Messages

What is the largest dinghy that anyone has towed with a 34?

I have a 13' Boston Whaler with a 40 hp outboard that I would like to try towing for weekends on the bay not long distance cruising but say 20 miles at most.

Does anyone see any problems towing a boat of this size?

DO NOT run the discharge line to the bilge.  Not only is that a terrible idea, but it could possibly sink your boat.  The discharge is putting out 3-4 gallons per minute, this would fill the bilge rather quickly and God forbid your bilge pump were to quit working.

I recently had a leak also.  It was one of the fuel lines on the engine.  It also leaked under the engine and into the bilge.

Light sand and apply another coat.  Repeat as necessary.

My fluxgate compass is mounted on the bulkhead of the aft cabin pretty much directly below the helm.  The rudder reference sensor is optional.  I don't have one, but I imagine that it would improve performance.

It is pretty much impossible to get every drop of liquid pumped out of the tank.  If you have or want to add an inspection port on the top you could use a wet/dry vac to remove the rest.  It would also be an opportune time to "test" your macerator to make sure that it is functioning properly.

Mreagan,

Are the portlights you bought the following:

Item #:     901142
Brand:     Lewmar
Model #:     393129951

Are these an exact match in size?  If so that is a really good deal!  I may have to look at replacing mine as well.  I pulled them all and rebed a couple years ago and already have one leak again.

Mike,

I replaced all of my lights with LED except for the chart light on the nav station.  I used the Dr. LED dome lights in the salon and have been happy with them (other than one that went out, it was difficult to get them to honor the warranty)  I have two different kinds of reading lamps in the cabins.  One set forward and another set aft.  It has been my experience that the more expensive the fixture is the better the quality of the light output.  The more expensive fixtures look like incandescents while the cheaper fixtures look like LEDs.  Wiring was easy, just use existing wiring and new butte connectors.  Overall I would say it is a vast improvement over the old factory lighting.

FYI if you want to try a less expensive and easier route check out marinebeam.com and just replace your bulbs.  I did this for my NAV lights and can't tell the difference, so my caveat on price is not always necessarily applicable.

I installed the Xantrex Freedom HF 1800 inverter/charger in 2011 and had nothing but problems with the charger function.  After returning it twice to West Marine for replacements I installed a Mastervolt charger and a separate Xantrex XM pro 1000 inverter.  The only reason I purchased another Xantrex product was because the wiring was already in place and it was an easy install.  So far the inverter works fine (3 months), but the cooling fan comes on intermittently even when the unit is turned off.  Xantrex technical support is not helpful in the least.

If I could start over I would not purchase a Xantrex product.

I have old ones available.  Only problems are, one broke when removing and they are located in TX.  I replaced mine with teak.  Probably would cost more to ship than they are worth.

I have a 16k btu King-Aire that was installed in the cockpit locker by the PO with the return air vent in the head.  There is an insulated partition around the unit to separate it from the rest of the locker.  I have two A/C vents, one in aft cabin and one at nav station.  I have never seen or heard of anyone else using this location.

I saw this on posted on Sailnet

I figured some of you west coast guys might be interested in trying to salvage some parts, according to the article the guy does not want the boat!


http://www.coastlinepilot.com/news/tn-cpt-0111-sailboat-aground-20130111,0,5953419.story

Hmm, I don't think I have one on the hot water line.  I notice Ron mentioned the hot water line above as well.  I believe that the foot pump may have been an option so all boats may not have the check valve for the ice box drain.

I will have to take a look at my hot water line when I get back to the boat, but if the check valve is there I certainly would not remove it.

Are you sure that line does not go from your icebox drain to your sink drain?  If so, yes it is needed.  I did not have a check valve on my boat and was experiencing backflow into my icebox.  The plumbing schematics show a check valve there, so I replumbed with a check valve and problem was solved.

That is the only check valve that I have under the galley sink and the only shown in plumbing diagram.

I replaced my tank vent with a through hull just below the toe rail and a little bit aft of the former vented stanchion.  I also glassed in the hole for the vented stanchion and replaced it with a regular stanchion.  I did not add the clam shell over the through hull because I could not find one locally at the time I did the project and never added it.  The clam shell is really not needed in my opinion.  I am really happy with the new vent set up and have had it for over a year now.

Also I would not add the bubbler you are talking about.  Seems to me if you are stirring up Sh*t it is going to stink worse.  I may be wrong on that, but just my .02!  I think a combination of good tank vent, chemicals and frequent pumpouts should do the trick.