Back on the job

...!

Hope you all had a terrific xmas and trust Santa brought you lots of boaty bits!

Back on board today and spent several hours removing paint from the forepeak.

Its been previously painted, and the plan was to repaint it, but with a bit more care. However, the paint proved to be poorly adhered, and started to scrape off quite easily.

After removing a fair amount it was becoming clear that the wood is in great condition, and it looked really good back to as original. So that's the way it'll be staying.

Much more to do yet though... Lots more paint to remove, as well as the headlining in the forepeak, and that will be a challenge. There is loads of batten work holding it up, and also the load spreading plate for the inner forestay.

But, the mojo is back!

Cold!

Not a lot achieved today... Bit of tidying and then decided it was too darned cold, so packed up and came home.

I did however get my head around what to start next... Will leave the alternator controller until later, and move to the bow and start the painting and varnishing as well as installing the electrics as i go... Mainly as it will give me something to show for my efforts.

So... Dehumidifier and frost heater on... Cant see me getting back down until early in the new year now

Charging along

Well, at least the batteries are!

Temperature was a bloody shock when i climbed on board last night, but after closing up aft cabin with a heater it was ok....

Today, i seem to have not acheived much for a whole days work... Just installed the new battery charger... However, it did entail refitting the isolator switches as the bulkhead they are mounted on is so thick that i couldnt get the battery cables on... So had to remove loads of wood from the back... I also routed quite a few battery cables, removed the old charger and wired up the new one... Switched it on and the pontoon fuse tripped!

After a bit of examing and reconnecting, i got the marina to reset the fuse and away she went.

So now we are running the domestics off the domestic batteries, as well as charging both domestic and starter battery... Much better!

Another freezing night ahead of me i suspect... Better keep busy or i'll freeze up!

No progess

My speedy start on the boat has come to a crashing halt... Too many Xmas parties, kids events and birthdays to make any progress.... WILL get on soon....

electrical bits

Spent the last few days trawling the internet for various bits and pieces I need to get Phoenix back into tip top shape... some easy to find, others less so... or at least less so at sensible prices!

I need 10 overhead lights... currently we've got teak discs, with a brass fitting on each... replacements are £40 each... ouch. However, i've found a source of just the brass bit at £12 each... much more like it... they've also got 10W bulbs in... OK for a couple, but 10 of them will be a bit heavy on the batteries (OK, we're unlikely to have them all on at the same time)... so want LED alternatives... which are £15 each.... have found a supplier of a converter from bayonet to G4 connections, that also provides surge protection... and then the LED G4 bulbs are 95p each from eBay... total £3 a light fitting.. much better!

Then its on to bilge pumps... again, not cheap... looking at about £80 a pump by the time you've added float switches... but have just found a supplier of slightly smaller pumps (still well recognised, good quality brands) that cope with 350Gph, but if I fit 3 of them, then that's enough... if the water is coming in faster than a 1,000 Gallons an hour, we'be got bigger problems!

Then on to shower pumps... jeepers! £100 each.... so that'll be only one heads with a shower unit then.... and it'll also save on taps/shower head fittings too..

After that, its nav lights.... need a tricolour... but 'er indoors is buying me the NASA LED Tricolour as a crimbo pressie!

I'll worry about the steaming light etc later.

Finally, I need instruments, so that when Phoenix is lifted, I can remove the old log and sounder and fit new ones... was going down the Raymarine route with ST40s, but can get two of the new Garmin colour instrumets for the same money.... and they are multi display... in fact as they include more cabling than the Raymarine ones, actually they work out cheaper!

They are NMEA2000, but also have an NMEA0813 input... so plan is to have Standard Horizon VHF with AIS receiver, sending NMEA to a Raymarine e7 plotter, which will also output GPS info to radio and instruments... neat set up, that allows me to have an iPad down below that repeats e7 display, as well as lots of other funky features.

Not onboard this weekend... too much to do at home... but back on the case soon!

Tidied and quit!

Got up this morning, and started to fit the battery cabling to fit the Sterling A2B and the battery charger, to find that the terminals on the new battery cables have holes in a smidgen too small to fit on the 3way and isolator switches... no problem, there's more than enough material in them to enlarge the holes slightly, only I didn't have the required tools with me... so did a whole load of tidying up, and came home.

There are parts of the boat that I haven't seen in several weeks!... I also brought home a good pile of cushions, so that as I complete the battery wiring, I can start tackling the stripping and varnishing without either covering everything in dust, or having to undertake a major rearrange everytime I start a new area. Probably a good thing to do this time of the year anyway.

This weekend has been really positive. I feel like i've made some major progress. What it has done is made me realise that I need to get on and get the gas and fridge done, as then i'm getting close to having a habitable space, where I can spend an entire week without having to nip out every two days for food, or can eat properly, rather than living on snacks....

With the forepeak largely cleared of clutter, I can see me getting that part of the boat well under way before too long.

It will be frustrating being able to finish an entire cabin, but not get the headlining completed, but that will be almost the last job, as the dust will play havoc with new headlining, and the material is sufficiently expensive, that it will just have to wait!

Hot water!

Another fine day of progress!

