Latest project

I was frustrated last year with not having a specific place for a variety of items that I need from time to time.  And, of course, just when I need the binoculars is when I can't find them!  It is amazing how things can get lost on a boat.  Yes storage space is great, but how do I remember were exactly I put something?

This latest project is designed to fit on the wall of the head (outside the head) right next to the nav table.

total cost was $18 for the wood and everything else I needed was around the house.  I chose maple rather than teak to save on cost and provide a contrast to the teak in the cabin.  I think I am going to like it!

Well, at least I am saving on diesel fuel!

Sailing, from a certain perspective, is a low cost activity.  Right?  Lets see.  Our Yanmar 2GM literally sips diesel fuel and $12 worth of fuel will go a long, long way.  When the sails are up, travel costs are zilch…the wind is totally, 100% free.  Our club has reciprocal rights with other clubs around Lake Ontario so we can pull into almost anywhere on the lake and dock for a free night or two.  Again, not bad.

But then, there is the boat itself.  We have a lot to do on this boat and we knew that when we purchased the boat.  $3,000 for a new bimini and dodger. $400 or so for a new stove.  The electronics are fried (am thinking I will keep with my handheld GPS for a while). $100 for a new 20 – 30 amp converter which we owned for about 3 minutes before it rolled off the slip into 20 feet of murky water never to be seen again.  On and on it goes.

I need to replace the screens and gaskets in 8 opening ports.  The replacement kits are, I discovered around $26 each.  After some discussion on Sailnet.com, I was relieved to find I could buy the gaskets for a dollar or two and glue in replacement screening that I can buy for a couple of bucks at Canadian Tire.

But then there are the unplanned expenses.  At haulout, I had a boat mechanic winterize the boat and in the process, he informed me that I had a problem with the prop shaft and the transmission gasket.  The “P” bracket was loose and a whole bunch of other things were wrong (I started to glaze over a little while he was describing the issue to me) that entails a total replacement of shaft and associated parts.  Total cost $5,000!!!

I phoned the surveyor who looked the boat over before we bought it.  He informed me in no uncertain terms that it was perfectly fine when he went over it and that there must have been some damage done after the survey.  I can say I didn’t hit so much as a floating water bottle!  However, when the boat was being lifted out of the water, the aft strap from was too far aft and the boat was promptly dropped back into the water so the strap could be moved farther forward.  Could this have caused the damage?  Off to my insurance company I go to see if we can possibly get some coverage.  Keeping my fingers crossed.

But at least I am saving on diesel fuel right?

A most enjoyable visit

Departing Cobourg (with a malfunctioning head), we were forced to motor due a total lack of wind and heavy fog with a steady rain.  We had a ring of visibility around our boat of about 25 feet.

At some point in the morning, a small greenish bird flew into our ring of visibility – we were about 4 kms from the shore.  It circled the boat a few times and finally swooped in under the dodger and settled in on one of the lines by the winch.  The bird was panting and absolutely exhausted.  You could practically see his heart beating!

Not sure why the bird was out there – perhaps lost, but I think he was most relieved to find something to land on.  He sat there panting and looking at us…while we sat there looking at him!  Of course, our camera was down below and we didn’t want to move to get it and end up startling him or scaring him off. 

He (I am just guessing the bird was a “he”) started to settle down and spent some time fluffing his feathers up and preening himself.  His panting had abated to regular breathing and seemed to take a shine to us!  Still, we didn’t want to move.

After what was likely 20 minutes, he gave us a look, flew out from under the dodger, circled the boat three times (as if to say “thanks for the rest”) and headed  north – which was fortunately where the shore was.

I think, after checking some books, that it was some kind of warbler.

As we wrestle over a new name for our boat (this will be another blog), one name that comes to mind for me is “Warbler’s Rest”.

First job - "popping in" a new head

The head was old and not working and clearly the first job I needed to do on my boat.  My wife had a lot to do with this decision. 

I ran down to the marine store and picked up a new head for a very reasonable price. The guy at the store said it would be easy job – “just pop it in” he said.  I unbolted the original...so far so good, disconnect the hoses and out to the garbage it went.  Took out the new one and, of course, the base was a totally different configuration so the existing bolts wouldn't work.  So much for just popping it in. Not a big deal though, folks told me I could just screw in the new one to the base and it would be fine.  I did exactly that, reconnected all the hoses, opened the sea-cock and flushed away - it worked!  Except, a few hours later, I noticed water leaking onto the floor.  A few hours of messing around with O clamps, some makeshift sealant and the problem was pretty much solved.

