Toilet Mechanic, Oh excuse me. Head Maintenance Tech

This was supposed to have been posted quite a while ago but it didn't post as it was supposed to. So here it is now. It illustrates what its like to be a first mate trying to justify being on board.

 

 

 

 

Life aboard Gitana has come a long ways from the mess we moved on to. Now things are pretty orderly and slowly but surely the wiring system is being simplified. One thing hasn't changed - the need for me to find useful activity (to justify my existence). I have now branched out from small engine mechanic to apprentice electrician and toilet mechanic or Head Maintenance Technician if you prefer. Me, I'm just a toilet mechanic.

 



 

Servicing the generator, which we both agree we will probably never use, was a natural extension from being the small engine mechanic. I am now responsible for the outboard engine and the generator. Oh boy!

The 110V outlets were irritating me to the point of losing my sanity. There was one hanging right in front of the cupboard door. AND there had been two others within one foot. I finally decided that this was not a priority for Greg so if any thing was going to happen I would have to be the one to do it. I ripped out the outlet (which was easy because so little was holding it to the wall) and pulled the #10 wiring, all 30 feet of it out of the boat. I took a more conveniently located outlet and rewired it to our current 110 wiring. Now I feel much better.

Now about the head. I waited until the very last minute to check out the head. We couldn't use it so what was the use. When Greg reminded me that toilets, both household and marine, are "the wife's job" I took a deep breath and opened the door that it hides behind. When I touched it, it wiggled (we all know that's a bad thing). I thought the bolts would be loose but I didn't expect crevice corrosion to have completely separated the bolt heads from the boat shafts. Nothing was holding it down.

Okay, I need new bolts. Then I started to look inside because of prior experience on our other boat. Sure enough, there was a lot of hard stuff accumulated inside the elbows and the hoses.

 

 There are two valves in most marine heads for those of you have never been brave enough to look inside your head. One, the joker valve (I have no idea how it got that name), looks life a heart valve. The other is the flapper valve and it looks just like its name. I wish I had taken "before" pics of the valves. The flapper looked like a clam shell that had been in the sea for hundreds of years. This toilet would never have worked. Greg suggested phosphoric acid and it did the trick. That's the pink stuff in the bottle. It's everywhere in Mexico. All the nasty chemicals are still available in Mexico. This flapper valve is not completely rehabilitated but it will do the job.

Dirty. The calcium buildup once I broke through just fell away. This stuff is the result of seawater interacting with urine. If no one has told you, you need to fill the head with vinegar once a month, pump just a little to get it into the valves and let it sit for hours to dissolve this stuff.

CLEAN!

 

 

 

I just took the hoses and smacked them soundly against the walls a few times to get this stuff out. The previous owned probably didn't know about vinegar.

 

When I thought that I was all done, Greg mentioned the thru hull valve. It was rock solid. Nothing would budge it. It wasn't a marine ball valve and it didn't have the grease fitting. Luckily the local marine store had five of them at only $101 each inc tax. Oh boy, I get to spend more money. Once that was installed, with a great amount of effort, as most thru hulls are, we were in business.

 

Now I also have a marine head that works like new. Unfortunately, the intake line that brings in seawater is still clogged and I can't clear it while we're wet. Something for next haulout.

Aw, my little bathroom and its happy little Raritan head. This is all there is to Gitana's head facilities.

Ladies I encourage you to follow my lead on this one. You never know when yours is going to clog up and the Sig Other will not want to be bothered fixing it.

Shakedown Sail

 

 

After 80 days of hard work and frustration we finally took Gitana out for her first sail.

 

It was not a very pleasant experience. After all of my hard, and very dirty work, the non-tailing winch didn't do much good when I hosted the mailsail (yes, I did it all by myself) because the cleats, every last one of them on the boat, were installed backwards and we hadn't noticed. The tiller is very far forward and almost  reaches the companionway, making it very difficult to steer and raise the main at the same time. Physics: two objects (knees and tiller) cannot occupy the same space at the same time. Additionally, the tiller extension wouldn't lock in the tiller and kept falling out. The foam sleeve on the extension was degraded to the point of crumbling and was unpleasant to hold.

 

We had waited for the high winds that we had been experiencing, gusts up to 45, to drop off before taking Gitana out. We should have waited one more day. I had a hellaofatime trying to keep her upright. I told Greg that in higher winds I wouldn't even be able to move the tiller. Cinnamon was terrified! A one point the headsail sheet was wrapped around his hind leg and Greg was pulling, not having noticed the potential for amputation.

 

After less that an hour we came back to the marina and attempted to back in. Fortunately for us, because it was hopeless, there were four guys who willing jumped in to assist us. After much pulling they managed to get her in line and pulled in. I was in an "unhappy" mood after my first sail and said an unkind thing about my little boat - which I will not repeat. Those four guys beat a hasty retreat and one said over his shoulder "but it's a pretty boat".

 

 

Leaving Marina San Carlos at 10:30 am

 

When we got back and I had settled down a bit Greg asked me to list the things that had made me "unhappy". He was worried that I might do something rash. After I listed them, he promptly remedied all but one.

 

The next morning, today, the sun shone and the winds were calmer. After checking out the San Carlos flea market and a yard sale, we readied Gitana for her second sail. It's a nice 80 degree day with not a cloud in the sky. A beautiful day for a sail. I had high hopes. I really didn't want a repeat of the previous day. 



 

 

Looking back on Bahia San Carlos, the mooring ground, with the condos in the back.

 



 

Greg stated (not suggested) that I take the boat out of the slip, while he moved our dinghy, and come back along the dock to pick him up. I had serious reservations about this maneuver, but I did it. I managed quite easily to get back to the dock but we had some difficulty getting away because of my brain's difficulty in shifting from wheel to tiller and a new shifter setup. We finally managed and Greg watched me closely for another "unhappy" mood. Everything seemed much better this time. It was actually pleasant. The physics issue was still a problem but Greg got the main up and I didn't cripple him. The the furling headsail was let out. Still everything was going well. We were aways off shore in a really nice breeze.  Now that the tiller extension worked I felt much more comfortable at the helm. In 80 degrees we actually started to feel cold and had to get more clothes.

 

 

This time Cinnamon was much more relaxed. He's not dead and he's not looking down the winch handle box; he took up his favorite position next to the bulkhead and feel asleep.

Greg got the chart plotter working and noted that we were doing over 5 knots. We were on a southern course that would have taken us right to Bahia Conception - very tempting. We decided to head back to the Bahia though. There is a great little cove called Martini Cove just as you head back in. It's just big enough for two small boats. 

  

 

 

Heading back into Bahia San Carlos

 

 

 

The first glimpse of Martini Cove from the outside.

 

 Martini Cove

 

 

 San Carlos is a wonderful place to stay. There is a considerable Gringo presence during the winter. There don't seem to be very many "poor" Mexicans with homes along the Bahia.

 

 

 

 

 

  Some people aren't afraid of color.



This purple house with red railings has a turquoise roof.

 

Greg tried to master motoring backwards and discovered that no matter where the tiller is Gitana just goes in circles. That explained why we were having so much trouble backing into our slip.

 

When we got back to the marina Greg tried to back in despite our new discovery and lo and behold, he did it. Our neighbor came out and very timidly asked if we needed help (he was afraid of catching shrapnel as had happen yesterday). We were happy to have the help and told him of our pleasant sail. He was relieved. He said that he had thought that he might see a "FOR SALE" sign on Gitana when he came out this morning. No, I'm gona keep her, I told him.