Ramp Out of Service - damn, now what was I going to do? Merlin and I settled in the van pondering what to do next. I remembered a call on my cell that I had ignored because we were in the middle of the survey and the number was not in my address book... Oh that reminds me.
I had forgotten to charge my phone the night before, but didn't worry knowing I could charge it in the van on the way to the lake. My 'real' GPS was in Big Duck, so as we left the house I plugged my phone into the van's cigarette lighter and turned on the phone's navigation...my memory is as old as my body and I often miss my turns unless the polite lady inside the GPS gives me notice. We call the lady inside the GPS GyPSy and we appreciater her very, very much.
I look at the call wondering if I should really call back, I had to get organized and didn't need complications. Then the notice came up on the phone, "Battery low, plug in charger'. So I did, wondering why it didn't have a full charge after 2 hour on the road. I decided to listen to the message. I missed the first part of the message because I was messing with the charger plug, and I didn't recognize the voice, but whoever it was offered assistance in the the event I needed help at Lake Murray. He had seen the Facebook photo of Big Duck (with a Lake Murray title) I'd uploaded from the rest area about 50 miles from the marina.
I post a lot of forums and often get offers of help or an invitation to stop by for a visit, and for the most part I do. One of my 'things' is to meet an internet aquaintenance personally on each trip. But it became apparent on the way down, that Big Duck is an eyecatcher. People are hanging out the window or cross the street for a chance to get information on her. We always oblige - it's fun sharing, but in this case, not knowing who it was I was tempeted to just ignore the call, but decided to replay it for assurance.
Holy Ship! It was from Nicky, a relatively new boating buddy, and this guy knew his stuff and Lake Murray was his backyard. I called him back and he told me about a good ramp for Big Duck's first splash and even volunteered to meet me there.
I Googled the Marina and put it in as a destination on my phone. Plugged in, it was still saying 'battery low'. I'm now thinking that even plugged in to the charger, the phone draws more power than it gets from the charger with the GPS on using Navigation, but we made it to the ramp before the phone died. I'd just grab the cigarette charger and recharge on Big Duck with all the phone's programs off.
We called Nicky when we got to the ramp. I took Merlin for a 'hobble' and he didn't want to head back any where near the boat. All he wanted to do was to find old dried up fish and rub his head in them. When Nicky showed up I tied up Merlin to the dock while I made preparations.
As is normal, I completely loose it when I get to the ramp. It took about 20 tries to back Big Duck down the ramp - Nicky was soooo patient. Getting her off the trailer went well, although she does need to be pretty deep...exhaust burbling. When the Duck was at the dock I went up and secured the van/trailer that Nicky had so professionally re-positioned for me while I was making the boat (and Merlin) ready. Nicky would join us for a run up the lake and back, then we would put him ashore. Merlin and I would backtrack some along the midnight track and spend the night aboard.
Saturday, June 18, 2011
First Road Trip
Big Duck is far enough alond I wanted to get insurance. I got a quote from BoatUS that was reasonable, but they needed a survey. So I set one up with one of their listed agencies. Gotta say, I really like this guy, Bob Turner. He was actually on a family outing and took time to give Big Duck the once over. I guess we were both surprised at his positive findings for such an old girl.
So here we are, on the road to the marina near his relatives place at the lake. Big Duck is such a lady behind the van...a little slow on the hills, but we just put her on 2,700 RPM and let her settle at whatever speed she likes.
Outside of lack of maintanence, what's the worst thing you can do to your car motor? That's right, run it wide open. But there is something else that worse - run it wide open pulling a trailer. Man, is that tough on a motor. But the supreme insult to mechanical longevity for your vehicle is running wide open, UPHILL, pulling a trailer. But there are folks who think it's imperative to do the speed limit of 70 going up mountain passes while pulling their trailers.
'Gotta have a diesel - that will take care of the hills. Hey, if you want to have a diesel, get one, but a diesel won't get you over the hill any faster unless it's more horsepower. And more horsepower always comes at a price both in purchase and economy.