Off we go for our first cruise to Cobourg Ontario.  We took, three easy days to get there and, although it took a while for either of us to admit it, our boat was starting to stink - really bad.  In Cobourg, I bought some deodorizer, scrubbed the head and convinced ourselves that the smell was a bit better.

While in Cobourg, we took some family members out for a sail.  It was a nice breeze and we were heeled over moderately. My sister in law went down below and quickly yelled that something was wrong.  There was some evil looking, offensive smelling liquid sloshing around on the cabin floor.  Back into the harbour we go and I start exploring for the problem.  Low and behold I find a couple gallons of the aforementioned liquid in the bulkhead under the holding tank.  Clean that all up, scrub it with bleach, tighten up the clamps on the pump out hose and we should be good as new!  Clearly, the next morning it was not.

We made it back to home, with regular cleanings and on further inspection discovered that the hose from the head to the holding tank was old, brittle and leaking profusely!  Temperatures were 36 degrees Celcius and rather than enjoy the breeze and scenery around our marina, I was spending hours in the head and the lazerette (where the holding tank was placed) sweating profusely and trying to pull out 12 ft. of hose which was full of aforementioned liquid and trying to do so in a fashion that would not entail the contents of the hose spilling out all over the inside of the boat.  I waited until dark to remove the old hose to the garbage at the end of the dock as I really didn't want to lug it down the dock in front of all our new boat neighbours!

I put in a new deck fitting to simplify the "plumbing" and after about 4 litres of sweat and a week and a half of my time sweating in the bowels (so to speak) of the boat, the head, which they told me I could "just pop in" was replaced successfully!

I am sure my next project will be simpler…

A little context

So, I confess to being a tad overwhelmed.  

This past summer, my wife and I became the owners of a 1983, 28 ft. Sirius sloop sailboat.  I had sailed a fair amount growing up in Nova Scotia but was never a boat owner.  Well, actually I did own a boat, but rather than the 26 ft sloop I fantasized about, it was a 8 ft 9 in row boat that I purchased with the proceeds of a paper route.  While the boat never enabled me to explore the high seas, it did enable be to row over to the Royal Nova Scotia Yacht Club where I could crew on all types of sailing craft.

Many years later, after moving to Ontario and getting wrapped up in the challenges of day to day life for 30 years or so, I decided I wanted to get back into sailing.  We had just moved to Etobicoke to a condo with spectacular views of Lake Ontario and 2 yacht clubs. It wasn't long before I was taking the Basic Keelboating course at Humber College as a refresher and drooling over the yachts I was watching from my window.

We couldn’t just go out and buy a sailboat though, because we had no idea whether my wife would like sailing or not and it would totally suck to buy a boat that my wife refused to set foot on.  I put an ad in Kjiji offering to pay the docking fees in exchange for shared access to a sailboat.  Sure enough, in a couple of weeks, I had a deal and we were off sailing!  I didn’t like the boat (a CS 27), but it got us out into the lake and as it turned out, my wife took to sailing like a duck to water.  She loved it!  Time to buy our own boat….

In July 2011, we purchased a 28 ft Sirius Sloop.  It seemed an ideal layout with the head to aft and my internet research indicated that it was a good sea-worthy boat despite only a few hundred having been made before the Ontario sailboat manufacturing crash in the 80’s. We knew, going into the deal, that there was some work needed on the boat but having dealt with housing repairs for 30 years, I figured I could poke away at these projects while cruising off into the sunset on a broad reach with my wife at my side.

Problem is, some of these issues had to be dealt with right away and I was faced with a  plethora of mysterious systems that I find totally confusing, and all kinds of interesting challenges for which I had no preparation to deal with!  One of the things I didn’t know to start was that every sailor I talk to has a different opinion on how to deal with the issue AND, if you put the word “marine” in front of any product, it automatically doubles in price!

This blog is about our adventures owning a boat, figuring the nautical world out and generally becoming part of the Lake Ontario boating scene.  Consider it therapy for me as I lay awake at night figuring out how to replace a “thru-hull” in a fashion that doesn’t eventually sink my boat.

Getting ready to bring her home!