All right, it’s been two days—where do I start?
Well I don’t really know. After a few hours, reading e-mail, talking to friends, I came to a conclusion: the head gasket is blown and the cause of the overheating that caused it was the Bar’s Head Gasket Repair that I used when I originally thought the head gasket was blown. I think what happened is that when I dumped the can of Bar’s in it jammed up the thermostat or at least restricted the flow. I’m guessing this because the temp just went straight up—it overheated at idle in under fifteen minutes. And actually I probably shouldn’t say it overheated because I was watching the temp gauge and shut it down before it hit 200 degrees—more accurately it was on it’s way to overheating, and when I opened up the expansion tank it was bone dry.
Okay, anyway, so I’ve got a blown head gasket. Not the end of the world. It’s only a gasket after all. Problem is that this was not in “the plan” for the summer. We’ve got a house rented in Mazatlan—a house in which Ali, the kids, and I are supposed to meet at next Monday. A house we can live in while the boat is torn apart or on the hard this summer.
So with that the question became, “How do I get the boat down there?” And eventually it dawned on me—it’s a sailboat, I can sail it down there. Right? It’s only 360 miles. I’m pretty sure this tank can cover 360 miles in a week.
Okay, so I can sail it, but I still need to be able to get out of the marina. And I’d like to know that I can count on it in an emergency, or for getting me into the marina once I reach Mazatlan. So instead of replacing the head gasket (which is a pretty major job requiring the removal of roughly half of the engine piece by piece, including all of the really important bits) I’ll just try and jury rig it. Not with bailing wire, but with more of that Bar’s crap that I think caused—or at least contributed—to the problem in the first place.
Here’s what I did yesterday and today. First I removed the expansion tank to get at the thermostat. I boiled a pot of water and dropped the thermostat in it. It slowly opened, just like it is designed to do. I took it out of the water and it closed back up. Okay, so the thermostat is working.
But instead of putting the thermostat back in, I left it out, and put the expansion tank back on. Wha? Well the thinking is that without the thermostat in, the engine will run cooler. A lot cooler. And cooler means less pressure. Or at least I think it does. And less pressure could mean less leakage through the head gasket. Fingers crossed.
Before you start typing up that e-mail telling me why this is a bad idea, remember that the idea is for me to be able to run the engine for maybe an hour at a time, just a couple of times on this trip south.
With that out I ran a radiator flush through the system and then did something crazy. I tried some more Bar’s Head Gasket Repair. A different one—but still.
It’s too early to tell if that worked because I decided against testing it out. Why? Because I’m tired of changing the oil, and right now there is fresh oil in the engine. I skipped a few steps in the above explanation, but let’s just say that in the last two days I’ve changed the oil four times. Four milky white times. Big deal right? Well, my engine takes two gallons of oil. At twenty-five bucks a gallon that comes out to two-hundred dollars in oil changes. And I’m planning on bringing enough oil along for another four oil changes en route. If the Bar’s hasn’t blocked up the blown head gasket then I’ll basically need to change the oil every one to two hours that the engine is run. Fun. I don’t even want to add up what this nonsense has cost.
Anyway, now that I’ve done everything I can think to do short of actually repairing the problem, I’m kind of excited about the trip ahead. The other night when this happened I actually thought for a while about just continuing on, but decided instead to see what I could do about fixing it. Turns out I can’t do much, so I’ll just continue on.
The weather looks good for the next week. Some light head winds here and there, but for a good part of the time it looks like I could have 10-15 knots on the beam. The boat will hum along nicely in those conditions, because hey, it’s a sailboat dammit.
Note: I did buy a new thermostat anyway and have that aboard. Should this little trick not work I’ll drop it in.
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Ouest has been getting a little homesick lately. She’s missing Bumfuzzle. She told Ali today that she likes Grammy’s house but it doesn’t go to new places like Bumfuzzle. Then tonight while Ali was singing Twinkle Twinkle to her in bed Ouest said that she wants to go on a hike when we get to Mexico… in the rain… with her new umbrella.
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Should have just bought an RV.
22 Comments on “It’s a Sailboat, Sail It”
“Should have just bought an RV,” Pat said.
Heh . . . trust me, Pat, it would just be a different set of troubles, not the end of them. And if you hate crowded anchorages where another boat withing, say, 50 yards is TOO DAMN CLOSE, imagine sitting in a crowded RV park with rigs about 10′ away on either side. It sucks.
And when you blow a head gasket in an RV, you’re not going to have the option of sailing it to your destination instead.
I wouldn’t start the engine until I absolutely needed it to exit the Guaymas marina or enter the one in Maz. If you can hold your engine running time to less than thirty minutes at each end, I think you can avoid another expensive oil change until after the engine is repaired.
And I wouldn’t sweat leaving the thermostat out, either . . . doing that made all the difference in my 1961 Impala when I was in college. 😉
Love that last picture. I know that expression so well. Been “there” many times myself.
Good luck with your trip. It’s a sailboat, sail it!
Its just never easy. Sympathies man, nothing but sympathies. “The cure for anything is salt water…” That’s not entirely true. The cure for this is a nice cold beer or two. Fingers crossed and spitting that the temp fix works and you arrive safely in Mazatlan with minimal drama.
The last picture says it all. I have seen that look on my husbands face too many times to count. You need a couple of bleeding scrapes on your forearms to complete the picture.
Your sail will be beautiful. Enjoy it and take lots of pics for us.
Fair winds and calm seas! I don’t recall how big your boat is but I was once on a cruise where we lost the auxiliary and managed to shift the boat in and out of a couple of tight places by bringing the dinghy alongside.
