Don't Worry. Be Happy!
15 April 2009 | Inlet Cove Marina, Ponce Inlet, FL
Chris & Linda / Sunny 76

Well, back on March 18th we heard the engine running. But then... slurp, gurgle, slurp...it flooded with salt water. As a result, Chris discovered that the anti-siphon valve (or vented loop) although apparently in good shape, did not work. It's a loop - see pics in Photo Gallery Refit Round Too - with hoses on either side inside the boat and placed higher than the water level. On our boat it is located in a galley cabinet. It is supposed to allow the pump to push sea water into the engine for cooling purposes, and then stop the sea water when we shut off the engine. It's like if you had a hole in the middle of a straw, you can suck if you put your finger over the hole, but if you don't you get air. The loop is an automatic "finger" to prevent water flow when the pump is off. This may have had something to do with why water got in the engine in the first place, even thought the head gasket did look bad. Anyway, we were prepared for the possiblity and quickly drained the water, then ran the engine to dry it out so it wouldn't sieze again. The new Marelon vented loop has a one way flapper ("finger on the hole") that squeals when it is working. Not sure it was designed that way, but it certainly lets us know that it is. As I write this blog post, it's running beautifully again, and Chris is changing the oil and filter.
Some of you are asking, "Did they buy a lemon?" The answer is, "No!" We bought Troubadour for a very good price for its size (51 feet), year (1986), and make (Beneteau Idylle). We also knew we would be investing to get her ready for offshore living and sailing. Some of the issues we've had weren't expected this early in our new life, but we feel blessed to have access to everything we need here in Florida (vs. being stranded on a remote island)...except for Louie's Demise Ale, New Age White Wine, and Dunn Brothers Costa Rica French Roast Coffee. (Read care package!)
Our lifestyle is a commitment to our dream. The ingredients of that commitment are heaped with humor, love, perseverance, willingness to learn, cultivating new skills, patience, and the courage to try something new for the first time.
Mark Twain is quoted as saying: Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.
We look forward to that day in 2029, when we will look back on this journey in our lives. I'm confident we will have smiles on our faces.