March 7, 2011

Activities on Saturday were built around an appointment with an appliance repairman I had called upon in desperation to solve a subtle and elusive, but serious problem with my dishwasher. Two hours of work later he was able to identify a series of small problems that added up to one big problem. Once that was taken care of, I did some more research and testing of the Wilcox Crittenden Skipper head I brought home last week.


Through my reading I learned that the problem that originally led to my removing the head (no water could be pumped into the bowl to fill it) might be caused by a couple of relatively simple issues. It turns out that if the intake chamber in the head is not primed (filled with water), pumping is ineffective. Because the boat had been sitting on the hard for months, and the head hadn’t been used since, it was very possible that it just needed priming. To prime it, I held the foot pedal down to hold the in-flow flapper valve open and directed a stream of water from the garden hose into the intake. Still no luck pumping the bowl full. Continuing my reading, I learned that it is possible for the intake flapper valve to get stuck against the seat. That also seemed a reasonable possibility, with the head possibly having sat dry for months. To free it up, the intake manifold cover is removed, the foot pedal held down, and the flapper pushed open with a screwdriver.


While doing all this may or may not have cured the problem, as a result of the partial dismantling of the head, it was clear the seals, gaskets and sundry rubber goochie wackers were not in good shape. With the head out of the boat and on the workbench, it made sense to simply wait for the arrival of the rebuild kits I had ordered and rebuild it as originally planned.



Sunday was a day filled with rain, mist and mystery. Given the rain and mist, outside or epoxy work was out. I planned to check on the status of the last few stubborn leaks and install the head locker doors I had refurbished over the last few months (see January 10, 2011 post). I also wanted to run the engine under load for while and hang a blanket over the side to protect Circadian's paint from fender rub.




Here’s where the mysteries come in. The leak that caused water to pool on top of the port side fuel tank seemed to have been fixed when I caulked around the fuel fill fitting (see February 27, 2011 post). Dusty dry after the last big rain. Now there was water once again pooled on top of the fuel tank and some wetness around the bottom of cockpit coaming locker that I had sealed and fitted with a new fiberglass lip (see January 31, 2011 post). Careful inspection with a flashlight while it was raining revealed two sources of a slow drip: a couple of old screw holes at the top of the locker immediately under the solid teak cockpit combing cap. Sigh. At least I found the source. Once everything dries out, I should be able to cure it with a little epoxy putty.

The other mystery was the miraculous reappearance of numbers on the engine’s electronic hour meter. It’s failed and spontaneously recovered before, but I was convinced it was dead for good. Worked fine for the entire time the engine was running. Probably some quirky internal intermittent failure, but I want to test it to see if it is voltage sensitive, and doesn’t work if the d.c. voltage is below 12.5 volts.

Mysteries aside, I spent the day improving the plumbing for the head and installing the head locker doors. I also removed the clamps and checked the cure of the epoxy holding the new cockpit locker panel I cut and glued in place last week. I still need to grind the back side and add reiforcing fiberglass tape before I can do the final cut-out and fill and fair the front panel prior to installing the new hatch.



Next up: tackle the head. The P.O. had the intake line for the head and the outflow from the shower sump pump sharing the same thru-hull. If there was anything less than a perfect air-tight seal all the way through the shower sump pump, the head pump could just suck air through the pump rather than draw in sea water. I disconnected the sump pump output from the head intake line. Once I get all the required fittings I’ll have the sump pump outflow routed through the head sink drain line and thru hull. I also wanted to install a raw water strainer in the head intake line because without one the small organic bits that would be deposited in the toilet, hoses and holding tank can lead to bad smells. I removed the strainer and never-connected hoses that were left over in the engine room when the old generator was removed (see November 15, 2010 post) and installed the strainer in the head intake line.



The head locker door installation went fine, and I was able to figure out what went where. I did find that one door was missing hinges, which I will be able to scavenge from the sole remnant door from the stripped out aft head. That door was in such bad shape that I won’t be able to use it anyway. I’ll have to rebuild the aft head area virtually from scratch. But that’s a long way down the road….

I really enjoyed seeing the big improvement in how the head looked with the locker doors (mostly) in place. It will be even nicer to have the head rebuilt and working and the shower sump system sorted out. That will mean one small but important area will be done.