Topics not related, just among the current Cherubini projects. I spent about three hours on the ladder yesterday and got the three stripes off the starboard side of the old H37C. That's over 37'x3 or 110 feet plus the vertical stripes at the transom. Fortunately two of the three could be pulled off. But I had to work very slowly and they would tear every few feet. Then I would pick at it and get it restarted for several feet. Very tedious! The middle stripe only crumbled if I tried to pull it. For that stripe I used the tool you have probably read about here on HOW, the "eraser". I chucked it into my 1/2" drill and it magically makes the stripe disappear. The gelcoat is unaffected. Problem is that the eraser also disappears. I used half of it on that one 37' stripe. It costs around $20. with an arbor at the automotive paint store. Do not know what they get for the refill. Friday the port side comes off. You may have seen my post about low water pressure on the hot water side. Compounding that issue is the fact that my water pump also bit the dust. A new one is on order from Depco(with different mounting pattern of course). What I learned is how hard it is to find 5/8" pipe fittings. For example the hoses were clamped directly on the pump. But the ShurFlo pump is threaded. There should be a female pipe-to-hose fitting, both on inlet and output. But West Marine does not have that size(1/2"NPTx5/8") and neither does Google(so far). The threaded portion of the pump is almost too short for a clamp and an excellent place for a leak. And the old 5/8" hose starts to crack because it has to be stretched to get it over those threads. On disassembling the old ShurFlo I found the little screens in the head to be almost closed by calcium deposits. That is because I did not know enough to filter the water between the tank and the pump. The 1/2" filter is about nine bucks. The 5/8" filter is over $20. Have you worked on your pump under the galley sink? How am I going to get that filter back there? I might put it in the bilge at the manifold. But I will have to use some creative plumbing. There is very little room between the manifold(tank selector) and where the hose exits the bilge. Meanwhile my backup 500gpm bilge pump served me well in winterizing the system. Unscrewed it from the bilge and put it in a bucket of anti-freeze. You guys down south don't know what you are missing.
