CARVER
OWNERS CLUB
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CARVER
OWNERS CLUB
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October 2006
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Stories |
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Leave 'em Full or Empty It used to be that filling the fuel tanks at the end of the year was as automatic as pumping out the holding tanks. Adding ethanol to gasoline changed all the rules. If you have a diesel engine, thank your lucky stars and read the next article. If you have gasoline engines, . . . The reason one would fill the fuel tanks at the end of the season is to prevent water contamination caused by condensation. If you still use pure gasoline, that is, gasoline that is not a mix of gasoline and ethanol, keep filling your tanks to prevent condensation. If the gasoline available includes ethanol, run your tanks as dry as possible. Ethanol is the main component of products that remove water from gasoline. Ethanol attracts water. Water in the fuel damages the engines, If you fill your tanks with a combination of gasoline and ethanol, you may end up with more water from the ethanol attraction than from condensation. There are other issues associated with adding fuel stabilizer to ethanol. Next spring, fill up with ethanol, add some octane booster (Lucas makes a good one) and good luck. For another slant on this, read the article about Volvo engines.
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Traveling the Atlantic ICW Patsy and I bought our current boat, Ibis (then the Cat's Meow) in Fort Myers Florida and brought the boat across Lake Okeechobee to Baltimore. We only traveled on the ICW and the Chesapeake Bay. It was the best trip I've ever taken in my life. I simply can't tell you how wonderful it was. We're going back south in the next couple of weeks. Another couple is traveling with us because of our vast experience on the ICW. Attached is an article about the places we liked and hated on the cruise up. We've put it in a north to south sequence since most folks will be traveling south soon. The article is titled Crabs and Pots. Click here to read Crabs and Pots. There are a lot of tips about traveling the ICW. Here are three of them
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Dave, I want to pass on some information that may be of benefit to other Carver Mariner owners. Our Carver is kept on the Lower Potomac in Currioman Bay at Stratford Harbour, which is a private marina. When Isabel came, we had enough warning to all head for the ’hard’ and pulled our boats. When Ernesto came a few weeks ago we expected a “5 inch rain event with 20 to 30 mph winds.” It turned out to be 50 and 60 mph winds with a 6 to 8 foot tidal surge!. The entire community was caught unaware. We were called and arrived about 4:30pm to see the entire marina under two feet of water, including all the docks and piers with 3 -4 foot BREAKERS rolling right on through and over many boats. The entire community was spectators to this event, helpless. Many boats were already sunk. Our boat, with six lines, was straining to hold on. Bucking like a wild horse, she would dip forward and a wave would break right up to her bridge. It was awesome…..and in a protected area of the river! Later on, our port bow line gave out and the boat began to pile into the finger pier starboard and the main pier aft. By 9:00pm, only a few inches of the tops of the pilings were visible. Boats on their lifts simple drifted out and were smashed on the pilings. One broke in half. A brand new Hurricane 28 with twin 200hp Yamahas was literally pierced through the heart on a piling and the engines smashed. A sailboat capsized. Another sailboat had its mast unstepped and went through the hull. A pontoon boat had It’s starboard pontoon crushed like a beer can. By the next morning, the community banded together and tried to help each other recover what we could and continued to try to plug holes and save boats. Out boat lost its swim platform, trim tabs and any thing that stuck out more than an inch, off the stern. We had major holes in the transom and was slowly sinking by the bolt holes in the transom that were sheared off or bent. The starboard side lost its rub rail into a twisted mess and there were numerous holes along the gunnel. As the boat rose and fell, it actually drove the piling of the finger pier two feet further in the mud and broke the pier. The piling directly aft was shaped into a long tooth by our transom. Though the batteries were dead from pumping the bilges for two days, the battery on the generator was intact and when started, I managed to pump out the water until the holes in the transom were four inches above the water line. When the batteries were charged up again I started the main engines but decided to have the boat towed and hauled, not knowing what kind of bottom damage had been sustained. It turned out that the port rudder was bent but that was all. Having said all that, Boat U.S., our insurer, has declared the boat a total loss. Though no damage, at all, was sustained other than what I mentioned. Depending on the final tally by the marina who would repair it, we may or may not, buy the boat back from Boat U.S. and have it repaired. If, however, it is an overwhelming expense, the boat will be sold for salvage. The Carver was in mint condition. If someone needs parts, generator, Mercruiser 230hp engines, V-drives, cushions, canvas, etc.etc it would an opportunity to have good, original equipment for THEIR Carver Mariner at a salvage boat price. It is such a shame to have to even consider this but it might be good for someone who needs, literally, a whole boat-load of Carver stuff. Again, we may be able to cover some difference in the insurance and the actual cost of repair and fix it. We would like to do that but funds are limited and we haven’t gotten the final tally from the fiberglass guys at the marina. If we can’t, It’s a 1987 model but wasn’t sold til 1988. It was fresh water kept until we bought it 4 years ago. My wife is really devastated by this. When she was a 6 years old she made a paper mache cruiser in the top of a shoe box and said “one day I’m going to have a boat like this,” It wasn’t a lot but her Carver was all she wanted in a boat. I don’t think we can afford another one like it that was in as good a shape as this one. We looked at 12 of them before we found this one in Charleston, WV on the Kanawaha River. We surveyed it and had it brought to the Chesapeake Bay. It was my 16th boat. Just wanted to pass it on so someone else might benefit from her demise. Thanks Dale Shomette Editor Note: I was in Baltimore, also expecting winds between 35 and 40 knots. We got 50 to 60 knot winds until well past midnight. The tidal surge was less than expected, only 4 feet or so, but it was more interesting than was reported.
