The Tank & the Welder

Occasionally things just do NOT go as planned.  When David (the welder) got the tank to his shop and started cleaning it his close inspection had him make a call to me.  

"I think you need to come and see your tank," he said.

"What's wrong?  What's going on?" I replied.

"I just think you need to make some decisions..." was David's tentative return.

"Oh dear me... I'll be there in about 20 minutes."  I said as I reach for the truck keys and started getting off the boat in the marina.  David's shop is deep in the heart of Guaymas and given the time of day it took me a little over 25 minutes to reach the shop from San Carlos.

The Tank after cleaning attempt

When I got there the tank was on the ground in front of the covered part to get the full effect of the sunlight.  There were pin holes in most of the welded sections and the plate surfaces had fair sized holes in them.  It seems that as David cleaned the tank he found the metal in many of the plate surfaces to be so thin that his cleaning tool started going through the metal.  His investigation showed that if he brushed over some of the areas with his screw driver it would go through without much or any effort.  Looking at the tank I knew what his question was going to be so I asked, "How much to make a new tank?"

Note the screw driver

He told me he had already upped the order for aluminum to do the rebuild and that instead of the NP$4000 it would be NP$8000 to finish the job.  Okay, that's is not the end of the world.  That was telling me that it would not be the anticipated US$312.50 but US$625.00 instead.  In the big picture that is wonderful news.  I mean, to get a tank that will probably out live me for a reasonable price is a good thing, right?  

Now we will see how this plays out because sometimes things don't go as they are planned.    

El Tanque - The Removal

When we got the boat to the slip, after a tow due to low batteries, we got serious about the removal of the errant water tank.  Mike (Stenbak) had helped to uncover the tank when we were in the work yard before going back to the States for a few days.  It took the better part of a day and lots and lots of unscrewing bulkheads from the covering shelf and tank veneer.  When the builders put together the typical boat they do some strange things.  I mean, not only is the tank attached to the hull via six (6) aluminum tabs with four (4) lag bolts each but it's also encased in a shelf/front arrangement that is FIRMLY attached to the two bulkheads at either end!!

First, they (the builders) assume that nothing on the boat will ever break.  That's a bad assumption but you see the evidence everywhere.  On Faith the water tank seems to be the cornerstone, so to speak, of the whole construct.  They install the tank before they put the deck on... in fact, it is clear now that they put the bulk heads and installed the tank before they built the aft cabinetry.  

Secondly, since it is an aluminum tank you would think that people would go to great lengths to be sure that dissimilar metals never come in contact with it.  When we got the tank uncovered we found that coins, in particular pennies, had slipped down behind the tank and started a corrosive process that led to some of the leaks we found.

So, third, an extension of the first problem really, the tank does not fit through any of the possible openings to exit the boat.  The companionway is 23" wide but one end of the tank was 26" plus the tabs that hold it in place (another 2").  

Tank gets to bottom of the companionway

After talking to various people and contacting my welder friend in Guaymas we came to the conclusion that we would just have to cut a chunk off of the side of the tank.  At one point while were turning and examining the tank we turned it so that the input spout tilted too far and a white milkshake like substance oozed all over the galley sole (don't tell Sandy).  Later when I was cleaning that up it was obvious I will also have to completely clean all of my tools in one of the tool boxes because it was also in the way of the yuck that poured out!!

 

David Cuts away the excess

Normally I wear a mask and earplugs when cutting metal.  Likewise, I normally have everything sketched out so I can follow a precise pattern to take off exactly what needs to come off.  Well, David the Welder just scored the metal with the end of a file I had sitting there and used a very long screw driver I had as well as a straight edge!!  The tabs were soon history too and we then tugged and pushed the tank through the companionway and onto the dock and later up into his van... as it spewed radiator substances all over the place.  It turned out the David had an accident on his way to the marina that morning.

The cut away piece!!

Anyway, the long and short of where we are today is that the tank has gone off to the shop in Guaymas to be cleaned and repaired and we hope to put it back in place on Wednesday or Thursday.

Tank on the Dock... Finally!!

In the meantime Faith lists like she is in a full gale without the weight of the tank and its 125 gallons of water.

