menzies
Guru
Sonas has been over at the yard for a few weeks having regular maintenance done (bottom paint, zincs, gelcoat chips repaired, cockpit door repaired, hose clamps and hoses, through hulls all checked and lubed, new ER light, new belts, new battery switch for windlass/thruster, etc. etc), new sonar transducer, alternators refurbished and some new wiring run, new washing machine to replace the banshee that was in there, and try and find out why raising my windlass starts the port engine!!! (they couldn't replicate the issue)!
So a ton of work, all ready for some great fall through spring Florida cruising.
Hah! What is that they say about the best laid plans of mice and men!
Did an ER check before we left the yard. All looks good. Sea cocks open, nothing loose laying around, no stains on the bilge diapers. Start her up and got ready to leave. And off we go.
Go along the Ortega River and hail the drawbridge for an opening. As we approach the bridge the port engine quits! Get the anchor down and tell the bridge tender we wouldn't be needing an opening.
While I wasn't necessarily cursing the yard, I was thinking "we ran through two thirds of the Bahamas and up the ICW before taking the boat over there and she ran fine - now what have they screwed up?"
Took me about 30 seconds to see that someone had nudged (or turned) the dual Racor filter valve handle to "off." Well OK, that's annoying but whew, no biggie so long as the durn engine isn't now air locked. Turned the handle to on and the engine started immediately. And off we went again. (of course the crew is now complaining about a muddy foredeck on a boat the yard just cleaned!).
Pass through downtown Jacksonville and happily cruising the St John's towards home port. We are up on the FB and as usual we keep checking the temperature and oil pressure gauges. Just out of downtown Jax and I glance at the gauges - the starboard oil pressure gauge is pinned all the way to the top! S&*%. I run down and quickly look at the PH gauge and it is showing 20psi. (They usually sit around 60psi). Pull the throttle back and kill the engine.
While we continued on one engine, I went into the ER and saw nothing in the way of oil in the bilge pan, no sign of a leak. Pulled the dip stick and plenty of oil in the engine pan. I go back up and start the engine again and the gauges show the same - one pinned all the way the other showing 20psi. The alarm not going off (it probably wouldn't at 20psi).
I called the yard and he told me that the sender probably went through the PH gauge and then was replicated at the FB gauge. If one of the gauges went bad it may impact both of them. But since there was no way to ensure that the pump had not gone until we could swap in a known good sender and gauge - the best thing would be to keep it shut down. So we came all the way home on one.
It is SO annoying and frustrating to have made the effort to keep the boat in tip top shape and to have just written a nice sized check - to now have a boat at home dock that needs more work before we can use it.
No one hurt and it's just stuff, but sigh!
So a ton of work, all ready for some great fall through spring Florida cruising.
Hah! What is that they say about the best laid plans of mice and men!
Did an ER check before we left the yard. All looks good. Sea cocks open, nothing loose laying around, no stains on the bilge diapers. Start her up and got ready to leave. And off we go.
Go along the Ortega River and hail the drawbridge for an opening. As we approach the bridge the port engine quits! Get the anchor down and tell the bridge tender we wouldn't be needing an opening.
While I wasn't necessarily cursing the yard, I was thinking "we ran through two thirds of the Bahamas and up the ICW before taking the boat over there and she ran fine - now what have they screwed up?"
Took me about 30 seconds to see that someone had nudged (or turned) the dual Racor filter valve handle to "off." Well OK, that's annoying but whew, no biggie so long as the durn engine isn't now air locked. Turned the handle to on and the engine started immediately. And off we went again. (of course the crew is now complaining about a muddy foredeck on a boat the yard just cleaned!).
Pass through downtown Jacksonville and happily cruising the St John's towards home port. We are up on the FB and as usual we keep checking the temperature and oil pressure gauges. Just out of downtown Jax and I glance at the gauges - the starboard oil pressure gauge is pinned all the way to the top! S&*%. I run down and quickly look at the PH gauge and it is showing 20psi. (They usually sit around 60psi). Pull the throttle back and kill the engine.
While we continued on one engine, I went into the ER and saw nothing in the way of oil in the bilge pan, no sign of a leak. Pulled the dip stick and plenty of oil in the engine pan. I go back up and start the engine again and the gauges show the same - one pinned all the way the other showing 20psi. The alarm not going off (it probably wouldn't at 20psi).
I called the yard and he told me that the sender probably went through the PH gauge and then was replicated at the FB gauge. If one of the gauges went bad it may impact both of them. But since there was no way to ensure that the pump had not gone until we could swap in a known good sender and gauge - the best thing would be to keep it shut down. So we came all the way home on one.
It is SO annoying and frustrating to have made the effort to keep the boat in tip top shape and to have just written a nice sized check - to now have a boat at home dock that needs more work before we can use it.
No one hurt and it's just stuff, but sigh!
