Over the last three days, Dave and I (mostly Dave with me being the chief tool hander and third hand) have basically torn the stove apart on our new-to-us boat.
It began with the objective of fixing a propane leak in one burner, and expanded as we discovered that the real problem was that something had spilled/boiled over on the stove, run down through the burner, totally plugged everything up and never been cleaned (more on this in another post).
The end result was that we (read: mostly Dave) had to tear the stove top almost totally apart to clean it. And the best place to do that was in the cockpit, once we got the stove out of the galley.
And so we employed a rule we’d learned the hard way on our previous boat: plug the cockpit drains and scuppers before doing anything else.
It doesn’t have to be fancy — rags or used paper towels will do just fine. The one time we forgot to do this — you guessed it — we lost a critical screw down it. Luckily, Dave was able to jury-rig a substitute, but it taught us a very good lesson.
Not only is there Murphy’s Law at work, but everything slopes down to the drains, making it even more likely that items will roll down the drain.
This time, nothing was lost although many things were dropped . . . and I now have a stove that works really well! Coffee this morning was ambrosia!
Carolyn Shearlock has lived aboard full-time for 17 years, splitting her time between a Tayana 37 monohull and a Gemini 105 catamaran. She’s cruised over 14,000 miles, from Pacific Mexico and Central America to Florida and the Bahamas, gaining firsthand experience with the joys and challenges of life on the water.
Through The Boat Galley, Carolyn has helped thousands of people explore, prepare for, and enjoy life afloat. She shares her expertise as an instructor at Cruisers University, in leading boating publications, and through her bestselling book, The Boat Galley Cookbook. She is passionate about helping others embark on their liveaboard journey—making life on the water simpler, safer, and more enjoyable.
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Jan Bogart says
i’ve also taken digital pictures as things come apart as a reminder of what goes where! 1st did that repairing the wind generator.
The Boat Galley says
Oh, we take LOTS of digital photos of how things go together!
Chris&Janet says
We use a no longer network connected smartphone’s video camera on some projects where movement and not just placement need tracking. We upload the vids to the laptop for the next time we have to tackle the project.
Patricia Pucher says
I love your site and not for the reason you might think. I don’t have a boat but I aim to have a ‘tiny house’. Much of what you say about boats applies to tiny houses too. Thank you, thank you.
Carolyn Shearlock says
Glad you find it so useful! 🙂
Barbara Lowell says
Me too Patricia. Thot I was the only landlubber!!!
Jeri Berge says
Working on the fresh water tank sensor, we dropped a screw inside the tank! Took an hour or so to finally “suck” it out with a hose!
The Boat Galley says
And that’s why “five minute jobs” take a half day . . .
Frank says
I like to have a couple of different size I think their called earth magnets handy. Super strong small magnets that can help you fis items from a tight spot. You can get them loose and put them on a string or for a few dollars more, you can get several sizes mounted on a telescopic ( old car antenna like) adjustable handle . Great for fishing out of tight spaces and the small ones are unbelievably strong. They even have a model that is in different sizes on both sizes so after you finish working you boat on the dry drag across the work area tomget any of those runaway screws or anything else sharp enough to cause a flat
Susie Burall says
Just don’t put a magnet anywhere near the compass!!!
Frank says
Just an after add on, keep away from computer drives or any type of media like that it may wipe it clean
Barbara Lowell says
Yes this actually happened to me … I had to replace my hard drive (Luckily it was recently backed up but Apple service guy charged me around $350 or maybe it was more, can’t remember. Anyway I found out later I overpaid and I was doubly annoyed.
jaha says
I’m a lurking land-lubber, too. I’m just here for the food. Sailors seem to eat better/live better than campers and RV’ers, while using similar skills. These skills, tips, and techniques are so handy during home-disrupting situations, such as remodeling projects, weather/power emergencies, extended plumbing repairs, etc.
David Lake says
I have a metal dish that is magnetized ,.. can find them at most auto places …works great for small parts
The Boat Galley says
That assumes you don’t drop them putting them into the dish. Yes, we’ve lost them that way, too.
David Lake says
was just trying to be helpful
The Boat Galley says
No, it’s a great suggestion 🙂 We’re sometimes a little fumble-fingered!
Kimberly Young Price says
We bought these beauties at a hardware store. The bathroom sink and shower drain are both about 2.5″. They fit perfectly and we keep them in all the time. We like to play dice games in the cockpit. Never have to worry about losing a die either.
Joysealife.com says
I like to put a drop cloth under the work area. It keeps the nuts and screws from falling into dark tight corners. Sometimes I just grab a fuel pad. It’s much easier to see the screw on a white pad than in the dusty dark corners.
Ian Kelly says
those drains have magnets in them
The Boat Galley says
Definitely. And it’s some sort of magnet that will attract non-magnetic parts even.
Gregory Thompson says
I have them put most every part seems to be true stainless or non magnetic
Rosemary Malcolmson MacLean says
We found that the plugs for our galley and head sinks fit all the drains on the boat!
Wanita Meed says
Our floor boards have finger holes to lift them up. The boat is 32yrs no fancy locking mechanism.
To keep stuff from going down into the bilge, I cut some stiff plastic, (the black plastic used in binders to move pages over the ring gap), a little longer than the hole and screwed it down on the underside of the board. The 2 screws were on the opposite side your finger would poke threw to lift the board.