Putting Ciao Bella in the yards Friday for a haulout and bottom job. Also having the exhaust hose replaced (a survey item) and all sewage hose from the toilet to the tank, and from the tank to the deck suction, tank vent and macerator hose. The hose that is there now is a combination of white and black, for instance from the toilet to the vaccuum breaker is white, from there to the Y valve is black, from Y valve to tank white again. The current tank vent is clear fiber reinforced hose that looks like water hose. From tank to deck suck out is black hose.
Also having the stuffing box repacked using GFO packing, and having the anchor locker drain through hull replaced and rebedded.
Going with Shelter Island Boat Yard here in San Diego because they had the best estimate for most of the work. One other estimate I had gotten estimated 3 man hours to repack the stuffing box. And yet another yard estimated 7 MHs to replace the through hull under the V-berth. I know of one other 34 that had issues with the paint job. But it was corrected by the yard.
More to follow,
Ralph
Ralph, was one of your estimates from Driscols? I had some work done at their other yard in Mission Bay and they were OK.
I had estimates from Knight and Carver and the Southbay Boat Yard. Both very high, both only wanted to do one coat of paint on the bottom.
Ralph
Ralph,
For your reference Marina Shipyard in Long Beach quotes $1,200 for two coats of bottom paint with a free haul out and no yard charges while they are working on your boat. This is their Jan/Feb yearly special.
Ralph,
You will do fine with SIB. Wayne is the yard manager there and he can sometimes be a handful to deal with. I know I had some issues but in the end they made everything right.
Hopefully we will have some dry weather while your out. I managed to take the opportunity to give Pau Hana 2 coats of wax all around. They do let you work on your boat over the weekend and when they are closed... something I think a lot of yards don't let you get away with.
Also... Plan on giving the boat a good solid washdown afterwards. Although, they have someone thats supposed to clean the boat before returning to the owner... they don't do a very good job and it seemed I picked up a lot of dust from sanding of other boats. :abd:
I think you'll do fine with them. I've been using them for 20 years now, and they are pros.
3 man hours to repack the stuffing box????? I did mine myself while I did bottom paint last spring. First time in 9 years. I spent less than an hour on it.
Jack
3 hours does sound high. But then, a proper job should include an adjustment with the boat in the water and the shaft turning. Not just changing the packing.
Jim
Les,
The price here is 1190 for the bottom job, and since I'm having additional work doen theres no lay day charge. I'm looking at splashing the boat next Thursday, maybe Wednesday.
Kevin,
I think they have learned a bit about painting, they said it'll get a wet sanding so that incompatiblility will not be an issue since I have no idea what paint is on it now. that information will go in my log book so I have the record for next time.
And the admiral is already fretting about how dirty the boat will be when we get it back. We have removed all the cushions so that is one plus in our favor. They needed access to the under the v-berth, the sewage tank and the stuffing box, so instead of them moving cushions at our expense we took them out.
Ralph
Ralph : I believe that the man hours for the tasks are a bit high.
I've changed packing in the water and it took less than 10 minutes!!
The only thru hull that you should have in the Vberth is the anchor well drain.
Not too sure why you want to change it?, but it should surly be only 1 hour 2 at the most. To take the old one off should only take 5 - 10 minutes - most of that time is loosening the hose clamp and removing the hose. It will take a second person to hold the new fitting from the outside so it can't turn while the person inside threads on and tightens the nut. Then reconnect the hose and the hose clamp.
Ron,
You are right on my way of thinking on these items. Estimate way to high.
The anchor locker through hull drips water into the boat when on a port tack heeled over and the water is splashing up on it. It was a survey item 18 months ago and I figured as long as I was having work done let them re-bed it for me. Might end up doing that myself.
In fact the exhaust hose is also a survey item. As was the sewer hose. So before the insurance is due and they ask me again if I've corrected all those items I'll get it done.
Ralph
I agree with Ron. Why do you need a new anchor locker drain through-hull fitting. Is the old one cracked? Why not simply remove the current one if it is leaking, clean it, re-bed it and re-install it. You can do this whole job in the slip since this through-hull is above the water line. Save yourself the "expensive" yard labor for another "must-do" project.
The packing gland should only take about a half hour, unless it's frozen from years of not being lubricated. When I bought boat, my packing gland was leaking and because it wasen't kept lubricated, it was pretty frozen and most of the time that was needed was used to try to free it up. But it still took less than an hour to lubricate, and work the nuts loose. That whole job should not take more than an hour. :D
The anchor thru hull is probably cracked, mine was. So was the rear fitting for the bilge pump. After 24 years, not surprising.
