www.iFourWinns.com

Hello Everyone,

My partner and I became owners of a 2004 V288 last October. Since we're in the Florida panhandle we had a couple of good weekends last year before we had to put her up for winter. This is our first experience with a cruiser and we're new at being on salt water.

Of course, we have alot ot learn and alot of questions. I've found a ton of answers on this forum so...thanks to you all. There are a few I haven't found the answers to so here we go:

--When you're traveling, does the refrigerator run on the battery?

--Has anyone had a problem with a sirius antenna? Our sirius radio was working fine last time we were down but this time its giving us an "invalid channel" display. We called sirius and they said it was the antenna or the radio itself.

--Does the generator run off the same fuel tank as the engines? We started our generator this time and it ran for a few seconds then cut back off. It would start again but acted like it was not getting fuel and cut off.

--Is it a good idea to have an anchor in addition to the one on the windlass? We anchored out this weekend and the anchor held fine but we went around in circles because of the wind.

--We've got twin Volvo's (270 hp). Should we run the engines when we're flushing them? We're gotten mixed answers at our marina on this one.


Thanks so much in advance!

_________________
Monica
gulls@play
Vista 288

Maybe I can help. I have a 2006 Vista 288 and boat out of Pensacola, FL.

1. When underway, the refridgerator does run off of your battery. You will notice that it does not get as cold as when you are connected to shore power.

2. The generator has a direct feed that runs off of the starboard fuel tank. The cutting off could be a couple of issues such as a bad impellar, clogged fuel filter, coolant level too low, or in my case a choke that was installed at the factory wrong.

3. I use a second anchor only when I'm backed into the beach. I upgraded my main anchor to a Fortress flute anchor which I find holds better in the Florida sandy bottoms.

4. Do you have the flush outlets in the back storage compartment on the stern of the boat where your shower is located? If you have them and use them, then you do not run the boat. If you don't have them, then you need to run the engines to pump the water through the areas that need to be flushed.

_________________
R Yot 2
Fairhope, AL
2006 Vista 288

Wow...thanks so much! We have the hose connection on the engines that you access from the engine hatch.

Thanks again.

_________________
Monica
gulls@play
Vista 288

I had a similar problem with my Sirius radio. Remove the head unit to access the back. Disconnect the cable to the Sirius module, wait a minute then reconnect. It's the radio equivalent of a reboot. I had to do the same thing on my Mazda as well.

_________________
Martin
04 268 Vista - Knot Again
08 Boston Whaler 130 Sport - Double Good
Previous Boat:
97 278 Vista - Buoy Howdy

Since you use your boat in salt water. I suggest that you buy a product called SaltAway and run it through your hose connections after each use. I also suggest that you spray your boat down with the product. It eats salt and will add years of life to your boat

Good luck,

_________________
R Yot 2
Fairhope, AL
2006 Vista 288

Hey Monica... I'm just chiming in to say welcome & congratulations. You're in great hands here and no question is too simple - keep em' coming.

And I can't believe you've made it this far through your first thread without being bombarded by a demand for pictures. So... pictures!

_________________
Previously:
2008 V358/Volvo 5.7 GXi Inboards

Thanks again for the help. Getting Saltaway right away! I'm gonna try that with the radio next time I'm on the boat.

I'm having problems uploading pics. I guess they have to be reduced down a good bit huh?

_________________
Monica
gulls@play
Vista 288