Today is another hang-out day -- Rachel and the gang arrive tomorrow.
Of course, no day is really a "hang-out" day on a boat -- you just get more time to do chores. For example, this morning we did "housecleaning" below (wash floors, disinfected the head, shook out carpets and the like), then washed the topsides (we were expecting rain later and it is always good to have mother nature do a "rinse" of the boat after we soap the decks up to clean them). We also checked and topped off the battery water and changed the oil -- always something to do.
Changing the oil on a boat is one of those things you have to do frequently if you are going to keep your engine running well. Also, it is a bit of a pain -- you just can't pull into a dock and tell them "change the oil". While you can usually find someone willing to do it for you if you look hard enough and are willing to pay the "big bucks", my practice has been to do it myself.
The basic technique is pretty straightforward -- run the engine for 15 minutes to heat up the oil (this way it'll flow easier and you will pull out any "crap" that is "in suspension") , then shove a tube down the dipstick tube and use a pump to "suck out" the old oil and put it into a container for disposal. Here's where it gets interesting: you can either use a "manual" pump (i.e., you do the pumping using elbow grease) or, you can use an "electric" pump (i.e., throw the switch and let a motor do the work).
In the two previous years that I owned My Weigh, the engine wasn't used very much so I only needed to change the oil once a season and I used the manual technique -- it was a bit of a hassle (the pump gets hot and its a tricky business keeping the dipstick and outlet hoses in while you are pumping), but quite manageable. I knew this year would be different. Given the long trip south,we would be running the engine a lot more and I would likely have to change the oil at least once on the trip, if not more. So, to make life easier, I bought and permanently installed an "electric" oil pump that would considerably simplify the changing process.
This would be the first time I would use my new oil pump and I did have some "Agata" that it might not work -- while I had been careful about the installation and had tested what I could, the "proof is in the pudding" and so, it was not without trepidation that I threw the switch. Well, hurrah, it worked and this was, by far, the "easiest" oil change I had ever done on my two boats -- worth every cent I paid for that pump :-)
After lunch we took the dinghy into the Marina, and hung out, did some work, took a shower (never miss a chance when you can) and otherwise killed what turned out to be another rainy day, (I did have to walk to local recycling yard to disposer of the old oil -- fortunately, it was close by.)
Of course, no day is really a "hang-out" day on a boat -- you just get more time to do chores. For example, this morning we did "housecleaning" below (wash floors, disinfected the head, shook out carpets and the like), then washed the topsides (we were expecting rain later and it is always good to have mother nature do a "rinse" of the boat after we soap the decks up to clean them). We also checked and topped off the battery water and changed the oil -- always something to do.
Changing the oil on a boat is one of those things you have to do frequently if you are going to keep your engine running well. Also, it is a bit of a pain -- you just can't pull into a dock and tell them "change the oil". While you can usually find someone willing to do it for you if you look hard enough and are willing to pay the "big bucks", my practice has been to do it myself.
The basic technique is pretty straightforward -- run the engine for 15 minutes to heat up the oil (this way it'll flow easier and you will pull out any "crap" that is "in suspension") , then shove a tube down the dipstick tube and use a pump to "suck out" the old oil and put it into a container for disposal. Here's where it gets interesting: you can either use a "manual" pump (i.e., you do the pumping using elbow grease) or, you can use an "electric" pump (i.e., throw the switch and let a motor do the work).
In the two previous years that I owned My Weigh, the engine wasn't used very much so I only needed to change the oil once a season and I used the manual technique -- it was a bit of a hassle (the pump gets hot and its a tricky business keeping the dipstick and outlet hoses in while you are pumping), but quite manageable. I knew this year would be different. Given the long trip south,we would be running the engine a lot more and I would likely have to change the oil at least once on the trip, if not more. So, to make life easier, I bought and permanently installed an "electric" oil pump that would considerably simplify the changing process.
This would be the first time I would use my new oil pump and I did have some "Agata" that it might not work -- while I had been careful about the installation and had tested what I could, the "proof is in the pudding" and so, it was not without trepidation that I threw the switch. Well, hurrah, it worked and this was, by far, the "easiest" oil change I had ever done on my two boats -- worth every cent I paid for that pump :-)
After lunch we took the dinghy into the Marina, and hung out, did some work, took a shower (never miss a chance when you can) and otherwise killed what turned out to be another rainy day, (I did have to walk to local recycling yard to disposer of the old oil -- fortunately, it was close by.)
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