33 express. Toilet seal and lewmar freezing

[mfl1375]

This is an amazing forum and watch from the sidelines. Now might need a little help. We have a 33 grady express 2004. First, the toilet pump keeps running because I think it cant get a seal. And I think it can't get a seal form the toilet. First, does that make sense. Then if so, How do I fix?
Second, went fishing Saturday at lovely Catalina Island, CA, but my anchor wouldnt go down. We have a lewmar windlass. It sounds like it goes up and down, but doesnt. Totally frozen. Any ideas, other than taking the wrench in the side hole and jumping on the end, not that I actually tried that for any warranty readers...

 

[seasick]

When you say that is sounds like it goes up and down but it doesn't , what exactly does that mean? Do you see the gypsy turn? Do you hear the motor running?

Regarding the head, what type of fixture do you have? Is it a vacuflush?

 

[DennisG01]

In addition to the what Seasick wrote (good questions to help get better a better explanation/description)... does the head hold water? Does the gypsy have a manual locking pin/lever?

 

[wspitler]

If you have a vacuum flush toilet, what you hear running is the vacuum pump. There are many places that can prevent it from drawing A proper vacuum. Or the switch that cuts it off, the vacuum switch could be malfunctioning. One way to check the bowl seal is to put water in it and leave it and if it does not go away then the seal is OK. There are also two or three other seals in the vacuum tank itself that could be leaking. In addition the most likely cause are the duckbill valves not sealing properly. Those duckbill valves need to be replaced every few years as they start to become brittle. With regard to your windlass, an easy way to check for internal damage is to pull the side plate on the port side and view the gears. The motor is in there as well. If it has been wet inside you may have a problem internally. Good luck!

 

[everwhom]

Assuming its the Vacuflush, the head sounds like a standard maintenance item -- probably need to replace the duckbill seals. Dometic sells a maintenance kit for DIY, but I always let my marina deal with this. I like to get my hands dirty, but not this!

If you have the original windlass, your might be the Horizon 600 freefall version (that's what I have on my 2003). The freefall mechanism is kinda weird -- to operate, you push the down arrow until the gypsy releases at which point the anchor is supposed to just fall by gravity, and you have to STOP holding the button. This only takes like 2 seconds. If you hold the button too long, the mechanism can come completely unspooled so you can no longer wind it back up. If this happens the only way to fix is to disassemble the case and spool it back on. This all sounds complicated, but if you take the cover off it's actually pretty obvious. I've had to do it a couple of times. While you're in there, clean and lightly grease the parts with some marine grease.

I've attached the manual in case that's your unit.

 

[Sailfish]

Here is a good video on how to test and then change a bad bowl seal

 

[loubeer]

I don't want to come across as a wise ass or a side-line preacher trying to embarrass someone, but I do think there is an important message in this thread for all Grady owners. I keep my 2003 Express in the water in temperate SoCal. If I haven't been able to use the boat in a few weeks, I go to my slip and run the generator, exercise the head and water pumps, spin the radar and turn on all navigation screens, move the trim tabs up and down, make sure the windlass is spinning, exercise the steering wheel, operate the heater/AC, make sure the engine rams are moving, etc. If it has been over a month, I'll also start the motors up for 5 minutes and flush them out after. Bottom line, the time to discover problems with operating systems on your boat is on your trailer or in your slip, not when your taking friends and family on a cruise or weekender. I'll let the hard winter folks chime in, since their check list is probably longer than mine. Again, no malice in my message, just trying to help all boaters.

 

[Fishtales]

Always best to keep things running from time to time so there isn't the opportunity to lock up and agree probs are best addressed on the hard or in the slip. That being said, Murphy tends to show up when you least have the time, money or patience. It just part of boat ownership that you have to accept. If you do start things, you need to ensure they run beyond full operating temp. If you don't allow to come to the fully operate state you can do more harm performing quick starts. I'd ensure that proper maintenance is part of the routine along with proactive replacements. Prob not with folks here, but I've seen people cut corners and only do anything during break/fix cycles. Running things that way can be frustrating and expensive.