It's Inevitable

One of the joys of boating is that many places on a boat are designed around the 2 out of 3 head/hand rule. You have the option of seeing what you're doing but only using one hand. If you can get two hands on your project, there won't be room to get your head in a position to see what you're doing.

Taming the Tube - 3M 4200 and 5200 -

You pay over $10 for an itty bitty tube and after you use it for the first project it's useless 'cause you can't get any more out of the tube. At least that's how it used to be for me.

When I start a new tube, I've always used a syringe to apply the sealant - there's more control and it's not as messy.

After the first use, sometimes I'll get optimistic and drag out one of those 'caulk savers', but they never work and I'd get frustrated sticking the small screwdriver in and out, trying to ream an opening which would yield pliable sealant. And if by chance some sealant did come out, it had little lumps that would clog the syringe.

Then I realized if the syringe worked on a new tube, it could just as well work on a used one...by making a new hole in the tube. Poke the awl into a likely spot and give the tube a slight squeeze. If nothing comes out, try another place.

This spot was dry

Struck paydirt here as witnessed by the sealant on the awl.

When you find a productive hole, just hold the syringe up to the hole and squeeze the sealant into the syringe.

After loading what I need into the syringe, I squeeze a little more out of the tube and let the sealant set up, healing the hole and making the tube ready for my next project.

This tube has been used for several projects over the last month.

And this is how you get the last little bit.

Shoot Through The Hull

I'm not a fan of the epoxy method of attaching the 'ducer directly to the hull, although it's definitely the easiest. I prefer to mount the 'ducer in a plastic pipe, then fix the pipe to the hull.

Fit a piece of plastic pipe to the hull where you want the 'ducer mounted. Put a wire brush on your drill and clean/roughen the hull where the pipe will attach. Mount the ducer in the pipe in the same orientation you would have it if it were hanging off the transom. Seal the mounting holes with 5200. I leave 1/2" or so between the 'ducer and hull.

Swab the place of attachment liberally with acetone. When it dries use 5200 to fix the pipe/ducer to the hull. Fill the pipe with water or antifreeze and you're done. If you want to keep the water/antifreeze in the pipe from evaporating, drip/pour enough hot wax on the liquid in the pipe to seal it. I don't bother with the wax; I use water and only need to refill it once a season.

Don't like the spot? Tear up the pipe, clean up the 5200 on the hull with the wire brush and try another place.

 

Raw Water Strainer

We needed a way to hose off the dogs and people after they come aboard from the beach. I bought an RV pump because I didn't want to mount the pump below the waterline as is required by the typical centrifugal washdown pumps. The RV pump is self priming and has a pressure shut off, but should have a strainer to keep the valves from clogging.

After I bought a tiny strainer (<$10), I decided I'd like something larger so I didn't have to clean it so often. I was inspired by a plastic SOS pad that I had lying around.

I measured the pad and found it would fit pretty nicely in a 3" PVC pipe. I had a time figuring how to make the 'filter' housing out of PVC, be able to seal it AND get it apart to clean it. After poking around in the Home Depot plumbing section I found the answer - a hose clamped rubber pipe cap. This was just the ticket - the caps were thick enough to take a threaded fitting and still stay water tight, but to be on the safe side, I cut a PVC coupler in half and used it squeeze the rubber from both sides.

The thru hull takes a 1" hose and the pump takes a 3/8" hose. I like the idea of a 1" supply because it can drain the filter when the boat is back on the trailer, hopefully eliminating the need to clean it. So I put a 1" fitting on the 'in' side and a 3/8" fitting on the 'out' side.

Rather than use the SOS disc that inspired me, I opted for a new Scotchbrite pad which I could cut just a little larger for a good snug fit. I would have been comfortable just leaving it at that, but I had some stainless screen from another project so I cut a couple circles to sandwich the pad.

And there you have it. A nice big filter to keep trash out of my pump.

A piece of clear pipe of some kind would have been nice so I could see what was going on inside, but I already had $15 in the project and didn't feel like it was necessary, at least for now.

I'll mount the filter vertically, well above the waterline, with a straight run to the thru hull for optimum self cleaning/draining.

