Breakdowns

By Anthony Swiacke

In our two cruising seasons along the Eastern U.S. and the Bahamas, we’ve experienced our fair share of breakdowns and equipment failures aboard the boat. Most of these issues are repairable with a little ingenuity and pre-planning. Others, seemingly unavoidable, are often costly—but as the common cruiser saying goes, “It’s a boat.” That’s why we always budget for repairs as part of our cruising plans.

During our first season in the Bahamas, our major catastrophe was a failed windlass. The failure stemmed from years of neglect and poor engineering on the manufacturer’s part. In hindsight, we hand-hauled the anchor for five weeks and reflected on how we ended up in that situation. Did we simply overlook servicing the windlass? It was a sealed unit and appeared to be working perfectly when we left the U.S. It lasted almost three months before seizing due to saltwater intrusion through the bearing seal.

The key takeaway was that the windlass could have failed at any time—and that it would have been much easier (and cheaper) to carry a spare rebuild kit than to try sourcing one while in foreign waters. After eventually finding a kit in Ireland, shipping it to the U.S., and dealing with the nightmare of freight forwarding to the remote islands of the Bahamas (a process that took over six weeks!), it became clear: always carry a spare when you can.

Which brings me to: Spares… Spares… Spares.

When I first started planning our cruising adventures, I took inventory of what I believed were critical components. These were mostly the low-hanging fruit:

If the dinghy engine quits, what’s the likely culprit? (Carburetor, spark, fuel filter, etc.)

If the auxiliary engine dies, what might be to blame? (Fuel filters, low oil, bad injector?)

These types of issues are usually easy to spot. Doing regular maintenance and pre-departure checks helps you get to know your systems—and catch small problems before they become big ones. No one wants to be stranded, even if there’s often a helpful fellow cruiser nearby.

But what if the electric flush toilet macerator fails? What will you do with a bowl of your own waste? And after you figure out how to get rid of it, how will you flush the toilet again?

What if the overboard macerator pump fails—and you’re in a remote location with no pump-outs?

What if your freshwater pump breaks? How will you access drinking water?

What if you rip a sail? How will you keep moving forward to reach the next port?

There are countless things to consider. Some are obvious; others require more critical analysis. One thing is certain: the more complex your boat, the more important it is to review every system and identify potential failure points.

A good example is from our recent trip north. One morning before departure, we discovered our fixed VHF was blowing fuses. After troubleshooting—and confirming with the manufacturer—we learned it had developed an internal short. Three blown fuses later, we switched to our handheld VHF and continued on. That handheld also supports AA batteries in case the main battery or charging base fails (both of which have happened to us in the past). In this case, we had a primary system and two backup options.

Here’s a list of systems we consider critical to daily life aboard:

Freshwater systems – including pumps, watermaker filters, and an assortment of common fittings

Macerator pumps – motors, rebuild kits, and toilet accessories

Ground tackle systems – rebuild kits, controllers, buttons, and relays related to anchor handling

Refrigeration – fridge/freezer control boards, refrigerant, and a gauge set for topping off

Electrical components – breakers, shore power relays, system-specific fuses, and spare lamps

VHF systems – antenna, cable connectors, and a handheld VHF

Navigation – paper charts and tools (essential if your plotter is taken out by a stray current or lightning strike; iPads and OpenCPN are great, but only if you still have power)

Sail repair – sail tape, small sheets of Dacron, and a sewing kit

Dinghy engine spares – a full replacement carburetor (if you’re not mechanically inclined), rebuild kits, fuel filters, spark plugs, pull cords, and electric start relays

Ultimately, consider your own boat’s systems and which ones are essential to your comfort, safety, and mobility. You are your own floating municipality—and usually, only you are responsible for keeping your vessel in shipshape condition.”

*Anna cleaning our old windlass shaft in marsh harbor for reinstallation.

*Tony trying to repair our trusty portable generac generator, needless to say there was no saving it.

*The worst: a jammed, ripped mainsail and a broken stay found in Cat Island Bahamas.