Gate Valves

Well, there are some things to fix on Pduck....

The gate valves scare the hell out of me, particularly since they're corroding. The experts on SailNet think she won't spontaneously sink before June, so after Mouse heads for Parris Island I'll have her hauled out so I can replace them (and work on the rudder stock).

The picture above is the head fittings. They're both gate valves on the through-hulls, and these tend to jam or break very easily. These are the original valves that were put on the boat at the factory.

The other problem with the boat, which I just now realized, is that there's no holding tank on this head! The waste discharges directly overboard. I'll have to change the fittings, and then padlock them in the closed position. The fine for getting caught with this head, operational, on the Chesapeake Bay is probably horrendous. I need to look into adding a holding tank in the V-berth. Ooooh! I also just realized that if I put in a holding tank, I can completely glass over the larger through-hull!


This one is under the deck. In theory, this valve should never be closed, since the black hoses are the cockpit drains. You never want to close your cockpit drains. What you can't see in this picture, though, is the T-fitting that also drains the kitchen sink. We may, at some point, want to close that drain. I'll have to add an in-line fitting. Something for this fall....