I just had to perform our 1000 hour service on the diesel engines, and decided to create a quick video to pass on the steps to adjust the valve clearance. It’s actually incredibly easy, especially on this engine and by doing this yourself, you can probably save between $750 to $1500. The total time to do both engines was about two hours and if I didn’t drop something into the engine (more on that in the video) it probably would’ve taken an hour and a half total, and that’s having never done it before. If you like this content, please consider subscribing. I try to focus on practical videos that can make your life easier and save you money! Quick notes Engine: Nanni N4.38 Valve clearance range: 0.145 to 0.185 mm Valve cover nut torque: 6 ft-lbs Service internal: Every 1000 hours

In this Tech Episode, I take you through how to make changes to Victron Isolation transformers so that they don't boost incoming voltage by 4%, but instead reduce (or buck) the voltage by 4%. NOTE: DO NOT ATTEMPT THESE CHANGES IF YOU ARE NOT QUALIFIED TO DO SO! I ASSUME NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY MISTAKES, PROBLEMS, DAMAGE, ETC!!! The Companion Blog article can be found here: https://www.onanewtack.com/2025/01/victron-auto-transformer-how-to-lower.html I hope you like and please leave a comment if this helped, you have any feedback, etc.! Want more? Please give us a follow on our other social media: https://instagram.com/on_a_new_tack http://facebook.com/OnANewTack Check out our blog: http://www.OnANewTack.com Where are we right now:? http://tracking.OnANewTack.com For the BEST content, follow our cat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/chuckpail

We decided to do a quick move from Salinas, PR to Coffin Island, which is just off-shore from Ponce, PR. We wanted to be in clean water to make more fresh-water and clean our boat hull. Instead of dolphins welcoming us in, it was sharks! Well, nurse sharks, which are very docile and off little concern, but there were 4 circling our boat and the largest is probably about 6' long! Enjoy! Want more? Please give us a follow on our other social media: https://instagram.com/on_a_new_tack http://facebook.com/OnANewTack Check out our blog: http://www.OnANewTack.com Where are we right now:? http://tracking.OnANewTack.com For the BEST content, follow our cat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/chuckpail

A Better Water Pump! - Overview First, sorry, this is a long one, but skip over any parts that bore you. If you have a marine diaphragm water pump that has started to act up and either doesn't run or sounds sporadic when it's running, this may be a pretty easy and inexpensive fix to repair it, just by replacing the pressure switch. We have a Pentair SHURflo pump that starting acting up after a year and this repair has been tested out for about 6 months and is working great! If you want to prevent this problem from occurring again, there are also instruction on how to upgrade the pump so that the switch doesn't wear out again. Companion Blog Article: https://www.OnANewTack.com/2024/10/WaterPumpUpgrade.html - Chapters 0:00 Intro 1:06 Removing the Pump 3:16 Pump Model 3:36 The Problem 5:37 About the Upgrade 5:50 Solid State Relay Description (Technical) 7:11 What We'll Need 7:31 Pump Dis-assembly 8:54 How the Pump Works 9:48 Removing the Switch 11:41 Unsoldering the Old Switch 12:11 Soldering in the New Switch 13:29 Inside the Failed Switch 15:46 Pump re-assembly 20:15 A Working Pump! 20:26 Preparing for the SSR Upgrade 23:34 Red and Black Pigtails 24:19 Soldering in a Y-Splice 26:11 Cold Solder Joint 27:19 Soldering in a Y-Splice - Another Way 28:21 Adding Heat=Shrink Tubing 29:14 Attaching the SSR 34:07 Adding Quick-Connects to the Pump Leads 35:56 Serviceable Parts 37:08 Re-installing the Pump 39:58 Why Have an Accumulator? 40:33 How to Check System Pressures 41:25 Getting Air Out of the System 41:48 You've Got to be Kidding! 42:38 Adjusting the Accumulator Pressure 44:04 Adjusting the Pump Cut-Off Pressure 45:21 Wrap-up 45:54 Coming up! - Things you will need - Note the parts listed below can all be ordered from https://www.Digikey.com. Go to the site and search on the part number. The blog article (above) includes links. SSR - This will vary based on the voltage and fuse fating (as shown on motor) of the pump you have. 24V, up to 10A Pump Fuse Rating - E-T-A ESR10-NC2A4HB-00-D2-10A - $19 12V, up to 10A Pump Fuse Rating - E-T-A ESR10-NC2A4HB-00-D1-10A - $26 12V, up to 17A Pump Fuse Rating - E-T-A ESR10-NC2A4HB-00-D1-17A - $36 Wire cutters Wire stripper Wire connector crimper Female, 0.187" crimp quick-connect insulated connectors for small tabs on SSR. 14-16 gauge - one for wire from micro switch - TE Connectivity 3-350816-2 - $0.30 18-22 gauge - one for added wire from power - TE Connectivity 2-520181-2 - $0.30 Female, 0.25" crimp quick-connect insulated connectors for large tabs on SSR. Sized for the wire on your pump, you will need two each 10-12 gauge - TE Connectivity 4-520448-2 - $0.35 14-16 gauge - TE Connectivity 3-520141-2 - $0.40 6" Length of marine wire, Red, 12 or 14 gauge (to match the red wire gauge on your pump) 6" Length of marine wire, Black, 18 - 22 gauge (carries almost no current) Soldering Iron Solder Soldering flux Two 1" long pieces of heat-shrink tubing, large enough to slide over two pieces of pump motor wires laid on top of each other. Lighter or heat gun to shrink heat-shrink tubing. 6-8" piece of electrical tape Optional I'm a big fan on using these same Quick Connectors when you re-install the pump into your boat. It is so much easier to take the pump out to replace any items, and if you use Quick Connect connectors, this becomes so much easier. Female, 0.25" crimp insulated connectors for boat side of your pump connection. (same as above) - Choose the size that matches your boat wiring. 10-12 gauge - TE Connectivity 4-520448-2 - $0.35 14-16 gauge - TE Connectivity 3-520141-2 - $0.40 Male, 0.25" crimp insulated connectors for pump side of pump connection. Choose the size that matches your pump wiring. 10-12 gauge - TE Connectivity 4-521098-2 - $0.70 14-16 gauge - TE Connectivity 3-520107-2 - $0.65 You may also need some nylon ties (Zip-Ties) to tidy up your re-installation. - Want more? Please give us a follow on our other social media: https://instagram.com/on_a_new_tack http://facebook.com/OnANewTack Check out our blog: http://www.OnANewTack.com Where are we right now:? http://tracking.OnANewTack.com For the BEST content, follow our cat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/chuckpail

