Progress on jobs

 A couple of trips to the boat since strict lock down lifted and things are coming along. I am hoping that I have dodged a bullet with the dip stick problem. After getting it out with a set of large mole grips I have straightened it out, changed the oil and so far all seems good. I have installed a gimbal from my jet boil and a vice in the cabin which can double as a table bracket. On the big job list; I have almost completed replacing the lower stays. The old ones were undersized at 1/8" and of indeterminate age. I have fitted 5mm stays with swaged eyes at the mast end and swageless eyes at deck level. All with the help of a friend whilst the mast was up. Other jobs include checking out the sail wardrobe and fitting a proper sea bunk. Photos to follow.

Mooring check and a problem

 I visited Louisa to check the moorings and timed it so that I had a full tide onboard. The moorings were fine and I checked a couple of other club boats. One was very twisted so I reset the lines, another, my old Achilles 24, was OK but the sail cover had come off so I retied it. Back on Louisa I fitted a swivel to the mooring buoy but as I haven't built up any trust in it yet I fitted a safety line. While on board I made progress on the heating which I am calling finished for now and the solar panels. I also tried a dry fit of the winch bases and I think that they are good enough to make the actual bases in agba. As normal I charged the batteries up with the engine and whilst doing this the engine started to make a very strange noise. It sounded like it was about to let go so I turned it off pronto. Upon checking I found that the dipstick was loose. When I tried to pull it out it was stuck in the engine so I assume it had come loose and the oily end had caught on the crank shaft and been bent. After trying to extract it for 30 mins I gave up. My plan is to change the engine oil and filter and check for metal fragments. If bad, I might flush the engine out with diesel but if no too bad I'll resort to checking the oil level by pumping the oil out into a calibrated container. I suspect that the dipstick is made from stainless steel but if not I'll place a couple of strong magnets under the sump to hold the metal filings. 

Heating update

 The basic install is complete but it needs some further minor changes, namely more insulation. I made a trip to Louisa, the first in over 2 months, on the pretext of checking the moorings after storm Bella over the Christmas period. The moorings were fine, only half a dozen turns on the mooring lines to take out. My guess would be that some kind person at the club had tended the lines. I took paraphernalia with me to progress several jobs; winch fitment, solar panel fittings, various measurements and items to find. One of the jobs I was keen to progress was the heating, specifically the transom flange. The bolts need changing out because try as I might I couldn't tighten then up. 

The heater is located in the engine bay above the stern gland and fits in very nicely below the access hatch in the cockpit. All of the exhaust pipe is insulated and where other hoses cross its path they are also insulated. The insulation on the exhaust pipe gets too hot to touch for more than a second or two so I intend to insulate it with a second layer of the same material and then wrap it in foil tape. Also on the list of follow up jobs is replacement of the fuel hose with better quality hose, addition of a fuel cut off valve, additional support for the fuel tank, proper installation of the control panel and isolator and insulation of the air duct. 

The air it produces is a good temperature and should heat the cabin up nicely once I trust the CO levels. I have a monitor which goes off when I use my Origo spirit stove so it is only a question of time before I rely on the heater.

 

Tier 4

I really hope that the title of this post makes no sense to anyone in a few years time. Louisa has been in Tier 3 for the past 6 weeks and now both I and Louisa have been put in Tier 4. I suspect that this will last for around 2 months so it is going to be March / Easter before I get to check her moorings. That is 4 months. Worried yes, but hopefully someone at the club is keeping an eye on things.  

COVID-19

 Another couple of weeks before I can contemplate a visit to Louisa, this is getting a bit boring now! 

More sheet winches

After getting myself in a tangle when trying to run downwind with a preventer and poled out genoa on my last boat I thought it would be worth looking into twin winch options. As Louisa has an inner fore stay the option of a cutter or slutter rig also seems worth having a go at. So I have bought a couple of twin speed Girdlestone 23 winches cheap off ebay. They are the forerunner of Barton's composite 23's. If I can position them to allow decent sheet leads and improve the winch handle positioning I might improve matters in a number of ways.

New winches installed and tested. 

 

The new winches have full handle swing so sheeting in is much faster. Because they are further forward there are harbour blocks to lead the sheets appropriately. So far so good but not much wind to test them against.

Heating

 As a measure of how soft I am getting I have decided to put heating into Louisa. The plan is to fit a cheap chinesium planer heater in the engine bay, duct warm air into the cabin and take the cool air from the back of the quarter berth. The exhaust will route through to a transom stern gland. 

The heater is bought and onboard, slightly disappointed that I selected the heater for it's simple controller and a more complicated one arrived. I have opened the cockpit sole hatch up so access is good. The route for the warm air duct isn't straight forward but it looks like I can lead the duct through the locker under the quarter berth, only 4 off 60mm holes to drill! The exhaust pipe only needs to go through the aft bulkhead in the engine bay but considerations around heat are a worry. I have made up a bracket to support the heater and ordered the extra ducting and exhaust pipe.

Next stage is to drill holes, some big holes and probably 10 of them! 

Initial install went well apart from a couple of minor problems. A hole in the wrong place and several broken drill bits but the main system is in and working. It took a while for diesel to make its way through to the heater and the transom outlet hasn't been fitted yet.