Tue 11 May, HHN day 28: Hot water tank take-2. Manifold removed and serviced. Aquadrive comes back to Mummy.
Up early today. Ray is coming to take me to the supermarket at 8:30 and I want to at least get the water tank back on the wall before he comes. We go to Dunkirk and shop at Harris Teeter. I have a list so doesn’t take me long. Hopefully the last time I forage for food before I return to the Commodore in Bucharest. Ray is such a good friend to us here.
Back at Cloudy Bay, I’m determined to finish reinstalling the hot water tank and get the water system back up and running by midday, then start on the rudder in the afternoon. With the multitude of pipes reconnected (most blindly, by feel only, under the tank) I turn on the water pump, not really expecting anything but success.
Wrong. So very wrong. And it’s not like I had to look for drips. I could hear the bloody leak gushing out under the tank! I was a little surprised… then a second later extremely cross! When we edit this video we will have to find some appropriate “bleeps”, or we may get banned from YouTube.
I turn off the water pump and do that very British thing in times of crisis… put the kettle on for tea, and think what to do about it. The leak is right at the back under the hot water tank. Totally inaccessible. I really have no choice but to take it out again.
And for some reason that 1970’s song by Mud comes to mind: The cat crept in. The chorus was “cat crept in… crept out again”. But the schoolboy lyrics of the time were “cat crept in, crapt (shat), crept out again”. My version today is: “tank went in, leaked, came out again”. Anyway, silly humor, but singing it to myself got my mojo back.
When I had gone behind the generator to plumb the water pump back in, I was reminded that I also wanted to rebuild the hot and cold water manifolds. While these are not leaking badly, they could definitely do with some love.
For a moment I had pondered about administering the TLC right then, while the water is already drained. But the lure of getting the water system back up and running today, was too much. The decision: the manifolds can wait for another day, enough of plumbing for me.
But now that the leaking hot water tank has forced me to wait another day for the sealant to cure again, I decide to do the manifolds as well. At least there will be a positive side to the tank leaking.
The 2 manifolds come out pretty easily, excepting that I have to dangle almost upside down over the back of the generator to do it. Then using the vice in East Coast Marine Rigging workshop I quickly have them apart, then the usual routine back at Cloudy Bay with wire brush to clean them up.
This time I was sensible enough to wear some sturdy gloves. Last time I think I had wire-brushed my fingertips as much at the fittings! They are very painful just now. I then I do the rebuilding, with 3M 5200 and Loctite 275, in the cockpit. All that sealant goo in the galley was too high a risk of marking the woodwork.
By early evening the 2 manifolds are rebuilt and the hot water tank repaired. I vow not to touch them again until Thursday, giving a full 30 hours to cure.
So what was the cause of the leak? There was one joint that, for some reason, I had forgotten to put sealant inside. Come to think of it, I know the reason. I was in the middle of that part when Paul called round yesterday. You see, it’s true what they say, disturb a concentrating genius at your peril. Hmm, was it genius or eccentric? I can’t remember. Anyway I was disturbed, and paid the price. A wasted day. So root cause was Paul, not me!
Early evening I have a delivery. Rachel arrives with the Aquadrive which was refurbished at Authority Marine Propulsion in New Jersey. Rachel is Jeff’s wife and they have just purchased a Hallberg-Rassy 46 in the next marina. Lucky for me, they will be back and forth to New Jersey a few times until they sail their new boat north to their home port. So Rachel also kindly taking back our CV joint, to have that refurbished too. Some people are so generous.
The Aquadrive looks good. Their hourly rate was expensive ($135/h) but they only charged 1.5 hours for the rebuild. Puts me to shame a bit considering I had tried for about 1.5 weeks, just to get it apart… and failed. It’s so nice when you turn to the professionals and they really are professional. I would recommend Authority Marine Propulsion to anyone.
In the evening, I have a big tidy up in the cabin and make something to eat out of all the goodies I bought at the supermarket this morning. Shrimp salad. With music playing and nice ambient lighting, I reflect on the day. Not bad really. 1 step back, 2 steps forward. I am forgiven… but DON’T let that happen again.