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The club will be adding a new feature to the web site later this month. It's a collection of tips from many sources that you can search and apply. Want to know what to use to clean the vinyl on your bridge? Search in the Tips section. Murphy's Oil Soap, warm water, and a medium brush do a great job cleaning exterior vinyl.
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Here are a few of the notes and questions I've received lately. If you have an answer or any insight, email me, webdude@carverownersclub.com. A mail only member asked about sound deadening material. We've
had good results from a company called Soundown. Here are their
addresses and telephone numbers.
16 Broadway; Salem, MA
01970; 978-745-7000; and
3005 S.W. 2nd Avenue;
Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33315; 954-761-9188
I am a new member. I'm looking for other owners of
older models (1983) of the Santa Cruz owners. Email
webdude@carverownersclub.com if you are an owner or know of
someone who owns an older Santa Cruz.
We have a 1990 4207 Carver Aft-cabin. We need to have one of our 3208 Caterpillers replaced. Has anyone in the club had to remove an engine from a 4207? We think the engine will have to go out through the salon window? I think the disassembled engine will fit through the door, barely.
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Volvo Engines
I've received several complaints from different owners related to their Volvo engines. At first, it was limited to diesel engines - now, I'm hearing complaints about the gasoline engines, too. I'm hesitant to bring this up because different owners have different experiences with all types of engines. What's happening now is that some of the service facilities for Volvo are also complaining and asking me to mention some of the problems. That's a first. Volvo also had a great reputation for responsive customer service. This reputation is less glowing now as Volvo refuses reimbursement for warranty repairs and can't seem to find enough qualified service facilities. Let me start out with the gasoline engines. You must use a minimum of 89 octane fuel (Mid-grade) in the Volvo engines - 93 octane (Premium) if you can find it. Some marinas began selling 87 octane (Regular) during the summer to keep fuel costs down. We can argue about whether or not the marinas told the fuel buyers that they were getting lower octane fuel. Add to the lower octane an ethanol mix and you have a very substandard fuel. Since boaters tended to cruise less this summer, the ethanol mix fuel may have also been water contaminated from the ethanol's ability to attract water. The damage can be a blown head gasket or a blown engine. The damage can be done very quickly. Please note that running sub-standard fuel is NOT a warranty item. The Volvo diesel engines have had several recalls. The biggest problem with the Volvo diesel engines is finding qualified mechanics to do the work. In one case, a member had to wait four days for the nearest Volvo repairman to get to his boat and another two days to get the parts installed. In another case, a member asked that Volvo replace his engines after repeated repairs did not correct the problems. I'll let you know if that happens. I've mentioned several times the unavailability of qualified mechanics. In the upper Chesapeake Bay, there were two facilities, Warehouse Creek and Outstanding Marine. Warehouse Creek recently changed hands. Outstanding Marine (Phone: (410) 885-5991) has a good reputation and they travel to the boat. Finally, a quick story about a problem that was not a Volvo problem. A member's boat would run along fine and, then, suddenly cut out. Several mechanics looked at the issue and could not resolve the problem. A Volvo service facility was called in. As one of the mechanics was crawling into the engine room, he "fat-butted" the battery cable that disconnected and killed the engine. Seems that someone failed to crimp the battery cable properly. One never knows the power of the butt.
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Here are the events we have tentatively planned for 2007
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| Picture of a Man with Seconds to live
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| Special Offer The
Marina at Ortega Landing is offering complimentary dockage, with the prior
approval of the Director of Membership Sales, Scott Herbst. The
Marina is on the Ortega River, a tributary of the St. John's River. Check
NOAA chart #11492. They offer brand new Bellingham floating docks,
electricity and water with slip side pump out available. You can see us on
the web at www.ortegalanding.com.
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Feature Article Robert Janger continues to provide helpful information about how to connect to shore power in this month's article, Sure Power. To read it, click here. Robert's article from last month helped me save about $600 at the Annapolis Boat Show. Sadly, it cost me $3000 to save that. As a side note, Robert will cover the Miami Boat Show for the club next year. Let either of us know if there is something of particular interest to you at the show. Robert's particular interest is to be invited to the Thursday Cocktail Party thrown by Carver Boats. |
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