The power company finally turned the electricity back on. Unfortunately, the electricity is provided by a new generator which I bought at Home Depot today. Not by the old generator which I tried to fix yesterday.
I replaced the head gasket on the old generator, said a prayer, and started pulling the starter rope. On the third pull the rope broke. I tried to fix it, but the recoil spring unwound on me and I was having a tough time getting it back together. I decided to just hand wind the rope. Trying to start the engine this way was a tedious process. Every time I pulled the rope, I had to unbolt the pulley from the engine and rewind the rope.
The engine still wouldn't start. I removed the spark plug and sprayed starter fluid into the cylinder. Still wouldn't start. Removed the spark plug, and saw there was no spark.
I know this was not the original problem. I ran the engine fine for twenty minutes the other day with a homemade head gasket, before that gasket blew. Anyway, I think the engine was telling me that it was finished. Kind of like a car that six months out of warranty everything starts breaking.
Fortunately, Kim and Leon had a car today. Among other places, we went to Big Lots. I'd seen an off brand generator at the store in Melbourne for $150. But the Big Lots in St. Augustine didn't have one stocked. I knew I was going to have to bite the bullet and spend some serious cash for one at Home Depot.
The smallest, cheapest one at HD was $400. But then I spotted one of the generators out of the box. It was reconditioned and priced at $200. The service tag stated that a broken fuel valve had been fixed. High Fives all around! A big thanks to Kim and Leon for helping me get it back to my boat in their dinghy, and to their friend Katie who lent us her car.
It's a really nice generator with an engine by Subaru. The manufacturer is Coleman. Coleman is taking over the boat. My fridge is Coleman brand too. I'm going to turn on all the lights tonight, watch tv and play golf on the playstation.
No more reading books by flashlight for me.
Friday, April 4, 2008
Let There Be Light
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10 comments:
What a difference power can make ehh?
That's an amazing deal on the new one. I expect that these small portable units aren't really designed for the daily use that you need so it's not suprizing that the old one was a goner - but at that price it makes great sense to just get another new one next time.
A decent wind generator and some solar panels would be a good alternative, however the upfront cost can be kind of high. On the other hand with fuel costs going up maybe it wouldn't take all that long for equivalence. What do you calculate that it costs per day in fuel to feed the generator?
Something that I really loved about operating from my wind & solar combo was that I was truly 'energy independent'. I was once anchored in the Exumas for more than three weeks and never once needed to start the diesel for charging - and this was with a 12V fridge running all the time. Also, very quiet and no trips to get fuel.
Regardless of all the above - the new generator has a nice look about it!
Ross,
I'd love to have some solar and wind power on the boat. Too bad they're so frickin expensive. I don't understand why they have to be so expensive. Windmills are a really old technology. It seems like you should have your choice of a few affordable ones at Home Depot, just like there is a choice of gasoline generators.
I saw a link to these solar panels on sailnet yesterday. While not the most efficient panels, they are affordable. I've got plenty of deck real estate on my boat, so finding the most efficient panels is not an issue. The panels are made of amorphous cells. More efficient panels are made of poly/monocrystaline cells. I'm not sure what that means. I assume it has something to do with the quality of the manufacturing process. Anyway, when I get a chance, I might pick up some of these amorphous solar panels.
For a gasoline generator, I've been reading that the Honda 1000 is a very popular model among cruisers. Bullet proof and very quiet. My new generator is a little too large and powerful for my needs. I could probably run an air conditioner and other appliances off it.
So far while cruising, I've found that the outboard is the main consumer of gasoline. The generators sip gas by comparison. I easily use less than a gallon of gas a day. Some days, far less than a gallon.
Oh, and the brand name on those solar panels... Coleman. Just like my fridge and new gas generator. I might have to buy stock. I'm certainly buying a lot of their products. hmmm...
Good morning Scott,
I bet it is really nice to have electricity again. I think a wind generator & solar panels sound like the perfect solution for a boat. "Go for it" Scott & spring for it as well as a new outboard motor. It seems you lose alot of valuable sail time fixing things rather than sailing.
