Boat Trip Checklist - Android App

My new favorite Nook Android App - Boat Trip Checklist by Jimbl.com (nothing there, but you can find the app on Barnes & Noble.)

it's a simple app. Basically list of categories with list of items in each category.

As items in a category are checked off, the % done changes for that category.

Really easy to use and extend.

I really like simple apps that do what they are meant to do and do it well.

Well worth the $0.99

Hole in the Boot

We have a minute hole in the Edson Boot that the steering arm passes through to control the Rudder.

Got the new boot from Edson, now to install it.

Step 1. Take the main battery out. No way to get to the nuts on the inside of the Boot hardware without removing the battery. Not a big job. Pull out the Starboard Aft Mattress, Unscrew and remove the center trunk access panel (I modified ours a while ago so that it's now in 3 pieces, easy to remove the center section while leaving the awkward end panels in place) Then unstrap the battery cover, turn off the boats 12v system, disconnect the battery charger, disconnect the battery, pull it out of the aft berth. That takes about 20minutes.

View inside the 'Trunk' up close to the Edson Steering Control Plate.

Now to remove the Rudder. Again, not a tough task. Remove two split pins, one from the upper Pintle, and the other on the pin in the Control arm. Remove the control arm pivot pin, turn the wheel to Starboard, slide the control arm out of the rudder assembly and lift the rudder off. 10 mins max.

And now the reason for posting this... The tough part!

To remove the rubber boot that keeps the water out of the trunk (always a good thing!) the 6 nuts on the inside of the plate in the trunk have to be removed. Really awkward to get up close to the assembly on the inside of the trunk. Made a lot easier by using a 14mm socket on a cordless drill. Peggy on the outside to make sure the bolts didn't turn, me on the inside reaching in with the drill, got the nuts off in less than 5 mins. 

Looking good so far.

Now to remove the bolts on the outside. Challenge! 4 bolts come straight out, but two of them are corroded. Not a surprise, the bolts are stainless stell, they pass through the Stainless plate on the outside, then the Rubber boot, through the transom, then through an Aluminum plate and finally what appears to be a cast aluminum plate.

I cut the rubber boot off on the outside so that I could get a better handle on this issue. A few sharp taps with a hammer did not dislodge the final two bolts. I broke a screw driver trying to unscrew them. Even tried to use a clamp to push them out from the inside. No luck! :(

For now I have given them a good douse of WD40 and taking a short break to post a plea for help on the Forum.

 The Boot and 4 Screws removed.

 The culprits up close and personal!

Back shortly.

Ok, time to say 'thank you'!

As a member of the very active Catalina - Capri 25s International Association, I, like all members of the Association, have access to an abundance of support from fellow Catalina 25's owners.

They came though this time, 'Thank you guys!'

Here's a link to the forum on this issue

Oh, and Google just made a significant update to their blog layout, I think I like it! Kudos Google!

Mast Post Dribble

A couple of years ago, we noticed a slight dribble down the compression post during heavy rain. This is only apparent when on the water (hence during one of our mini cruises) as normally JD has a tarp draped over her entire length to protect from the Florida Rain,Sun and dust/debris from nearby State Road 7.

Today I decided it was time to fix it. Cloudy day and a bit of a breeze meant it would be nice to work under the tarp. So out came the Cap'n Tolley's Creeping leak fix and a re-read of the instructions.

First step is to make sure the area is dry can clean. So armed with paper towel I crawled beneath the tarp onto the cabin top. Dry! But taking a closer look under the Stainless Steel mast base plate, I noticed that the bedding compound had shrunk and guessed that was the cause of the dribble.

Not wanting to overdo the Cap'n Tolley's, I decided I would first clean out the excess compound.

So out came my Stanley and out came the excess compound.

Now it was clear that the shrunken compound was the culprit! I decided to go for it and remove the compression post, do a clean up and fix this issue correctly.

Clamping a vice grip to the nuts on the underside of the cabin deckhead, I removed each of the 4 screws. They are only threaded for about an inch, the rest of the shank is plain. So once the nuts were off, I could pull the screws out with a pair of pliers.
To get the compression post out, I inserted a piece of 3" timber from the front of the mast base and used that as a lever to rotate the base and post. It was easy!

You can see how grungy the space under the base plate is in the pic. When I pulled the post all the way up and out, there was just room below the tarp with the mast in the raised stern crutch. I still had to use my head to lift the tarp the last few inches, not a big deal. Time to clean up the area.

The blue tape is on the stbd side of the mast base and is used as a reference in the pics that follow.

Notice the inconsistent structure of the sealing compound left on the deck. I'm guessing this is 3m 4200 compound. But that's only a guess.

 Another pic before I pulled the post all the way out. Notice the ring of mild corrosion around the post, that is the area that is visible at the top of the post in the cabin.