Old calorifier removed, new one in, pipework to galley sink, and immersion heater wired up.

The old calorifier was an absolute pig to get out. All the connections were rusted to the point that I had to cut them off, and it was buried deep in a locker and needed lots of dissmantaling to remove. When i finally managed to undo the bolts holding it in, which required contortionist skills, i pulled from the top of the immersion heater, which promptly crumbled it was so rusty!

New one was the same size, so fitted neatly, but the take offs were in a different position, so i'll lose 6" of wet locker, but can live with that.. Still to reassemble the locker anyway.

The pipework was easy, other than when i removed the end stop from the cold water system, despite having turned the pump off, i'd forgotten to open the tap and let the pressure off, so soaked myself with a jet of water... Only an accumulator full.

And then I had a stroke of genius. In the saloon is a lit switch for the old battery charger... No longer needed, but i had enough 240V cable to route to it, so now the immersion is nicely switched in a visible place... saves a hole in the seating area too!

Left it an hour, and joy beyond joy... Running hot and cold water, at least to the galley anyway. I'll extend it to the heads as i start working on them.

Tomorrow i'll start fitting the new battery charger, the 3 way switch and the isolators, so that the domestics are serviced properly. Currently i'm running everything off the engine start battery.

And then, clear the forepeak and start getting all the wiring in and working my way backwards... Tons to do, but progress is very motivating!

Enough's enough

Home now... Had enough... Sore hands!

But mainly I ran out of light fittings that worked, and didnt want to start the next job!

But, now have two light fittings that work in the saloon and galley, and the wiring in place for two more.

Not sure what the next task is, but a week to think about it.

Let there be light

A thoroughly successful day!

I started by fitting the plumbing to the main galley cold tap, and then fitting the water pump properly... Wiring it up through the switch panel and routing the wiring neatly... Removing the old plumbing was a nightmare... It was routed in the most awkward places possible... I nearly cocked up... Was about to cut one pipe when i realised that is was the main feed to the pump... Hard to tell when they are all green dirty copper... Also discovered that the galley hand pump is on a seperate take off from the tank... Have put a blanking plug on it as a short term fix, but will ressurect it eventually as its useful should the electrics fail.

One false start when the pump failed to prime, but a bit of mucking about, mainly by dismounting and lowering the pump got it going... And then... hoorah, running water at the galley.

I did have to refill the water tank as i'd drained it to cut the old pipework out... Lots of new creaking as it filled!.. I spent a while panicking, looking for leaks, but none present.

You have no idea how nice it is to be able to wash your hands!

Then i started the saloon lighting

I spent a while trying to work out where to route the wiring, and once decided, quite a bit longer trying to feed the wires through several small gaps... Eventually i suceeded, fitted a temporary light in the galley, et voila!

Its only the one, but its great to have a light that doesnt need carrying around with me!

So... Slowly progress is being made.

Tomorrow i'll fit more lights, and then start on the forepeak wiring and perhaps have a bit of a tidy up... Now i've got light, I can see what a mess it is!

Panelled and painted

Engine room is now repanelled, and second coat of paint on last night.

Managed to relocate the accumulator and mount the water pump before it got too late as well. The water pump previously was just laying loose on the shelf, held in place by nothing more than the length of the attached water pipes!

Removing the remaining bits on the engine room bulkheads was 'fun'.... Several things were nailed (yes, thats nailed) to it...

So today will be reconnecting the water supply and providing a properly routed power supply to the pump. I'll only do the cold side until i've got the calorifier... Will mean a trip to the chandlery for a bit of extra pipe, and to screwfix for a set of tap connectors.

I also mounted the new battery isolators. Only practical place is belpw the companionway steps, which isnt ideal from a 'getting wet' perspective, but i figure that if they are getting wet enough where they are to cause a problem, then we've probably got bigger problems!

Calorifier ordered

Calorifier on the way!

But not until next friday, so will be fitted next weekend.

In the meantime, back down to Phoenix tomorrow, and hoping to get the cold water plumbing in.

Once the calorifier is fitted, then we'll have hot water again as its got an immersion heater...

Then, once i've got the engone room cladding finished, i can start getting the wiring done...

Once the lights are in, then we're getting back to being habitable...

And once that's underway, then the varnishing can get underway...

And once she's lifted, the seacocks can be replaced, new instrument senders fitted and the bilges painted...

After that will be the fridge/freezer and heating and we're well on the way!!!

Plumbing

Just been and fetched all the plumbing bits... Doing it throughout with Speedfit.. Easy, cheap and much better for a boat.

Only thing i havent got yet are the tap connectors as i didn't measure tap thread sizes, and indeed we may fit new taps anyway...

Now to order the calorifier... Not cheap, but with a twin coil, essential for the water heating system we plan to fit

Still progressing...

...but stopped for 2 days.. Want to get some quality family time in while i've got a week off and its half term, amd the boat isn't habitable!

Still, managed to remove all the headlining from the saloon and galley, and get half the engine room recladded and the first coat of paint on... Also got some of the plumbing removed.

Tomorrow, will get the plumbing bits to put in new water system... Just hot and cold supplies via accumulator and calorifier, the heating can wait... But will order a new calorifier with twin coil, as that will be needed for planned water heating... No more running the engine to heat the water!