My wife was in Mexico for a memorial service, so it was just me and Merlin (and he was wearing a splint from a recent bout with a curb).
I need to be comfortable splashing alone, especially for the first time, but I knew the ramp at the marina. It was a good one but often very busy. What I would do was, after the survey, we would wait until 11 or midnight, then back her in and get her running. If all went well we might undo the lines and let her float off and tie her up to the dock for a spell - just getting used to the water. And then, with the trailer still in the water, we'd venture out a little way...then maybe come back and move the rig to a parking spot and spend the night aboard at anchor.
We noticed a sign as we approached the marina, but didn't think much of it. Bob and I had a good time getting to know each other and the boat, and soon he was on his way. Merlin and I went for a walk to scope out the ramp. Now I knew what those signs meant, "Ramp Out of Service."
So here we are, on the road to the marina near his relatives place at the lake. Big Duck is such a lady behind the van...a little slow on the hills, but we just put her on 2,700 RPM and let her settle at whatever speed she likes.
'Gotta have a diesel - that will take care of the hills. Hey, if you want to have a diesel, get one, but a diesel won't get you over the hill any faster unless it's more horsepower. And more horsepower always comes at a price both in purchase and economy.
My wife was in Mexico for a memorial service, so it was just me and Merlin (and he was wearing a splint from a recent bout with a curb).
I need to be comfortable splashing alone, especially for the first time, but I knew the ramp at the marina. It was a good one but often very busy. What I would do was, after the survey, we would wait until 11 or midnight, then back her in and get her running. If all went well we might undo the lines and let her float off and tie her up to the dock for a spell - just getting used to the water. And then, with the trailer still in the water, we'd venture out a little way...then maybe come back and move the rig to a parking spot and spend the night aboard at anchor.
We noticed a sign as we approached the marina, but didn't think much of it. Bob and I had a good time getting to know each other and the boat, and soon he was on his way. Merlin and I went for a walk to scope out the ramp. Now I knew what those signs meant, "Ramp Out of Service."
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Generators and Air Conditioners
I hated school; never finished college, am slightly dyslexic, have a poor memory for written material and am not one for charts and formulas, so basically I'm a trial and error kind of guy. Keep that in mind as I divulge some of my findings on generators and air conditioners.
My wife has MS and needs to stay cool, especially aboard on hot windless days. I equipped our 18' cuddy with a 5,000 BTU air conditioner, powered by a Honda EU1000i generator.
This rig didn't recirculate air but it did invoke those words I love to hear from my wife when in the cuddy on a 90° breezeless day, "I'm too cold". So the installation was a complete success.
Success didn't come on the first try. I started out by enclosing the cockpit with it's canvas and eisenglass installed in such a way the the air conditioner was basically in a fabric window. This way it recirculated the air as was supposedly necessary for an air conditioner to work properly. It didn't get the job done...didn't even come close.
I velcroed all the edges of the canvas and eisenglass to make the enclosure 'hermetically sealed' vs having slight openings between the snaps. Still wouldn't cool so I had a liner put in the bimini so I could enclose 1" of foam and a silvered space blanket to keep the heat of the sun from penetrating. Still ineffective.
More BTU's I thought. I found I could start and run an 8,000 BTU air conditioner with the 1000i if I didn't use eco-throttle, but I had to spool up the air conditioner fan before kicking in the compressor. But even the 8,000 didn't get the job done in the heat of the day. I didn't want to have to go to more BTU's because it meant I'd need a bigger generator, and besides, I decided I didn't want to have to be all closed up while aboard. That's when I went unconvential with the non-recirc plan and the 5000 BTU unit.
I rigged another boat the same way, also with excellent results. It sure was nice to be able to run the air conditioner while overnighting aboard on the road...we call it Wallydocking (overnighting in WalMart parking lots). So now I had two 1000i's to play with when we weren't boating.