If you’ve never bought a pineapple because you didn’t know how to cut one, fear no more! Buying and serving a fresh pineapple to friends always feels like a treat to me not to mention, want one of the best piña coladas ever?! Add in some fresh cut pineapple to make it next level!

We are currently in Trinidad as Hurricane Beryl passes through Grenada, anchored in one of the few anchorages not overrun with the hundreds of boats that came here to seek refuge. This anchorage is very exposed to the South-West, so chop has been building to the point that we needed to use our washboards while anchored! They are standard on the @visionyachts2882 444 and are designed to limit the water coming into the cockpit while still allowing adequate drainage. They even come in a pretty amazing padded storage bag that Bev at the factory makes for every boat. There is another set that can be installed at the sliding door, but thankfully we haven’t had to resort to that yet.

Lychees are tropical fruits that grow on trees, originally in China, but now found in many parts of Asia and beyond. We first came across and tried lychees while living in South Africa as they are grown as a fruit crop there. We visited a grocery store in Martinique today and it turns out they are grown here too, so we excitedly bought some! Lychee is often used as a flavor description for white wines and I never knew what that flavor was. Know that I do, I’m excited to pick that out in a wine some day. Have a watch to see how to cut open and eat lychee fruit. They are one of my very favorite (like top 5) fruits ever! Enjoy! #lychee #howto #martinique

Soursops are fruits from the tropic areas of the Americas and Caribbean. They contain white slightly fibrous flesh similar to that of a banana, and large black seeds. The fruit can be eaten directly, but is often used in juices, smoothies, ice creams flavorings and baking. Soursop is known as guanábana (gwa-NA-bana) is many Spanish speaking cultures, and let’s be honest, that is way more fun to say!

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One of our absolute favorite stops in the Caribbean is Dominica. It is a beautiful island with 20 volcanos and 365 rivers. Some of the most amazing fruits and vegetables we have ever seen are grown here and sold in Portsmouth at a large market on Saturday. It is not the easiest island to get to (though there is a direct flight from Miami), but it would be a wonderful place to spend a week on vacation!

Want more? Please give us a follow on our other social media: https://instagram.com/on_a_new_tack http://facebook.com/OnANewTack Check out our blog: http://www.OnANewTack.com Where are we right now:? http://tracking.OnANewTack.com For the BEST content, follow our cat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/chuckpail

After over 11,000 nautical miles, Mira turned one today! Watch for an exciting announcement! Want more? Please give us a follow on our other social media: https://instagram.com/on_a_new_tack http://facebook.com/OnANewTack Check out our blog: http://www.OnANewTack.com Where are we right now:? http://tracking.OnANewTack.com For the BEST content, follow our cat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/chuckpail

A Short about what a trip for groceries consists of for those living aboard their boats. Want more? Please give us a follow on our other social media: https://instagram.com/on_a_new_tack http://facebook.com/OnANewTack Check out our blog: http://www.OnANewTack.com Where are we right now:? http://tracking.OnANewTack.com For the BEST content, follow our cat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/chuckpail