Engine room is going to look great... Much tidier, and more organised... Still got a few bits of cable to remove, mainly the alternator cabling which runs via a rather rusty TWC controller, but i'll leave that until i've worked out what is connected to what!

All in all, feels like progress... Had to do tons more dismantalling to remove headlining, so boat looks like a jumble sale at the moment... But it'll come together eventually...

The rules of boat maintenance

As i sit here in the dark, i'm reminded of several of the unwritten rules of boat maintenance...

Rule 1 - the one tool you will need most is the one tool you have left at home

That stubborn bolt would have been a lot easier if i'd remembered the spare 10mm socket after the boat one went for a swim a couple of years ago

Rule 2 - the law of expanding opportunity

No job is too small to reveal another task that will need completing prior to finishing the first. This rule can expand to several iterations.

Rule 3 - the rule of started jobs

It is required of all boat maintainers to have at least 4 current jobs on the go, and to do a little on each in random order

Rule 4 - the more essential it is, the more likely it is to get broken

Especially when its your one and only light, hence me sitting in the dark

....so, after removing yet more wire from the engine room, i've started cutting the wood for the engine room cladding, which needs doing before i start to rewire in earnest so that the wiring can be clipped up neatly... And after cutting the first panel, have concluded that it will not go in while the plumbing remains in place... So i have to start that tomorrow as well...

In the meantime i've started taking the headlining down. This sounds like a straightforward job... Oh no, not a chance... It needs to come down to put new wiring in for the lights, and also because its a bit tatty, so we're replacing it all. Only every bit is held in place with wooden battens that have been screwed in and then the screw holes plugged with wood to hide them. So every screw needs digging out... Removing 4 panels took me 3 hours, and another 25 to go...

On the positive side, i put a temporary feed to the water pump, so now i have running water to make tea and wash my hands.

It looks like it'll be a busy winter though...

And now off to bed.. If i can find it in the dark.

Great late season weather!

The annual ybw ECF 'laying down supper' this weekend, this year in the Colne Yacht Club at Brightlingsea... last time we went there, the food was OKish, but the service was terrible, but that was a few years ago... so we were intrigued to find out how it had changed...

But mainly, we were worried about the weather...

We'd been invited to sail onboard Pipedream II, a friends boat... which we were looking forward to... and wow what a weekend!

A belt up the Wallet on Saturday with apparent wind of 25kts, course hard on the wind... reefs in, and over on her ear... but the sun was out, and while cold, it was clear and blue skies that made it...

A great night in CYC, with food that was excellent, and very friendly service... big bonus...

and then Sunday... boy what a sail...

A broad reach back in blazing susnshine... we started well wrapped up, and gradually lost layers as the day went on... 15kts of wind... superb... just a wonderful sail in near perfect conditions.

Spuring me on to get on with Phoenix.... good job really.. i've got the week off to work on her!

Miles logged 60nm
Miles this season 245nm
Miles since this blog started 5,951nm

slowly but surely

Remaining electrical bits arriving today... no visit to the boat though... C is sweet 16 this weekend... so we're going to the beach to fly kites instead!

battery location

Was planning on putting the batteries on the ledge in the engine room.... having second thoughts, and may well put them on the bottom shelf of the large cupboard in the engine room... neater, better protected, and leaves room for the watermaker and fridge compressor... will need to put a few vent holes in the cupboard door though...

Need to use Mk1 eyeball and stare and contemplate for a while in order to see what I think.

its only money...

I've just ordered the remaining bits to get my new engine room electrical install completed.

I've added a Sterling Battery charger to the equipment list, as I wasn't confident in the old one... it was rather ancient, and didn't seem to float the batteries very well... plus it was a single output, which meant that the engine and domestics needed connecting in parallel in order to charge everything, which I didn't like.

However, that wasn't the main expense... no... that honour was granted to the battery cables. In order to get a neat install, i'm routing them over the top of the engine room. That means that they are a bit longer than normal. Add to that, the fact that i've ordered tinned versions, and perhaps slightly overspecced them at 40mm2, then the total for cables (to admittedly connect both batteries, the isolators, the 1-2-All switch, the Alternator controller and the battery charger) was over £250!!!

Finally, a handful of ring terminals for the cable, 6 new battery clamps, three nice BEP isolator switches (one of which isn't needed for know until I install the windlass wiring, but wanted to fit all three together to make it neat) and an earth commoning point, and the grand total was nearly £600.

We will have a terrific power installation though, that is reliable, tough, and efficient.... expensive upfront but will, I hope, pay back for itself many times over in reduced fuel costs, longer battery life, and most importantly of all, confidence in the engine starting!

phew what a weekend!

Arrived on Phoenix at about 19:00 Friday, and immediately set too in removing wiring... trying very hard to keep at least one light and the radio working as long as possible.... and worked through to about 23:00 where I collapsed exhausted into bed.

Early start on Saturday, and at it again by about 08:00.

