Mikebat
Member III
Hi there. Haven't been posting for several months, mainly because I go through phases on the internet, and this has been my "I am tired of B-boards" phase. But also because I have been busy procrastinating on boat chores, and sometimes actually accomplishing some of them. The one that turned out to be way more work and way less interesting than I thought it would be was rewiring the electrical cabinet. But that f**ker's done. Whew! Only the AC shore wiring is left, and I am leaving that one to do with the new battery charger install. Later.
Thanks to my spiffy new wiring job, I can add new electrical stuff and actually know which breaker it's connected to and where the wiring has to go. I hauled out Valinor last month for a bottom job and to install the new through-hulls for the instrument upgrades. I chose TackTick wireless instruments, which despite the advertising, are not entirely wireless. The hull instruments still have leads to connect to the control module. Lucky for me, someone had given the boat an extra empty wiring conduit pre-strung with a messenger line from the starboard locker where the old Corinthian wiring block was to the forward bilge where the through-hulls were. So that's done, except for a climb up the mast to install the new anemometer and windvane. That part really is wireless, and self-powered by a solar-charged battery. It's initialized and networked and I can hold it up in the wind and get readings on the displays. Pretty cool.
The wireless displays - I have two now, a wind display and a two-line data display - mount on a 18" x 6" x 1/2" plank of pure white HDPE which I got from cuttingboardfactory.com. I bolted that to the binnacle rails and attached the display's brackets on the helmsman's side. There's room for two more. It looks really good, much better than the old Corinthian instrument pods. I will get some extra quick-release mounting brackets so I can put a data display on the backside of the board for when I am sitting forward in the cockpit facing aft, and someone else or the autopilot is steering. I'll also put some brackets in the cabin. You can just tote the wireless, solar-charged displays anywhere, snap them into a bracket or stow them in their little leatherette carry cases. There's also a module that accepts RS232 NMEA data from anything, and puts that data on the TackTick wireless network. An optional 4" solar panel is available so the control and NMEA modules can be charged from the sun as well. They have internal batteries, like the displays and wind instrument, and can run for two weeks without any boat power or sunlight. I will use the NMEA module to integrate my GPS and radar (when I get a radar) and the PC. I am thinking about using Bluetooth adapters to send RS232 NMEA data wirelessly as well. But I may just hardwire this part. Haven't decided just yet. I still have the autopilot to integrate into all of this. It's a Simrad WP32X.
I attempted to gain access to all of my bilge by removing the sole, but after the teak plugs and screws came out, it was apparent that the sole was glued to the underflooring. So I am not gonna touch that one for a while, until I come up with a really good reason to do it. In the meantime, I will carry a fireman's axe on board in case I need emergency access to the hull beneath the sole.
If all goes well, the sea trial for all of this new stuff will occur this Monday. I plan to sail to Two Harbors, and on Tuesday my two nephews will arrive in LA and take the ferry from MDR to meet me. Or I may wait until Tuesday and cross with them aboard. At any rate, our plan is to sail around the island next week, to Avalon for a day and a night, a cove or two, and then around to Cat Harbor, and back around to Two Harbors if we have time. I need to return by Sunday so I can return to work Monday the 17th.
There's just one job left that may delay me, which I am working on today and tomorrow. I have had a nagging problem with the fresh water pump running continuously. I tried many times to flush air out of the system, and I don't see any air coming out of the taps or the water heater vent, which is the highest point in the system. Nor can I find any leaks, although there is a persistent drip-drip from the pump body itself. So I pulled the pump out this morning and disassembled it, expecting (hoping?) to find the diaphragm was torn or something. But nothing so glaringly obvious was apparent, except that fresh water pumps have a lot of slimey gunk inside them, despite their name. So I bought a new pump and will be going back to the boat to install it after I post this. Maybe it was the pressure sensor on the old pump. The new one is a variable speed and I've added an accumulator tank too. Tomorrow, I'll disinfect the water system with bleach (following directions from a thread right on this board). Once that's done, I'm ready to be underway.
