[Public-List] A new engine adventure...

[Wes Gardner via Public-List]

Gord,

Is this a drain plug you use for winterizing?

Always exciting to have floating floor boards....

On Thu, Jul 7, 2016 at 10:16 AM, Gordon Laco via Public-List <
public-list at lists.alberg30.org> wrote:

> Hello gang...
>
> Last night being Wednesday, SURPRISE sortied from the club to do battle as
> usual.  The air was very light and uncharactistically from the east, so
> that
> put the start at the far end of our end of Severn Sound.  We motored all
> the
> way out, shut down and began the usual prestart jousting.   I¹ll gloss over
> the great start we had, how MAID MARION, our arch rival, tried doing a tack
> just before and never really got moving again in the very light air...
>
> So there we were gliding along with 0.7 knots showing on the knotmeter and
> laying the windward mark due to a huge lift right at the start.  I was
> chuckling to myself when one of my crewmembers called to me Œhey Gord, the
> floorboards are floating¹.
>
> Sure enough, the bilges were completely flooded.  We quickly pumped the
> water out and marveled at how strong the batteries were despite the fact
> that they may have spent days under water (assuming a slow trickle leak)
> Nothing more was coming in, so I reckoned I¹d worry about the leak later.
>
> We completed the race, the bilges were still clear (we¹d left the
> floorboards up to help the battery tops dry).  We sparked up the engine and
> motored for home.
>
> Partway back to the club, the bilges were full again.  As we reversed to
> stop at our jetty, the engine died.  I never like to let it end an
> engagement on it¹s own terms, so I tried to start it again, and it wouldn¹t
> fire although it spun well on the starter.
>
> Off came the motor compartment cover.  The liner pan beneath the engine was
> full of water and overflowing into the bilge, but no new water seemed to be
> coming in.    I said to Clint ³hit the starter for me please ... Uh I mean
> Œdamn you¹² (we have a running gag going in the boat over how I used to be
> admonished in Officer¹s Basic in the RCN about being too polite when giving
> orders)
>
> The engine cranked, and immedeatly a shower of water sprayed from the
> engine
> block to the starter housing, and from that all over the compartment.  A
> drain plug had come out.    I put in a new one from my parts kit.  Went and
> had a beer at the club house... 30 minutes later, figureing the engine had
> dried out tried the starter.  The engine ran sweetly as usual and there was
> no leak.
>
> That was a new one...
>
> Gord #426 Surprise
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