Again, note the inconsistency of the bedding compound. I'm sure that the Florida Sun had some impact upon the compound, I'll use Butyl when putting this all back together.

 With the mast post totally removed, it's clear why we had the dribble! This whole area is dry, the boat has been under tarp for a couple of months.

Cleaning will be with a sharp blade to remove the compound. Goof Off to clean up.

Made a lot of progress in the clean up so far. Still a bit of the compound to remove, but some of the original work marks are below the surface and I'm not prepared to sand down below the general surface level. So I'll clean them as best I can.

Clean up complete. If this were going to be visible, I would repair the gelcoat. It will be well sealed.

I taped it off so that I could use 1,000 grit wet n dry to smooth the area. The curved marks appear to be made during the manufacturing.

Now that the area is smooth, I'll counter sink the screw holes and the post hole so there is a good seal with the Butyl.

Now for the Inside.

This pic shows the base plate mounted on top of the centerboard casing that fits inside the open end of the compression post base.

Notice how it's half full of water! Go figure! I have to assume it's from condensation or capillary action when the dribble ran down the outside of the compression post.

As the coffee table can only be removed when the mast post is raised, I took a look at the underside. Just remove the two screws holding it to the casing.

The compression post base plate is held in place with 4 SS screws, it looks pretty rugly around the base and at the top of the centerboard casing.

You can see our Stereo speakers mounted here. The sound is terrific when the table is in place. We can route the TV sound to them for a real studio effect.

After cleaning up the area with Goof Off (and opening the forward cabin hatch to vent the fumes!) and a few minutes with 1,000 grit wet and dry, the centerboard casing top looks much better and the compression post base cleaned up really good.

A few more minutes with 3M Stainless Steel cleaner and the base looks like new.

I'll use Butyl to bed the base plate back to the casing as the underside of the base plate is not exactly flat. 

A little more cleaning to do around the screw holes in the casing.

Moving on to the Compression post and Mast base.

Looking at the underside of the mast base (the compression post is pointing up in this pic), it's obvious why we had the dribbles. I had not cleaned the underside of the base plate before taking this pick. The original compound was just not doing the job!

A few minutes scraping off the small patches of sealing compound and a few more buffing the base and post with 3M Stainless cleaner, the post looks great!

Done for the day, need to get a few supplies before putting it all back together.

Ok, so nearly done for the day :) Sanded down the coffee table and used wood filler to fix the two dings, has to be a temporary fix as I really need to replace the table. It's kinda useless as it is, size, height, etc. But the project is on a schedule for our trip on May 11th. So for now I'll just put a couple of coats of poly on it and replace it so that the compression post can be reinstalled. The poly finish is satin, and I must admit, that even though the color of the table top consistency is really yuk, the finish looks good, looks similar to the teak in the boat. So when I do put in the new coffee table, think I'll stick with that finish.

Now, done for the day.

Tuesday April 24th. Putting it back together

The poly coats on the coffee table have had 48 hours to dry out, I really like the finish (but not the color/shading consistency) but as mentioned, I'll replace the coffee table before the summer with something more useful.

So,

• Butyl compound under the compression post base plate and screwed down. Done
• Coffee table replaced and screwed down. Done
• Countersink the holes under the mast plate for the screws and the compression post. Done
• Replace the compression post. Done
• Secure the base bolts and nuts (with new washers rather then reuse the rugly ones) Done

All done bar the clean up.

Cleaned up all 5 holes, countersunk each of them.

Mast Compression Post with Butyl Tape ready.

Just before compression post lowered fully, final wrap of Butyl.

 Plate down, Screws initially tightened.

Final tighten. Butyl squeezing out all around plate.

All done. Butyl extruded out from base plate.

Definitely a well sealed Mast Base Plate now.

Time to trim the excess extruded butyl tape, clean up the surrounding area, and all done. Ready to clean and wax the cabin top in the morning.

Insurance Surprise.

We're approaching JD's 7th Birthday (well, we consider her delivery day her birthday, don't get too technical about this.) We took delivery of her on Sunday June 5th. 2005.

Since then we have trailed JD well over a thousand miles of highway, and sailed her hundreds of miles around Florida. All the time we have been insured by Boat US and never made a claim (even after Wilma when a burning branch blew off a nearby tree and landed temporarily on the boat leaving the equivalent of a cigarette burn. I would have to point it out in order for you to be aware of it.)

JD has spent a lot of time on her trailer, other boats spend a lot of time on their mooring or at their slips. We consider JD to be in her slip when she is on the trailer parked at the side of the house.

Turns out, that Boat US starts to discount the insurance premium after years of no claims and in our case, we just had a reduction of Annual Premium from $1,100 to $400! Whooo Hoooo!

