Making Water
03 December 2010 | Nanny Cay, Tortola BVI
Susan / mostly cloudy, 83 degrees F
Nanny Cay Marina is full. Something may open after the noon hour so we plan our arrival for half past. Getting a spot in a busy marina, even if for just an hour or so for a repair, is all about timing as slips are reserved in advance and expected to be open upon arrival.
When close to the entrance, Jerry calls for a space on a dock, any space that will accommodate Vida Dulce's beam for an hour or so. All full, is the answer. After a couple of coordinating calls to CatCo and the local Spectra contact and 15 or so minutes of holding relative position outside the tricky entrance, we head to the fuel dock.
We leisurely top off Vida Dulce's fuel tanks. Jerry again alerts the local Spectra contact. He suggests we linger there as long as possible; he or his assistant should arrive within the hour. I leave the Vida Dulce to walk to the marina market for bottled water. As I return, Old Car is being inspected and picked up. We fill the water tanks and a get a bag of ice to buy time. A bit later the assistant arrives with the new Spectra pump.
The new factory pump performs like the last two; it fails under pressure. Three for three frankly boarders on insanity (keep doing the same thing expecting a different result). After several hours of testing, and trying over and over again to get the system to work, the local contact and Spectra factory contact(s) share, at least in some small part, our frustration.
The local Spectra contact leaves Vida Dulce for a very late lunch break. And to give the factory a bit more time to conger up a solution. He returns a short time later with a bicycle pump and pressure gauge to test the accumulator. The air pressure in the accumulator is 0, it should be around 60 psi. Bingo! After getting as close to 60 psi as we could with the rickety bike pump (40 psi) it works! With the real culprit identified, a new accumulator is being sent from the factory. For the time being we're making water!
Back at The Bight, we raise our cocktail glasses and cheer New Car and watermaker progress.