getting off the berth

One of the challenges that I haven't yet mentioned is that my berth is on a finger pontoon that is at about 45deg to the main pontoon..... Splendid i hear you cry... dead easy to get onto... and yes you are right... its even port side too, so with a slight kick to port astern its really very easy to go in nice and tight and tidily..... However the challenge lays in the fact that the next row of berths are really quite close, and i'm still not sure yet how well she go in a straight line astern when under way..... with the rudder very far back, and a fin keel, I suspect that she'll want to turn rather than go in a straight line...... So my plan is to pull off under power, but leave a running stern line, and at the last minute choke the stern line to pull the back end round a little, and voila, I should be pointing in the right direction.....and if I do it gently with the stern line, I shouldn't even 'over rotate'.... But god help me if she doesn't want to continue in that direction, as there is not really room to turn her in the aisle.........cou;ld be messy.... :o)

Where theres a will...

A visit to Foxs on the way to the boat this morning, resulted in me being delighted that they indeed, as suggested by various knowledgeable folk, stock all the neccessary elctrical bits for me to undertake my days task of fitting the shorepower unit..... Foxs considerately relieved me of another £100..... So it was nearly 11h00 by the time I reached the boat... and bugger... i've forgotten the keys to the lock on the companion way cover........ bugger bugger bugger... its a 3 hour round trip back, so forget that.... I know... its a crap lock anyway, so i'll cut it off as it needs replacing.... great idea..... damn shame that my hacksaw is inside the boat though...... eventually I manage to get in via another route (details witheld for the sake of security!... and besides I've fixed that route now!)... so back out with the hacksaw, and 1 min later I'm in...... I proceed to start fitting the shore power kit..... one question.... just what sort of contortionist do you need to be to work on boats?... its very difficult drilling holes upside down, in the dark, with your whole body up to the waist inside a locker...... After 5 hours I've fitted the new boat power socket, run cable through various lockers and hidey holes to a Galvanic Isolator, and beyond to the intended new home for the shore power unit in a locker in the main area of the boat (which is immediately above the batteries), run cable to the batteries themselves, earthed it all, and neatly and tidily fixed everything down to keep it safe and secure.....For those interested I bought a cheapo crimp tool... hard work on the big terminals, but did them a treat in the end... Just need to connect up and i'm away... so i wander up to the marina office as instructed on the phone mid week to ask them to identify which power outlet to use, and to get the meter read....... "don't think there's any spare power there mate... think theyre all being used......"........ arghhhhhhhh Eventually, after getting the marina staff to wander down, a spare outlet is found.... he wanders off, and I plug in, full of anticipation..... naff all happens..... oh no..... So I start looking for voltage... none anywhere..... eventually, out of desperation, I swap the connector on the pontoon for another outlet.... and ping, everything springs to life..... It appears after investigation that the fella in the office didn't actually turn the power on properly after reading the meter..... in the end we get it sorted, and all the correct lights are on the device as per the instructions..... YES! So now, the batteries are charging from the shore, and I can use whatever electrical kit I like while plugged in......... result! I didn't have time to plumb in the 240V mains socket... that'll have to wait.... the cable is run, but the box and face plate needs mounting and wiring in.... that'll have to wait until next friday..... With the batteries charging I stuck the meter across the terminals.... still only reading 12.8V.... I'm becoming more convinced that the meter is underreading.... perhaps a new battery is in order in the meter...... Also noted that the pump was running permanently despite being on a float switch...... lifted the sole boards, and the sump hole had a little water in it, but not much... it just wasn't going down..... ho hum..... after much head scratching, and thinking that the pump had failed (a little rule one), realised that I had closed the bloody seacock..... opened it, and voila... empty sump and stopped pump in 5 seconds..... lucky I didn't destroy the pump! Last task before leaving was to get C's sleeping bag out, and retrieve the teddy bear from the bottom of it (we had to tell her that he was looking after the boat for us!)

yep... it was wrong!

