Watermaker Problems Before We Sail Around the World: Critical Sailboat Upgrade Challenges Ep 126

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 22:00:28 +0000

Hi and welcome aboard @SailingAstridTheWombat
We are Gav and Shezz and two and a half years ago we bought our Beneteau Oceanis 430 sailboat with absolutely no sailing experience and jumped straight into the deep end of liveaboard sailing. Our very first passage was just over 700 nautical miles, launching us headfirst into the world of bluewater cruising, learning to sail, and real life at sea. Since that moment, we’ve been fully immersed in boat life, documenting the journey of turning a production cruising sailboat into a capable, self-sufficient home as we prepare for full-time liveaboard life. From major sailboat upgrades and off-grid power systems to everyday maintenance and skills building, we’re learning what it truly takes to own, sail, and live on a boat while working toward our goal of sailing around the world. If you’re into sailing adventures, beginner sailing, sailboat ownership, cruising lifestyle, and traveling the world by sailboat, our journey is all about real-time learning, ocean freedom, and building the confidence to chase long-term world cruising under sail.
Just before setting sail to explore the world by sailboat, we tackle one of the most important upgrades for long-term cruising life – installing and commissioning our sailboat watermaker!
In this episode of our liveaboard sailing adventure, we finally get our watermaker installed as we race to complete critical boat projects before beginning our dream voyage around the world. But what should have been a straightforward installation quickly turns into a series of frustrating setbacks as we uncover problem after problem with the system. From unexpected faults and troubleshooting challenges to discovering issues that prevent the watermaker from operating correctly, this project definitely doesn't go according to plan.
Having a reliable source of fresh water is essential for offshore sailing, bluewater cruising, and life at anchor, making this one of the most important milestones in our sailboat preparation journey. With our departure rapidly approaching, the pressure is on to diagnose the problems, make repairs, and get the system producing fresh drinking water before we leave.
Join us as we work through the installation process, troubleshoot multiple issues, test the system, and finally celebrate producing fresh water onboard. Whether you're a liveaboard sailor, preparing your own cruising sailboat, dreaming of sailing around the world, or simply interested in sailboat systems and upgrades, this episode is packed with valuable insights, lessons learned, and the reality of boat ownership.
Our goal is to become fully self-sufficient as we leave the dock and begin our full-time sailing lifestyle. A watermaker is a game-changing piece of equipment for long-distance sailors, allowing us to stay off-grid longer, explore remote anchorages, and enjoy the freedom that comes with cruising the world's oceans. But as every boat owner knows, even the best plans can be derailed by unexpected problems.
If you're interested in sailing, sailboats, cruising boats, liveaboard life, boat projects, sailing adventures, offshore cruising, sailing preparation, bluewater sailing, sailing couples, sailing channels, world cruising, yacht life, or learning what it takes to prepare a sailboat for global travel, you're in the right place.
Topics covered in this episode:
• Watermaker installation
• Watermaker troubleshooting
• Sailboat upgrades
• Liveaboard sailing preparation
• Fresh water systems onboard
• Offshore cruising essentials
• Cruising sailboat projects
• Preparing to sail around the world
• Sailing lifestyle and boat life
@WaterMakersAustralia

Subscribe and follow our journey as we prepare to leave our current life behind and explore the world by sailboat. With every repair, upgrade, and lesson learned, we're getting closer to the adventure we've been dreaming about for years.

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Chapters
00:00 Introduction
01:20 Questions With Gav
06:50 Full time Work Finished
07:50 Accessing the Watermaker
08:17 Installing the Membrane
10:12 New Sailboat Fridge Install
13:39 Watermaker Problems
15:58 Watermaker Install
19:38 Watermaker Walkthrough

Please leave a comment, like and subscribe to follow our journey.
Join us now as we settle into liveaboard life and get our boat ready to take off and sail around the world in just a few weeks.
As new sailors we want to share all of our learnings and keep it real in our videos. We want to show step by step what it takes to choose a boat, buy the boat and learn how to sail. Our sailing learning curve is steep so come along with us as we learn and grow as liveaboard sailors.
We promise you will have a laugh!
Welcome aboard Astrid The Wombat
Gav and Shezz
You can also find us on Instagram and Facebook: Sailing Astrid the Wombat