Emergency Repairs

     Over the last few months I have discussed the woes of boating, in particular from the maintenance point of view.  We had our major mechanical malfunction while in the Bahamas with the ruptured oil cooler for the transmission resulting in catastrophic transmission failure.  This past Friday I installed a new fresh water pump for the domestic side of the boat.  You know, so that we can take a shower, wash dishes or flush a toilet.  The old pump needs a complete overhaul including the pressure switch and, once it has been overhauled by yours truly, will be placed in the boat's inventory as a spare.  We carry many spares and with Big Run spending most of the time on the hook and traveling to remote areas (read Bahamas), we need to carry a large inventory of spares.  Back to the new water pump.  Less than 24 hours after being put into service, as Sharon was taking a shower, the pump failed.  After diagnosing the new pump I discovered that the pressure switch, for one reason or another, had failed.  Fortunately,  the pressure switch from the old pump was still good.  Now, we need to remove the new pump, reinstall the faulty pressure switch and return the entire unit to the vendor that supplied it to our marina where we had purchased the pump.  

     After our transmission "adventure" I started thinking about preventive maintenance and how much is enough.  I had once asked Rick (M/V Broulee) "How much preventive maintenance is enough?"  Rick just shrugged his shoulders and shook his head.  I replaced the water pump as a preventive maintenance measure and what do I get?  More aggravation.  For anyone thinking about a boating lifestyle, you may want to reconsider boating if you lack a mechanical and electrical background.  You must also understand that you are on call 24/7 for emergency repairs.