My electrical bits have arrived, and as suspected the boat side plug is the wrong gender..... never mind... I'm guessing that there's a fair chance that if a chandler stocks electrical cable, then they'll also stock these plugs..... The wiring looks straightforward enough.... I do however still have to work out exactly where everything is going to go for the neatest set up..... One of my cockpit lockers has a special cut out to allow a cable to be passed through the lid with the lid still shut (for the autopilot cable), so it makes sense to put the shore connector in that locker... which is conveniently te same side as the two main batteries, the switches, isolator keys and the earth busbar etc etc.... I'm just trying to decide where to go the following weekend... it will be our first full weekend as a family on her..... might take a look at Bradwell perhaps?..... i've left all the charts and pilots on board, so I'll have to bring them back with me this weekend.... don't want to go too far, but enough that it feels to teh kids like we 'travelled'.... The weekend after that is non sailing.... I bought SWMBO a long weekend in Paris for Chrimbo, and thats the one... guess it'll be quite nice, but secretly i'd rather be sailing.... Its Easyjet to paris, and then a rather nice hotel near the Louvre.... The following weekend however does make up for it though as its the bank holiday weekend, and both SWMBO and I have wangled the Friday off, so thats 4 clear days on board...... whooppeeee.... I think thats the weekend that the SB crowd are planning to go to Oostende.... we'd love to, buts I think its a bit too soon in terms of my willing crews' experience and skills! Also, As mentioned a good few posts back, C has decided to forgo her Oppy nationals, and we therefore get a clear 9 days on the boat..... I have been having a bit of a think about what we might do, and am currently wondering about a trip Ipswich - Ramsgate - Eastbourne - Cherbourg - Brighton - Ramsgate - Ipswich.. It might be a bit too much in a week, so a fall back could be Harwch to Flushing and a week exploring the area.... perhaps back via a French port?

delivery pain again!

Bloomin electrical bits (for shore power)delivered today.... only I wasn't in.... flippin 'eck..... I've had to arrange to work from home tommorrow to receive delivery.... I've thought about the bits I ordered.... the combined RCD/switch/charger unit, and a galvanic isolator.. thats all fine... I did also order a socket to fit in the boat for the shore power cable to plug into.... only I think i've ordered the wrong gender.... i'll find out tommorrow I suppose..... I need to get some cable, cable clips to fit it neatly, and a 240V mains style plug for the boat.... I'll take a trip to the DIY store, and buy one of those nice tastefully coloured/shaped plastic faceplates and a back box, but need to get some decent marine grade cable plus P clips and stainless fixings, so I guess that'll be the chandlery at the weekend.... I'm stuffed if they don't sell it... anyone know of a decent chandlery at the top of the Orwell that stocks that kind of stuff? The weekend is a bit of a pain.... I've got a long standing commitment on Saturday at my Dinghy club to help out, so no Magna Carter on Saturday... and given the forecast, SWMBO has suggested that I go down to Ipswich on my own on Sunday and fit the shore power set up with some peace and quiet.... I'll try my damndest to get some of the other jobs done while I am it.... the list is now HUGE!!!!! I also need to work out how to crimp ring terminals onto the battery cables (assuming I can get ring terminals at the weekend!)... I think I might be able to borrow one of those crimpers that is

food for thought

Following a conversation this evening with TonyR (thanks Tony), I have additional food for thought ref my power challenges... The initial fault presented at lack of charge, showing just 12.3 to 12.4V at the batteries..... the batteries were confirmed as knackered... When replaced, I was dissapointed to see on 12.6 to 12.7V at the batteries.... thinking darn... the problem must be elsewhere.... Tony however made the point that this might be a symptom of a fully charged battery, and not a battery failing to charge! What I need to do, besides testing out the alternator to splitter cabling, is run the services for sufficiently long without the engine running to deplete the battery a little, and then see what voltage I get at the battery when the engine is started.... it might be as simple as the batteries just not needing charging as thet are fully topped up! Food for thought..... Maybe I can get my laptop back out as a PC based chart plotter after all!

Power crazy!

Given my previous issues with power, and the state of the three batteries, I fitted three new ones thinking that this would solve my power problems....... no such bloody luck.... still only measuring 12.6V at the batteries... and slightly more at the input to the diode splitter... so its either the cable run to the splitter (difficult to get at... the alternator is in an awkward position), the alternator (despite it being tested OK?) or the exciter circuit (?).... I'm slightly confused as to why the voltage isn't held higher at the battery terminals by either the solar panels or the wind generator, but given that there wasn't any wind much, and that the sun was a little hidden, i'm sticking with the basics for the moment!.... my vote is still for the cable from the alternator to the splitter.....might have to take a jump lead with me, and test it as a bypass.... Didnt have the time or inclination to work it out last weekend, so its the next challenge...... It has however prompted me to address one other need, shorepower. I can now hear all the traditionalists throwing their hands up in horror.... wind, solar, aletrnator AND shorepower!.... well... you obviously don't have two young kids with their long list of electrical and electronic dependencies, and also, I have several requirements for shore power myself... Firstly, with a direct cooled engine, its easier to fit a Calorifier and run it off the 240V thermostat, rather than try to plumb in a water feed.... Secondly, I have quite a bit of woodwork I want to do, not least fitting berths in the forepeak to replace the (extensive!) sail stowage area.... and it would be one whole load easier with mains power for tools... Thirdly, it would be really nice to be able to run whatever we like at night without having to worry about consumption... Fourthly, it makes my charging issues less pressing! Last, but not least, it also allows me to look at other needs such as a cooling plate for the cool box, to keep the beer properly cold! So, I've order the combined Dolphin battery charger/shorepower/RCD/Breaker unit from merlin, along with the appropriate Galvanic isolator and the female socket for the boat.... I've acquired a shore cable FOC from a caravanning friend.... I am going to have to buy a temporary domestic 3 pin socket to shore power 3 pin socket adapter to be able to use the shore power tools to fit it!... I'll need to source the appropriate cable for the DC and AC side, plus some electrical sockets..... Another challenge is.... how on earth do you crimp DC terminals yourself?..... Anyone got any smart ideas as to what else could be wrong with my existing setup?

