Complete novice and advice sought

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FSDSMAN
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Post by FSDSMAN »

well been on board now almost constant. Since Xmas only 3 days in a house - love it. Problems - yes - solvable - yes - I hope so. Trying to cut costs and spending whims but purchased a semi industrial sewing sail maker machine, fire treated hard wearing material and reflex foam. Intend to re-upholster my seats and beds etc. Also minor repairs to the main sail if required. New fresh water pump, re-wired the boat to clean up 20 years of redundant wires etc. Lots on my list but they will have to wait, fire extinguishers, carbon monox alarm, LPG gas detector and bubble valve, de humidifier (man condensation is a big issue) re plumbed sink waste, got my VHF cert, and offered a job crewing delivery yachts to the Med. Lots of work to do on the boat but as you all pointed out - there will always be lots to do - just hope the income keeps up.
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Post by Discus »

Sounds good!
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Post by Jeff »

Fabulous! Good effort!

Keep trying different things re condensation. There will be a way on your boat to eliminate the problem without the use of a dehumidifier.
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FSDSMAN
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Post by FSDSMAN »

the de-humid only takes 1 amp so not a problem. New cooker in, touch screen DVD/radio, heating works ok, need to service the engine (Perkins Prima 50) and also gearbox - maybe get professionally re-aligned and seal. Bloody weather has curtailed any sailing course but have spent hours after hours studying but main grey area is secondary port calculations and tidal curves but I will get it when put into practice. Main goal now is late in summer get down to Queen Ann's in Plymouth for a week or two as my daughter has now moved down there. Need at least 20 hours a week sailing from now till then before I do it though. Looking at changing batteries and charger and also a galvanic isolator. Plan for the boat out for a month end of March so that means I can at least do some work on it rather that have it stand on the hard in this weather and winterize it but sod get all done.
How you boys getting on with the wind rain and floods?
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Post by Discus »

Perkins prima are good engines - used to have one in a Maestro van and couldn't break it no matter what! Service should just be a quick oil change and maybe change the coolant if its been in a while. Realigning only usually necessary if the mounts are shot (ours are, hence our engine is currently sat in the galley!). IMHO, secondary ports are not as difficult in practice, just leave plenty of extra time for the tide to rise above what you think you need. Solent to Plymouth is a nice route. Have done Hamble to Portland in a day and Portland to Salcombe in a day too. Portland Bill not as scary as people make out when the weather is good and your timings are right. When you get to Plymouth, give us a shout, we are there most weekends in season. :)

Rob :clown:
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Post by Jeff »

What dehumidifier have you that runs on 12W? (=12V x 1A)

You are a man possessed! Awesome!! :D
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FSDSMAN
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Post by FSDSMAN »

The de-humid is 240 volts (I am on shore power - hence the galvanic isolator) It is a waveline unit with a permanent outlet if required - works well. I also think I need to replace and re-wire the battery bank. On the second day on bringing the boat back from Eastbourne to dover we had been sailing for around 6 hours and then the auto helm alarm sounded as battery low. We was not running any more equipment than the previous day and we had been sailing for over 10 hours with no problem or engine. Don't want to have to start the engine every 5 hours when out unless I have to.
possessed possibly but the first time you actually sail your boat regardless of what it is and feel the power of the wind and see the sun go down at sea and do a night entry to a harbour like Dover or Eastbourne the memory stays with you forever. Lots of work to do on the boat when funds permit but each day I am standing by the lock gates to the Medway waiting till I have the skills and experience and the boat is fit to venture out.
Who knows what the future will bring but at this moment in time I have been living on my boat during the wettest, windy, sometimes very cold winter for almost 4 months and I love it. Apart from getting up at 02.30 in my boxers and rapidly taking down the cockpit tent and spray hood to stop it getting ripped from the boat and seeing the side windows in the hull dip below the finger pontoon because of the wind and re-setting the fenders and getting back to bed drenched and cold but that is experience. Now the tent is down and stowed if it forecast for a blowy session. love it.
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Post by Jeff »

Apart from getting up at 02.30 in my boxers and rapidly taking down the cockpit tent and spray hood to stop it getting ripped from the boat and seeing the side windows in the hull dip below the finger pontoon because of the wind and re-setting the fenders and getting back to bed drenched and cold but that is experience.
:) I know that experience very well. In Plymouth Yacht Haven where Terry is now, and where we spent our first winter aboard a boat, the sea swell can enter the marina, and a considerable way. It was bonkers at times, like being on passage.

Autohelm battery low. Do you know what the voltage was at the batteries at the time, and at the autohelm? You might find the cable run to the autohelm is long with underspecified wire diameter, this would cause a significant voltage drop along its length. After even full batteries have been in use for 5 hours they'll be at a terminal voltage of perhaps 12.3 when under a bit of load (they'd likely settle back to 12.6 if left unused for an hour or so, so still nearly full) and with a 1v drop along the wires to the autohelm and it's seeing just 11.3V.

Or it could be your batteries are old and incapable of holding much charge anyway. Presume you checked the water level is good?