Found The Phantom Start Gremlin

I put a voltmeter on the coil and switched her from 'off' to #1 battery - nothing. I turned the key to light her up and she was running before I could release the key. This would have explained why I never heard the starter - it could have hit just for a fraction of a second.

She was pumping cooling water as she ran, so I goosed her momentarily to energize the alternator. The needle jumped right up to just a little under 14v. So, evidently no damage by her coming alive on her own and me switching the battery off while she was running.

I let her warm up a little. While I was peering into the engine compartment, looking for clues the starter engaged on it's own, trying to start the running engine. I disengaged the starter by switching the batteries to 'off' but the motor kept running. When I turned the key off, she went silent. I lit her up again and got the same results.

I went up and examined the keyless ignition switch on the flybridge. It was very warm to the touch. Suspecting some of the recent heavy rain got into the works, I removed the switch and took it to the bench to check for conductivity; the ohm meter showed resistance, telling me the circuits were not completely open. Apparently with the ability to pass a slight current, the sizzling and cooking going on at the contacts would occasionally incite full juice to pass.

With the flybridge switch disconnected, I again lit her up and let her run for a spell. She appears to be happy now, pumping cooling water, charging the batteries and not trying to start on her own. When I rewire the new flybridge switch, I'll put in a separate starter button - to keep the ignition and starting circuits isolated.

The gremlin:

I decided to cut the switch open to verify that it was the culprit.

It's pretty safe to say water in the switch was the cause. There is a drain hole in the switch, but the switch was mounted so the hole was at the top. The B+ wire should be at the top.

Believe It Or Not

A couple days ago I finished up installing a Floscan. I switched on the ignition and witnessed a successful installation. That night in bed, it dawned on me that I should have wired the power to the ignition switch as well as the backlighting, so I did. This time I fired her up on the muffs and in addition to the digital tach readout I could see the gallons used and engine hours clicking away. I shut her down with a sigh of relief that everything had gone so well.

Last night, Merlin and I were aboard fitting a pin to the setee table to fix it in place when it was in the down for sleeping position. The installation was successful, but during the final stages we had a thunder boomer. Man did the rain come down. Merlin has grown sensitive to the thunder, so we cuddled on his lower bunk bed through the worst of it.

When I got up I noticed rainwater coming in through the rear door and profusely around the front windows. This wasn't a boat, it was a sieve! I put a couple cups out to catch the incomming rain, but by that time the worst was over.

Tonight I was going to do some plumbing work in preparation for the Labor Day Weekend outing, but the mosquitoes were so bad I decided to work in the shop. I heard a subdued 'pop' and then a grumble. I thought it was my 40 year old air compressor pumping back up, but as the noise continued I realised that wasn't it.

The loaping growl became ever so familiar, but I just couldn't place it. Holy Shit! that's Big Duck coming alive!

I dashed out of the shop (it's not far to the boat) and up on the deck, noticing the exhaust flap vibrating as I went.

Then on to the helm where I noticed the red light - signaling that the outdrive wasn't fully down, was on. I grabbed the key only to find it was in the off position.

I then dashed back and turned the main battery switch to off. The mill then went to sleep. Tomorrow I'll need to see if the impeller is still good and whether or not I blew the diodes in the alternator, then try to figure what kind of gremlins started up the motor in Big Duck.

If this had happened when I wasn't around, the engine would have overheated and been toast, so I'm assuming it's a sign that she's really anxious to get out there and go.

Can anyone explain this spontaneous ignition? There was no starter cranking, I would have noticed that sound as she wouldn't start and I needed to manually prime the carb after doing the plumbing for the Floscan. She didn't light up again on her own when I turned the battery back on after the incident, and she properly responded to a brief key on/start. Suzy reminded me that The Duck should have run the blower for 5 minutes before she lit herself up.

Can anyone provide an explanation?

Here's what I found.

Redneck Storage

Go ahead and laugh. I can take it, especially when you're rooting around trying to free up your deck brush, dinghy oars or docking aids...and it didn't take up any otherwise usable space.

Not to mention the scrap of pipe has been taking up space in the corner of my shop for years...