Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. The Southern Star crew enjoyed gathering and visiting with family as always and we found plenty to be thankful for. We don't need much of an excuse to travel to the coast but I needed to continue working on the ongoing water system issue that I had been fighting for months. Also we have escalated the "Spirit of Christmas" boat decorating to a level that requires two trips to haul all the boxes of decorations.

Friday November 27, 2009
I had taken a vacation day and we left a little after noon. In cold weather we like to arrive as early as possible because as soon as the sun goes down, the boat starts getting cold. The colder it gets, the longer it takes the little heater to catch up. We stopped for a late lunch at the American Roadhouse in Asheboro. We had eaten there before and the food is quite good. They do an especially good job preparing seafood. Lunch took a little longer than expected but we had plenty of time. The rest of the trip was uneventful. The forecast was for very cool nights and windy conditions. On Brown Creek we are sheltered from the wind to some extent so it was not bad at all.

Saturday November 28, 2009
We woke to a beautiful late fall Carolina morning. It was a bit windy but the sun warmed everything very quickly. This morning Judy cooked turkey bacon and pancakes while it was still cold outside. What a delicious breakfast! She even warmed the syrup in the microwave. In summer running the alcohol stove can turn the interior of the boat into a sauna in a very short time. In cold weather cooking adds much needed warmth to the boat.

After breakfast, Judy went into town for some supplies while I started to deal with the plumbing issue. On our trip to Ocracoke earlier this month, I had diagnosed a faulty water heater safety valve as the reason our water pump ran longer than it should. After researching on the internet, I found a supplier and ordered a new safety valve. The little ship's water system is not all that complex but I am at best an amateur plumber. I proceeded to extract the old valve using a pipe wrench I had brought from home. I could just see the valve breaking off and making a real mess, but I luck held and the old valve yielded to the wrench. After examining the old and new valves side by side, I was satisfied that the new part was indeed a direct replacement for the old one. I wrapped the threads of the new valve with Teflon tape and installed it without any problems.

Now it was time to find out if my diagnosis was correct. I went below and flipped the pressure water switch on. I was very disappointed when I returned to the cockpit and found my brand new safety valve leaking exactly like the old one had. The pump continued to run and run, just like before. Nick stopped by at about that time. He had never encountered the problem before and was as confused as I was. Any time I set out to solve a problem, I tend to go for the most obvious fix first. My theory is, if it looks like a duck and walks like a duck it is probably a duck. Obviously this approach is not always valid. I dismounted the water pump and examined it. The body of the pump seemed a little warm. I ran the pump multiple times while opening and closing various faucets. After observing the behavior of the pump for quite some time, and knowing that the safety valve was not the problem I have concluded that the problem is most likely a faulty pressure switch which is built into the pump.

A runaway pressure switch would allow pressure to build much higher than pumps rating of 40 pounds. I would not think the pump could provide enough pressure to open the safety valve which is why I mad the assumption that the valve was faulty. In hindsight the three tubing failures at the hot water heater outlet could be explained by excess pressure. Now I am faced with the decision of whether to replace the entire pump or just the pressure switch which is sold separately. The switch costs nearly half of the entire pump. If I buy the switch alone and it solves the problem that would be great. On the other hand if the pump is faulty I would be the proud owner of a new pressure switch to set on the shelf. The other thing to consider is that the pump has been stressed during the last few months. It ran until it's internal heat sensor turned it off at least once, and it ran until it blew fuses twice. I am leaning toward replacing the whole pump and be done with it. Replacing the pump should fairly painless except for swiping the credit card. At least we have water, sometimes a bit too much water so it is not an emergency. I made a few calls to local marine suppliers but wasn't able to find a pump. I can typically save a good percentage by buying on line anyway. I will look into that next week at home.

The alcohol stove can be cantankerous but Judy has mastered it. Since we don't use the oven much we tested it earlier in the day to make sure there were no fuel leaks. We invited our dock mate Art over for dinner. Judy outdid herself by baking a chicken casserole and biscuits in the alcohol oven as well as a green bean and tomato dish on the stovetop. We always enjoy Art's company so the meal was very enjoyable. The boat was quite warm after all that cooking so we were comfortable overnight.

Sunday November 29, 2009 (Jason's birthday)
We slept a bit late and had our usual coffee and cereal breakfast and started the process of going home. It was a shame to leave because the wind had died down, the temperature was warmer and the skies were clear. We are lucky in our area because we can sail nearly all year. There are plenty of winter days that are perfect for sailing. This weekend was not an exciting adventure but we had a great time being close to the water and spending time with friends. We transported about half of the Christmas decorations and left them on the boat and I have a course of action on the plumbing issue.