Engine and Wiring
10 September 2005 | Whortonsville, NC
Doug Mayle
Roger Schmidt, the Salty Dog, and his son Drew arrived on Saturday morning to help with our engine problems. On the day we purchased the boat, Roger had made some suggestions regarding the routing of the fuel lines. I requested that he come to do the work and teach me what he could in the process.
When Roger removed the primary fuel filter, he found a problem where the filter seats to the hardware. A small ding in the metal was likely allowing air into the system. This could be the culprit which caused our engine problems on the way from Oriental to Whortonsville. Any sediment stirred up from the fuel tank on the rough ride would have made it more and more difficult for fuel to be pulled through the filter. Eventually, pulling air through that gap was easier than pulling fuel through the filter. Air in line=dead engine.
Roger indicated that he had a replacement for the filter hardware, but suggested an alternative. If we replaced the unit with a Racor 500-series, the initial cost would be about $250, but each filter was about $20 less. Sheryl and I decided to go with his recommendation. We will just have to keep the boat until the new filter unit pays for itself.
Since Roger would have to order the new filter unit, his work was done for the day; however, he did provide us with a chore. He noticed that the main ignition cable (the hotwire) was lying directly on the engine. Not good. He also recommended that all the battery cables be replaced with thicker guage wire. (He recommended #1).
As soon as he left, we were off to West Marine Express in Oriental. They had the cables, but not enough end fittings. The guy working there indicated that they had them at the West Marine in New Bern. If we picked up the fittings, he would be there tomorrow to help us crimp them on.
We stopped by the dock to see if we could get anything for anyone else while in New Bern. Bob and Tammy had new batteries on order, so the trip would be doubly useful.
We got the end fittings, crimped them on the wires and purchased some liquid electrical tape to apply to the junctions. Upon returning to the dock, we quickly showered in order to join the whole gang at the Southern Palace, a great little bar/restaurant in Oriental.
A great end to a busy day.
Sunday morning after breakfast, we tackled the chore of installing all the new battery cables. After which we felt a certain satisfaction at having accomplished this project together.
We decided to ride our bikes to Oriental on Sunday afternoon, only to discover that the high winds made riding difficult and had driven water up on to the road by the town dock. We entered the Bean with very soggy feet and enjoyed a bit of ice cream.
The high winds were the first signs of Hurricane Ophelia. Visitors had been ordered to evacuate Ocracoke. We had better take some extra time to tie up. I tied, and studied, re-tied and studied again. After passing me on the dock several times, Joey asked if I was ever going to leave.
Comfort regarding how I had tied up the boat was not to come, regardless how hard I tried. It was time to leave.