We were planning a trip to Alaska and needed a generator for the 12,000 BTU a/c unit in the camper. We found we could parallel the 1000's to get the air conditioner started, and even shut one down once it was running. I built a platform in the pickup bed to conveniently house the two EU1000i's.
Things went well until we got into the western desert heat. The a/c needs more current in hot weather, especially starting. This put the 1000's right at the limit and occasionally one would stumble, the other would overload and I'd have to shut everything down, power down both generators, bring them both back up and gingerly turn on the a/c, hoping not to have to redo the cycle.
When we got bumped out of the hookup campground at Lake Powell and had to move into a no hookup Army Core spot it was time to get the power thing under reliable control. Of course there's no place at Powell to get anything, so we hit the road without the camper, overnighted in a motel in Page and picked up a 3500 watt generator at an auto parts store and were finally on our way to a/c happiness.
The cheapo 3500 watt generator thankfully got us through the Alaska adventure, well mostly. Somewhere on the way home, the generator got it's first taste of gasohol. This softened the gas cap and allowed gas to run down over the motor. We were careful and made it back ok by never filling up the generator's tank. At home, the generator started spitting oil. I found the gas that had run down onto the generator motor had disolved a crankcase gasket. No parts are available for these generators so it was a throwayay.
Next, we learned that our van a/c was terribly ineffective in hot weather unless the van was moving. This meant no sleeping in rest areas and being miserable in traffic jams. So we got ourselves an R2D2 unit. We call it R2D2 because it looks like one. This is a 9,000 BTU 'portable' unit on wheels that vents through a hose out a window.
But alas, the 1000i wasn't up to running R2D2, so we upgraded to a EU2000i and hung it off the back of the van.
It wasn't long before we needed the real estate inside the van that R2D2 required with it's massive vent hose, so I rigged an 8,000 BTU window unit in the van. From then on, everything was rosy.
About this time, my daughter, Sara Jane and son-in-law, Trey, were going to use the camper for a cross country trip and he doesn't mess around when it comes to power, so we got a Honda EU3000i equipped with remote start for the camper. What a blessing to have a no nonsense generator. I even made an enclosure for it so it could be out of sight - even while running.
Then Big Duck enters the picture and we're so happy that she's equipped with an air conditioner and will run happily with the 2000i. But we soon find that the 9,000 BTU unit on her roof only cools the back 1/2 of the boat. I guess we might have suspected this when we noticed the auxillary fan hanging next to it.
So now we've got to figure a way to cool the helm as well as the galley/dinette. Trey came up with an acceptable solution for making things tolerable, at least while working on the boat in the back yard...a high velocity squirrel cage fan which blows the cool air all the way forward. And in fact it does the job so well, that the compressor eventually cycles off.
Trey's observation when it did cycle off was, "Hey, we're not using the a/c to it's full potential." But he suggested that with two couples and a couple dogs aboard it still wouldn't be enough. There may be a way to make a new Coleman 15,000 BTU unit work, but for now I may just put the R2D2 unit behind the helm seat - which Trey had the foresight to already have a separate breaker and outlet for. The 3000i will be removed from the camper and be installed on the roof of Big Duck, or if we find tit adds too much weight up there we'll put it on the rear deck.
Update here:
Click here for update on circulation
My wife has MS and needs to stay cool, especially aboard on hot windless days. I equipped our 18' cuddy with a 5,000 BTU air conditioner, powered by a Honda EU1000i generator.
Shown here after 5 years of saltwater use.
This rig didn't recirculate air but it did invoke those words I love to hear from my wife when in the cuddy on a 90° breezeless day, "I'm too cold". So the installation was a complete success.
Success didn't come on the first try. I started out by enclosing the cockpit with it's canvas and eisenglass installed in such a way the the air conditioner was basically in a fabric window. This way it recirculated the air as was supposedly necessary for an air conditioner to work properly. It didn't get the job done...didn't even come close.
