Category Archives: Boat Details

Cracked Neck & Rusty Elbow: Engine Repairs

Leave a reply

Sugar Shack has been an incredibly trustworthy yacht and home.  Since we bought her in 2010, she has never failed us, she has delivered us across the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans putting well over 40,000nm under her keel.  Besides general maintenance, we have not had to do a major overhaul.  Until now….the boat repairs and projects have been piling up, but we could not get to most of them because we either did not have the resources or the expertise. 

Arriving in New Zealand has been a blessing in that we now have access to both the resources and expertise to get many of these repairs done.  Most we will do ourselves (or shall I say, Matt will do himself), but some we are hiring contractors to help us out.

Busy Work:

The starboard engine needed some serious love.  The coolant neck is cracked.  Matt had been gluing the coolant neck onto the coolant manifold but it really needed to be re-braised (type of welding).  The problem is the entire manifold had to come off in order to get the part to the welder (Absolute Stainless).  And this piece has not been removed in the boat’s life (22 years and counting).  So, Matt had to finagle the bolts using a new ¾” impact hammer.

He finally removed the piece after using much elbow grease.  One of the owners offered to come pick it up, but Matt had to carry the beast a few hundred yards to the parking lot.

They were able to fit us in right away, despite the shop being incredibly busy and way backlogged.  He contacted us the next day and said that he was able to braise the coolant neck with no problem.  Top left is the glued coolant neck and the other three show it re-braised properly.

1 Problem Solved: 1 Problem Discovered:

Slight problem – when Simon at Absolute Stainless was cleaning up the rusty exhaust elbow on the manifold, it started to crumble.  Well $hit!

We contacted the Volvo dealer (as this is a Volvo part) and they informed us that the part is not available in NZ and it would take several months to get it.  Considering we can’t use the engine without this part, we opted to ship this part in at a whopping $250USD shipping.  But we got it within 2 weeks!

Engine Cleanup

In the meantime, Matt replaced several raw water hoses that were looking ratty and difficult to see through.

Once we got the exhaust elbow back on the manifold, he installed it back on the engine. 

Next, the alternator bracket.  He had to take this off because it had a crack in it and needed to be welded back together.  You can see that we have welded this piece several times.  The alternator is very, very heavy and when under load while under passage it tends to put a lot of pressure on this huge piece of stainless steel.  The blue arrows indicate new weld.

Matt took advantage of the situation since the engine was really accessible and torn apart.  he cleaned up all around the engine, painted special rust repellent then volvo green paint on the engine.

The starboard engine after a very long spa treatment.

A Few Other Odd Jobs

  • Replaced fuel tank caps, gasket and lid (port/starboard)
  • Sewed new fender covers for our large A4 fenders (old blue cover, lower left corner, new black covers)

  • Received new Highfield 360 PVC Dinghy. Our sailmaker took us to collect our new dinghy from All Marine. He will graciously store it for us at his barn until the canvas lady can make her dinghy chaps.  Talk about great service!

The events from this blog occurred in early December.  We find fabulous hiking trails in Whangarei in our last blog post.

Rescue on the Reef

Leave a reply

Sugar Shack is anchored about 2nm from the main town of Denarau and 7nm from Vuda at a small island called Yakuilau island.  We had been here for a few days with our friends Mareike and Thomas (on “Scooter”) when we heard the mayday call.  We were in bad weather conditions which were not ideal for a rescue.

Mayday calls are for life-threatening emergencies where as “pan-pan” calls are for urgent situations that are not life-threatening.  So, we immediately thought the worst.  We listened to the VHF to try to determine where the vessel was to see if we could render help.

Within 5-6 minutes we figured out that the boat was on the opposite side of the island we were anchored behind.  The problem was the weather conditions were miserable.  Winds were blowing 18-20kts and the seas were about 1 meter tall with lots of white caps.  Not a time to be out in the dinghy, but we had to go see if we could help.

As soon as we turned the corner of the island we were smashing against the waves and were drenched.  But, we saw the vessel and quickly approached. 

