Refit Round-Up Part 4: Project Creep, Boat Yoga, and Honoring a Lifelong Companion

Every sailor knows the unwritten law of boat projects: you never change just one thing. You set out to turn a single screw, and by sunset, you’re knee-deep in a complete system overhaul.

For Greg Pitman, his first "big" boat project became a classic masterclass in project creep. But beneath the frustrating leaks and the cramped spaces of the bilge, Greg’s journey with his 1988 Pearson 36-2, Canicula, is a story of resilience, learning by doing, and honoring a best friend.

What’s in a Name?

Greg sails out of the Chesapeake, keeping Canicula just outside of Washington, D.C. While the boat was largely in great shape when he bought her last December, she needed a few updates. But before the tools even came out, the boat already held a deep emotional significance.

Canicula directly translates from Latin as "small dog" or "puppy," and it was the Roman word for Sirius, the Dog Star.

"The name was inspired by the love of our life, our dog Kai," Greg shares. "We had to say goodbye to him just a few weeks before the boat purchase was final, after his battle with cancer."

With Kai’s memory steering the ship, Greg set out to make Canicula anew.

Phase 1, Phase 2, and the Domino Effect

The upgrades started simply enough with the VHF radio. The old one was acting funky, so Greg swapped it out. Of course, the new radio was a completely different size, leaving a gap where the old faceplate used to be. After some tight-space geometry and creative screwdriver angles, the new radio went in. But then came Phase 2: the old Remote Access Microphone (RAM) cockpit mic wasn't compatible with the new unit. The radio works, but running the new cable through the deck is a battle left for another weekend.

With the radio sorted, Greg turned his attention to the plumbing. He noticed a persistent leak where the water line entered the water heater. Upon inspection, he found the culprit: a cracked female connector on the boat’s original polybutylene piping.

Anyone who has dealt with older boats knows that polybutylene is a ticking time bomb. Greg asked himself the classic boat-owner question: "While I’m in here, why don’t I just replace the whole system?"

And with that, the dominoes began to fall.

The Great Pex Battle of 2026

Early-May Greg bought his parts, mapped out his plan, and felt totally prepared. Today Greg looks back at that optimism and laughs.

Step one was tearing out the old pipe, the easy part. But since the system was apart, Greg decided to add a new water filtration system. The area housing the water heater and pump was entirely too cramped, so he decided to reroute the plumbing to utilize an under-cabinet space in the galley.

To flush and drain the water tanks after a bleach treatment, Greg hooked up a temporary layout using the old pump. Right on cue, the water pump died. Refusing to adapt the old plumbing to a new pump, Greg pivoted, installing a brand-new water pump and forging ahead into the unknown.

Working full-time and living 45 minutes away from the marina, Greg had to maximize his weekends. The mid-Atlantic weather wasn’t making it easy, swinging wildly between 50-degree, gray drizzles and 90-degree summer heat.

After multiple runs to the store to swap out temperamental SharkBite fittings for proper Pex-A tubing, Greg finally pressurized the system. The result? Three brand-new leaks.

The troubleshooting continued. While tightening a cold-water connection to the galley faucet, the aging copper on the faucet itself twisted and failed. Suddenly, an emergency faucet replacement was added to the docket. Even the new faucet brought drama, featuring truncated, flat-sided threads that refused to seal until Greg tracked down specific FIP connectors with rubber gaskets.

The Messy Reality and the Big Win

By the end of the weekend, Greg had successfully installed the new faucet, sealed the under-sink connections, and got the water flowing. True to the nature of boat work, a T-connector that was perfectly dry yesterday suddenly developed a drip today. But instead of letting it break him, Greg chose the ultimate tool in a boat DIYers arsenal: resilience.

"When I’m frustrated, sweating, hitting dead ends, and bruised and cut from boat yoga, I take a breath and walk away," Greg says. "Go for a walk, go to the pool or bar, eat some food, and pick it up when I’m mentally ready."

Ultimately, the hard work paid off. Greg's project sits at a 2.5 out of 5 hammers on our project meter. The biggest win? Getting clean water flowing reliably through the boat, allowing him to wash his hands aboard without having to hike all the way up to the marina bathhouse.

The Workshop MVP

While a drill and a solid screwdriver were essential, Greg crowns the heat gun as the absolute MVP of the refit. When dealing with cold-expansion Pex plumbing, a heat gun allows the tubing to expand just enough to slide over the fitting, contracting down into an incredibly tight, water-tight seal as it cools.

We are incredibly grateful to Greg for sharing the reality of his first major boat project aboard Canicula with us. Kai would undoubtedly be proud of the love, sweat, and patience being poured into Canicula.

What's your project rating?

The Refit Round-Up is all about sharing the big wins, the messy realities, and rating the grind on our project meter, just to remind each other that you're not in this alone.

Are you currently doing "boat yoga" in a cramped locker, or fighting your own battle with plumbing layouts?