JD Ready to be towed with a Smart Car ;)

Just a little damp

Living in South Florida and keeping the boat on the trailer between sails has pro's and con's.

One of the Pro's is that we can keep her plugged into the 110v 'shore power' via an extension lead to the back of the house.
Just as well! We have been coping with high humidity causing us to wipe down the inside of the boat with Clorox wipes weekly to prevent the development of mold and mildew. Plus we remove all of the cushions from the boat so that they don't get smelly. It's a task to remove them and replace them.

Here's our solution:

This is a Mini Dehumidifier from Sunpentown, only cost $58 on Overstock. And it works! Surprise!
We plugged it in with it standing on the Galley Counter and closed up the boat. That was Tuesday evening. Today, Sunday, there is nearly 3" of water in the collecting tray.

I have it setup to continually drain, but it has to almost fill the collection tank first.

So far, very impressed. Not sure how much power it actually uses. The specs say 85W. Which is pretty heavy, not something that we would run unless connected to shore power.

However, it works! Will it last, who knows, some of the reviews claimed it only worked for 6 months then quit.  But we found reviews of similar products that cost over $700 that claimed that they broke down after a few months. So it's a gamble. At $58 (including the $1 shipping at overstock) it's worth the try.
(Just for reference. We installed it on March 20th 2012)

Update April 4th. 2012.
Ok, I'm impressed! This past weekend, I checked the contents of the Dehumidifier, and the collection bucket had filled to the point where it drained excess into the cabin sink where we have the hose positioned.
Emptied the bucket and turned it back on (it shuts off when the bucket is removed) The cabin does not smell musty at all, and no signs of mildew in the normal places (head door normally needs wiping down quite often with Chlorox wipes) So it's living up to it's decscription. So, for now, it get's a 10!

Dreams of a bigger boat

After making the decision (jointly :) ) to cut the weekend short and head home on the Sunday, we were heading  west across Biscayne Bay. Wind was bouncing around the 25knot range, seas were only a couple of feet most of the time, yep, Biscayne Bay can get choppy, especially after 24 hours of sustained wind in one direction.

So we had the choice of motoring comfortably going NW or SW and tacking back towards Black Point Marina, or just putting up with the sloppy seas and steering to the mark. Lazily we steered to the mark, put in about a 10degree drift and steered 290, kept us on the GPS trackline without even looking at it. Always an upbeat event when we actually plan our course and it works out as planned! Totally cool.

Every now and then we would slide into a trough and get lifted up only to wallow over the top, just not paying attention to the waves. The penalty is hard push over to leeward and a sudden heel of around 25degrees.

Now, most sailors would just plant their feet firmly and let the boat lean up into the next wave and think nothing of it, but the Admiral is allergic to heeling beyond 25degrees, we typically keep the boat upright within 10degrees and it rewards us by sailing beautifully. But under, lazy, motor, we don't have the sail out to steady the boat, so the heel tends to be more dramatic. So Peggy's response to the wallow... we need a bigger boat.

That's the kind of response that lightens my day, any day!

Once back home, JD parked in the back yard, washed down, engine flushed, tanks emptied, food, clothing, bedding pulled out and finally covered in her new Tarp (You can figure out it's a project to store the boat). Well, once we were all cleaned up, out came the notebook computer and the search began. We need a bigger boat!

So, I have had dreams of a bigger boat for years. We love JD and the access to the SoFla venues that having a skinny water boat allows, but bigger is better... right? One of my favorite sites is yachtworld.com and I have the search option down pat. Peggy has it down too. So the search has started. Our new boat will have to be less than 15 years old, but not new. It has to be at least 34' LWL and have 6'+ headroom. Not a small list of boats that match those minimums, over 3,700 of them on yachtworld.com.

But when you dream of a bigger boat, you have to be prepared to dream up a different world. Where can the boat go? Deep keels place a limit on some marinas, Skinny water around the Florida keys means you have to take the boat to new places... good dreams! Bigger boat = bigger expenses! JD is pretty cheap to moor and to slip, bigger boats hurt there!

And! Bigger boats can go further on the water! Maine, Annapolis, Bahamas, Caribbean but they have to meet blue water requirements for Peggy to be a happy crew.

Casting the challenges aside just long enough to encourage solutions, think what the bigger boat can provide!

We could be in the BVI waiting for the kids to fly out and spend a week sailing around the islands. Visiting the thousands of nature spots just on the East coast alone would take a few lifetimes to explore. Building new friendships with other cruisers, facing daily challenges of reaching for a destination but already being there.

Our 'Bigger Boat' will have to show up when we are ready, but soon! :)

No Sail :(

Sometimes, you go with the flow, even if the flow is not in your favor but in hope of things getting better.