It was becoming clear that removing the wiring was going to be a mammoth task... every little wire was buried deep in the darkest recesses of the boat, and required mases of dismantaling, revealing dusty, smelly areas that hadn't seen the light of day for years... and blessed with corroded and awkwardly placed screws that needed removing... some of cable was slimy with years of gunk, some dried out to the point of just snapping when pulled. It was clear that the wiring desperately needed replacing, as i'd already known.

A good deal of the wiring ran through the bilges... a pretty daft place to put any electrics, and after our little flood of the 2 weeks agao, was nicely slimy with a greasy oily coating... pretty unpleasant to remove.

One area of the bilges still needs pumping out, and so some of the cable was even underwater still... I haven't pumped it out yet, as the water is contaminated with diesel, and I don't want to pump it into the marina... and its enough water that I can't put it into containers easily without removing the pump outlet, which is below the water line... it'll have to wait until we are ashore, and then I can remove it 10 gallons at a time!

The hardest job of all was removing battery cables... for some reason the domestic batteries are located under the saloon seating, which seems a bit odd given the amount of space in the engine room, and because of this, some pretty heavy duty cables run under the bilges... they were absolute pigs to get out, as they wouldn't easily pull through the holes they had been run through due to how stiff they were.

Eventually though, they were released from captivity, along with the 3 way switch, and the 2 isolator switches (which are being replaced with more modern versions, and also being relocated to a more sensible position.

I'm also fitting a Sterling Alternator to Battery controller, as this will make better use of the power generated from the alternator, as well as providing a spilt diode facility to ensure the engine battery is always kept topped up.

I consequently moved the batteries to the engine room, and measured up for the new battery cables that i'll order this week. That'll be expensive... they're about £16 a metre!

So... all the saloon wiring removed, along with everything to the chart table... most of the wiring forwards to the forepeak... and the loom back to the aft cabin... Still got the wiring in the two cabins to deal with, but that should be easier as there isn't anywhere near so much.

In a couple of places, the wiring is buried behind teak tongue and groove panelling over a bulkhead leading to a light fitting... THis wouldn't come out no matter how hard I pulled, and so there was no chance of mousing in a new cable... so this had to be cut off and left in place.... its not visible, only a few inches of it overall, so no matter.

While I was revealing the wiring, I also discovered the copper water pipe and the copper gas pipe, neither of which look very healthy, and are being replaced anyway... so that's one task that at least I undertand where to hunt now.

I finally stopped at 23:00 on Saturday, and then started again at 07:00 Sunday, and worked through to about 16:30.

At this point, i'd had enough... with so much wiring removed, i'd lost the radio, as well as the water pump, so had no lights, no water and nothing to listen to... completely had enough!

I'd also removed hundreds of screws.. some with obvious uses, some seemingly completely random!

As part of the work, i'd removed all the wiring from the switch panel, and the panel itself.... and installed my new panel... it looks great even if I do say so myself!.. all worked as expected, with two exceptions... one light came on immediately, and stayed on regardless of switch position.... easy solved... i'd go the connections on back to front.... and the second.. the LED went pop immediately upon powering up... i've got some spares, so i'll just need to replace it... other priorities right now.

The wiring behind the panel is completely refreshed with a new fuse box, and all finished onto bus bars and a distribution panel, awaiting the main wiring to start going in.

One more good weekends work, and we should start to see some services up and running again, especially the water pump, and lights!

One final thing... found another leak... when the new pedestal was fitted just before we bought her, it needed new mounting holes.... and the old ones weren't filled... and they leak... that'll be easily solved!

Pretty happy with progress overall... no jobs ticked off my (long) list as completed, but an awful lot got well underway.

Piccies to follow.

what order

sat here trying to work out in my head what order to do the major jobs in...

After seeing a picture today of a lovely refit on an EVO25, its quite clear than I need to paint the bilges, but in order to do that I need light, and that requires the 12V to be redone... to do the 12V, I need to get the charging sorted out, so that's a look at the 240V, and a bit of re-routing (currently the live 240V circuit runs in the bilges!!!!)

So... I need to get the engine compartment sorted, recladded, and tidied up to provide a better, more secure and organised home for the charger and wiring...

And then of course, there is all the varnishing to be done below, which needs the old varnish stripping off, so lots of dust... which will make a mess of my nice new bilges, so ought to be done first... for which I need light.... and there, i'm back where I started...

Along the way, i'm going to replumb, but that would be better after painting the bilges...

I also need the boat ashore before too long to remove old seacocks and through hulls, and to get the bilges pumped out and cleaned properly before painting them..

None of this will be easy without an operational fridge, or heating as there will be limited food, and freezing fingers otherwise as I work through the winter...

Sigh.... where the heck to start!

On the positive side, I found a source today of 7' x 4' sheets of 2.4mm exterior grade ply to reclad the engine room (it's currently hardboard over the sound insulation) for a meagre £4 a sheet!!!, so that and some white paint has to be a good starting point... only it'll make the engine look even more scruffy, so maybe I need to get the rocker cover, header tank and heat exchanger repainted.... and off we go in circles again!

So... decision made... this weekend will be recladding weekend... lets see how far I can get in one weekend...

