Do you know what boat means?
If you’ve been around any boatie, they’ll tell you it means ‘Bring On Another Thousand’. $$$$, that is!
If you’ve been around any commercial boatie, they’ll tell you it should be Boatt…add another ten to that thousand! Ha ha.
If you’re talking about adding new engines and transmissions…well, that’s another word altogether. Perhaps one that we shouldn’t mention in public.
With our engines at half life, we thought it best to replace them with brand new ones. It means:
1. we can sell the old ones as they still have thousands of hours left on them before a refurb is needed, and
2. the boat will run as good as new again.
Maintenance is key with anything with moving parts. Doug (pictured above), co-owner and lead skipper, is very handy and has had a lot of practical experience around diesel engines, having spent the first 30 years of his life on a farm. When he’s not driving the boat, he’s tinkering around on it to avoid, as much as possible, any engine problems which can cause cancellations and delays in departures (not very positive guest experiences).
Whilst the boat is up on the slip (i.e. out of the water), it’s a great time to fix as much as possible. As well as the brand new engines and transmissions, we’ve had the propellors recalibrated, the shafts changed, new anti-foul (to stop barnacle growth on the bottom of the vessel) and a bit of paintwork done. We also took the opportunity to cut out the fuel tanks, reseal them and mount onto the hull (rather than built into the hull as they were previously). This means, if there’s ever a problem with the tanks, we can easily dismount them and pull them out….all in comfort of our berth. This couldn’t be done previously as they needed to be cut out, which meant grinding sparks and safety issues on the marina.
All in all, the upgraded MV Whalesong 2 is now running like a dream. Faster, smoother, quieter and more fuel efficient. It’s a win-win all round for our guests and the environment! Here’s to a wonderful season of Humpback Whale Watching with Whalesong Cruises in 2021!