Why the Bow Thuster Stopped

Sailing purists will generally screw there noses up when they hear that we have a bow thruster. It's probably involuntary and sometimes it's just the barest twitch but we understand 'the look'.  Zofia had a bow thruster when we bought her and find it very useful. As with all marine equipment, you have to USE IT, OR LOOSE IT.

When we were releasing ourselves 'back to the wild' after our week long indulgence at the Soldiers Point Marina, the task was made a little more difficult by a 15-20kn breeze plus a tide ripping past at 3knots. Bow thruster to the rescue! The Bloke hit the loud button while I held onto a springer in order to push us off the jetty. Bbbbbbbrrrrrr, bbbbbrrrrrr, bbbbrrrrrrr and we were off.

We headed for Fame Cove where we had enjoyed a few days during our last brief visit to Port Stephens. We intended to pick up a mooring in still water, out of the wind and reconnect with our cruising pace. Despite the sense of relaxation whilst in the Marina, it was still a pace imposed by land timetables. Coffee and papers around 9:00am and cocktails at 16:30pm. This is by no means a complaint, rather than the element of clock-watching we are mostly excused from.

Whenever the Bloke anticipates that he might potentially want to use the bow thrusters, he'll activate them and test them with a short 'squirt' ahead of time just to be sure they will work. He doesn't want any nasty surprises, particularly if he might need to depend on them! As we approached our selected vacant mooring, the Bloke called out "Checking bow thruster!". Nothing. No sound, just a clunk. He tried again with the same clunk noise. Even reversing the direction delivered a clunk. Ooops.

We very, very seldom use the bow thruster when picking up a mooring. The Bloke has got it down pat and we generally glide up to the mooring rope into wind at under 1knot. Unless the conditions are a bit dicey I might just use a few hand signals (no forks) otherwise we wear the 'marriage saver' headphones. Shouting into a stiff breeze never sounds good and usually excites the F@*k You-reflex. Try yelling 'I love you' at maximum volume sometime. Even that sounds doubtful!

Anyway, we got connected and settled without any trouble. The Bloke immediately re-prioritised his to- do list. Top of the list: repair the bow thruster.

We began by checking the batteries and the breakers. Had we overworked things? We couldn't ever recall having given the thruster a longer burst. No joy. The bloke got into the dinghy to attempt to twirl the blades. My mop handle was useful for this. Normally the Bloke would make this a goggles and snorkel affair but we'd already been warned numerous times, from all sources, never to swim/dive in Fame Cove because it's a breeding ground for Bull Sharks. No more encouragement needed. Definitely not swimming here. Great! Anyway the broom handle proved that there wasn't anything lodged in the blades so that meant taking the for'd cabin apart to take a closer look at the motor etc... The Bloke groaned since we've never needed to give the bow thruster any attention before and therefore represented new territory. However,  having anything even 'slightly broken' aboard drives him into a frenzy. Not on his watch!

This is where the bow thruster motor is located and what it looks like when everything has been cleared to get at it.

This is what the Saloon looked like during this event.

Sleuthing the problem began in earnest. Electrical tool box, Mechanical tool box and the ever-present F*@k box, were all on standby and a certain assistant called upon to climb up and down the companionway to fetch items. Lack of current was quickly determined and voila! a solution emerged. The battery terminals had not been 'vasolined', allowing them to shake loose. A quarter turn of the thumb screws and hey-presto, we had re-established connection. No more Startrek commentary about "not having the power Capt'n". We love a happy ending.

Battery case with the terminals now 'vasolined' to prevent them vibrating loose again.

The 'Coffin Bay Suite' re-instated.

When are you visiting BTW?