A few jobs completed as we have cruised

For those that are wondering where Kirsty has been on writing the blog, she has lost interest and moved over to the main social network 'facebook' ask her to be a friend!
So that now leaves me in complete control of the blog, thus you can expect more posts on practicle subjects rather than sunset drinks and marina laundries!

A major job I completed was to change the sanitation hose from the fwd holding tank to the discharge pump.After a period they get permutated with the tank odor, which in turn wafts up throught the boat.
This task was deemed a success, pat on back, and now I will embark on the remaining pipes. I have been in communication with the self professed expert on heads called  'the headmistress' in the US, a link to my qu and answer with her http://forums.sbo.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?t=133550 Diagnosed a blocked vent (which also needs replacing) and a leaking anti syphon valve, all fun and exciting jobs.
Evening Star has two such head systems thus I will be the expert when they have all been replaced.
Another major job was in getting the shower sumps to empty, as the shower drains are below the waterline, the showers need to drtain into a sump first, then this gets pumper over the side by seperate pumps. Well neither worked, so in I went and found both sumps to be full of toxic waste which had corroded off the pickup pipes, both now work perfectly yet the inline filters need constant cleaning of that toxic waste, yuk!
Engine now, I have now added another 100 hours since the oil and racor filter change since Gladstone, upon inspection I noted the racor had turned black, which in short meant that the it was filtering out dirty fuel. A diesel will not run with dirty fuel, and it will reduce the life of the engine, as the one on ES has only 2400 hours, you can say that it is less than half way through its life.
So rather than paying a mechanic to do what is an easy job (once you know how that is) I attacked it with while at the marina at airlie beach, thus close to help if I stuffed it up.
I do remember the mechanic in Gladstone being stumped when he got to the bleeding process, he solved it by running the engine while an injector was opened, way beyond my skill set. So I dialed a friend, who said the reason the fuel pump wont work, and thus bleed the system of air, is that you need to open the bleed nipple FIRST! Simple when you know how, even the guru, Nigel Calder and his $100 worth of books didn't have this bit of advice, is there a 'diesel for dummies'?
Filters all cleaned and engine didn't miss a beat, another pat on back I say.
The bildge is a pit of smelly putrid oil water and I hate to think what else, where was it coming from?
There is a huge built in oil drip tray under the engine which catches the drips, yet also filled with water, then just spilled over into the main bildge.
The water was coming from a leaking fitting on the engine water pump, about a drip a second was enough to do the damage.
Off the fitting came (i make it sound easy, yet it is hours of work in an area that is so cramped that you cannot turn a spanner more than 1/8 of a turn! See following pics
You also have to contort yourself into a new yoga position, and hold the pose while doing subtle finger movements for ages.
Anyway, I fixed it, leak stopped, oil drip tray now only gets oil and not water, and the process of cleaning the bildge has started, anyone like to help?
Mizzen boom vang is still now fixed, so I have rigged a topping lift that does the same job; might just leave as is and save myself the $450 for a news vang from FRANCE!! And while I'm on the rigging, the Profurl guys have suggested that I upgrade the boom, to which they even have a product and a manual they have sent me. This gets me wondering why they have had to have an upgrade kit anyway, no doubt I am not the first to have experinced the boom problem I had during Hammo race week.
Engine zincs, prop zinc, bildge pump strainer, sump strainers, cockpit speakers, VHF repeater re solder, the list goes on.
A yacht is like painting the harbour bridge, once you finish you just start all over again; Lucky I am unemployed!