Breeze On

We used to enjoy playing the game Whack-a-Mole with our kids at Ryan’s Arcade in Newport, RI. We don’t enjoy playing it with Breeze On’s engine problems. The good news is that we made the entire trip from Beaufort to Brunswick without the overheating engine alarm sounding once. The bad news is that we now have a new engine problem. Yesterday afternoon we noticed the odor of diesel fuel in our cockpit. It was definitely the smell of fuel and not exhaust. George looked around the areas of the engine that are most likely to have a fuel leak and found three out of four of the injectors were leaking fuel. The reason the odor was so strong in the cockpit—instead of the cabin—is because the blower moves air from the engine compartment to the cockpit.  After arriving at Brunswick Landing this afternoon we spoke to the manager of the boatyard at the far end of the marina. He gave us a few ideas but said he is scheduling work two months out. We then looked into what parts we might need so they c

We left our slip this morning at 6:37 am, hoping that the engine was truly fixed. Less than ten minutes from Homer Smith Docks and Marina, though, the engine overheating alarm sounded. We were motoring at 1000 rpm. George checked the engine temperature using the infrared thermometer and found that it was lower than 181°, the temperature at which the thermostat opens and allows coolant to flow. We increased the rpms, the temperature went up, but the alarm still sounded. We were confident that the new thermostat was functioning and should have opened so we turned around. Breeze On was back in her slip within a half hour.  With a new water pump, new thermostat, new sensor, and new hose reducer, we both wondered if the problem could be due to a poor electrical connection. The sensor connects to an engine computer—called an MDI, Marine Diesel Interface. The primary function of the MDI is to collect information from sensors and send it out to the engine display. We have been carrying a spare

Caleb came yesterday afternoon and installed the new sensor. While he was at it, he installed our spare thermostat. After Caleb finished we ran the engine again and found that it was running at lower temperatures than it did before he completed the work.  We believe everything is now fixed but won’t feel sure until we leave the marina. Speaking of leaving the marina—we negotiated one extra night and had planned to leave tomorrow and motor a few hours to the anchorage at Cape Lookout. That way we would be able to test the engine without going too far from Beaufort. We planned to stay at Cape Lookout until Saturday then sail to Brunswick, GA. However, there is a very strong area of low pressure coming our way on Friday and the forecast is worse with every update. The last forecast predicted sustained winds in the mid-forties with gusts near 60. So we extended our stay until Sunday and may leave sometime on Saturday if the winds calm down. It is disappointing but seems like the sensible t

The good news is the inverter is working. It does not communicate well with the new monitor and controller—Victron Cerbo GX—we had installed this summer. The lack of communication caused the inverter to shut down. It has been rebooted and is now working. We may have to disconnect the inverter from the Cerbo to keep it from shutting down again but that is a minor issue.  The bad news is the engine is not fixed. The new part arrived just before noon yesterday. Coincidentally, the mechanic who was scheduled to come to Breeze On Friday was available yesterday. George installed the new hose reducer and the mechanic, Caleb, arrived a short time later. Caleb checked everything, said it looked fine, and we fired up the engine. We ran it for about 45 minutes while Caleb continued to check the engine. Everything looked good so Caleb left. Wouldn’t you know it, high coolant temperature alarm sounded before Caleb even got off of the dock. George called him, he came back and said he suspected a fau

Just when we thought we were making progress with the engine, another problem arose. Our inverter, which allows us to use AC power on the boat, has stopped working. George is planning to communicate with the electrician we use in MD and try to sort the problem. As I write this George is attempting to gain access to the inverter that is hidden behind a locker—no easy task.  The engine test we conducted yesterday was a success. We are on track to attach the new hose fitting once it arrives tomorrow.  If it all works well after that we will leave the marina on Wednesday. Today we attempted to replace the hose that collapsed with a hose that has stiffer walls and will be less prone to collapsing. Because it is so stiff we were unable to attach the hose to the water pump. We even tried soaking it in hot water. A man on a YouTube video suggested using a tailpipe expander to stretch the hose so we have one on order. Luckily Amazon deliveries to Beaufort are quick.  I also wanted to mention th

We have spent the last two and a half days attempting to find the cause of the overheating engine and believe we may have found an answer. On Wednesday afternoon George noticed that the seawater pump intake hose starts to collapse—flatten—when the engine runs over 1500 rpm.  Video of seawater hose collapsing at higher rpms. It is especially noticeable when the engine is turned down to neutral.  Although we aren’t engine mechanics, we both thought that wasn’t a good sign. We have since confirmed that the hose is not supposed to do that and have focused our efforts on finding where there might be a restriction in the flow of water that causes the hose to collapse.  The seacock—opens and closes to allow seawater in—was an obvious suspect. Things can grow in the seacock or debris can get sucked in.  George borrowed a high pressure hose nozzle from Dan and used a hose to spray water from the inside boat out through the seacock. That made no difference in the collapsing hose. He then disconn