The offending through-hull and fittings.
Even on the best of days, it’s unusual to see David emerge from our cabin before nine o’clock (and by nine o’clock, I really mean ten). The last few days have been no exception, even with all of the work that needs to be done. Despite my great words of encouragement the other night, he continues to haunt the boat until the early hours of the morning while thinking his way through the job ahead of him, getting by on only a few hours of sleep (even with the late arousal).
He attacked the aft head discharge through-hull first and removed what remained. It was pink from corrosion and, like its former half, was able to be broken by hand. Not what you want to see from a metal fitting. Not at all. An hour or so later, the aft head intake was out. The through-hull looked fine, but the valve isn’t operating which means every through-hull and valve in the boat will have to be taken out … all seventeen of them.
Next up was the forward head. David struggled to remove the hose from the discharge valve – pushing, pulling and sawing his way through before it finally gave up the fight. Just when he thought the through-hull was in good condition because it withstood the wrestling match with the hose, he gave the fitting a good whack with the rubber mallet and it sheared straight off.
The last few days haven’t been without their share of problems. Progress has been slow and frustrating, but David soldiered on while I sat in the corner and stayed out of his way. In three days, he has been able to remove fourteen through-hulls and says he’s feeling his age – there was a time when we could work on the boat for eight hours and start in again the following morning like it was nothing – but a young guy who works in the yard was only able to get eight off another boat in two and a half days, so I think he’s doing pretty well … even for an old git.
Here are the results to date:
Day One:
- Four through-hulls removed (three were corroded).
- Six valves removed (four were NOT working).
Day Two:
- Three through-hulls removed (one was corroded and the others were in good condition but starting to show slight signs of corrosion).
- Four valves removed (all were stiff but working).
Day Three:
- Seven through-hulls removed (all appear to be in good condition).
- Four valves removed (all were in working condition).
And that’s it. There are three through-hulls remaining inthe engine room but they’re in good condition and difficult to access, so he’sgoing to leave them in and just replace the valves. But that’s a job for tomorrow.
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