Since leaving for South Africa in September 2022, we have not been back to North Carolina.  That’s about to change! We will be in Beaufort by Wednesday and then on to Little Washington, North Carolina by Friday. Note: we were going to be up to Beaufort by Tuesday but given the small craft advisory that’s in place we’re going to delay a day. We can’t wait to see friends and family and meet up with anyone else that follows us, and would like to come visit us or the boat.  If that’s you, please go to meet up.OnANewTack.com and let us know when and where you’d like to meet us! Want more? Please give us a follow on our other social media: https://instagram.com/on_a_new_tack http://facebook.com/OnANewTack Check out our blog: http://www.OnANewTack.com Where are we right now:? http://tracking.OnANewTack.com For the BEST content, follow our cat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/chuckpail

We return to Hog Island for the “big day”, Sunday. More food options, live music and a lot more locals. What a great place to soak up the local culture! Come visit Roger and Shawn yourself and have great drinks and great food!! Want more? Please give us a follow on our other social media: https://instagram.com/on_a_new_tack http://facebook.com/OnANewTack Check out our blog: http://www.OnANewTack.com Where are we right now:? http://tracking.OnANewTack.com For the BEST content, follow our cat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/chuckpail

After almost 6 weeks and over 5500 nautical miles, we finally finished our crossing! Woo Hoo!

We are about 1-2 hours away from crossing the Equator, and since we are equipped with Starlink, we thought that is the perfect time for a live stream! We won’t know the exact time until pretty close to then as our angle of travel keeps changing with the wind. Keep an eye out for a notification if you are subscribed!

After posting a feature of the day where I discussed our projector, I received a comment asking does it really work when you’re underway? This seemed like a great opportunity to show how it works and also go into more detail on our entertainment system.  There is one part I neglected to cover. Our 16” chartplotter is routed to a HDMI switch box behind the Nav Station. A regular HDMI input port located in the Nav Station is also routed to that HDMI switch box. The output of that HDMI switch box is routed to the projector through the ceiling to its second HDMI input. I replaced the physical toggle switch on the HDMI switch box with a small stainless steel toggle switch attached on a cable, which is mounted cleanly next to HDMI input. With this setup, we can display our Helm Station chartplotter on the projector, or we can connect a laptop or any other HDMI device, and connect it to the input port and flip the switch to show it instead. Components Overhead laser projector - Optoma ZH506e Stereo unit - Fusion Apollo RA770 Speakers, cockpit - Fusion XS-F65x Speakers, salon - Fusion SM-F65x Media server - Synology DS220 Let me know if you have any questions or comments! Want more? Please give us a follow on our other social media: https://instagram.com/on_a_new_tack http://facebook.com/OnANewTack Check out our blog: http://www.OnANewTack.com Where are we right now:? http://tracking.OnANewTack.com For the BEST content, follow our cat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/chuckpail

This one’s been asked for by a couple people. I was going to combine it with the full “entertainment solution”, but in the interest of getting this out, here is just the Projector part. I’ll do another one that talks about everything. The Projector we ended up with is the Optoma ZH506e. It looks like this has now been replaced with the ZH507. The important specs are a throw ratio of 2:1, preferably with adjustable zoom in which 2:1 is within the adjustable zoom range. Also high brightness is key if wanting to use this during the day. Want more? Please give us a follow on our other social media: https://instagram.com/on_a_new_tack http://facebook.com/OnANewTack Check out our blog: http://www.OnANewTack.com Where are we right now:? http://tracking.OnANewTack.com For the BEST content, follow our cat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/chuckpail

This may seem like a trivial thing to have on a boat, but I can tell you it has been invaluable on the crossing! With each of the four of us getting up at different times, being able to quickly and easily make our favorite drink in just about any sea state has made starting our watches so much nicer. It does require frequent emptying of the drip tray and filling of the water vessel, but it does self clean each time it is turned off. We’ve had this since just after moving to South Africa and we really have enjoyed it, and as mentioned in the video, guests have been really impressed with the quality of the coffee and ease in making it. The reason we chose the Philips is because it had one of the highest pressures to extract the coffee and because of how it uses milk. As shown, it uses a straw system, so we can just stick that into a carton of milk instead of filling a special container that comes with other brands of machines. Because our fridge is small, we felt it important to not have another “thing” to put in the fridge. Model Philips EQ.6 plus s 500 Want more? Please give us a follow on our other social media: https://instagram.com/on_a_new_tack http://facebook.com/OnANewTack Check out our blog: http://www.OnANewTack.com Where are we right now:? http://tracking.OnANewTack.com For the BEST content, follow our cat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/chuckpail