Maybe a stupid question, but I'm
learning, I really am
learning a lot. I'm not just asking questions and taking care of the problem and not learning anything. Each fix is a learning experience.
So the weird channel we have has markers every 500 yards or so, but they curve and are really hard to follow. It shallows quick outside of them. I was sailing along and it turns out it is a minus tide today and all of a sudden I start thinking things feel
funny. Like I'm going slow. So i look at the
water, its murky, I decide I should tack. I make it about halfway around and stop.
I'm thinking, weird, I thought I had the speed to make that tack, so I straighten out and fill the
sails and try again and this time nothing happens. I just stay heeled over with the
sails filled.
I never actually felt hitting the mud. But I was stuck. I didn't like it. I turned on the
engine and tried to reverse first, didn't move. forward, nothing, eventually I gunned it and with the help pf the sails, somehow made my way into deeper and deeper
water and beelined it back to the channel.
My question is do I need to do anything to clean out my
engine? I'm wondering if I sucked up any mud using it so much and so fast with the
raw water intake so close to the churning muddy water.
FWIW i have a
heat exchanger, so only get
raw water outside the engine.
I don't want to overheat or anything in the future. I already think it clogged a
bilge pump, is there anything else I should do? I have a hose attachment to run fresh water through there and did that.