I velcroed all the edges of the canvas and eisenglass to make the enclosure 'hermetically sealed' vs having slight openings between the snaps. Still wouldn't cool so I had a liner put in the bimini so I could enclose 1" of foam and a silvered space blanket to keep the heat of the sun from penetrating. Still ineffective.
More BTU's I thought. I found I could start and run an 8,000 BTU air conditioner with the 1000i if I didn't use eco-throttle, but I had to spool up the air conditioner fan before kicking in the compressor. But even the 8,000 didn't get the job done in the heat of the day. I didn't want to have to go to more BTU's because it meant I'd need a bigger generator, and besides, I decided I didn't want to have to be all closed up while aboard. That's when I went unconvential with the non-recirc plan and the 5000 BTU unit.
I rigged another boat the same way, also with excellent results. It sure was nice to be able to run the air conditioner while overnighting aboard on the road...we call it Wallydocking (overnighting in WalMart parking lots). So now I had two 1000i's to play with when we weren't boating.
We were planning a trip to Alaska and needed a generator for the 12,000 BTU a/c unit in the camper. We found we could parallel the 1000's to get the air conditioner started, and even shut one down once it was running. I built a platform in the pickup bed to conveniently house the two EU1000i's.
Things went well until we got into the western desert heat. The a/c needs more current in hot weather, especially starting. This put the 1000's right at the limit and occasionally one would stumble, the other would overload and I'd have to shut everything down, power down both generators, bring them both back up and gingerly turn on the a/c, hoping not to have to redo the cycle.
When we got bumped out of the hookup campground at Lake Powell and had to move into a no hookup Army Core spot it was time to get the power thing under reliable control. Of course there's no place at Powell to get anything, so we hit the road without the camper, overnighted in a motel in Page and picked up a 3500 watt generator at an auto parts store and were finally on our way to a/c happiness.
The cheapo 3500 watt generator thankfully got us through the Alaska adventure, well mostly. Somewhere on the way home, the generator got it's first taste of gasohol. This softened the gas cap and allowed gas to run down over the motor. We were careful and made it back ok by never filling up the generator's tank. At home, the generator started spitting oil. I found the gas that had run down onto the generator motor had disolved a crankcase gasket. No parts are available for these generators so it was a throwayay.
Next, we learned that our van a/c was terribly ineffective in hot weather unless the van was moving. This meant no sleeping in rest areas and being miserable in traffic jams. So we got ourselves an R2D2 unit. We call it R2D2 because it looks like one. This is a 9,000 BTU 'portable' unit on wheels that vents through a hose out a window.
But alas, the 1000i wasn't up to running R2D2, so we upgraded to a EU2000i and hung it off the back of the van.
It wasn't long before we needed the real estate inside the van that R2D2 required with it's massive vent hose, so I rigged an 8,000 BTU window unit in the van. From then on, everything was rosy.
About this time, my daughter, Sara Jane and son-in-law, Trey, were going to use the camper for a cross country trip and he doesn't mess around when it comes to power, so we got a Honda EU3000i equipped with remote start for the camper. What a blessing to have a no nonsense generator. I even made an enclosure for it so it could be out of sight - even while running.
Then Big Duck enters the picture and we're so happy that she's equipped with an air conditioner and will run happily with the 2000i. But we soon find that the 9,000 BTU unit on her roof only cools the back 1/2 of the boat. I guess we might have suspected this when we noticed the auxillary fan hanging next to it.
So now we've got to figure a way to cool the helm as well as the galley/dinette. Trey came up with an acceptable solution for making things tolerable, at least while working on the boat in the back yard...a high velocity squirrel cage fan which blows the cool air all the way forward. And in fact it does the job so well, that the compressor eventually cycles off.