Not sure what happened as the markers for the reef are easy to spot (as we rounded them to get to the boat). 

As we were trying to make a plan another vessel called “Coral Cats” came to help as well. 

1st Vessel Attempt

Coral Cats could not get close to the vessel because of the shallow depths of the reef so we utilized Sweetie to transport the tow ropes between boats.  Coral Cats has (2) 200hp outboards (much bigger than Sweetie’s (1) 25hp outboard).  They tried 3 times to rescue them from the reef before they had to stop because their stern cleat broke off.  Crap!

Bigger is Better: 2nd Attempt

Another roll on/roll off ferry approached while we were using Coral Cats to get the boat off the reef.  It is called BilliBilli and she had a full cargo load but still stopped for 2 hours to help try to rescue the boat.

This boat was much harder to maneuver, but had a lot more horse power.  We tried at least 5/6 times to rescue this boat off the reef.  Sweetie going back and forth multiple times as the lines had to be dropped each time the ferry repositioned herself.

We were able to turn the boat into the wind which was a huge win.  She no longer was side to the wind and waves which were pushing her further onto the reef. BilliBilli had to go as they were terribly late so we were left with this poor boat on the reef.

An Idea Comes to Mind

Matt has them drop their anchor and most of their anchor chain into our dinghy and we take it out as far as we can and drop it.  We tell them to winch in on the chain during each wave.  This will use the boat’s weight to slowly pull her off the reef.  But they had to wait for high tide at 1:30am to do most of the work.

We get a text at 3:30am that they are off the reef and anchored in front of Denarau. Thank Goodness!

What did not work?

We did not know that this is a ferro cement boat. Yep, you read that right, it is made of cement and super duper heavy.  There is or was no way our little dinghy could have done anything to help rescue her off the reef. 

We did try to use our dinghy to push her sideways while the ferry was pulling her out – that didn’t work.  We also tried to use their main halyard to pull them over and that almost flipped Sweetie – that didn’t work.

More Help

The next day, the owners asked us to help them bring the boat to the haul out facility and to be there to help assess the damage.

Why did they do that?  Well, I had texted my friend Dominique at Raiatea Carenage to see if he had any ideas on how we could help remove the boat from the reef.  He has a remarkably successful track record of rescuing boats in French Polynesia.  He actually knew the boat and the owners and told them that we would be good resources to help them.

Assessing the Damage

They haul the boat out and we were all shocked by the lack of damage!  It is a cement boat after all.  The keel is made of steel and had separated at the joint and curved in to starboard.  From the join down there is a curve but at the end there is a significant bend.  Had the keel been made of cement (like the rest of the boat), it would have shattered. The keel is made of metal because it is heavier.

The rudder also suffered some damage where it separated from the support and bent slightly to starboard.

The shaft and prop were untouched, the engine worked fine, and the hull didn’t appear to have any damage.

Overall, they were extremely blessed to have so little damage.  None of the three souls on board were injured and the boat can be repaired for a little money.

The events from this blog occurred in early September 2022.  Our blog posts run 6-8 weeks behind actual events.  Our last blog is on the beautiful Mana Island explored during low tide.

Tired and Worn Out

Leave a reply

After our amazing experience in the Musket Cove Regatta we head to Denarau to provision, fuel, and tend to other necessary matters.  As soon as we leave Denarau we will head up wind to the eastern Ringgold Islands and Taveuni which will take us approximately 2-3 days.  But the universe had other plans for us when our main sail decides she is worn out and tears 7 meters across – from being just tired and worn out.  How did that happen….read on.

Denarau

We are lucky enough to secure a mooring during our brief 2-night stay in Denarau.  There is a lot to do in a short amount of time.

We hired a taxi to take us shopping in the main town of Nadi.  Stops include:  2 grocery stores, the fresh market, the butcher, and a pharmacy.  We were able to replace several expired medications for our onboard medical kit including antibiotics, ear and eye drops, anti-malaria pills, and a few other key medications (without a prescription).  I had hoped to purchase an Epi Pen and my chemo pills but alas they did not have those in stock.

