....you do realize the lake is covered in ice, right?

[Cooper]

aka: Where have you been?

I am down working the desk for one day, as my boss is sick. He refuses to take the day off, but I get sent there by his wife (and my other boss) to try and at least take off some of his duties. I get a call for winterization.

For those not 'in-the-know' winterization is typically done BEFORE winter. We take your boat, do a lot of fancy stuff, and then your boat doesn't implode during the winter. (It's not quite like that, but it does help prevent mice from using your motor as a nest, your battery from dying, your gas lines from rotting prematurely, ect.)

SC: What do you charge for shrinkwrap?
Me: Hang on, I got a form for that. What kind of boat do you have?
SC: Pontoon.
Me: $xxx.
SC: THAT much? Are you kidding me?
Me: No, I am not.
SC: I'll-just-tarp-it-bye!
Me:....

Also for reference:
Tarp= throwing something over the boat
Shrinkwrap: It's like this for your boat.

Note: I probably posted this, but the whole 'mice nest in the engine' thing has happened, and it means your engine is gone. We had one of our customers, known as the pharmacist, (no points as to why she's called that) call us repeatedly after we discovered that her motor had a nest in it, asking us to fix it. We kept telling her to get a new motor, but she still wanted us to do the complete wire-work it would take to fix it.

[protege]

As a classic car owner, I've seen the damage that mice can do to vehicles. Not mine, of course--it's in the garage with the windows down, and left uncovered. Otherwise, mice love to nest in (and eat) upholstery, wiring, hoses, and anything else they can find. Air cleaners, as well as right on top of the engine, are favorite nesting spots. Cleaning up and repairs after an infestation like that can easily run into thousands of dollars

[Pixilated]

So have you started the pool as to what date early next spring this person is going to come wailing to you about all the damage that's been done to the boat and how you just gotta fix it FIX IT FIXITFIXITFIXIT?!?!

Not to threadjack, but protege, why is it a good idea to leave the windows down? Wouldn't that just invite a lot of unwanted tenants in?

[BlaqueKatt]

Not to threadjack, but protege, why is it a good idea to leave the windows down? Wouldn't that just invite a lot of unwanted tenants in?

Mice want out of the wind/cold-open windows won't block anything.

[Pixilated]

Of course ...

*skulks off in embarrassment*

[AmethystSquirrel]

Of course ...

*skulks off in embarrassment*

Don't be embarrassed. I was wondering the same thing.

[dalesys]

Mice want out of the wind/cold-open windows won't block anything.

Which is why when I was collecting beer cans & bottles from the roadside borrow pits full of water a lot of them would have drowned mice and their nests in them.

[EricKei]

We kept telling her to get a new motor, but she still wanted us to do the complete wire-work it would take to fix it.

Would I be correct in assuming that a complete re-wire would cost significantly more than just buying a new (and, by that point, better) motor?

[PepperElf]

i imagine that fixing the engine is more expensive than getting a new one? or close to the same price at least?

[Cooper]

Way more expensive, and frustrating. They'd have to essentially dismantle the motor, find all the wires that were problems, and then, I imagine most of the wires would have had to be replaced.

[Shalom]

Would I be correct in assuming that a complete re-wire would cost significantly more than just buying a new (and, by that point, better) motor?

Well I don't know. Just going by what they called her, and assuming she's not the kind of pharmacist that has a license like mine, she may have a powerfully souped up motor in that boat (in case the DEA, Coast Guard or whoever takes an interest in her cargo) that might not look at first glance like it's that fast, unless you happened to notice the larger screws /propellers (thank you Matt Helm for that tidbit). Such would represent a considerable investment already. In such a case, maybe it really would be better to repair than replace.

[Cooper]

You're correct that she has no license, but it's highly unlikely she runs out of her boat, considering that there aren't a lot of big lakes here. There's about 6 small lakes we service. (The closest lake to is is Lake Michigan, and that's about an hour or two away.)

[wolfie]

Note: I probably posted this, but the whole 'mice nest in the engine' thing has happened, and it means your engine is gone. We had one of our customers, known as the pharmacist, (no points as to why she's called that) call us repeatedly after we discovered that her motor had a nest in it, asking us to fix it. We kept telling her to get a new motor, but she still wanted us to do the complete wire-work it would take to fix it.

In a case where someone needs to replace their engine, would a switch from gas to diesel be worthwhile? After all, mice are unlikely to set up housekeeping when there's a CAT in the area.