Trey's observation when it did cycle off was, "Hey, we're not using the a/c to it's full potential." But he suggested that with two couples and a couple dogs aboard it still wouldn't be enough. There may be a way to make a new Coleman 15,000 BTU unit work, but for now I may just put the R2D2 unit behind the helm seat - which Trey had the foresight to already have a separate breaker and outlet for. The 3000i will be removed from the camper and be installed on the roof of Big Duck, or if we find tit adds too much weight up there we'll put it on the rear deck.
Update here:
Click here for update on circulation
Sunday, June 12, 2011
120 VAC
Big Duck came with a 9,000BTU roof mount air conditioner.This unit does a wonderful job for the back 1/2 of the boat, but forward it is still a sauna. We wanted to put in a circuit for a second air conditioner up front which meant another breaker in the breaker panel. In moving some wires around to make room, we discovered that the insulation was cracked and flaked off. We pulled the cover plates off all the outlets and found the same thing - deteriorated insulation. All the 120 would have to be replaced and the kicker was that it was all foamed in.
The 'we' in this equation is my son in law. He's an electrical engineer, and a good one. We ended up cover plating the wall outlets in the head and dinette.
There won't be an outlet in the head for now; the dinette outlet was lowered and moved to the forward dinette seat face.
This new dinette quad recepticle has 2 regular outlets and two special outlets which are a separate breaker. The special outlets service 1) the 9,000BTU roof air conditioner and 2) a line thermostat on the hall wall.
For heat, we like to use an electric space heater, and the best place for it is under the dinette whether it's set up for eating or sleeping. The trouble is the heat collects there and the heater cycles off. So we just leave the dial on the heater itself set wide open and turn the line thermostat in the hall to the temp we want. This keeps the heater going until more of the boat is warm.
The single outlet in the galley was replaced by quad and double surface mount units. These are easily wired down thru the counter and are GFI.
There is also an outlet in the forward nook whose wiring was updated,
and while we were in there, we added a breaker and new wiring for the 120vac water heater.
There were two extinct devices next to the original breaker panel. We wired one on a separate breaker for a forward air conditioner and the other I used as a place to install an alarm for each of the two bilge pumps. I like to have a little noise when the bilge pumps kick in so I can keep track of what's going on.
We also put in a breaker unique to 120 vac fridge.
And because the generator to be will be on the roof way aft, I thought it nice to have a shore power connector there.
in addition to the one up front.
I made a special 'dead plate' to insert in whichever shore power inlet isn't being used, because without a switch to isolate them, when one is live, so is the other.
There's another set of outlets on switches to service the on board charger and engine room outlets.
And to complete the project, all the 'regular' outlets are wired through a 3000 watt inverter.
For now, the inverter will have it's own isolated, single AGM installed next to it. But future provisions will be made to have it's 3 stage, 130amp charge capability available for the house and starting batteries.
Update - at the encouragement of the surveyor, instead of the 'dead plate' I made a cheap transfer switch that allows only either the front or rear inlet to be active.
Click here for details on the transfer switch.
The 'we' in this equation is my son in law. He's an electrical engineer, and a good one. We ended up cover plating the wall outlets in the head and dinette.
The single outlet in the galley was replaced by quad and double surface mount units. These are easily wired down thru the counter and are GFI.
There is also an outlet in the forward nook whose wiring was updated,
There were two extinct devices next to the original breaker panel. We wired one on a separate breaker for a forward air conditioner and the other I used as a place to install an alarm for each of the two bilge pumps. I like to have a little noise when the bilge pumps kick in so I can keep track of what's going on.
And because the generator to be will be on the roof way aft, I thought it nice to have a shore power connector there.
There's another set of outlets on switches to service the on board charger and engine room outlets.
Update - at the encouragement of the surveyor, instead of the 'dead plate' I made a cheap transfer switch that allows only either the front or rear inlet to be active.
Click here for details on the transfer switch.