In San Carlos and ready... Almost

Faith, with new life lines before cleaning

This year we are really, really late getting to the boat.  Actually, it turned out that Faith is cleaner and drier than in years past!

It is significant, too, that we have our friend Mike with us.  He caravan-ed down with us to get a sense of this cruising thing.  He is also helping to repair some issues that we need to correct before we do the El Salvador Rally (hopefully next season).  He strung my new life lines on at a faster pace than I was able to and yesterday we attacked the leaking main water tank!!  This was while the boat yard guys washed and waxed Faith until she shined like new so we just chugged away at the task inside the boat while they polished her up.  By about 2:00 p.m. we were ready for a break at JJ's while the cleaner/waxer chaps had about another hour, to an hour and a half to go.  We got back to the yard after lunch to find them still working away but the boat looked magnificent!

The tank problem is going to take a good while to fix.  We succeeded in getting down to the tank but now need to figure out where the leak is and then get it repaired... likely welded.  At this point I don't think we will be able to bring the tank out of the boat because it appears that they built the boat around the tank before they fastened the deck on.

In any case, there is about 5 days until we are scheduled to splash the boat and that date can be changed.  It might need to be changed anyway because the marina is very full and we have to take the tide into account to get a valid splash day.

Another Season... Finally!!!

Okay, we are headed south again and that's as much as I have time for today.  At the moment we are in Chandler, AZ waiting a couple of days before going on to Tucson (Tux) and then to Mexico.  The boat awaits with projects galore.

In Vancouver I rebuilt the life lines, and readied myself for the re-install of the aft head.  There is probably a leak in the main water tank so I am steeling myself for the assault on that issue.

How I Spent My Summer Vacation

It took a little time to get back to Vancouver from Mexico this year... I mean, what's the hurry?  We like to stop at National Parks and get our passport stamped and collect the odds and ends that the gift shops have to offer as well as see some of the park.  Some days we cover 150 miles while others we might go 350 miles.  When I was younger I thought nothing of pounding out 600 miles or more in a day but now, towing a trailer and being more or less retired, 150 - 350 miles is just fine.

We stop to see shows in Las Vegas, since it's on the way.  We do not even move along every day.  This year, too, we have Abby the boat/RV dog to think about as we go.  She likes it when we are somewhere for a couple of days and walk her a bit more.  On the road she stays in the kennel cage all day and even with frequent stops it is clear at the end of the day when she gets back into the travel trailer that she knows where home is.  Stopping at Emigrant Lake near Ashland, Oregon was fun since our friends, Ken and Linde, are camp hosts there.  

As summer went along we stayed first at the same RV park in Hazel Dell in Vancouver but then decided to spend a month at a park in Fairview on the other side of the Columbia river near Portland.  That park has more trees and grass and other than the fact that it is a longer way to a lot of the stuff we do it was great getting to know a new place... a new area.  There was one dinner we went out to there where they serve a specialty of chicken and dumplings over looking Oxbow Park along a river.  It was great and relaxing (even a little spendy) but well worth the visit.  Watching the people floating down the river on inner tubes was reminiscent of the Salt River activity in Arizona... very relaxing just watching. 

The scooter came out of storage in Florence and has been a good way to get around.  That leaves the truck for Sandy to have a freedom that I know she appreciates.  The scooter is a wonderful way to get around as long as I can find a way to avoid the freeways.  Obviously, if I have get across the Columbia I have to pop up on the freeway to get onto the bridge.  Over-all the scooter goes about 60 - 65 mph but the bridges top out at 55 mph so it's not really a problem.

For a bit we left Fairview and went to Mount Rainier national park for four days then on to Cathlamet, Washington for the Sea of Cortez Cruisers rally.  That's a yearly ritual that has the Linen Sisters ( a bit of a story for another time) playing cards ("sorting the laundry") for the fours days of the get together.

After that it was back to the Hazel Dell park.  Just before we went to Cathlamet we met up with Sandy's realtor friend Nancy and started looking around at houses and duplexes.  That led us to spending a lot of hours looking at all sorts of properties with the idea that perhaps there was something there for us.  A couple of days ago we made an offer on a house so we will see how that progresses.  The banks these days are reputedly pretty non-functional so it may keep us here in Vancouver a little longer than we would normally be.