I've also had this grand idea.. currently, the locker in the cockpit just opens into the engine room... great for access, but not much good for storage... so i've worked out a way of boxing it in without losing tons of engine room... I need to take a look this weekend and mull it over a bit, but think i'll still have space for the watermaker and batteries, as well as creating a decent sized (removable) cockpit locker, and not loosing access to the useful cupboards at the back of the engine room. We'll see!

Switch panel pics

Some pics as promised... Now with added fuse box!

panel development continues

The panel was painted last night, and was dry enough to re-engrave the writing this evening, so that it now shows through in a bright silver colour... then she got two coats of lacquer.... tomorrow night, I can fit the LEDs and switches.... then some piccies...

gosh, its big!

Got home from work this evening, to be proudly presented with a new ensign. A lovely stitched one of very nice quality.

When we bought Phoenix, she was handed over with a very tatty little ensign, originally no more than 18" on the long edge, with perhaps 4" worn away with the ravages of time.

Now, i'm sure this ensign has a story or two to tell, and she'll now enter stately retirement, no doubt on C's wall.... but Phoenix really needed a new one.

So, 'er indoors secretly ordered one...

Only, its a 2 yard ensign... yes, that's 6' on the long edge... its 'effin enormous!

I think she'll wear it well... the Dutch would look on with secret admiration... even Guapa will have to admit its a beauty, even if he'll question the colour scheme!! :)

Only remaining issue is where on earth to fly it (yes, I know that should be wear it, but lets face it... mos people would just think I was odd if I wrote that!)... she has no ensign staff, instead flying the ensign rather messily from one of the davits to the stern at a wierd angle.... do we buy a big ensign staff for the transom, do we fit a proper ensign staff to hoist up the mizzen, or is she flown off the backstay.... I think we'll treat ourselves to an enormous ensign staff...

...and then we can fly her with pride!

switch panel

Rather pleased with myself...

I spent several hours on Sunday, carefully marking out my switch panel on a sheet of aluminium, and then decided to bite the bullet, and got out my Dremel, and engraved it myself... (after quite a few practice runs on a few scraps, tetsing technique and painting/lacquering/engraving order).

Its still got work to be done, but it looks rather good even if I do say so myself!

Bit of wiring

Spent the day pulling bits of wire out of the boat...

In fact mostly removing the old instruments, so trying to keep the cabling intact so that it has some eBay value, even if it is as museum pieces!

This involved removing loads of trim... Which was a good thing as it helped me track down one of the few leaks we've got... One of the chain plates on the mizzen lowers... A spot of sealant should have resolved that... And also plugging up the radar cable hole.

Domestic batteries dont seem great... But not sure if its the wiring or the batteries... They didnt seem to work, but had 12.7V across the terminals...

Also, the battery charger seems to have bitten the dust after the 'leak' earlier this week.

So now the wiring removal can begin and the rewire to follow... All the bits arrived.

Im also going to replumb I think... Its OK-ish, but a tidy install will keep it all reliable.

Looks like i've got a lot to do!

crikey, that was close!

Phone call at lunchtime..... "Hello... I think your boat is sinking!"

Eek....

Guy in the yard spotted that she looked a little bit stern down.. and took the time to have a quick peek through a porthole..

They immediately got on board and thankfully, water level had only made it to the sole boards.... engine almost completely submerged though..

So, they got a pump on board.... I rapidly cancel afternoon meetings and jump in the car....

By the time I get there 2 hours later, they've already pumped her dry, whipped the injectors out and emptied some water from the cylinders, flushed the starter and alternator with fresh water, and have her running happily....

They'll also do a couple of oil changes tomorrow, and also a precautionary change of the gearbox oil.... as well as let her run for long enough to dry out properly.

And the cause?... my fault really.... a pipe failed to the aft heads, and i'd failed to close the seacock.... normally something i'm fastidious about, but missed this one when doing my rounds upon leaving, instead closing a no longer used one by mistake.... whoops.

It appears that we've been very very very lucky.... due to the yard guys being observant, very deep bilges, and Shotley's quick and effective action.

We'll see how starter and alternator fair, but its not the end of the world to replace them if I need to over the winter... (viva la simple non electronic engine!)

By the time I left at 16:00 you'd have never known it had happened.

So that'll be a bottle of good stuff then!

switch panel

I'm going to have a go at making my own switch panel up for Phoenix.

There's nothing really too wrong with the current one, but as with most boats of her age, it's had switches added, labels changed, the addition of a few dymo labels, and various bit and other pieces that make it look tatty.

I just happen to have a sheet of 2mm aluminium in the garage left over from a kit car project many years ago, and so, have ordered a pile of toggle switches and some leds for indicator lights.

My plan is to cut the panel to shape and make the holes for the switches and lights, and then take it to a local trophy engraver to get the correct 'labels' added by engraving. I'm wondering how to make the text stand out, so may well paint the panel in a jet black once cut to shape, so that the engraving stands out in a nice shiny aluminium.... if its not clear enough, I could then work some white paint into the recessed text.

While i'm at it, I may well relocate the 3 gauges that currently exist on board... 1 voltage gauge, and two current gauges... these would add a nce professional touch to the panel.

There's a fair bit of cable behind the panel, as there will be 20 switches on it, so also need to put some though into making this neat and reliable.