Survey & Van
Big Duck is getting to the point I'd like to have insurance. She didn't burn when the shore power plug caught fire and toasted itself in two, and she didn't explode when the gas tank leaked 20 gallons of gas into a bilge heated by an electric space heater when the bilge pump came on and pumped 10 gallons of gas overboard, but I don't want to push my luck, so I got an insurance quote (of about $400). To bind the policy requires a survey (another $400) and I need to take The Duck about 100 miles down the road to the lake where the surveror will be. Might also be a good time for her first splash. Not at all worried about towing her down. Our van, an E-350 (one ton), V10 has done a wonderful job pulling our trailers.
She gets about 13 mpg towing the (previous) boat(s) and camper. We got a little over 10 mpg the 2,000 miles we towed Big Duck back home to SC from Las Vegas. But we're easy on her, seldom going over 55mph towing or not. She's got about 105,000 miles and is still running the original brakes. Which brings me to this next little hurdle...
I was on my way to the gas station to get some non-ethanol gas for Big Duck's new tank so I could try out the new starter. The van pulled slightly left. I stopped and checked the power steering fluid - it was normal. Then she pulled more, so I stopped again and checked the tires. They were fine, but as I started to pull away she seemed sluggish, like I was trying to drive over a small log - once up and over, things got a little better, but there was still that pull and it became too evident to keep going. I pulled over again and smelled brakes. The drivers front brake was smoking. Maybe the calipers were sticking? I kept my foot hard on the pedal and rocked forward to reverse to forward several times. She seemed a little better on the mile run back to the house, but still pulled left under power and then a little right when coasting.
I let her cool at home, then jacked her up to see if I could find the damage. The wheels spun freely. This led me to believe the ABS was somehow applying brake pressure at the wrong time, so I pulled the 60amp ABS fuse and things are back to normal. I'll be able to get her down to the lake for her survey (and inagural splash) afterall - that'll be next Friday (6/17) - I can't wait.
The van has the Torqshift transmission which can be set to downshift when the brake is applied. It will also downshift when going downhill in cruise control to keep from going over the set speed. It's been a great vehicle expecially since she's been equipped with a couple cots, porta-potty, generator and window air.
I was on my way to the gas station to get some non-ethanol gas for Big Duck's new tank so I could try out the new starter. The van pulled slightly left. I stopped and checked the power steering fluid - it was normal. Then she pulled more, so I stopped again and checked the tires. They were fine, but as I started to pull away she seemed sluggish, like I was trying to drive over a small log - once up and over, things got a little better, but there was still that pull and it became too evident to keep going. I pulled over again and smelled brakes. The drivers front brake was smoking. Maybe the calipers were sticking? I kept my foot hard on the pedal and rocked forward to reverse to forward several times. She seemed a little better on the mile run back to the house, but still pulled left under power and then a little right when coasting.
I let her cool at home, then jacked her up to see if I could find the damage. The wheels spun freely. This led me to believe the ABS was somehow applying brake pressure at the wrong time, so I pulled the 60amp ABS fuse and things are back to normal. I'll be able to get her down to the lake for her survey (and inagural splash) afterall - that'll be next Friday (6/17) - I can't wait.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Starter Motor
Turned the key and all I got was a click, so I switched to battery #2 and she fired right up.
Later, the same click on either or both batteries. Bought a new starting battery and made sure it was fully charged. Same click, but no spin. Connected the remote switch to the solonoid so I could try it from the engine compartment. I could feel a hefty click at the starter with my hand, but no spin, or grunt or any other sound. Just the click.
I moved the flywheel with a screwdriver about 3 teeth to make sure the motor wasn't froze up; she moved easily. Tried the starter again and she lit right up. And again and again she lit up. I'm still a little worried about a problem out on the water so I stood on my head and had to use a mirror to pull the starter. It looks very new and clean and everything works as it should on the bench.
I first thought I'd take it to the rebuilder, but found a NIB OEM on the Internet for $60.
The new starter came with a couple shims. I didn't find shims when I removed the old one.