perfect!

Well..... It was an interesting trip across from Ramsgate.... not a great deal of wind...... After leaving my house at 05h00, and departing Ramsgate at 09h30, we then had to motor for 13 hours...... had the sails up at one point, and they might have even added 1/2kt to our speed at one point...... highlight was dolphins just off North Foreland.... We decided given the poor visibility to go round the outside, via Kentish Knock.... we timed our departure to stem the tide for the first hour or so, and then get a fair tide with us.... so progress was painful until 11h30 or so.... Eventually we worked our way up the Orwell, tying up alongside at 22h30. A bit of a heart stopping moment when the depth shallowed out to less than 1m in the run into the lock into the wet dock, where Neptune Marina is located, and the new home for Magna Carter.... after some 'navigational assistance' on the phone my SWMBO also arrived from the land side! I then gave 'Yanita', my volunteer crew (many thanks!) a lift home, finally getting back to the boat at 01h30 the following morning.... That night we were treated to a superb thunderstorm, and despite this we all slept pretty well..... the kids raised us fairly early, excited about their first day on the boat (or on a boat bigger than a dinghy full stop).... after breakfast, and then a visit to the marina office to introduce ourselves, get our door keys/gate card entry thingies, and find out what number permanent berth we had been allocated, we set off towards the lock.... Slipping our previous nights berth was pretty straightforward... and the first stop needed to be the fuel berth.... this was going to be interesting given that SWMBO was on the ropes (pun intended), and there was another boat already on the (admittedly very long) pontoon, so I needed to go in front of her... I stuck the nose in..... and stuck her in reverse to pull the stern in.... perfect.... exactly parallel to the pontoon..... just 5 feet from it........ The other boat eventually, and thankfully took the warps, and we were soon tied up...... good news is that there was no raised voice scenario!... looks promising.... I needed fuel very very badly... for the last 1/2hr up the Orwell the previous evening, I had been panicking about running out of fuel.... to the extent that I had released the fastening for the anchor! 20mins later, I had put £13 of fuel in her... read it and weep MOBO owners!.... Off we set towards the lock.... nice and easy... port side to.... beautiful.... nicely alongside.. no arguments.. tied up and happy! Out we locked and off we went... After motoring round to Long Reach we stuck the main up... and with a gentle 8kts of true breeze we made gentle progress....we motorsailed round past Shotley spit buoy, and decided to just stick our nose out of the estuary and in to the sea.... as we passed Languard Head we unfurled the genny, freed off, and miraculously the wind picked up, and we found ourselves holding a steady 5kts with the engine finally off..... bliss.... kids all had a go at the helm.... I have to say that C, at 9yrs old, demonstrated that her time dinghy sailing had paid off.... she instinctively held her on the wind... and M, at 6 needed a little more help... but will have no problems if the first impression is anything to go by.... SWMBO even had a go! Tacking was a drama at first, and by tack 10 we had it down pat!..... So after 3 hours we freed off, gybed round, and headed back into the estuary.... as I paid out the sails, and we lost the benefit of the apparent wind we found the sails pretty useless... so we furled the genoa, and I then helped the kids to raise the motor sailing cone.... we motored back up the river... kids took on various 'challenges' as we made our way.... their highlight was, believe it or not, scrubbing the decks..... Their idea I promise you! So, about 4ish we tied back up in Neptune, and relaxed.... A decision was made at this stage.... We were all exhausted... late or very late nights meant that we were all very tired.... and the forecast for Monday was not looking too good, so we decided to close her up, and head for home... all weary, sunburned and very very happy..... its just over an hours drive to home from Ipswich..... kids were asleep before we made it out of Ipswich...... So...... A VERY successful weekend... a very happy family.... And a list of jobs to do as long as your arm............ happiness!