Will let you know how I get on, with hopefully some pictures!

and now the work begins

We've got a list of jobs to do on Phoenix as long as your arm.... with decisions that need to be made on the basis of avilable time and budget with regards to priorities.

So.... first two major priorities are to get the wiring completed, and the exterior varnishing.... weather may play a part in the varnishing, so we'll just have to play that one by ear.... and that leaves the wiring.

I've created a new wiring diagram for her.... I intend to completely rip out the current wiring and start again.

Having completed the wiring diagram, and done some quick adding up, it appears that there is over 750m of wire aboard!

Initially, i'll reclad the engine room, as its looking a bit tired, an use this as a catalyst to refix the equipment in there neatly, relocate all batteries to the engine room, and then work outwards from there with the wiring.

I also intend to fit a Sterling A2B to manage the batteries and alternator a bit better...

That'll be another chunk of cash then!

so, she's delivered!

Finally, the day had come to collect Phoenix of Hamble (from now on i'll just stick the name 'Phoenix')... i'd been watching the weather forecast closel for a few days, as the remnants of Hurricane Katia sped across the atlantic preceeded and followed by a series of vicious lows squeezing against the high over mainland Europe causing blustery and occasionally downright windy SW'lys across the UK.

I'd arranged a friday off work to give us a 3 day weekend for the delivery for a bit of contingency, and relaxed somewhat as I saw a clear weather window for Friday and Saturday, with Sunday still looking pretty rough. When I say a weather window, I mean that the forecast was only for a F5 to F6!

Initial challenge was that the previous weekend, i'd been down to the boat and loaded lots of kit onboard for the delivery trip, and fixed a few things required by the insurers for the trip... i'd also had a rigger on board making sure that the rigging was safe... new bilge pump fitted etc etc... along the way, I discovered that the new Schaeffer furler, lovely as it was, has a bolt rope size of 5mm, and the genoa with an 8mm bolt rope was never going to fit!... so a logistical nightmare to get the sail to a suitable sailmaker who had the tme and willingness to do the work, and then get it collected. Once again, my fabulous friends rallied to the cause, and Jim collected, while Roger picked it up afterwards.... many many thanks guys.... and a big hoorah to Wilkinson sails in Burnham who did the job for me, to a high standard, and with a really helpful attitude... highly recommended!

I also discovered that the one leak I knew about had unfortunately dripped straight into the engine start battery box... which had nicely contained the water, but its fair to say that the battery had seen better days after several weeks underwater!!!

So, gathering my crew (Jim and Alan - thanks for your help - much appreciated) at Shotley on Thursday evening, we loaded up the genoa, new battery, clothes, and a ton of other stuff, and set off... when I say set off, I mean drove to the train station... i'd planned on hiring a car for a one way trip, but that proved harder done than said.... with companies unable to deliver or collect out of hours to the locations needed, or at least at any sensible costs... and the train was a grand total of £57 for the 3 of us... it meant lugging everything across London, but the saving was worth it!

So... by midnight, after facing the challenge of underground stairs with so much kit, we rolled into Portsmouth station, and a short taxi ride via the supemarket to collect food (a great 'bloke' shop - where the trolley never stops moving, and things are grabbed as you go by), we made it to Port Solent...

And then we all crashed out for the night exhausted.

High water was 10:24 the next day, and we wanted this for an easy exit... so by 06:30 we were up, getting the jobs that still needed doing done.... the rigging final tightening, split pins added, the genoa fitted, etc etc...

a quick trip to the office to settle any outstanding berthing fees (ouch!) and we set off... me absolutely full of trepidation, as long keels are famous for going where they like in reverse... so I was pleased that with a bit of to-ing and fro-ing, we made it out safely, and then onto the fuel berth... fuel filler cap was stuck so I had to fill directly into the tank... fill being a relative term, as I 'only' put £200 in... its big tank.

And then, on free flow, we swept out into Portsmouth harbour.

You could almost hear Phoenix sigh with relief... back out at sea, with sails bent on.... she knew what was coming.

A short motor out through the small boats channel, and into the Solent...

The forecast F5 to F6 was somewhat pessimistic... perhaps 5 to 6kts.

And so we set a course for the forts, and then on outside the Looe passage... with the tide against us once we cleared the Solent, we felt it would be quicker to go outside where the rate would be much lower. By the time we turned properly east outside the Looe channel, we had around 12 to 15kts of wind, and so we set the sails and turned the engine off.

She sails like a witch!

A steady 6 kts STW, and she felt magnificent on the helm... i'm going to like her!

And so the trip continued.... after a couple of hours, the wind dropped again, and beside a small moment of panic when the engine wouldn't start, until I realised that I hadn't opened the battery switch properly, we motored. And motored. And motored.

The engine is amazing. 1300rpm and 7.5kts STW.... brilliant!

By the time we had been going a few hours it had started getting foggy, and like most things electrical on Phoenix at present, the radar didn't work. But we plugged on... in the fog pastBrighton and on to Eastbourne. By this time we'd already decided that with the forecast for Sunday, we'd do the whole trip in one go, and so we established a watch pattern, and I took first shift 22:00 to midnight.

Easy really... no traffic... no wind... no course changes!