A little poking around on the internet and I find the procedure for deciding whether to use the shim(s) or not, even have the option of using only 1/2 of a shim. But alas, the measuring cannot be done with the motor in the boat, so I'll mount the new starter sans shims and see what happens. Could be that my old starter was OK, just needed a shim?
The new starter is in and working as it should...at least for the 8 times I tried it. But hey, I gotta tell you, if I did this more often I'd have to come up with a better way to torque those bolts - no way to read the needle wrench upside down - had to have a clicker...and at an angle to clear the oil pan.
Later, the same click on either or both batteries. Bought a new starting battery and made sure it was fully charged. Same click, but no spin. Connected the remote switch to the solonoid so I could try it from the engine compartment. I could feel a hefty click at the starter with my hand, but no spin, or grunt or any other sound. Just the click.
I moved the flywheel with a screwdriver about 3 teeth to make sure the motor wasn't froze up; she moved easily. Tried the starter again and she lit right up. And again and again she lit up. I'm still a little worried about a problem out on the water so I stood on my head and had to use a mirror to pull the starter. It looks very new and clean and everything works as it should on the bench.
I first thought I'd take it to the rebuilder, but found a NIB OEM on the Internet for $60.
The new starter came with a couple shims. I didn't find shims when I removed the old one.
The new starter is in and working as it should...at least for the 8 times I tried it. But hey, I gotta tell you, if I did this more often I'd have to come up with a better way to torque those bolts - no way to read the needle wrench upside down - had to have a clicker...and at an angle to clear the oil pan.
Thursday, June 2, 2011
She Wasn't Ready
My wife was going to be with our daughter overnight. I thought it would be a good time to sneak away to the ramp and give Big Duck her first swim.
Decided to light her up one more time before we headed out. She'd click but wouldn't spin...on either battery. The batteries were in the boat when I bought it and when I tried to light her up after putting the motor back in she wouldn't spin on #1, but did fire up on #2.
I bought a new starting battery. I'd put it in after Merlin's walk the next morning.
Took Merlin for his morning walk, as usual. He's always so excited when leaving the car...can't wait to chase the ball. I let him out and threw the ball, then ducked back in to get a poop bag. When I looked up, he had the ball in his mouth but was whimpering softly. I comforted him - he didn't move. I gave him a big hug and gently took the ball. He acted like he wanted to chase it, so I threw it. He hobbled off after the ball on three legs. He continues to limp and has developed a knot at the joint on his lower right hind leg (at the 'elbo').
He's getting good at walking on 3 legs and was resting in the back yard, so I thought I'd drop in that new battery and see it I could bring The Duck's motor to life.
Bummer -- same click but no spin. I could easily rotate the flywheel with a screwdriver thru an inspection port, so I doubt it's the motor. I'll pull the starter tomorrow and have it looked at...right after I take Merlin to the vet. Big Duck will have to wait, and so will I.
Decided to light her up one more time before we headed out. She'd click but wouldn't spin...on either battery. The batteries were in the boat when I bought it and when I tried to light her up after putting the motor back in she wouldn't spin on #1, but did fire up on #2.
I bought a new starting battery. I'd put it in after Merlin's walk the next morning.
Took Merlin for his morning walk, as usual. He's always so excited when leaving the car...can't wait to chase the ball. I let him out and threw the ball, then ducked back in to get a poop bag. When I looked up, he had the ball in his mouth but was whimpering softly. I comforted him - he didn't move. I gave him a big hug and gently took the ball. He acted like he wanted to chase it, so I threw it. He hobbled off after the ball on three legs. He continues to limp and has developed a knot at the joint on his lower right hind leg (at the 'elbo').
He's getting good at walking on 3 legs and was resting in the back yard, so I thought I'd drop in that new battery and see it I could bring The Duck's motor to life.
Bummer -- same click but no spin. I could easily rotate the flywheel with a screwdriver thru an inspection port, so I doubt it's the motor. I'll pull the starter tomorrow and have it looked at...right after I take Merlin to the vet. Big Duck will have to wait, and so will I.
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