The Pump

Our fresh water pump has been acting up for a few months now, doesn't shut off when it should. Unlike our land-based homes where water is pressurized by gravity pulling water from elevated water tanks, our system is pressurized by a pump. Anytime we turn on a faucet the pressure in the lines will decrease causing a pressure switch to engage the pump motor, when we turn the water faucet off the pressure in the system increases thereby causing the pressure switch to turn the pump off. Our pump started running in short spurts occasionally which had me thinking we had a leak in the lines somewhere, but we couldn't find one. As time went on the short spurts grew longer and longer until we were controlling the pump by turning the breaker on when needed and off when not needed. This constant breaker flipping prompted steady encouragement for corrective action from by beautiful wife; since the pump on this boat is pretty old, I decided to replace it. The pump is located in the dark cramped recesses of Overtime's bilge, a place I do not like to enter. However, the steady encouragement of my beautiful wife drove me to purchase a new pump and slither so gently into the confines of my childhood nightmares. Being in the tight corners of this unholy bilge reminds me of the days my brother and I would be wrestling in the backseat while Daddy was driving us to Grandma's house. Ever so often Curtis would manage to get on top of me while I was laying in the floorboard, I couldn't move my arms or legs and breathing was a struggle, each desperate breath would enable another scream for Daddy to make him get off of me. Okay, so here I am in the floorboard, I mean bilge, and all I have to do is clip two wires and unscrew two hoses to pull the old pump out, easily done. Now to install the new pump, simply crimp two wires together and screw on two hoses, not so easily done. I kept messing the crimps up because I was in such a twisted position, my trifocal glasses won't focus in the right spot, my hand is holding the wires but also blocks my view, the flashlight doesn't shine in the right spot and I'm laying on a support which is about to crack a rib. After calling out to God to condemn these wires to eternal damnation I was finally able to steady my right hand in a good position with the little bastards, focus my vision in the right spot and compress the crimper with my left hand; and remember, since there are two wires, I had to do this twice. So there you have it, once again the simplest of jobs takes twice as long as it should have. The good news is that we have a water pump that's working correctly, but most important is the happiness I see in my beautiful wife's eyes and the pride she has in her husband's ability to replace a pump.

Kim's Korner:
Shells, horseshoe crabs, sand dollars, and deserted beaches - what more can I say? We have definitely enjoyed Tarpon Springs - and I am thoroughly enjoying our new water pump which my wonderful husband was so eager to install for me 😊 Check out these pictures!