I know it must sound odd for me to write about running errands, but please remember we can only do this in a few villages on a few islands.  Out of the 332 islands in Fiji there is really only 1 place where we can do ALL of this in one place, so it is BIG day when we can check these errands off our list.  Sometimes we go months without seeing a grocery store and certainly longer for a pharmacy, butcher, and doctor.

Doctor Says “It’s a Perforated Ear Drum”

One of our priority items was to have a doctor look at Matt’s ear.  A few weeks ago, he free dove down to 45’ to retrieve our dinghy anchor that was stuck.  Typically, he would clear his ears several times when going down to this depth.  Clearing your ears is easy.  You pinch your nose and blow out – which gently relieves the pressure in your ears.  However, this time, he was using both hands to scale down the dinghy painter to get to the bottom faster.  He only cleared once and when he got to the bottom, he heard a loud pop in his left ear, and then felt pain. Not good.  He retrieved the anchor, came up, and we rushed to the boat. 

We had hoped it was just water in the ear so we put swimmers ear drops in and that hurt like hell (so we did not do that again).  Next, we started him on antibiotics and he stayed out of the water until we could get to a doctor (2 weeks later).

We stopped in the Emergency Clinic and saw a lovely physician who told us that Matt had a perforated ear drum.  The good news is that it was not infected (probably because he stayed out of the water and was on antibiotics) and it was healing.  The doctor prescribed 2 more weeks of antibiotics and 1 week of antihistamines.  He can’t go in the water for 4-6 weeks (which is the rest of our stay in Fiji).

Chores and Errands

  • Laundry (3 loads at the marina’s laundry facility which is awesome!)
  • Bank (more Fijian funny money)
  • Extend Visas (lots of paperwork and visits to customs and immigration)
  • Farmboy delivery (fresh produce we couldn’t find elsewhere)
  • Taxi run to town: Markets, fresh market, pharmacy, butcher
  • We say goodbye to our friends on Sea Jay and Anima as they head to Vanuatu
  • Fuel (644 liters of diesel and 105 liters of gasoline)
    • We had not fueled since we left French Polynesia (over 3000 miles ago!) Of course, a lot of that was sailing from FP to Fiji.

After several busy days, we are a bit work out, but we are ready to leave.   Yea, a new adventure and new islands.  Our plan was to head NE around Viti Levu, then cross the Bligh waters toward Vanua Levu, then make our way back to Taveuni and the Ringgold Islands.  However, the universe had other plans for us.

Tired and Just Done with Us

Our main sail and jib are 21 years old and are original to the boat.  This is actually incredibly surprising since most sails last about 10-12 years.  We have been very lucky that they have held up for so long!  For several years we have been “making due” with the poor sail shape which impacts the boat’s performance and speed. We knew they were tired and worn out, but it did not make any sense to replace them in French Polynesia or Fiji where the options were limited and very expensive.

We knew the sails had to be replaced and soon, but we were hoping to do it in New Zealand where there are several sail makers to choose from.  And frankly, it is a huge expense at almost $20,000 that I was hoping to put it off as long as possible.

Well, as we started crossing the Bligh waters our sweet sail finally was worn out and she blew a spectacular 7-meter rip along the seam just below the second reef.  Not a little tear mind you, but a massive one.  We quickly turned into the wind and dropped the main to prevent further damage.  We looked at each other, then at the instruments – we were in 12kt of steady wind, no squalls, or wind puffs, just a steady breeze.  I wish I had a photo to show you but we were so shocked she ripped that we went into salvage mode to prevent further damage.

We had no choice but to turn around and head back to Denarau – 2-day motor.  The good news is that she blew when we were close to land and only 2 days away from “town” vs tearing while we were in the middle of the Pacific under passage to New Zealand.  Thank God for little blessings.

The Hunt is On

It was Sunday, but I started emailing companies and checking resources to see what our options were.  Not many.  There is only one sail maker in Fiji, Marshall Sails.  There are several canvas makers but they don’t have the machinery big or strong enough to go through two layers of heavy dacron material (our main sail is double layer). 

