and clamped the existing key into a locking pliers and then in a jeweler's vice, and went to work. The trick was not to remove enough material and keep it as close to square as possible. A couple hours later, the diver was back and the new, old key worked. 

Didn't get out on the boat yesterday but may do that today. I was able to get the puppy on the boat for the first time while I puttered around. She slept soundly the whole time. Must've been wiped out from all the excitement of the day. 

Then my wife joined me aboard for an evening nightcap. We got to test the wine that comes in stacked cups and it was pretty good. I also tested out the mood lighting of the old oil lamp on board.

All in all a great day, and we never left the dock. Boat ownership is fun even when we're not sailing. 

Winter doldrums and spirits lifted with a new crew member

The Winter isn't really playing along very well. Rain storms a couple weeks ago brought lots of wind. Too much. But then when it isn't storming it hasn't been windy. Except for Christmas and then again on New Year's Eve, which were already busy with other activities. I put a large tarp over the boat and have at least had the excuse to be on the boat a couple times over the holiday break to reattach bungees (some new, stronger ones) since the wind ripped out a few grommets and shredded the cheapo bungees. 

Well, what do you do when you can't sail? 

You buy sailing gear, or better yet receive it as gifts. My wife got me a great Gill foul weather jacket. Nice enough that I can see it being my preferred rain jacket in general. Also got a West Marine gift cert so will do some boot shopping later today. 

What else do you do? 

You expand your crew. Which we did on the 12/29. On the way home from a friend's place in Tahoe, we took at 4 hour detour up North to Red Bluff and visited an amazing Lab breeder, Top Dog Retrievers. They do trained hunting dogs, drug dogs, and service dogs. Our little girl is 16 weeks, had some starter training, and is a very chill pup. She can't really be around other dogs or environments just yet until the Parvo shots take hold. Can't wait to get her onto the boat and acclimatized. In the meantime, here is a photo and video.

Nothing to see here

Seriously, not much to report. The last week in Northern CA included what the media would have us believe was Stormageddon. The media hype contributed to every school district in the region being closed last Thursday. It was the combination of incredibly high winds and 3-6" of rain that had people scared. In reality, we did have 36 mph wind and 4" within 24 hrs. But they came in order. First the crazy wind, then the downpour. 

I had brought a large and very thick (10 mils, I think) white tarp to the boat. I used a wood burning knife  to cut a slit down the rear middle to accommodate topping lift and the backstay. I used around a dozen bungees to hold it down. I had felt good about it before the weather report said gale force winds. 

I wasn't hopeful there'd be anything left, but I did a better job than I thought. There were two reinforced grommets that had pulled out, which is a pain. But all told, I replaced a few bungees that had pulled out and it's all good again for the rain which will come again tonight.

A quick check down below decks revealed that we had no leaks. That was the real goal. I have no idea if it was the tarp, so I'll just be glad. 

I also restocked the fridge with Tecate and wine. And dropped off a nautical pillow my wife bought for the boat last week. 

My daughter and I are hoping that next Saturday there isn't any rain because she'd like to have a sleepover on Hideaway with a friend. 

Well cushioned

When my wife said we needed to get the interior cushions replaced right away, I thought, she was focused on the wrong things. I spent some money getting safety equipment (life jackets, harnesses and safety lines for kids); a toolset; square cushions for the cockpit; and food that's just add hot water (hot chocolate, instant Starbucks coffee, and oatmeal). I ordered a new propeller. And I plan to update the cockpit covers. 

But interior cushions? Sure, it's a 1977 boat, and the cushions looked original. Did it matter? Wouldn't we be spending most of the time in the cockpit? I mean, in reality, we're going to be primarily day sailors. An overnight trip or two would be great. I just didn't think that's going to happen for some time. I still need to become a proficient sailor. The weather is getting wetter and colder. I figured cushions would be a down the road upgrade.

Jane was insistent. And she couldn't have been more right. We did some comparison shopping for upholsterers. Prices ranged greatly. Then we ended up finding a guy just on the other side of the bridge from us in Oakland, Tony at a company called Bay Trim. He does automotive and marine work. His prices were reasonable, and his turnaround was just a couple weeks, inclusive of ordering the dark royal blue marine canvas and materials. 

Jane had a work trip this weekend. I picked up the cushions on Friday, and my daughter helped me get them from the truck to the boat. It was a little like a simple puzzle to get the cushions in the right  spot. And then I spent an hour stapling Velcro to the wood of the seating area to match where Tony had the reverse Velcro added to the vinyl backs of the side and back cushions. 

And they look great. My daughter tried out the pilot berth, the V berth and both settees. I sent photos to my wife so she wouldn't have to wait until Thanksgiving to see them in person. 

Now there is one fix still needed by Tony. The small triangular cushion that goes in between the main cushions of the V berth rests on edges below the other cushions. So the foam must be a few inches taller. It was not. So I expect Tony to correct it. Otherwise, I'm completely happy with this purchase and vendor. 

Jane was right. It makes the boat feel different. And now maybe we'll accelerate how quickly we get out for a few overnighters. So check them out. 

Serious Props

I just received my new Campbell Sailor prop. Is it odd to be so excited about a mechanical device? It's partly because the old prop is corroded and potentially a danger if it were to break during a family outing. It's also because this brand of prop is designed to give much more thrust at the smaller size, and for a fixed three blade, it doesn't drag as much when under sail as a standard one. 

Now to find out when the soonest our newly sourced diver can get it on Hideaway. 

Here are some photos of the new prop. It's surprisingly heavy and the machining to get it to my boat's specs are evident. At the bottom is a graph that shows the efficiency of this prop type over other fixed blade designs.