How to remove/clear references to SDA?

I installed MEPIS with a PCMCIA CDROM drive using the "ide2=0x180,0x386" boot parameter, which allowed me to run the live CD from this cdrom drive. However, everytime I boot up, I get I/O errors related to this files system. Is it because MEPIS knows it was installed via the CDROM drive, and now that reference is no longer valid, since the PCMCIA modules are loaded and the drive now comes up as a PCMCIA device and not an IDE device? I'm lost and can't figure out what to do. If I go to the MEPIS Installation Center, and try to install the LILO bootloader again, It defaults to System Boot Disk: sda and MEPIS Installation Disk: sda. Of course, I change these to "hda" and set the /root partition as / on hda, but it still reverts back to sda everytime, and upon reloading, I get the I/O errors related to sda fs again. Help...Please....I really want to keep this on my laptop...otherwise it is back to Libranet which worked flawlessly. As a very new Linux user, I'm loving MEPIS..just want it to work on this machine. Please..anyone...ideas..Can I remove the device somehow and just have MEPIS use the device as a PCMCIA cdrom drive without thinking it is another device, as I told it was when I first installed???????