At midnight, Alan relieved me, and I went to get my head down for my 4 hours, and slept like a log... I was awakened at 04:00 to find us just off North Foeland, where Jim pointed out to me a forest of lights. The new London Array windfarm... not on my 2004 charts. But it was OK... we could see the southerly cardinal, and just left that well to port.

By the time Alan came back on watch at 06:00, we were just approaching the Kentish Knock bouy in the Thames Estuary, and I was awake and fresh, so stayed up. We had what proved to be a completely uneventful trip... perhaps enough to sail on occasions, but marginal enough to not bother trying.

And at 08:30, Walton headland came into sight....

As we approcahed the entrance to Shotley, I glanced at my watch... amazing 25hrs, Portsmouth to Shotley... and average of 7.4kts.

The lock was painless, easy in fact, and the berth not much harder.

In and tied up, with not so much as a hiccup. Can't ask more than that!

...and now to get on with the massive jobs list!

Miles logged 185nm
Miles this season 185nm
Miles since this blog started 5,891nm

The plan comes together

Fire extinguishers and bilge pump arrived today... More to come tomorrow.

So much to do this weekend in prep it's crazy!

Not sure if I'll be able to bend the sails on as the rigger still has a bit of work to do on the rigging... But he's coming over Saturday morning, so can discuss then...

I'm slightly nervous about the delivery trip... New boat, unknown quantity, and not a lot (actually none) of miles under my belt this year due to sales process... But got a great crew with loads of experience, so really I'm just fretting over nothing!

I've sorted the 'essentials' to take down... It's a huge pile even when restricted to only safety critical and ability to eat!

Hoorah!

OK.... after a glorious family holiday which was pleasant, but has delayed an update, i've finally something to report...

Last week we concluded the sale of 'Morgana', and the purchase of 'Phoenix of Hamble'...

So we are now the proud owners of a 45' ketch of heavy build and long keel!

Now begins the work to get her back round to her home berth.

The usual challenges exist with the insurance.. its all in place, but there are a few things that need to be done in order for the insurance company to provide cover for her while at sea.

The list amongst other things includes replacing/repairing both the manual and automatic bilge pumps, servicing some seacocks, adding some split pins to the rigging (yes - she didn't have any!) and various other small tasks such as getting 3 fire extinguishers on board.

There are also a few things that we wanted to get done prior to the delivery trip outside of the insurance companies demands such as getting the brand new furling gear fitted, which has involved finding and organising a rigger, who has also found another minor problem with the backstay bottle screw, also being sorted...

So i've been setting the world of eCommerce on fire, as well as my credit card getting things organised...

Down to her this weekend to take a heap of bits needed for the delivery trip like charts, almanacs, tools, flares, etc etc, and to retrive any clutter that remains on board...

While i'm there I need to see if the bolt ropes on the genoa or yankee fits the new furler, and if not grab one and work out how to get it modified in time, otherwise the trip back will be with a foresail...

We're meeting the previous owner saturday morning to do a handover, just confirming things like engine start/stop procedure etc... as well as to hand over paperwork.

And then its the delivery trip the following weekend with the help of my good friends Jim and Alan...

More to report soon!

still moving forward...

Verbal feedback today that the survey on Morgana is OK.... I don't know if there will be any further negotiating, but I hope not... the price was already pretty darned good!

On the purchase front, a few tasks to get sorted...

Insurance cover needs putting in place, which means supplying a copy of the survey to the potential insurer, and then waiting for them to accept it!

Also need to sort out getting the new furler installed... that means organising a rigger, and sorting out getting him access to the boat a the furler is stored below... and also requires the marina to be notified...

Along the way i've got to cancel the old insurance on Morgana... both of which need scheduling to coincide with sale and purchase so neither boat ends up uninsured.

I then need to organise a few bits and pieces that we'll need for the delivery trip, such as in date flares, fire extinguishers, charts etc etc... got most of this, but need to dig out essentials...

Also need to make sure that my metered power lead doesn't leave with Morgana...

There's a need to organise a one way hire car to get us down to the boat for the delivery... otherwise its a long sail followed by hours in the car retrieving cars out of place...

Need to confrm how and where money transfers take place with the broker..

and finally... need to confirm how the completed Bill of Sale, keys and paperwork will be handed over...

Easy this stuff aint it!

no news yet...

on the survey completed yesterday...

We've been trying to plan things out, so keen to hear if everything is OK or not!

While we wait, i've been sorting a rigger to install the brand new Schaefer furling gear that is with our new boat, but not yet fitted... also, looks like we might have to change one of the new stays following our own survey, as its a bit short, and therefore can't be locked off safely... I may well add a rigging toggle to extend it in the interim just to keep costs down!

1 down, 1 to go

Survey on purchase all ok (well, nothing that we didn't know about, and structurally 100%)

Just Morgana's survey to go now, and that happens on Saturday

while we're waiting

let me tell you a bit more about the new boat we're buying...

As i've said previously, she's an Explorer 45, which was designed by the legendary Stan Huntingford, and aimed mainly at the US market.

She's a ketch, with a cutter arranged foredeck.



