Putting the motor back into running condition

Day 9:  Tuesday, March 1

We opted to spend the night in the boat.  Since we could not park our truck at the time share, we needed to have someone drive us whenever we needed to go somewhere.  Also since the car had two child’s car seats in it, if we all wanted to travel, we needed to first get the truck the return to pick up the rest of the crew.  Since we now have the boat at the marina, we can park the truck there and I wanted to get an early start to the repair shop so it made since for us to stay in the boat.

All of that said, it also gave me my first opportunity to have my sausage gravy on toast breakfast so I was sure that it was to be a great day.

We easily found the repair facility and they immediately carried the motor into the shop and a talented mechanic began ferreting out the electrical problem.  He first took the cowling off the engine so that he could determine if damage had occurred when the engine overheated.  In order for him to apply power to the engine, he had to remove the plug that we use to power it while on the boat.  In doing that, he found that one of the two wires was corroded.  He then applied power to the engine and found that all electrical systems were functioning normally.  A RELIEF on my part.  It meant that the problem was either the corroded plug or a wiring problem between the boat battery and the motor connection.  He continued his thorough check up on the engine and concluded that the engine was in good shape and ready to go.  I purchased an additional water pump kit so that after I replaced the faulty one, I would still have a spare.  He also suggested that the pump cover could also be melted and if that were so, it would need to be replaced.  However, he did not have one in stock so all I could do was to hope for the best. 

   

On our way back to the marina, we stopped at a 5 Guys hamburger joint for one of their fine cheeseburgers and their overabundance of fries.

Back at the marina, I parked the truck and pulled the lower unit off of the motor.  The water pump impeller was indeed completely roached and the cover which was lined in stainless steel appeared to be serviceable.  There was a significant amount of rubber from the old impeller tightly stuck to the cover wall but I was able to scrape it completely clean.  I installed the new impeller and reassembled the lower unit and felt that the motor was again back to normal.

We relaxed for the remainder of the afternoon.  It was decided that there would be no more work on the boat unto tomorrow.  Claire’s parents stopped by and picked us up for the trip back to the time share where we swam with the grand-kids, romped (as much as old people can romp) on the white sand beach and enjoyed the sunset.  Scott grilled some brats and Claire prepared a delightful pasta dish.  It was a most enjoyable family meal.

We spent the night in the time share.