Damned Water Filter

When writing the detailed specifications for Waiouru I included a potable water filter.  Most of the water we will drink on the boat will be boiled.  My intention had been to have the filter connected to a separate tap in the galley, however Andy has supplied a 3M filter which fits into the line near the water pump.  Consequentially all the water on Waiouru will be filtered.  This has the additional bonus of reducing the amount of scale. 

This morning I collected all the plumbing components and assembled the filter.  The inlet and outlet connections have rubber “O” ring seals which I carefully screwed tight.  Next the plastic pipe was cut to length before the filter and pipes were all pre-assembled ready to be connected into the line.

The filter is in the base of the port side bedroom wardrobe very close to the water pump.  After turning off the supply valve from the water tank I opened the vanity tap (furthest in the circuit) and ran the pump until the line was almost dry.  The existing pipe was then cut and the filter connected into the line.

The valve to the water tank was turned on and the pump started pressurising the system.  I was rather pleased with my effort and got the camera to take the following photo.

As I was taking the photo I noticed there was something wrong with the threaded filter inlet connection <drip drip drip>.  There was a bl**dy leak!  This connection had the “O” ring seal so why was it leaking?  These days I’m too fat and decrepit to squeeze into the wardrobe to examine the pipe.  Instead, the whole thing had to be removed.  There was water everywhere and I managed to soak three of Jan’s good hand towels stemming the flow.  After unscrewing the inlet fitting I discovered there was a small chip out of the plastic housing at the “O” ring end of the thread.  This prevented the “O” ring from sealing.  So I’ve used some liquid pipe sealer on the thread in the hope it will seal the connection.  The filter has been reinstalled however I’ve left the water off to allow the sealer to set.

Meanwhile, Jan has been without the oven since it was installed.  There is a problem with it and we are waiting on the technician to come and rectify the fault.  Without an oven she has been unable to bake bread.  But today she experimented making bread in the crock pot (slow cooker).

Ah, fresh bread…… Delicious!

Yesterday nb Dream Chaser briefly stopped at Aldermaston Wharf.  Richard and Joan live in Thailand but have a boat in the UK.  We discovered they were the last victims of Ben and Kelly Harp losing their £1000 booking deposit.  Richard told us that although they were in Thailand, he thought something was wrong and decided to cancel the booking.  Ben Harp’s website stated the booking deposit was fully refundable up until the contract was signed.  Of course the Harp’s refused to refund the deposit. 

It was nice to meet Richard and Joan and we hope to see them out on the Cut one day in the near future.