By Monday morning at 0900, the owner of Marshall Sails tells me he can fix our sail and get it back to us in 10 days.  This is a huge blessing as we are scheduled to leave for New Zealand in 2-3 weeks and we kind of need our main sail!

Taking the Main Sail Down

It is no small chore to remove the main sail.  First of all, she weighs in at over 300lbs!  Matt does most of the work as I am sick with the flu and a fever and am tasked with manning the helm.  Steps to remove the main sail:

  • Remove the halyard (we tie it off to a port cleat)
  • Move the boom to the side so Matt can reach the reefing lines (upper right corner shows the red, yellow and green reefing lines around the boom)
  • Remove the cars (while not losing the very small pins while underway) that raise the main at the mast
  • Remove half of the lazy jacks holding the sail bag (lower photo)
  • Remove the other half of the lazy jacks and the entire sail bag

At this point we can see the severity of the damage.  It appears the stitching gave out but the majority of the sail is fine.  The only part of the sail that needs a dacron patch is the end (upper right corner photo).  The rest should be an easy, although long zig zag stitch to fix the tear. 

Together, we flake the sail and put her in her bag and ready it for delivery.  We managed to get to Denarau by 1400 on Monday, while the owner was still there.  We had to use the halyard to get the sail from Sugar Shack into the dinghy.  Again, not easy to do with the winds and chop in the anchorage, but we succeed.

Marshall Sails to the Rescue

Alan Marshall, the owner of Marshall Sails meets us, helps us get the sail into the truck and takes it back to his loft.  The next day he sends me a quote which floored both Matt and I. We anticipated it being well over $2k USD to repair the seam and to re-stitch the other seams which are probably just as worn out as the torn seam.  But he came back with a quote of $500 USD.  Most excellent considering, we just need it to last long enough to get us to New Zealand (2 more months or 1500 nm).

Alan had to confirm that our sail was truly 21 years old.  He was surprised that it was in “such good shape” for her age and thought she would have been “more worn out” than she actually was.  If you might recall, in Q3 of 2020 we had the entire sail examined, repaired, and resewn in Tahiti (blog post).  They checked all the seams, reinforced the corners, and verified that she was in good shape.

The Results

We got our sail back (a day ahead of schedule), for the quoted price, and they did really good work.  It was a process getting the sail back to the boat.  After all she is 300lbs of dead weight!  One of the guys from Marshall Sails helps us load her into the dinghy and we make the 2nm jaunt across the bay.

Installing the Main Sail

Then we use the halyard to hoist her onto the boat.  Thank goodness we have light winds and very little swell.

Matt spends about an hour installing the sail bag and lazy jacks.  Next, we unroll the mighty beast and lay her out so we can prepare to install her back in place.

We have to start installing the sail before we can evaluate the repair.  First, we put the batons in from top to bottom (short to long). There are 6 of them.

Matt connects the sail to the mast at each baton point.  He will connect the bungee points as we lower the sail (hard part first).  Look how he has to balance to reach the halyard.

The Repair

We are finally at the big repair seam.  It looks good.  The used special sail tape to connect the seams, then they stitched 3 times with a 3-point zig zag stitch.

Marshall Sails also used the 3-point zig zag stitch over the other seams that run across the sail.  Extra reinforcement as they are just as compromised as the one that actually tore.

The overall repair looks strong and ready to test out!

After we attach all the cars (so she goes up and down the mast), we (meaning Matt) has to attach the rest of the sail bag, the reef lines, and the main sheets.

It took 3.5 hours the first day (we worked until dark).  Then it took another 3.5 hours the following morning to complete the install. 

Our anchorage was blessedly calm with light winds and no swell as we are protected from 3 out of 4 directions.

Thank goodness that is done.  Now all we have to do is test her out!

Here she is happily flying again, albeit, still out of shape, but getting us to where we want to go.

The events from this blog occurred in early September 2022.  Our blog posts run 6-8 weeks behind actual events.  Matt tries out a new sport in our last blog post – did you read it?