Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Renewal = removal?

Looking back, sometimes it seems that our time on Eolian has been dominated by deinstalling things and hauling them off the boat, some large, some small, and some almost trivial.  Here's what I remember so far, over the 15 years that we have now been responsible for her care:
  • I think the first think to go back in 1997 was a rusty  suspended metal three-basket set.  It was ugly beyond belief.
  • Remove a whole host of corroded brass doodads that celebrated dolphins. 
  • Remove another host of straw fabrications, presumably procured in Mexico and attached to various places with generous quantities of silicone
  • Removed an ancient battery charger, and eventually the batteries that it ruined.
  • Removed (and refurbished) the insulation of the refrigerator
  • Removed and plugged the refrigerator opening that had been cut into the countertop, apparently by a drunken logger with a chainsaw that needed sharpening
  • Removed (and replaced) the refrigerator door
  • Removed (and replaced) the original stove/oven.  This was at least 20% by weight congealed grease
  • Removed a 110V crash pump - a large 110V centrifugal pump.  In a situation that needed it, it was likely that the time spent getting it to prime would have allowed the water to rise up and drown the generator.  
  • Removed (and replaced) 3 bronze head thru-hulls and associated leaking bronze tapered plug valves
  • Removed (and replaced) the original bilge pump, installed when there was nothing else in the hull, apparently.  Spelunking skills were required.
  • Removed a corroded and non-functional antenna tuner
  • Removed an unbelievable quantity of "mystery wire" - wires that went nowhere and caused no end of difficulty in troubleshooting electrical problems.  At today's copper prices, I wish that I had saved it for recycling - I'd be rich.
  • Removed (and replaced) the old bowsprit
  • Removed (and replaced) the old inner forestay pad eye
  • Removed  (and replaced) the old Benmar autopilot
  • Removed the leaking fuel daytank
  • Removed (and replaced) the refrigerator cooling water circulating pump
  • Removed (and replaced) the holding tank
  • Removed (and replaced) the bilge pump controls
  • Removed (and replaced) the forward electrical distribution panel
  • Removed two non-functional diesel filters
  • Removed (and replaced) the stern lite
  • Removed (and replaced) the masthead lite
  • Removed (and replaced) the old microwave
  • Removed (and replaced) the water heater
  • Removed (and replaced) the corroded section at the foot of the mainmast
  • Removed (and replaced) all the running rigging
  • Removed (and replaced) the old cockpit canvas/bimini/dodger/side curtains
  • Removed (and replaced) the old Groco heads
  • Removed (and replaced) all the head plumbing
  • Removed (and replaced) the exhaust elbow
  • Removed (and replaced) the exhaust manifold
  • Removed (and replaced) the alternator
  • Removed (and replaced) all the original instrumentation (except windspeed/direction)
  • Removed (and replaced) the original inverter
  • Removed (and replaced) all the interior cushions and upholstery
  • Removed (and rebuilt) all the cockpit cushions
  • Removed (and replaced) the large fixed cabin windows
  • Removed (and replaced) four of the eight opening ports
  • Removed the original 110V space heaters
  • Removed (and replaced) the original TV
  • Removed (and replaced) the original VHF
  • Removed the LORAN set (replaced with GPS)
  • Removed the remains of the original airconditioning equipment
  • Removed a non-functional oil change pump
  • Removed (and replaced) the mizzenboom gooseneck fitting
  • Removed all the original wood-grain formica
  • Removed (and replaced) all the engine rubber hosing
  • Removed (and replaced) the original fuel level senders
  • Removed (and replaced) the original fresh water pressure pump
  • Removed (and replaced) the original anchor wash-down pump
Woo boy.  I'm pretty sure that there's more, but the list is depressing enough as it is.  And there are investments that don't show up properly in the list, like a new bow lite, or a new inverter/charger.  Many of the removals above constituted their own projects which are documented elsewhere on this blog (you can search either by keyword or by label, over there on the right).

It seems that our waterline should have moved down...



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