After a week of being a sick puppy, our planned sailing trip on Biscayne Bay over the first weekend of March was something to look forward to. Ever optimistic, the sailflow forecast was in the high range for us the entire weekend. Only Sunday looked like a go nowhere day, so we prepped JD for the trip down to Black Point Marina with planned start of the tow somewhere around Noon Friday March 2nd.

Anticipating a later than normal start reduced a lot of the self imposed stress that goes with getting the boat ready to trail. We take this stuff really seriously. All too often, we hear of boats that were in accidents because they were not secured to their trailer. We use 2" Ratcheted Tie Downs, one at the bow the other across the stern. JD is not going shift on our trailer!

It seems we also have a thing for 'Bags', Peggy is not a pack rat, no way! but we do have a lot of bags on the boat. 4 sail bags, 2 clothing bags, 3 bags of electronics, books, 'stuff', a Meds bag (about to be cloned), a bag for the canvas when not towing the boat. Then there is the food, two bags of non-perishables (crackers, wine, rice, tuna, G2, fruit cups, etc. etc. 3 bags of bottled water (in addition to the 40gallons we carry in the tanks). Bedding, Towels, Kitchen towels... the list goes on and on.

Ok, time to get this off my chest, I detest bags loafing around in the cabin. They are always in the way, get moved a dozen times a day, and of course, which bag is what in? A boat is really one of those places where everything has a place. It makes life on board so much easier, easier still if everyone knows where those places are!

Back to the weekend... Boat loaded, lunch break at home, last thing to do is unplug the electrical connection to the boat and pull her out to the street, close up the house, set the Tom Tom for our destination and head south!

Miami is a great place to launch your boat from if you live in SoFla, they have an annual state park parking permit, only costs us $85 a year and we leave JD's trailer there at least 20 nights each year, and the facilities are excellent. We renew in Februay/March each year with pleasure. And the staff at the Dockmaster's office are great, we take a slip at Black Point several times each year too. Of course, it is only a 30 minute transit to Biscayne Bay which is really one of the best sailing venues in South Florida.

So, Friday night, after renewing our permit, we launched JD, parked up the truck and trailer, and headed out the channel to watch the Sun go down as we motored over to Sand Key on the north end of Elliot Key on the east side of Biscayne Bay. It's about a 2 hour motor from the marina to the anchorage.

It was dark as we approached the anchorage, running lights on, and not many boats at anchor, so plenty of space to drop the hook. Cloudy darkness, could barely see the anchorage marker bouys until they were less than 30' away. Wind had picked up very little, looked like it was going to be a nice night, our new anchor rode has an additional 20' of chain, so I put out a total of about 100' of rode, our anchor is suited to the sandy bottom over there, most of the time.

After dinner, we set the anchor alarm on the handheld backup GPS and turned in... pooped! Slept like a log in a valley... till around midnight! Wind had picked up, anchor dragged, alarm went off. We have been here before, so no panic. A quick look around outside to confirm we were not heading towards anything that would complain or mark us. Then I pulled on the rode and felt the anchor just sliding across the bottom, dang! we were probably in a grassy area. A few minutes of pulling the rode in, then with the chain in hand, I set the 2nd anchor and felt them dig in as I gave the boat some slack to allow it to move downwind, then a few heavy tugs, barely able to hold the rode, and I was satisfied the anchor was holding. With two anchors out 20' apart, I reset the anchor alarm and headed back to the bunk. Sleep came quickly.

Dawn arrived with some fresh winds from the South. Adjusted the solar panel to gather the early morning Sun low on the horizon, 1.1amp, plenty to take the pressure off the batteries while running our new Dometic Freezer, held -1C easily. Breakfast of corned beef hash, eggs, tomatoes, toast and some piping hot coffee. Great start of the day.

Pegs was showing signs of the bug that I had last week :( and weather reports didn't look too great), so I suggested that we take the day off, loaf around, read some books, watch the other boaters screw up and just do not a lot. Peggy signed up for that excursion!

During the day we saw several larger power boats drop anchor and not a lot of rode. Now if you don't know the area, it's only about 10' deep in the middle of the Bay, the water just outside the anchorage is maybe 7', inside it goes down to as little as 4 feet. So you don't need a lot of rode. In 7' of water with 4' of bow height, a total of 11 feet, it's recommended to have 7:1 rode, ie. 77'. With only 4' of water and 4' to the bow, they should have a total rode of 44'. For us, we typically put down 80' of rode in 5' of water just to be safe. These power boats were probably putting about 20' out! Just not going to work! and it didn't most of the time. One large boat, draped with bikini babes was headed our way pretty quickly. A few shouts to the skipper and he finally figured out he was dragging. I bet he had one heck of a nice GPS on board, complete with anchor alarm! Duh! We watched them for over an hour as they tried and tried to get a grip on the bottom, finally they gave up and pulled anchor and turned towards Miami.

More later.