After spending hours coordinating with Arco Zeus to purchase and ship a new alternator, it became clear that working through one of their distributors would be the faster route. The team at Yacht Riggers in Florida stepped in and made the entire process effortless, handling the purchase and shipping quickly and efficiently. What had been a frustrating task was resolved with professionalism and speed.
The Arco Zeus alternator arrived in just four days, which meant it was time to roll up my sleeves and tackle the replacement of the “old” one. Truth be told, the old alternator wasn’t really that old, so rather than consigning it to the scrap pile, it’ll be stowed away as a spare—because you never know when a perfectly good backup might save the day!
Once again, I found myself tackling a job I’d never done before. Replacing an alternator was completely new territory, but that seems to be the theme of this voyage—every project is a learning experience. With unwavering support and advice from Kevin, now back in N.A., I carefully disconnected the wiring and began removing the old alternator, one step at a time.
My hope was that the new alternator would simply slide into place where the old one came out. Of course, boat projects never seem to work that way. The power stud on the new alternator was positioned slightly differently, which meant I had to pivot the alternator away from the engine. That small adjustment created a bigger problem—the existing belt was now too short. What I thought would be a few hours of work quickly stretched into several days, thanks to the weekend and the inevitable wait for shops to reopen.
Looks like it is time for some fun…
Sailaway Sarantium 