Heading south for the winter

[PT26]

Thanks Mo, I may have to give tha a try on the next lay over!

I will try to catch a photo in the morning when I go by yor boat.

For those that want to follow or want to know where we are I just downloaded the ais app for my iPad. Mmsi # 338142627 Just go to this web site and put the number in where it says go to vessel. http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais

[Mo]

Paul,
That might do the trick for you. Might as well give the carb a good cleaning once you take it off. Once that mixture screw fouls or corrodes adjustments are just out of wack. Small combinations of carb problems can cause problems. I find that once I pull a carb I clean the whole thing and have it done with.

You can look for a sheen on the water when you start up and idle....once the choke goes back in, that sheen should go away.

[PT26]

One always looks for the most difficult solution in a situation. Pulling into Hampton roads at the dock this afternoon I decided to pull everything apart and check it all again because we had a little trouble on the way in. So I start by checking filters. The water separator is full of water. Emptied and I'm sure it'll run much better now. I'm sure that at the lower rpms , the water was changing the air to fuel mixture ratio... Start and runs fine at a low rpm. Sometimes its the obvious things. Now I'll probably need to readjust the carb.

[ndutton]

Have you determined the source of the water?

[PT26]

I think it is coming from the gas tank... Not a good thing if it continues, I would have to drain the tank. I am hoping it is condensation from the hot summer to it turning cold and there is not a lot in there... I will check the water separater again tomorrow.
Also I did check for leaks and cracks in the tank and the overflow tube and they are ok.

[lat 64]

Thanks Mo, I may have to give tha a try on the next lay over!

I will try to catch a photo in the morning when I go by yor boat.

For those that want to follow or want to know where we are I just downloaded the ais app for my iPad. Mmsi # 338142627 Just go to this web site and put the number in where it says go to vessel. http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais

OK, Now that's cool! Can't find you yet. Does the AIS have to be on for me to get it on my screen?


I'll be sailing with you vicariously from the frozen North.

Cheers, and say " hi" to Shawn and Laura.

Russ

[ndutton]

I think it is coming from the gas tank... Not a good thing if it continues,

I'm sure its from the tank but how did it get in there is the concern. I 'spose condensation is possible or may be a contributor but I'd scrutinize the gas fill plate O-ring just to be sure. We've heard several similar reports wondering, wondering only to ultimately find a damaged O-ring or other water incursion via the fill.

A full water separator is a lot of water. Noticeably absent from your description is the usual ethanol accusation. I'm duly impressed.

[PT26]

Yes it was a lot for sure!


The ais has to be on for us to be seen. We will have it on when we are at anchor, it has a cool anchor alarm.

Tonight we are on the dock in Hampton Roads so I turned it off for the night. Time to charge up all devices etc...

Also you can try http://vesselfinder.com if the other website doesn't work for tracking us. I noticed that sometimes one works better than the other at times

[Mo]

I heard of water entering the tank through the vent when the boat is heeled. Even a piece of electrical tape around that vent nipple when sailing might save you allot of trouble. Of course ethanol is a consideration for the cause but perhaps a more likely one could be pumped right from a gas stn.

[PT26]

Good idea on the vent tube Mo. We were in some super sloppy stuff the first day of sailing. We have plenty of tape on board

[hanleyclifford]

heh heh

Paul, I see you guys japped that dock again...cool. Regarding your fuel consumption; if you don't already have a strobe timing light on board stop at that Advance Auto store in Deep Creek and pick up a cheap one. Timing needs to be optimal for best gas usage. Also, please take note if there is a bridge board at the Gilmerton Bridge. I hear the new bridge is to be 35' in the lowered position. It would be nice not to have to wait for that thing next time. Fair winds to you and Trina; I'm with you in the spirit! Regards, Hanley

[Administrator]

Ais

Using the Internet to track vessels via AIS works great, sometimes.

Two things must be in place for a vessel to be seen on marinetraffic.com or something similar:

1. The vessel must be transmitting the AIS signal.
2. A station must be receiving that signal and feeding it to the website.

Our amateur radio club has a receiver up on a water tower in Rock Hall MD and a second one a bit further north, in Betterton. These cover the northern portion of the Chesapeake Bay and can reach out a hundred miles or more when conditions are just right. Normally, though, it's about half that. The topography blocks their view of traffic in the C&D canal. You can see the output here.

There are large dead spots further south on the Bay, where traffic is presumably present from time to time, but no receivers are present to "listen" and report. The marinetraffic.com site clearly shows these dead spots up and down the East Coast.

Bill

[PT26]

Hanley -who us? Jap the dock? Twice. Noooooo LOL
Hugs,
--Trina

[PT26]

Hanley, we'll do just that. We should have had one on board anyway. first on the list. I remember how you taught me to do it too. Plus we'll have plenty of time, we're laying over and waiting out some rain and enjoying the swamp till wednesday.

[PT26]

Bill,
You're absolutely correct about dead spots. We noticed a few discrepancies between the location on the chart vs. the actual location of the tug/barge headed straight for us. So ais is more of an aide to your navigation, not something to rely on solely.

The dead spot was midway between deltaville and Norfolk.