Next: Propane System…and More

Now that the holding tank situation is fully resolved (and a big, big thank you to Osprey Boatworks for the great help with this project, along with several other projects) we turn our sights to…propane.

The marine survey says the stove and the on-demand hot water — both powered by propane — worked back in March 2022. I’m not sure how that conclusion was reached since both of the small propane tanks are empty. Perhaps they weren’t empty then. Be that as it may, I need to test the galley stove and the hot water heater. To do that, I need propane.

And so I took one small propane tank (“it’s so cute,” said the attendant) to a farm store that fills such tanks. As the attendant gazed in wonder at the little tank, he pontificated that he didn’t know if he could legally refill the tank. Tanks must be recertified beyond a certain point and there are regulations that explain in great detail what that means.

In the United States, a tank must be certified within 12 years of the date of manufacture. (Canadian regulations are different!) The manufacturing date on our cute tanks? December 2003. We are well beyond the date when the tanks should have been recertified.

I asked our marina Facebook group for some help and all of the recommendations pointed me to Acme Fuel in Olympia. (Surely I’m not the only person who reads “Acme Fuel” and recalls the coyote and road runner! I giggled to myself when I took the tanks in, but I get ahead of myself.) We dropped off the tanks today for testing and recertification. The nice fellow at Acme said it would be about a week.

My fallback if the tanks fail inspection and can’t be rebuilt inexpensively? Buy new tanks.

Other summer and fall projects

Fresh water tanks: valve replacements

The two fresh water tanks reside under the port and starboard settees. There are two gate valves in the bilge pump area that control the flow from the two tanks to other parts of the boat. Unfortunately, those two valves are stuck open. I’m going to have to replace them.

While I’m at it, I need to replace the three-way valve under the galley sink, too. It is stuck. I’ve tugged on it as hard as I dare. I might tap at it gently with a small mallet to see if I can unstick it, but I am not hopeful.

Diesel tank: fix stripped screw hole

When I replaced the fuel sending unit, I found that one of the five screw holes was stripped. The fuel sending unit is held in place by four screws. There is a gasket there so it probably goes without saying that without the holding power of that fifth screw, one should assume the tank will leak at that point. It may not be much of a leak, but it doesn’t take much diesel to smell up the place.

I picked up an inexpensive tap and die set so that I can tap the stripped hole for the next size screw. My plan (that sounds like much forethought when into it but it is really just what came to mind first!) is for my spouse to hold a large kitchen spoon under the stripped hole while I squeeze in beside her to carefully tap the hole. With luck and a steady hand, the spoon will catch any small metal bits before they fall into the fuel tank.

UPDATE July 31, 2022: Today, I fixed that stripped screw hole! I used a 1/4″ stainless steel machine screw with NC 20 thread as it was slightly larger than the stripped hole. A drop of oil, a few moments of working the tap in and out of the hole, and the 1/4″ screw threaded in perfectly. The photo below shows the tap, the old self-tapping sheet metal screw that had been in the hole, and the shiny new screw in place (the head is larger than the other screws). Job done.

Main hatch: replace

I’ve got the new hatch in storage but I have not taken it to the boat to see how closely it will fit the existing opening. I was careful about measuring for the replacement so I am hoping I got it right. I’m allowing one full day for this job. We plan to do it ourselves and would have started it this week but it’s just too hot right now.

Steering pedestal: lube and compass

The axle for the steering wheel sounds gritty when I turn the wheel. It must need grease. I’ll get to that when I replace the compass. Why might I be replacing the $1,000 Ritchie compass? Because it leaked, and when I removed it from the pedestal, the sealing gasket gave way and all of the oil inside the compass became oil outside the compass. In that moment, I’m sure many cuss words were heard by our neighbors. Fortunately, I had some oil-absorbing clothes close by and I was able to stuff them into the cockpit drains to prevent any oil from going into the bay.

Ritchie offers a rebuilding service so this week, I shipped them the compass bits. I expect that in a few months, I’ll get the rebuilt compass back. The cost should be less than one-half of what a new compass would cost.

Running rigging: replacement

The rigger I had planned to use just completed a boat race to Hawaii. My alternative rigger has replaced the topping lift and now I’m waiting on him to replace some blocks and lines. If he has the energy, I’d also like to replace the main halyard.

Miscellaneous

There are so many small projects to work on. Stains on the upholstery. More cleaning of mildewed areas, some of which are hard to reach. Inspecting the anchor rode. Begin adding overcurrent protection to electrical circuits. Replace all fuel filters. Change the oil and oil filter. Check on the transmission. And much, much more!