Required a lot more forethought, and two able bodied seamen, but it worked.
-Jake
Hi Pat, My sympathies.
When I was a teen my father had an old truck with diesel on it and since he doesn’t understand engines I took care of that and belive me, letting the termostat out will not hurt your engine.
appart from using the engine to take the boat from the marina, I would run it a little bit while sailing to make sure you have enough “engine time” to get into the next marina. Otehrwise, it’s better to anchor outside or call the marina for a “hand” towing the boat in. The last thing I’d like is an engine that dies when manuvering in close quarters…
Cheers,
Ricardo
Hey Pat
Good luck, needless to say but give your self a lot more room for error in your navigation and lee shore planning. And if it were me I would have a sea anchor ready and also rig up the main anchor with lots of additional rode. That way if you get stuck on a lee shore that you cannot sail off at least you can get the pick down sooner giving you more room.
But hey you know all this already. Have fun, safe sailing and fair winds 🙂
I don’t want to jump on the advice train, cuz you guys know way more than us (!!!), but I *will* say that we’ve successfully towed multiple boats (including Brio) over 40+ miles with a hip-tied dinghy and outboard. You don’t even need to be in the dinghy, just get it set up and you can manoeuver almost as well as with the auxiliary (that’s how we entered the breakwater and docked at the marina in Chiapas when a fuel line started spewing diesel everywhere…). Just two more cents to add to the pile — soon you may have enough for another litre of oil 🙂
Sail On!
The thermostat does basically two things, It will allows the motor to warm up faster and it also blocks (restricts) the flow thus allowing the coolant to cool outside the motor so it will re-enter the motor, cooler than it left.
Having limited motor will enhance your sailing abilities. Hoe do you suppose they did it 100 yrs ago?
They did it every day.
Get yourself a dingy and outboard and drive your boat where you need it to go.
As long as the fridge is working (and full), you’ll be fine 😉
suerte,
Jason
I have no idea of what you are doing or even need to do but I admire your planning. Sounds like you have it under control. Hope you make it to your next destination without problems so you can enjoy the time with your family and get the boat under work related activities.
Hey Pat, just another two cents; a friend of mine told me that if you are worried about the engine overheating, you can check the coolant temp. by hand. 180 is about all you can stand to touch, so, if you can’t grip the heat exchanger hose for a second or two, then shut it down. We hope to head south in October, good luck!
Joe & Karin
Flyin Sideways
I’m with you, a sailboat is for sailing. A word about thermostat testing. I also had overheating problems a year or two back myself. Brought the thermostat home and tested it, just like the Yanmar Manual instructed: appeared to be working fine. I reinstalled it and suffered another two months battling overheating. One day, I could think of NOTHING else to do but replace the thermostat and pray. That solved the issue. Now I carry three new thermostats on board. At the first sign of overheating, the old thermostat goes out and a new one in. Well worth the $25 or so per spare thermostat in my opinion. Incidentally, the Yanmar Manual suggests they be replaced annually anyway. these are pretty primitive peices of equipment and work on the expansion and contraction of wax and a spring. Wax ages. Simple as that.
You can do it!!!
you must do it for all us dreamers out here!
Pat, any cruisers in the marina with you that want to take a ride?
Might be prudent to have an extra hand on board.
Good luck, and may the winds be with you.
I’ve approach a harbor with my aux inop and no wind. Anchored outside for 30min and waved a passing power boat to assist. Yanked up the anchor and threw a line to the cruiser. Was at the guest dock in 10 mins.
You are a resourceful and quite an accomplished sailor – no sweat – enjoy Mazatlan
Rick
Just be aware that some engines run hotter without the thermostat, but this may not register on the temp gauge. Some engines, but not all, need the thermo to retrict the coolant flow to allow heat transfer. The temp gauge mostly reads the coolant temp not the head temp. Because the heat is not being transferred the coolant does not get as hot as the engine. So do as the earlier commenter said and try to put your hand on the side of the head every now and then. At 160 degrees the metal will feel very hot, but you can keep your hand on it. At 180 and over you will have to pull your hand away fairly quickly.
Might try a check of the head bolt torque, it might help slow down the leak untill you have time to repair properly. Also, run with the radiator cap on losely to keep the pressure from building. It will help lower the pressure in the coolant system and reduce the amount of water getting into the oil.
Good luck.
Pat,
Been a lurker for a long time and living vicariously through your exploits. Mind you, I have had my adventures – 5 trips across the US on old airhead BMWs and 12 years in Antarctica.
As I was reading your post, and you were pouring in the Bars, I thought “head gasket”. It might fix it…
Better to sail into a good port, have it rebuilt professionally, and have it work first time every time. It’s a ship… it’s always something. One of the reasons my ships are sea kayaks and my motorcycles are all two cylinder air cooled.
Steady on – you and yours are in inspiration.
Well, looking at Sailflow.com over the past several days, winds have not been helping any: steady Southerly flow or no wind at all. Let’s hope your temporary repair allowed some motoring….
Hey Pat,
Funny thing the Lehman…I blew my head gasket a few hours out of Mazatlan and changed it while sailing to Puerto Vallarta. By the time we pulled into Punta Mita, I had it running like a champ. The cause was a leaking exhaust gasket between the exhaust manifold and the exhaust pipe. It is a common point of failure and often mis-diagnosed.
If you ever need any technical help from someone who knows the 2711E inside and out while upside down in a hull sailing in Mexico…please email me svtrim@gmail.com