total newbie

Ladies and Gentlemen:

Bought a 45' Little Hoquiam trawler on Thursday. Drove it from North Vancouver to Sechelt Inlet on Friday and Saturday. Took wife and kids out on Sunday; autopilot quit. Monday, the genset refused to start and no shore power (yet) where I moor the thing. Yesterday I started her up when friends came to visit and see what I'd spent all the money on. Kill switch went all pacifist on me so it took a while to find the linkage on the engine that shuts off the diesel flow.

Does everybody go through this crap or is it just me? I'm beginning to think being a mechanical engineer isn't just an advantage but a necessity. Possibly as well being a diesel mechanic, electrician, plumber, contortionist (you should see the engine room) and OCD detailer.



I'll have lots of questions!

Richard

Greetings,
Welcome aboard.

Welcome. It has been said that the definition of cruising is fixing your boat in exotic places. I might add that the places can be also not so exotic.

That was an unusual set of circumstances that befell you, but not unheard of. I am assuming that you had a good hull and engine survey before closing the deal. If not, you are doing it now.

I hope things go better for you, and you and the family enjoy that boat. You have a wonderful cruising area.

Welcome aboard. It sounds like you have a head start on the learning curve from most of us. The short answer is yes.

Welcome to the wonderful world of "Boating"!

Pretty standard Richard. Welcome to our world.

BTW, you can always tell a boater...

If you ask a guy to help fix an electrical outlet in your home, and he takes the couch apart that's in front of the outlet, instead of moving it, well...

He's a boater.

Welcome aboard

Friend of mine triumphantly brought his new sailboat into the marina here in Kitimat after a blemish free trip from Vancouver. His whole extended family was there on the dock to greet him. He planned to give it a pulse in reverse to stop the boat and elegantly prop walk into the dock...but...he couldn't shift out of forward. Rammed the dock and scattered the relatives. You're off to a pretty good start, comparatively speaking

Welcome aboard. She looks a nice 1974 boat.
Sounds fairly normal, for the early days & months of ownership, while you sort out the issues someone else put on hold.

Past Owner of Perla Blanca

Hi Rich,

My wife & I owned the Perla Blanca for over 20 years. We had many exciting adventures on her between Washington State and Alaska. We traveled all of the outside waters as well as the inside. We would, very much, like to get in touch with you. (I know her systems inside and out!) Hopefully this post will get to you or, if not, perhaps one of the other forum members will know how to contact you.

Alaska said:

Hi Rich,
Hopefully this post will get to you or, if not, perhaps one of the other forum members will know how to contact you.

Click to expand...

Just send him a PM (private message). You just click on his name at the left side of his post, and go from there. If you have a problem, holler.

Rich
Welcome to boating and to TF
Lots of knowledge here and folks willing to share.
Consider it a learning experience and you will do fine.

Boat yoga will keep you limber!

Welcome aboard. All the best with your new adventure.

Welcome aboard and welcome to the very exclusive club of newbies!
Don't be discourage, don't be disappointed and just find pleasure in making your new boat your own boat.
I bought my first ever boat earlier this year. You must be ready to do maintenance, from mechanic, plumber, electricity, hydraulic or just cosmetic, it is just like a house with more systems to maintain. You got to get your hands dirty and keep it working.
First time I got in my sleep a fresh water pipe fitting broke and when I looked at the plumbing I found fitting everywhere. Previous owner was fixing by adding pieces of pipe. As a result I spent 2 days to rebuilt all the plumbing, now it is done, won't worry too much about it.
If I can give you one advice, better to to it well, whatever the effort, than patch it and worry if it will last.
But never ever be disappointed and discouraged, everything will come together and you will enjoy it like nothing else.

Sechelt Rich said:

I'm beginning to think being a mechanical engineer isn't just an advantage but a necessity. Possibly as well being a diesel mechanic, electrician, plumber, contortionist (you should see the engine room) and OCD detailer.

Click to expand...

You've got it!

It takes some people a long to time realize what you just said. You'll do fine.

And, there WILL be times when nothing breaks.

Welcome aboard!

Didn't Perla Blanca have a Chrysler diesel?

