With a new coat of bottom paint and a new name decal, she is starting to look good and ready for the water!
Month: January 2018
More than you ever wanted to know about our toilet
Ok, remember that decision to install a composting head? Well our Nature’s Head composting toilet finally arrived and is installed. We decided to use coconut coir as the composting material because it is very renewable, and is less likely to harbor bugs than the peat moss alternative. Following advice from Carolyn of The Boat Galley, we choose Planter’s Pride Beats Peat coconut coir. It took almost a week of allowing the coconut to sit in the sun, with one cup of water to achieve a big zip lock bag of dry and crumbly coconut husk. I just kept thinking of pina coladas! Then we filled the composting compartment of the toilet, and we’re good to go!
They say we should never experience odors or other unpleasantness, as long as the liquids and solids are stored separately. But just in case, I am well armed with every possible odor deterrent, insect fighter, and wetness absorber. Take that, nasty smells and gnats!
Of course, installing this toilet sounds simple, but….
- We had to address the boat wiring to hook up a ventilation fan
- Found a leak in the pump out deck fitting with rotten deck core that needed to be resolved,
- Had lots of pipes and holes and sea cocks to fill,
- And had to build a platform to support the toilet so that it would actually fit in our teeny, tiny bathroom (head)
Just another example of how one project begets another project and another project and another …..
Are we allowed to have fun? St Pete Boat Show
We’ve never been boat owners while attending a boat show before! So we were thrilled to be able to attend the St Pete boat show right in our own town. This show combined sail boats and motor boats, so there was something for everyone. And plenty of opportunities to spend money! We sat in on several seminars and picked up tips on cruising in The Bahamas and Cuba, and learned that we need to order The Explorer Chartbooks by Monty and Sara Lewis to really be confident cruising in the Bahamas and to finding our way around on shore.
Speaking of spending money, we bought our dinghy, Bug, at the boat show. We got a pretty good deal on a 2017 model Achilles HB-240AL. In plain English, that’s a 2.4 meter inflatable dinghy with an rigid aluminum floor. It’s a compromise between big enough to get us from boat to shore, and small enough to fit on the foredeck (with the staysail rigging in place) and light enough for two normal-sized people to load and unload. It’s going to be a slow ride though with our measly 5hp outboard!
The other big attraction of the boat show is the annual cruiser party hosted by Cruising Outpost magazine. Bob and Jody Bitchin (don’t you wish your name was “Bitchin”) bring in live music, kegs of beer, and lots and lots of pizzas and keep the party going after the boat show gates close on Saturday night. Our heads spinning, our wallets lighter, and our spirits encouraged by contact with the cruising community, we returned to the yard and to boat projects.
Tool of the Day …. Safety Devices
Way back in November, we took advantage of Black Friday sales to stock up on personal floatation devices, tethers, a life sling, and portable VHF with GPS and distress signal. The most money I’ve ever spent on something I hope to never use.
In these pictures, we’re just testing the PFDs to check for leaks. Then they fold back up into a low-profile vest that self inflates when in contact with the water.
Tool of the Day ….
…. the clumsily named “pneumatic / manual oil changer vacuum fluid extractor.” Made performing an oil change on our diesel engine and transmission MUCH easier. And no electricity required. Now we just need to do an oil change on the outboard motor to complete the cycle.
What Floats Our Boat 