Thursday, February 6, 2014

Crushing Disappointment

That's the best way I can describe how we felt yesterday as we learned that we would not be proceeding on with a working water maker.

Our "available but not installed" water maker is evidently a total write-off.  Not worth the cost of fixing.  Might as well make an anchor out of it...       And I'm crushed!

I couldn't even bring myself to share the disappointment yesterday until I had some time to digest and contemplate the future without it.

We drove out to the boatyard yesterday, hopeful that we would hear good news about our water maker.  We know nothing about them but were just sure that the expert at Sailor's Wharf would work magic and we would be off to the Keys with it happily pumping out nice new water for us.  No worries about where to get our next fill up...  confident and care free!  But it was not meant to be.

Origin
The repairman said he could continue on trying to fix it (at a cost) but at this point, it was time to consider how much $$ we are willing to throw after old, inefficient technology that may end up being too costly to fix considering what we would have in the end... and that's IF he could get it going.  We inquired about the cost of a comparable new water maker and were shocked at the estimated cost.  No way we can plunk down that kind of money at this point...  So... we gave the order to rip it out.  Just remove it and free up the space for other things.  Pull the plug...

So... more for my own mental health than for your enjoyment... I'm making a list of reasons Why-It's-OK-That-We-Don't-Have-A-Wateraker.









  • We have no IDEA how to use a water maker.  Now we don't have to worry about maintaining it and whatever else is involved in their care and maintenance and can just have fun.
  • We have made it this far without one and have done just fine.
  • We can buy a lot of water for the cost we would spend on repairing our old one or buying a new system.
  • Lots of places will still have water for free.
  • We are just now getting into waters and temperatures where we can reduce our fresh water usage by taking transom showers and using our raw water galley pump.  We won't NEED as much water as we have thus far.
  • We can make good use of the space the old water maker was occupying.
  • There are LOTS of people out there Cruising happily without water makers.
  • Showers ashore will suddenly become SO much more wonderful. (if you've never spent time on a boat, you have no idea how important this is)
  • We can Cruise this season in the Bahamas and then decide if having a water maker would be worth the money.  We can always get one next year, and then it would be new and more efficient.
  • We could have a new water maker NOW... if I wanted to go back to WORK!  
  • We still are among the tiny percentage of people in the world who have the opportunity to cruise and enjoy this simple, beautiful, uncluttered lifestyle. 
So, I'm making every effort to shake it off and look forward to new days and new places ahead.  Feel free to throw tomatoes at me and remind me that WE'VE GOT IT GOOD!  



3 comments:

  1. Bruce & Tammy:
    Sorry to hear of your water maker problem. I'd like to discuss this with you. I'll call the marina to get your contact number.
    Thanks, Captain Jim.

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  2. "We can Cruise this season in the Bahamas and then decide if having a water maker would be worth the money. We can always get one next year, and then it would be new and more efficient."

    I think you will find the most enjoyable parts of the Bahamas are the remote locations and parks. These areas do not have marina's and therefore no water. You will need top plan accordingly when heading out to remote locations.

    We have 2 water-makers on Cream Puff. I agree, they are a pain to maintain. But, we gain a lot of freedom because of them.

    Mark and Cindy
    s/v Cream Puff
    www.creampuff.us

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  3. “Travel does what good novelists also do to the life of everyday, placing it like a picture in a frame or a gem in its setting, so that the intrinsic qualities are made more clear. Travel does this with the very stuff that everyday life is made of, giving to it the sharp contour and meaning of art.” – Freya Stark

    www.nomadicliving.com

    ReplyDelete