One of the most frequent questions we get asked is "how is the boat running?" Our standard reply has usually been "There are little problems, but nothing to get in the way of having a good time."
That has all changed over the last two weeks. Yes, we are still in a paradise known as Fiji, and yes, we are healthy. However, the old adage that 'cruising is working on boats in exotic locations' has come to haunt us.
Oso Blanco has most of the comforts of a wonderful home, but our maintenance is more like that of a city. We have the normal household problems, but, we also have an electrical plant, a sewage plant, and a water making plant. Our electrical system is called upon to support a wide range of gadgets, gizmos, and cool things ranging from household appliances in the kitchen to amazing magic boxes in our navigation system. To run all this stuff, we have an integrated assortment of generators, alternators, batteries, chargers, and inverters that can supply 12v and 24v DC power as well as 120v and 240v AC. When all is normal, we can even run our Sub Zero refrigerator, dishwasher, or laundry on batteries.
About two weeks ago, for some still unknown reason, our primary batteries began to fail. This is not a simple case of not lasting as long as they used to. They have completely refused to be charged. When your flashlight takes a dump you have a couple choices. For most folks, you stick in 2 new ones and carry on. Some of the rest of us refuse to believe that the rusted old batteries are actually dead and take them out, sand off the rust, shake the light a few times and expect it to work a while longer.
Our boat batteries are not made for shaking. To start with, there are 12 batteries arranged into 3 groups of 4. They are then bolted down in inhospitable places where they can barely be seen, yet worked on. And then there is the problem that EACH battery weighs 160 pounds!
We have spent 10 days trying to figure out what has gone wrong and how to work around it. For the short run, we are OK and have gotten along by running our generator full time. We are able to keep the beer cold, flush the heads, and keep most systems running, but we are reluctant to get far from town and access to internet, phones, and other support services. We have found out that there are no comparable batteries in Fiji. We have contacted battery dealers in New Zealand, Australia, and the U.S. We now know that it will be nearly a month to get batteries here on a ship. Our current quotes for shipping 2000 lbs. of batteries via air freight indicate that the batteries must be flying first class. I never get to fly first class.
Our plan has been to leave Fiji next week and move on to Vanuatu and then New Caledonia, where EB and Brian are to meet us in early October. We will certainly make it to New Cal by then, but Vanuatu looks like it will be cut short.
2000 lbs of batteries to Fiji from the U.S. via first class air. I wonder what the meal service will be.
E
