Well, finally it is settled! The diesel techies, Glenn and James were able to identify the problem and fix it! This morning after three days of "well, maybe it's this or that" Fiu is fixed and ready for action! It was in the end more like a vapor lock! Here's the run-down: my original starter works just fine; when removing the fuel injectors water came streaming out of the supply lines instead of diesel fuel. After several attempts to drain all the water they realized it must be syphoning in from the raw water cooling system. A valve in the vent line was plugged (this happens sometimes) so instead of the pressure being released and the water stopped from building up and entering the engine, it was allowed to enter and since water doesn't compress the engine wouldn't turn over. This would be a symptom of a bad starter motor. They really should have checked it out before ordering a new one. Once the vent line was clear the water completely drained from the engine and diesel fuel replaced the water in the lines. It fired right up and I let the engine run for almost an hour to help dry it out. I thought at one point we would have to be towed, the engine removed and replaced with a new one! That worst case scenario didn't happen. We would have been unable to continue our trip!
The best part of all of this (besides a hard learned lesson) is that the yanmar dealer took back the new starter motor at no cost to me. Second, he only charged 7 1/4 hours of labor for the three days they worked on the engine! It seems to be running fine and they assured me it was good to go! No bent rods or other potential damage from trying to compress water in a diesel engine! We will see. I was very depressed over this whole issue because there was no warning. However, I will check this vent periodically. I could only imagine this happening while anchored out in the SC grasses where a tow would be required! Kind of like your car breaking down in the middle of the Adirondacks on a back road.
Our plan is to stay here until "Sandy" passes by. We will check conditions Sunday morning and if high wind warnings are still in effect then we will leave Monday AM. The staff here Lynn, Miles, Richard and Sherry has been most gracious and flexible. They have new boats coming in each day and yet they still manage to accommodate us with their limited open dock space.
Time to retire!
Captain Sid
Friday, October 26, 2012
Wednesday, October 24, 2012 Osprey Marina
To be or not to be! I now have the answer. The vapor lock theory evaporated this AM when the diesel techie informed me the starter was indeed in need of repair ( it only has three seasons of use)! After several calls back and forth a new starter is supposed to be here tomorrow, Friday or Saturday. He did promise to install it as soon as it is delivered. Yes, they will charge us for the new one with a hefty freight charge added to the bill. I guess it's better to be here in a marina than anchored out somewhere in the SC grasses (often beautiful in their way) and not be able to start the diesel!
Hurricane Sandy is now a real threat! We will stay right here regardless of when the diesel is repaired! It is scheduled to pass this Friday and be north of us by Saturday. We have agreed that being safe here is more important than making planned connections with friends further south Thursday and Friday. We will reschedule our plans with them and hopefully see them as we sail south to the Keys!
We have continued to work on getting Fiu ready to sail. Most things to do involve cleaning of some kind. The hull has had its brown "ICW mustache" removed. The fresh water in this part of the region has lots of tannins, which are chiefly complex glucosides of catechol and pyrogallol making the water truly the color of iced tea on the strong side! We will be reviewing our charts and refreshing our memories about anchorages during the next three days.
We have been in contact with some of our boat buddies from previous trips and they are further south than we are. We are hoping they can find adequate shelter from the off-shore effects of Hurricane Sandy over the next few days. Higher tides, high winds (above 20kts) and probably lots of rain will all come together to make life on a boat just a little uncomfortable for a couple of days!
I think, all things considered, we are probably fortunate to have to wait for the new starter since Hurricane Sandy has the potential to reek havoc. We are thinking of our families and friends and want you all to know we are safe here. Osprey Marina is the absolute best marina for friendliness and helpfulness. Everyone here will go out of their way to make sure we are comfortable and have our needs met!
Dinner awaits!
Captain Sid
Hurricane Sandy is now a real threat! We will stay right here regardless of when the diesel is repaired! It is scheduled to pass this Friday and be north of us by Saturday. We have agreed that being safe here is more important than making planned connections with friends further south Thursday and Friday. We will reschedule our plans with them and hopefully see them as we sail south to the Keys!
We have continued to work on getting Fiu ready to sail. Most things to do involve cleaning of some kind. The hull has had its brown "ICW mustache" removed. The fresh water in this part of the region has lots of tannins, which are chiefly complex glucosides of catechol and pyrogallol making the water truly the color of iced tea on the strong side! We will be reviewing our charts and refreshing our memories about anchorages during the next three days.
We have been in contact with some of our boat buddies from previous trips and they are further south than we are. We are hoping they can find adequate shelter from the off-shore effects of Hurricane Sandy over the next few days. Higher tides, high winds (above 20kts) and probably lots of rain will all come together to make life on a boat just a little uncomfortable for a couple of days!
I think, all things considered, we are probably fortunate to have to wait for the new starter since Hurricane Sandy has the potential to reek havoc. We are thinking of our families and friends and want you all to know we are safe here. Osprey Marina is the absolute best marina for friendliness and helpfulness. Everyone here will go out of their way to make sure we are comfortable and have our needs met!
Dinner awaits!
Captain Sid
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