Oh, and one other thing: I'm moving Valinor to the Cabrillo Marina. My slip is C-43 and I can move the boat to it on the 27th of this month.
Thanks to my spiffy new wiring job, I can add new electrical stuff and actually know which breaker it's connected to and where the wiring has to go. I hauled out Valinor last month for a bottom job and to install the new through-hulls for the instrument upgrades. I chose TackTick wireless instruments, which despite the advertising, are not entirely wireless. The hull instruments still have leads to connect to the control module. Lucky for me, someone had given the boat an extra empty wiring conduit pre-strung with a messenger line from the starboard locker where the old Corinthian wiring block was to the forward bilge where the through-hulls were. So that's done, except for a climb up the mast to install the new anemometer and windvane. That part really is wireless, and self-powered by a solar-charged battery. It's initialized and networked and I can hold it up in the wind and get readings on the displays. Pretty cool.
The wireless displays - I have two now, a wind display and a two-line data display - mount on a 18" x 6" x 1/2" plank of pure white HDPE which I got from cuttingboardfactory.com. I bolted that to the binnacle rails and attached the display's brackets on the helmsman's side. There's room for two more. It looks really good, much better than the old Corinthian instrument pods. I will get some extra quick-release mounting brackets so I can put a data display on the backside of the board for when I am sitting forward in the cockpit facing aft, and someone else or the autopilot is steering. I'll also put some brackets in the cabin. You can just tote the wireless, solar-charged displays anywhere, snap them into a bracket or stow them in their little leatherette carry cases. There's also a module that accepts RS232 NMEA data from anything, and puts that data on the TackTick wireless network. An optional 4" solar panel is available so the control and NMEA modules can be charged from the sun as well. They have internal batteries, like the displays and wind instrument, and can run for two weeks without any boat power or sunlight. I will use the NMEA module to integrate my GPS and radar (when I get a radar) and the PC. I am thinking about using Bluetooth adapters to send RS232 NMEA data wirelessly as well. But I may just hardwire this part. Haven't decided just yet. I still have the autopilot to integrate into all of this. It's a Simrad WP32X.
I attempted to gain access to all of my bilge by removing the sole, but after the teak plugs and screws came out, it was apparent that the sole was glued to the underflooring. So I am not gonna touch that one for a while, until I come up with a really good reason to do it. In the meantime, I will carry a fireman's axe on board in case I need emergency access to the hull beneath the sole.
If all goes well, the sea trial for all of this new stuff will occur this Monday. I plan to sail to Two Harbors, and on Tuesday my two nephews will arrive in LA and take the ferry from MDR to meet me. Or I may wait until Tuesday and cross with them aboard. At any rate, our plan is to sail around the island next week, to Avalon for a day and a night, a cove or two, and then around to Cat Harbor, and back around to Two Harbors if we have time. I need to return by Sunday so I can return to work Monday the 17th.
There's just one job left that may delay me, which I am working on today and tomorrow. I have had a nagging problem with the fresh water pump running continuously. I tried many times to flush air out of the system, and I don't see any air coming out of the taps or the water heater vent, which is the highest point in the system. Nor can I find any leaks, although there is a persistent drip-drip from the pump body itself. So I pulled the pump out this morning and disassembled it, expecting (hoping?) to find the diaphragm was torn or something. But nothing so glaringly obvious was apparent, except that fresh water pumps have a lot of slimey gunk inside them, despite their name. So I bought a new pump and will be going back to the boat to install it after I post this. Maybe it was the pressure sensor on the old pump. The new one is a variable speed and I've added an accumulator tank too. Tomorrow, I'll disinfect the water system with bleach (following directions from a thread right on this board). Once that's done, I'm ready to be underway.
Oh, and one other thing: I'm moving Valinor to the Cabrillo Marina. My slip is C-43 and I can move the boat to it on the 27th of this month.
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