When are you leaving St. A and continuing north? We look forward seeing that "Float Plan" :).
It looks like a good time at happy hour at the Oyster Bay Marina with with Kim and Leon and Bob and Ovida. I enjoyed viewing Bob & Ovida's blog and was amazed that they have cats aboard. How fun! Does Kim and Leon have a blog? I told Fred it does look like fun if everything works right.
We sure hope that you are able to work Calvert County into your "Float Plan" once you get up to Maryland. It would be really great to see you and the "Split Decision." way. It would be fun too if Amy somehow could join you. I would love to meet her.
Anyway, I really enjoy your blog, the boatcam, and the gps. I like to check whats new each morning with a cup of coffee. Sometimes, the views from the boatcam are just awesome.
And, again, Scott - "go for it" and invest in a few luxuries like the wind generator, panels and new outboard motor. You only get to go through life once and you are already making the most of it. Something many of us can only dream about!
Rose
Wow Rose, you must think I'm loaded with cash. All that stuff would cost thousands of dollars. I only linked to the Coleman solar panels because they are one of the most affordable systems I've seen. And jettisoning an outboard because of corroded spark plug wires would be pretty foolish. Even if I did buy a new one, I'd still be spending a lot of time maintaining it.
Bob and Ovida have four cats aboard. I don't know who is crazier, Grampa with his nine dogs on two acres or B&O with four cats on a sailboat.
Glad you are enjoying the blog. I will try to include a trip up the Patuxent into the float plan. I'm keeping an eye on the weather to see if a trip up the coast to Mayport or Fernandina is possible tomorrow.
Oh, and I forgot another sailing platitude, "Cruising is just working on your boat in more and more exotic places." Even on a new boat things break all the time. A marine environment is just tough on equipment. Besides, I like fixing things.
Scott -
It may be worthwhile for you to do an electrical assessment where you calculate your daily usage to determine your need. Then you'd have a better idea whether it's worth it to consider solar at all.
You may find solar more feasible than you imagine if you're not running refrigation because just lights and computer don't really consume all that much power. Possibly a single good solar panel set-up could do it for you or cut down your generator running to a fraction of present use.
There are a few things to be on the lookout for such as reducing the quoted power output ratings (for even the good panels) by about 1/2 because they only put out their max under ideal circumstances (i.e. - clear sky with the light fairly perpendicular to the panel and no shadows). Also I've read that some of the budget panels don't really produce their rated power, rather it's blatant 'false advetising'. I found this info here: http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/westadvisor/10001/-1/10001/SolarPower.htm
Anyway, food for thought.
Thanks Ross, I don't really have time to add another system to the boat right now anyway. It's just something I'm thinking about for the future.
If Louie is around, here's some info about my outboard. The wiring digram shows a magneto with a rectifier between it and the battery. I think the magneto has a lighting coil, an exciter coil and a trigger coil. The service manual makes no mention of the engine charging the batteries. And I had heard that some magneto engines do not charge them. Do you think I have a broken rectifier, or is my engine not capable of charging?
Hello Scott,
I am glad your motor issue was something simple and your generator issues are resolved. According to the manual that was downloaded from the mfg. web site, your motor has a rectifier and should be charging your batteries. Does your motor have an electric starter? Most outboards built in the past 20 years, that have an electric starter, will charge your batteries. My last monohull had only a 9.9 hp motor. Both the original Yamaha and the evinrude electric start models charged my batteries. Just remember the engine needs to be way above idle to charge the batteries (flywheel speed dependent). If you physically have a rectifier box, your battery should be getting a charge from it.
Take Care, Louie
Thanks Louie, my motor does have an electric starter and there is a rectifier. I'll look into it. Maybe I'll call Tohatsu or one of their dealers. I'm sure they would want to sell me a new rectifier, if mine is broken. I'd love to have some backup to my generator for electricity.
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