Granted I had only been a sailor for about 10 years, so I didn't have the boat experience some of the old salts here have. But on the plus side, I have a technical background, own and use tools and am not afraid to get my hands dirty.

When I bought my boat, I crawled all over inside and out to try to get a handle on the systems. I took photos, talked to folks and peered deep into hidden spaces. There were still a few things I did not fully grok. One was the head... oddly enough. It seemed simple to me. Not so much the toilet itself, but the plumbing around that. Peggy Hall helped me with that. I sent emails and pics, and she patiently fed back info... until the full picture finally came into my mind. The end result is knowing the options of how to use my system... one of which is using fresh water flushing, which has remarkably led to a clean smelling boat.

I am sure there are other things that I still do not fully comprehend, but I keep on it and keep plugging away... which in the end is really the best process for full understanding. One thing that amazes me are folks that simply write checks for boat repairs... ultimately they gain no knowledge of a system on which they may depend while well out to sea.