Overall, she weights about 18 tons, of which about 40% is in the long keel... there are long overhangs at either end, with a lovely flowing lead in from the bow, meaning that she's ride nicely in a heavy sea, as well as a pretty retrousse transom to ensure that there is lots of bouyancy out of the water for when things get heavy.

The decks are teak from end to end with a 5" deep gunwhale, helping to keep the decks dry in anything other than the foulest weather!

In terms of her condition, she's benefited from a few major bits of work in the last 3 or 4 years... her decks have been completely overhauled, with around 40% of the teak replaced and the whole deck recaulked and plugged. The masts have been resprayed, and all the standing rigging replaced....

Below decks, she's been rewired for 240V, had new heads, oven, and seating fitted..

She's still got some work to be done though... the woodwork below (all solid teak) needs pretty much entirely stripping back and revarnishing, and the 12V all needs replacing

Mechanically, the engine is sound, having been serviced, and had essential parts replaced... as well as the cutlass bearing being reglassed back in and a new prop fitted.

There are a pile of other bits too from a new wind generator to a petrol generator below, as well as things like a new galvanic isolator...

So... lots and lots to do.... but hpefully the survey will confirm our understanding that she's a good solid base to work upon, and that the work is cosmetic!

yes!

Viewing on Monday resulted in an offer.... a little negoiating, and its accepted!

Contracts have been exchanged, a deposit received, an survey organised...

We've also arranged a survey on the boat we're looking to buy...

Insurance quotes underway.... lift with the marina sorted...phew!

It was considerably cheaper to arrange for the new boat to be lifted and held rather than lifted ashore and chocked up, even allowing for the fact that we can't collect the new boat until early september due to family holidays, so will need to pay berthing fees for a few weeks...

Geting rather excited now, but that familiar nervousness over the forthcoming surveys... don't see anything to worry about, but i'm still fretting!

Hope remains...

A viewing planned for Monday... Fingers crossed!

still waiting...

Last month, I blogged that we are planning on buying a new boat.... or more accurately, that we've found a new boat... but our buyer on Morgana fell through, and we'd spent 2 very frustrating months trying to sell her....

...well, now make that 3 very frustrating months.

We've just reduced the price by a further £5k, making her a remarkable deal for someone. She's immaculate, has brand new sails, and lots of goodies to make her ready to sail immediately...

But it appears that the market is quite flat at present.

So, we wait.

We've avoided using her this year, while we try to sell her, as we've cleaned her pretty thoroughly... so as a consequence, we've not actually sailed yet this year, which is hurting. So much in fact, that next weekend, we're going sailing. Its our annual Pirates weekend.. which is always a hoot... but long range forecasts aren't looking wonderful.

Hopefully more positive news to report soon, and the blogging of a delivery trip!

mileage catch up

Just to add a few miles that I forgot to add at the end of 2010

Miles logged 12nm
Miles since this blog started 5,718nm

interest?

The broker tells me that someone appears to be quite interested in Morgana... fingers crossed!

We've looked online, and Morgana is the lowest priced Oceanis 400 in Europe at present, as well as being the best equipped, and I find it hard to believe that any other is in better condition... so surely we'll be able to sell soon... its been 2 months... two very frustrating months.

so, its been a while...

Its been a pretty busy time for me recently... let me get you up to speed..

Last Autumn, I was made redundant from my job, and its was all looking pretty ropey...

We had a big decision to make just prior to Christmas when marina fees came due for 2011, but decided that the boat is just such an important part of our life that we really couldn't do without it, and so coughed up an amount of money that really made no sense while living on redundancy money, and on the generous £65 a week that the government provides...

But its all had a happy ending... Early march saw me back in gainful employment, and even better, in a location much closer to home...

It got us to also thinking about our plans for the boat, and we came to what is a pretty significant decision...

We've all along been pretty clear about our plans to clear off long distance sailing in the future, and remain quite ambitious in the journeys we plan to attempt... including a Pacific crossing...

Morgana is a wonderful boat, and we've been through some pretty rough stuff with here, and never once doubted her abilities, but she's designed for sailing in warm water in predicatble conditions... if we were only planning an Atlantic circuit, then we'd not hesitate to stick with her, but we realised that we needed something a bit more old fashioned and steady... we needed to trade comfort and space for comfort in passage making...

So we set out to look for a long keeler of heavier build...

After a few failed viewings, we found her...

She's an Explorer 45, built in one of the highly regarded Taiwanese yards for the American market, and designed by the enormously respected Stan Huntingford... she's a beauty... she's also a ketch... we made an offer and had it accepted.

The only reason we were able to make an offer was that we'd put Morgana on the market and found a buyer....

But... at the last minute, the buyer fell through, having been made redundant even prior to starting the survey process... which has left us in a bit of a pickle.

Fortunately, the seller is being very understanding, and the boat remains ours while we sell Morgana... this might not last, but at present, we're OK... in the meantime, we are putting lots of effort into getting Morgana sold.

So, if you're in the market for a 40' Beneteau in absolutely immaculate condition, with new sails, and tons of goodies added, then let me know!!!

I'll provide more details as soon as I can on the new boat and sale progress of Morgana

update

So... its been a while....

And the latest...

Morgana is for sale, and we're buying a new boat....

more later!