Where are you moored? I am in Pender Harbour.

Welcome aboard!

CaptTom said:

You've got it!

It takes some people a long to time realize what you just said. You'll do fine.

And, there WILL be times when nothing breaks.

Welcome aboard!

Click to expand...

There will? When?

Sechelt Rich said:

Ladies and Gentlemen:

Bought a 45' Little Hoquiam trawler on Thursday. Drove it from North Vancouver to Sechelt Inlet on Friday and Saturday. Took wife and kids out on Sunday; autopilot quit. Monday, the genset refused to start and no shore power (yet) where I moor the thing. Yesterday I started her up when friends came to visit and see what I'd spent all the money on. Kill switch went all pacifist on me so it took a while to find the linkage on the engine that shuts off the diesel flow.

Does everybody go through this crap or is it just me? I'm beginning to think being a mechanical engineer isn't just an advantage but a necessity. Possibly as well being a diesel mechanic, electrician, plumber, contortionist (you should see the engine room) and OCD detailer.



I'll have lots of questions!

Richard

Click to expand...

You seem to be a quick study and have figured out what boating is about especially in a used boat with any years on it. The best you can hope for is a previous owner who was a bit of a mechanical engineer and maintenance freak unfortunately that is not the rule. Some boat owners actually like the maintenance and rebuilding a few like it more than actually using the boat. I once met a guy who built beautiful small wooden boats and asked him how one of his boats preformed his answer he did not know because he did not like actually using the boats He just liked building them.

The pain and joy has only just begun!

I've been cruising since 1994. There were two weeks in August of 1996 when everything worked .... I cherish those two weeks

Poach said:

There will? When?

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Shhh... I was trying to encourage the new guy.

The reality is: The only thing that's always working on an old boat... is the owner.

There may, however, be a few moments when enough things are working well enough that you can take a break from fixing them and enjoy a cold one at sunset in a remote anchorage.

Have hope! We have actually gone a 2-3-month summer on the Inside Passage with nothing breaking - twice, IIRC.

I actually don't recall any time when everything a boat worked perfectly. I have come to accept it. I just keep plugging away at the list of things that need to be repaired or improved upon, trying to keep the list from getting longer. The list never seems to get shorter. It is a kind of steady state situation with repairs, maintenance and failures in a strange kind of balance.

Welcome aboard. You have done yourself a favor by joining this forum. Both my wife and I have learned many lessons from the wisdom of its members. We are first year rookies to the trawler lifestyle with a 30-year-old trawler. One thing that I have learned thus far about repairs, maintenance, and cruising is this. When we began this journey, the ratio between cruising and repairs/maintenance stood at approximately ten to one. Ten hours of repairs and maintenance to one hour underway. With time and experience, we are down to about three to one. One of our goals, and what keeps us reinvesting our time, energy, money, and hope is that we plan on making the great loop in about two years. My point is (talk about great loops!), there will always be something that will need maintenance, monitoring, repair and eventually replacement. For us, the trawler lifestyle has many challenges, but the payback is priceless.

Lol!!

Xsbank said:

Didn't Perla Blanca have a Chrysler diesel?

Where are you moored? I am in Pender Harbour.

Welcome aboard!

Click to expand...

Yes, Perla Blanca had a Chrysler Nissan diesel when we owned her. We purchased her in 1978 and sold her in 2001.

Last week I replaced the bow thruster controls a cheap piece of plastic holding the rocker switch broke. I also had to replace the bilge gas sensor which has gone south before and disabled our stove. I now carry spare sensor.This week I had to pull the tank level sensor out of the black water holding tank for a repair and will not be sure I got it right until I can pour some water in the tank when the dock water is on again. I have a whole list of projects and my boat is only 4 years old. When we go cruising for 6 weeks I keep plenty of tools and spares aboard and every other week it is something or other that needs attention This is all part of boating and particularly cruising. Over the years I have learned that motor boats seem to have different and more complicated needs than sail probably due to all the comfort stuff on most power boats. Get a good tool kit stay tuned to this site and boat diesel and be ready to roll up your sleeves hopefully you will be one of those boaters that likes repair and maintenance or at least tolerates it.