I have the old fashioned flax packing and I spray it with simple green and wire brush it off good and adjust that thing about every other month. When all finished I wipe it dry and apply a light spray of WD40 and it's good for another two months. No green stuff on my bright work. The biggest part of the time to adjust it is to move the clothing storage bins, the micro wave and the mattress to get to it, then put it all back when done. the actual adjusting is about 5 - 7 minutes. Tap the lock nut with a nail set and hammer to back it off, adjust, tap the lock nut back on.
Ralph
Do you just go to snug, once you've backed off the locknut?
Ed,
Once the lock nut is backed off I turn the packing gland about an eighth of a turn, just to snug. After I tighten the lock nut I turn the shaft over 5 or 6 times and then check with a paper towel for leak. The cheap brown paper towels work well for this, they show a drop of water very nicely.
Ralph
Quote from: SD Diver on February 15, 2012, 08:17:41 AM
Ed,
Once the lock nut is backed off I turn the packing gland about an eighth of a turn, just to snug. After I tighten the lock nut I turn the shaft over 5 or 6 times and then check with a paper towel for leak. The cheap brown paper towels work well for this, they show a drop of water very nicely.
Ralph
Thanks, that's pretty much what I did a couple of weeks ago.
I can go about two months with out much trouble. A friend on mine down here in the same marina put in the GFO packing and has not had to muck with it in about a year. Looking forward to that.
Ed : I've written this up before, but worth repeating:
The smaller the adjustment the better (because you don't want to back up!) - it's better to make 2 small 1/16 turn adjustments than one large 1/8 adjustment. Then always make sure that the packing gland & locknut are no more than warm to the touch (while the shaft is turning). You will have to back off if it's so warm you can't keep your hand on it!!
A thought
I backed the locknut off and simply "took the slack" out of the packing nut, probably not even an 1/8th and without any force, and re-tightened. I had a good few cups of water pooled there after the motor down to SD. I knew not to over tighten as heat/friction would be an issue.
A quick update on the work I had done. We picked the boat up yesterday afternoon.
The SIBY uses Interlux Ultra for the bottom, two coats on the bottom and a third at the water line. So far looks good. Now wait to see if it holds up better then Kevin's did a few months ago. I think they changed their prep work because they now do a wet sand on the bottom before painting.
The new exhaust hose is nice. Seems to be a bit quieter too. One more item to mark off from the buyers survey.
Replaced the sewer hose with the black green stripe Trident hose. I had a mixture of two different hoses and was not sure why. Was some replaced and some not?? How old was the hose and what condidtion was it in?? Now I know and I don't have to worry about a clogged hose.
The through hull for the anchor locker was cracked so it was replaced.
Repacked the stuffing box with GFO gore tex packing. It ran pretty hot for the first 20 minutes of motoring back to the marina but by time I got through the hour it had cooled don to normal. Now to just watch it and adjust as needed.
My only dismay is the amount of crud that was left behind. Everyplace that work was preformed they just left stuff. Under the v berth all the old sealing caulk from removing the broken fitting was just left in the bilges. Rings of the old packing left laying in the bilges, old hose clamps for the sewer hose left laying.
Morla of this story I guess is if you want the job done right, do it your self, because nobody cares about your boat like you do.
Ralph
How hot did it run? and why would it run hot initially?
It got hot enough where I could not hold my finger on it for a 5 count. New packing always needs to "run in" a bit. As the shaft turns it aligns and compresses and relaxes a bit. The guy at Hoffman's recommends the PSS dripless system but said most older boats would also need to change to a stainless shaft due to wear on the bronze shaft. He also said the old flax packing that has been in use for more years then we can count is great, if you don't mind adjusting it every now and then. I'm assuming the packing that was there was from 87, so I just repacked with new. Now I can figure out how well the GFO holds up and how often I have to muck with it. The real problem of adjusting is just getting to it. The clothes storage "tupperwares" the extra blankets, pillows, microwave, mattress all needs to be moved just to get under there. Then of course 5 minutes later it all needs to go back.
I'll be reporting back as time goes on how well this product preforms.
Ralph
Thanks, yes I did not get the dripless PSS System because I too was told that I would have to change my shaft so I chose to simply repack my stuffing box. So far so good. I have enought project to spend my money on, and the dripless system is too far down the list. It's a want rather than a must do.
Sounds Great Ralph :clap
I'm certain Henry will be watching over the new paint job and keeping you updated if anything looks "afoul" . :shock:
I swear I'm still cleaning spots from the mess the yard left behind... maybe thats normal,but it seems I had a lot of dirt and debris afterwards as well. :abd:
Ralph,
That's terrible about leaving the trash behind. :shock: That's the sort of thing that can sink you if it get's clogged in the bilge pump at the wrong time. :cry4`
Saturday is field day, time to titivate the ship.
Ralph
Just a quick note to follow up on the bottom job. The diver just did an inspection, it's been back in the water for over three weeks now, and everything looks good. No bubbles in the paint and no peeling paint. Interlux Ultra paint.
Ralph