I'm neurotic when it comes to battery monitoring. I have a constant display of voltage at the terminals on both banks, and a very good portable voltmeter. I also know the current drawn by pretty much every device on the boat.
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FSDSMAN
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Post by FSDSMAN »

As we only sailed the boat back from Mercury at Hamble to Chatham the Skipper checked out all the systems and batt levels before we left. I suspect that they are quite old as there is no record of them being replaced in the previous owners paperwork. When I have time it is one of the things on my "to do" list. I want to replace them with "AGM" type but I would need to know what the alternator is capable of and also probably change the battery charger - it's a bit noisy anyway. The fridge seems to be the item that takes most draw on the power and I guess that would be turned of when under sail alone.
Although we are in a safe secure marina the wind does still blow freely down the Medway valley and there are 2 large modern high rise blocks right at the edge of the basin. These are shaped like large aerofoils and we are in the direct path of them and the accelerate the wind coming of the rear face - quite amusing when you are motionless but the wind instrument show a considerable difference between true and apparent wind.
Life is a bit more comfortable now that the large motor cruiser birthed next to us - late one evening had it's bow and stern lines adjusted and tied correctly along with the springs so we do not get 18 ton of boat drifting and squashing us against the finger pontoon every time the wind picked up. Many thanks to an experienced neighbour for that as I was reluctant to adjust it as the owner has a blue ensign but I guess even they can make mistakes - like the collision in the Solent.
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Post by Jeff »

Yeah we often adjusted other people's lines in the night. I doubt any would be annoyed. Lines do become slack over time after all. So you're just doing them a favour. I've done it to boats nowhere near ours. I've also gone aboard other's boats to tie back their frapping halyards. I used to have a load of old string for that task.

But there's only so much you can do in a marina full of noisy boats.

We eventually solved the problem by leaving the marina, and staying at anchor. Absolutely silent even in a bit of a blow! :)
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Discus
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Post by Discus »

Not swimming against the flow but when we bought the Tradewind last year, we replaced the failing AGM battery bank with good quality wet cell batteries. AGM batteries are more expensive and are able to charge at a higher voltage than traditional batteries and thus in theory can charge quicker and hold a slightly larger charge capacity. These advantages were somewhat diminished by us having a decent wind charger which means our batteries rarely discharge below about 70% capacity and continually receive some form of float charging. Your alternator will be nominally rated at ( probably ) 60 amps, pretty standard stuff. You could update the alternator to a higher output one (google balmar alternators) of say 100 amps which will charge your batteries more quickly. You could get an alternator regulator, eg a Sterling one which will alter the electrical charging amplitude of the existing alternator to push in more amps more quickly than a standard alternator. A modern mains charger will also 'manage' your batteries better than one that might be getting long in the tooth. I don't know how old your current mains charger is but take a look at the C- Tek chargers which are 5 stage and maintain your battery bank long term. They can be user adjusted for an AGM battery bank too. For your fridge, try fitting more insulation if you can. Kingspan stuff from B&Q works well. Extra insulation may cut your fridge drain by up to a third - or fit a water pumped system which is even more efficient.
BTW, blue ensign signifies 'I can talk about sailing, but I can't do it' :safe: (just kidding! :D )

Rob
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Post by Terry T »

Hi Rob what wind genny do you have ?
Terry
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Post by Discus »

Hi Terry

Currently have an Aerogen4 on the Tradewind which seems pretty good. Had a Rutland 913 on the last boat which was also good. As we are swinging mooring based, we always have fully charged batteries for the weekend and if its blowing 15kts+ then it easily keeps up with the fridge, important as any time is beer time!!! :lol:

Rob
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Post by FSDSMAN »

Been looking at wind turbines but they appear very costly - and some very noisy :D I had a solar panel on the coach roof but had to remove it to make space to mount the life raft. I will probably go down the route of mounting 2 solar panels on the side like spray dodgers. The battery charger def needs replacing but as it is currently working then it is low priority. The thing I like about AGM batteries is the deep recycle figures and of course the safety factors built it and there are 4 X 180 AMP HOURS units on sale about 8 miles from me for £300 and that would power your standard "blue ensign gin palace" for ever. Batteries need to be at 14.5 volts to be fully charged and if they are reading 12.5 or lower then they have no life without constant trickle charge and if they go down to below 12 volt then they are being killed and can only support so many more re-charges.
One little thing I did to stop annoying the neighbours with noise from clattering wash boards (we have a large cockpit tent we use as a smoking room) was purchase a cheap plastic venetian blind, shorten the length and attach a hardwood 1 in dowel cut to fit the companionway attached by cable ties to form a silent, lightweight seal so the heat stays down below rather than escape the min you want to go topside. Cost around £6 and works a treat and collapses into nothing.
So much to do and no money to do it with but that is boats I guess.
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Post by Jeff »

We've only ever used sealed or open, cheap lead acids. We use batteries more than most because I work on the laptop. By ensuring they're never discharged below about 75% capacity (by having a big bank) we've had them act like new batteries for years and years. Are you sure you need to shell out for AGM?

If I was you I'd spend the dosh on a good solar installation, and a good mains or alternator charger (latter depending if you want/have a genset or intend to be on shorepower mostly) rather than expensive batteries. Solar is so definitely the way forward. Silent, cheap, amazingly good performance.

Picture of your venetian blind system? Sounds good.
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