LEGACY: Noun. A thing handed down by a predecessor.
In October when the boat comes out of the water, I make up a list of work items I would like to get done over the winter or in early Spring when I start to get the boat ready for the water. Sometimes it is work I can take care of at home, sometimes it has to wait until April or May. We are now a week away from the start of February and just had our first real snow of the winter. In reality it’s not the snow that bothered me, it has been the unrelenting cold.
The boat is wrapped and it has a zipper door in it so I can get in but I don’t feel like working in these freezing temperatures. Last year I was able to remove engine parts I wanted to work on at the seasons end, and take care of them before winter hit. When the weather warmed up, I was back installing them on the boat. This year every item I want to take care of is something that must be done on the boat.
Well, mostly. I want to remove the propellers to have them checked since I believe they have never been off. I could have done that in the Fall but did not have the correct tools for the job. There is a certain type of propeller puller I wanted and they were sold out and none available used. I found one before winter online, used out in Michigan. I got it for a great price and it turns out it was never used. To get the propeller nuts off I did not want to use a pipe wrench. The teeth on those really chew up the nuts so I located a twenty-four-inch adjustable wrench to remove them.
Next up I want to replace the oil pressure sensor the starboard engine. I did the port engine sensor last year when I removed the after coolers. Now the starboard one is acting up. When I get the engine ready to start the starboard side oil pressure is already reading 32 PSI before starting. So, it is time for a new sensor. Unfortunately, it is hidden behind an aluminum mounting plate that has to come off for this job along with some hoses. Again, I want to do this when it is warmer. Crunched up between the engines in freezing cold is not something I look forward to!
Last year when winterizing I noticed something odd in the exhaust pipe of the starboard engine right at the hull exit. The pipe has started to delaminate. That pipe sits underwater at rest, or has water and exhaust pumping through it while underway. Left alone in time it could easily start letting water into the hull leading to who knows what. Not something to leave alone. So, once we get some warmer temperatures I’ll have to sand and epoxy that area on both exhaust pipes.
The last item on my list is replacing an anchor rhode/chain counter. It is a digital readout that tells you how many feet of anchor line you have out. It has never worked since I owned the boat almost three years ago. Frankly, I never saw the need for one of these. When I anchor, I am on the bow and when the anchor line is heading down at a forty-five-degree angle or better I know I have enough line out. I will remove the counter and put a switch in the dashboard, right where there is a space for it already marked. I already traced the wires I need to use. There may be a problem getting them to where they have to be but there is always a way to make it happen.
This does not include all the regular maintenance items that need to be done. Engine shaft trim tab and hull zincs need to be replaced. I’ll be ordering those parts soon. Belts and hoses have to be inspected. Two years ago, I had a problem with losing engine coolant. Very little over time, maybe a pint or so over the season. I would add to the overflow bottle and keep an eye on it. Last Spring when I went out to start getting her ready to go, I noticed the overflow bottle almost empty. I looked over the engine and could not find a leak at all. Until I noticed a slight blue stain on the engine stringers on the outboard side of the starboard engine. The coolant in my engines is blue. Laying on the top of the engine I started tightening coolant line hose clamps and many of them were loose. In the summer when the temperatures are up, they were just tight enough, but over the winter when it was freezing cold, they were loose enough to leak. Over the last season since I tightened them there was no loss of coolant at all.
And finally hull waxing and bottom painting if needed. Besides any special projects you want to do, these are some of the items you need to look at before getting ready to launch this Spring.