Work being done to Lucky

On stands in the boat yard in Naples.

Warning!  This post contains graphic details and strong technicalities.  Those of a weak disposition are advised to skip this post and get a nice cup of tea instead.

For those of you still here, a brief summary of all the work being done so far.  The list keeps growing, so there's bound to be another post later.

A few pictures here:

http://picasaweb.google.com/mmorris/WorkBeingDoneInNaples

I had the oil changed and engines/drives serviced.  Including the drives and generator.  I'm glad I had the drives serviced as that showed up an issue with water in the oil of the port IPS drive.  So They've been trying to find the source of the leak.  All the seals in the lower unit are fine and it passed a 24 hour pressure test, so they're not really sure.  Final thing to do is drop the lower unit and check the two seals (one to keep the oil in and another to keep water out) between the lower unit and upper unit.  To do that the mechanic had to take off the upper unit, which he did yesterday.

Lucky was a mess.  Thanks to the shrink wrapping coming off in Louisiana, she spent a day before delivery travelling naked (as it were).  This made a mess.  So I'm having her detailed, which involves washing, polishing and waxing the whole boat above the water line.  Glad I'm not doing it!  Not only was the gel coat looking tired, the upholstery at the back was grimed from road dirt.  So I'm having the upholstery replaced.  Might as well start looking good.  More importantly, and the reason why the canvas makers were here in the first place, is I've decided to replace the slant.  The slant is a piece of canvas (plastic, really) that fits over the back of the boat, enclosing the cockpit.  The original had begun to deteriorate and was oozing something sticky.  I need to call the canvas guy on Monday and talk materials (we forgot to yesterday).

Bottom paint prevents marine growth on the boat under the water.  It's usually copper based and is designed to slowly rub away.  It needs to be replaced every few years.  It was time for mine, so I had the yard take care of it.  Two coats will definitely see us through the year.

As any high school chemistry student will tell you, if you put voltage across two metal plates in a salt solution a current will flow and metal will be taken off the anode and deposited on the cathode.  Great for electro-plating, bad for boats.  Due to stray currents in the water, anything metal below the waterline will slowly dissolve unless precautions are taken.  In this case, electrically attaching all underwater metal to a different metal less "noble" metal.  A Zinc.  So I had them check all my zincs.  All were great except one set.  It turns out one pair of zincs, attached to the drives, should have been aluminum as the drives are bronze not zinc.  This explains why I've been having all the issues with the drives and corrosion.  No more!  I'm also going to be carrying spares and will dive down to check them regularly.

I need to put all the stuff back on the hard top, but need a couple of strapping fellows to help me lift the life raft up (damn, but they're heavy!).  Once it's up, I'll be able to put everything else up.  So I'm expecting Monday to be a long day or wrenching!  I also need to check the float switch on the mid-bilge pump as it's sticking, put the chain and line onto the second anchor ready for Bahamian moors and finish construction on the bimini top.  The snuba arrives Monday, so space for that needs to be made and a battery bought.  All in all, the work has barely begun.