It’s been just over two weeks since we cast off, and things are finally “settling in” …maybe — which in nautical terms means the chaos is now somewhat predictable. The to-do list is still longer than security lines at SeaTac, but progress is being made, several projects each day.
🚽 Sanitation: A Triumph of Success in Completed Work
Let’s start with the most important system on board: marine sanitation. You’ll be relieved (pun intended) to know that everything is finally flushing without a fight. We yanked out the problematic Lavac heads and replaced them with rugged Jabsco manual pump toilets — generously supplied by Xylem via the Marine Tech Program and the One Ocean project. Huge thanks to them for helping us keep things flowing smoothly. So far, zero problems. We’re cautiously optimistic and heavily superstitious. Knock on wood.
🍳 The Galley: Culinary Glory Achieved
The new Mediterranean stove/oven by Dickinson? Absolute galley MVP. It’s simple, reliable, and gets used multiple times each day. It brings joy with morning coffee until even with warm bellies. Shoutout also to our SeaFrost fridge/freezer combo, which is chilling with admirable consistency. My good friend Woody gave them the pre-departure once-over, and they’re running like champs. Cold beverages, happy crew.
💧 Water-maker: From “Old & Used (free)” to “H2-Oh Wow”
The water-maker saga deserves its own reality show. Everyone asked during the last couple of months about the water-maker, “we’ll get it soon” The 3 major components were mounted but none of the interconnected plumbing or wiring. By May 2nd most of the plumbing was done or started. May 3rd came and it wasn’t even operational. Fast forward — thanks to some late-night diagnostics and pump autopsies — the Spectra system is now happily churning out 13-14 gallons per hour. After a high-pressure pump mutiny, just before we departed, we cracked it open, taught our pump students some vane-pump anatomy, freed up the internals, and got it purring again. Magnetic drive = no seals, no leaks, no worries.
Sure, the digital control board was fried like a fish taco, so we bypassed it with jumper wires and pure optimism. Who needs automation when you’ve got mad electrical skills, tools, and electrical tape? That’s what we teach our Marine Technology Students at Skagit Valley College. A future upgrade includes a running light and a low-pressure warning LED indicating filters need changing. Until then, manual is the new smart.
Power draw: ~18 amps at 12 volts. That’s about 216 watts (for the spreadsheet warriors keeping score at home). One hour of runtime a day keeps the water police away.
⚡ Generator: Batteries Not Charged
The generator had a case of “abandonment issues” — when I finally went to run & test it, the battery was flatter than Kansas. It hadn’t run in a month, and apparently, that was too long for the battery? Fortunately, I’d wired in a trickle charge lead (but naturally hadn’t to connect it). After a little jumper wire voodoo and an overnight charge, it roared back to life. It’s now happily contributing to keeping our batteries charged.
Minor hiccup: a cracked coolant recovery hose. It’s on the ever-growing “next-port hardware store treasure hunt” list. I pretend to be annoyed, but we all know I live for boat projects.
Conclusion:
One Ocean is running better every day, with just enough gremlins to keep things interesting. We’ve fixed more things than we’ve broken (probably), and morale is directly proportional to how recently someone has showered. Onward!
Cheers,
Michael