| Easter On Rockhopper - continued |
Now, in Frank's defense, this HAD been the problem with the dinghy outboard recently (water in the fuel), so
there was a precedence to his actions. However, just as he was pulling off the carb, Frank noticed that the
fuel flow cutoff from the fuel tank had markings on it. The ON and OFF positions were clearly marked - and
the opposite of what Frank had thought they were. So, when Frank tried to start the engine, it would start out
with the fuel line open. Then Frank would close the valve and start the generator - which would run until the
gas in the carburetor was exhausted - at which time, it would shut down. This exactly mimicked the
symptoms of the dinghy motor, which did NOT have a fuel tank shut-off valve.
Frank reassembled the carburetor, put the valve in the CORRECT position, and started the engine. It fired
right up and ran like a top. Frank rigged the shore power cord to the generator, flipped the breaker and
VOILA - power in the system to charge batteries, power the microwave or the air conditioner and just
generally make the trip less scary.
With that problem solved, Frank turned his attention to the main. What, you may ask, was Suzanne doing
during all of this? Was she panicking, running around throwing stuff overboard, collecting their most
precious items and dumping them in the dinghy? NO! Absolutely convinced that Frank would figure out
what was wrong with the engine and that, when he needed assistance, he would let her know, she pulled out
her knitting and curled up in the cockpit, content.
When Frank and Suzanne had purchased Rockhopper, one of the things that had showed up on the survey
was that the raw water pump had a leak and sprayed water on the front of the engine. The seller had agreed
to have this fixed before purchase and the dealer had tried, unsuccessfully, to rebuild the pump. Eventually,
in order to expedite the sale, the dealer had simply replaced the pump, leaving the old one on board as a
"spare." If the pump impeller had been damaged, Frank knew that he had a fall back and so that became
the first thing to check.
Actually, it was the second thing - the first thing checked was the engine coolant state - which was "missing."
there was a precedence to his actions. However, just as he was pulling off the carb, Frank noticed that the
fuel flow cutoff from the fuel tank had markings on it. The ON and OFF positions were clearly marked - and
the opposite of what Frank had thought they were. So, when Frank tried to start the engine, it would start out
with the fuel line open. Then Frank would close the valve and start the generator - which would run until the
gas in the carburetor was exhausted - at which time, it would shut down. This exactly mimicked the
symptoms of the dinghy motor, which did NOT have a fuel tank shut-off valve.
Frank reassembled the carburetor, put the valve in the CORRECT position, and started the engine. It fired
right up and ran like a top. Frank rigged the shore power cord to the generator, flipped the breaker and
VOILA - power in the system to charge batteries, power the microwave or the air conditioner and just
generally make the trip less scary.
With that problem solved, Frank turned his attention to the main. What, you may ask, was Suzanne doing
during all of this? Was she panicking, running around throwing stuff overboard, collecting their most
precious items and dumping them in the dinghy? NO! Absolutely convinced that Frank would figure out
what was wrong with the engine and that, when he needed assistance, he would let her know, she pulled out
her knitting and curled up in the cockpit, content.
When Frank and Suzanne had purchased Rockhopper, one of the things that had showed up on the survey
was that the raw water pump had a leak and sprayed water on the front of the engine. The seller had agreed
to have this fixed before purchase and the dealer had tried, unsuccessfully, to rebuild the pump. Eventually,
in order to expedite the sale, the dealer had simply replaced the pump, leaving the old one on board as a
"spare." If the pump impeller had been damaged, Frank knew that he had a fall back and so that became
the first thing to check.
Actually, it was the second thing - the first thing checked was the engine coolant state - which was "missing."
Penguin Dreams
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