FUEL FOR THOUGHT: How to Remove, Fix, and Re-install an Auxiliary Fuel Tank (The Hobbit Hole Part 1)
After spending an unexpected and extended amount of time fixing the hull-to-deck join, bulwark, scuppers and caprail, it’s been nice to move back inside Brilliant II to continue the interior refit.
Next on the list has been our “Hobbit Hole”, or as it’s known to the folks outside Middle Earth, the companionway between the aft cabin and main saloon. The first, and most major job in this section of the boat was removing a leaking auxiliary fuel tank. Fuel and water tanks are notoriously hard to get to and although this wasn’t completely buried beneath the built-in cabinetry, it was still a notable manoeuvre both on the way out and going back in.
True to form, the discoveries we made while investigating the source of said leaks were, well, interesting. We all know what happens when dissimilar metals come into contact with each other, but check out the result when that’s inside a fuel tank and there’s diesel in the mix!
Happily, we were able to salvage most of our original tank, and the re-installed version includes some significant improvements on its predecessor.
Welcome along for the journey – we hope you enjoy the show!
Things we’ve added to this video and want to give credit to:
Music via www.storyblocks.com
👇🏻
Media Music Group / Children’s Story Book Magic
Humans Win (formerly Lance Conrad) / Explorer
MoodMode / Jazzy Retro Swing Groove
Media Music Group / Latin Salsa Cooking
New Library Sounds / Funny Days
Media Music Group / Children’s Story Nature Mischief
Music via www.epidemicsound.com
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Five Dime Fellas / Afternoon Swing https://www.epidemicsound.com/track/48nuNbkoiS/
Martin Landström / Front Window Shadows https://www.epidemicsound.com/track/19vMrKDWMw/
Ran the Man / Suburban Sunrise https://www.epidemicsound.com/track/RlzlOcMzLQ/
T. Morri / Rumble Stumble https://www.epidemicsound.com/track/0r3Lh60mZ4/
Joe E. Lee / The Budapest Project https://www.epidemicsound.com/track/FUYppgYVr5/
The Sailing Adventures of Brilliant II
Join the Smallwoods - Sharon, Julian, Josh, and Pepe (the Blue Burmese) - aboard Sailing Vessel Brilliant II. Brilliant II is a Kelly Peterson 44, built in 1978. Julian and Sharon bought the boat in Phuket, Thailand, in 2005, and sailed her slowly back to Sydney, Australia. Over the next five years they lived aboard and sailed the coasts of New South Wales and Queensland. They are currently based in the Whitsundays, Queensland, where Josh was born in 2010. In 2021 they began a refit of the water-damaged interior (which had needed doing since the start!), while continuing to sail on mini-adventures north and south of their home port. Sharon is a photojournalist by trade, but realising YouTube is a thing has started creating videos too. You can also follow their adventures on Instagram at @shazatsea.
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