How Did You Learn To Do Maintenance?

[WindLove]

I've never learned much because I wanted to! it's usually only because I have to. When you are at sea, there is no quarter. You either fix it or you ...... Well, you could die.

I am often solo sailing and for me, as a woman, it has it's own challenges. - I was sailing from Norfolk to Block Island last summer and in the night I realized my running lights were going dim, even though my engine was running. If I cut the engine, I am thinking, maybe it won't start back and then I'm in trouble; or at least I would have to wait for the wind that I didn't have at the time. I knew I had an alternator issue, but how am I going to fix that with the engine running?

I was 24 hours away from arrival - probably 130 miles, and I wasn't sure if i had enough gas to last the whole journey. So in my tired state after several hours of solo night watch I thought, over and over, would I prefer to run the engine dry, or cut it off and have no batteries to restart it?

[jkindredpdx]

Originally Posted by WindLove

...
I was 24 hours away from arrival - probably 130 miles, and I wasn't sure if i had enough gas to last the whole journey. So in my tired state after several hours of solo night watch I thought, over and over, would I prefer to run the engine dry, or cut it off and have no batteries to restart it?

So what DID you do?

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by colemj

Hard knocks, books and other people in that order for me.

Mark

Thinking about it... I suspect your order is more correct for me too, I'm not very good at asking for help!

[shadow]

Yah, just trial and error, lots or research and reading as well as other people showing you or assisting them... Any and all time on repair is great for educational and functioning purposes..

[Skinnylegs]

I worked in a boat yard and learnt off the the other ppl now I know how to do my own

[Sam Plan B]

It is a good thing to learn from one's mistakes. It is better to learn from the other guy's mistakes. I bought lots of books on ebay and abebooks. And I read them. So, study up before you begin a task. Plan the task. Make lists. Then start over again and figure out how to do the task a second way. Then do nothing for a week and think it through again. Then, the first sunny day, go after it.