floridasailingresource.com

Prevent A Burned Shore Power Cord

Kevin Wetherby — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 22:11:37 +0000

There can be many causes for a burned shore power cord but sometimes a simple preventative step can save your boat. If you are sure that the cord is not being overloaded, a common cause for a burned power cord can be a poor mechanical connection to the power box. To help prevent this you can support the cord with a length of line tied to the shore power pedestal which can relieve some of the strain on the connector of the cord!

photo credit - http://www.qualitymarineservices.net/safety.

Better Sail Shape With The Outhaul

Kevin Wetherby — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 12:27:56 +0000

This is a great video discussing the outhaul which is used to help control the shape or draft of the lower part of the sail. This information combined with the previously video I posted in this blog on the backstay will get you well on your way to keep proper sail shape.

Cleaning Sailboat Through Hulls

Kevin Wetherby — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 00:34:45 +0000

The day our sailboat engine overheated started out like any other typical sailing day in Florida. We enjoy taking friends out for a sail with us and this day was no exception. There was a light NNE wind and the temperature was going to be in the 90's.

I went through the normal procedures to get the boat ready for the day's sailing adventure. Open the through hull valve - check. Review battery charge levels - check. Start the engine and let it warm up while I go through the remaining check list - check. Observe water coming out of the exhaust manifold - check. Everything looked good.

Our guests arrived all excited about the day on the water. We made our way out of the marina and made the turn to head north up the Intercoastal Waterway. We had gone a few hundred yards when the engine overheating alarm came on. I immediately looked to see if water was still coming out of the engine but nothing was coming out now. I immediately came about and headed back to the marina since we were still a short distance away.

The next day I went under the boat and realized that when I had made my monthly cleaning of the hull I had never tried cleaning the through hulls. We’re talking 3 years! Yes there were some barnacles in the through hull, a bunch of them. Probably enough blockage to have caused the stoppage in the water intake. It is worth a mention that a plastic bag or similar item can get caught in the intake and block the water from coming in. In hind sight, I would now put the boat in neutral and shut the motor off for a moment. If after restarting the engine there continued to be signs of a blockage then I would try to get back into the marina under sail if I had been any further away.

The cleaning of the through hulls did appear to work. I have not had a problem since that day. And yes, I will remember to make sure that this is added to the list when it comes time for the next hull cleaning.

Sailing Through 2009 and into 2010

Kevin Wetherby — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 20:08:28 +0000

Goodbye 2009 and welcome 2010. I am looking forward to being out on the water - hopefully this weekend. I am leaving you with an interesting story about an expedition that will be sailing from San Francisco, CA and ending in Sydney Australia named Plastiki. They are trying to raise environmental awareness about the growing mounds of plastic accumulating in our oceans. There are reported areas of plastic trash floating in the Pacific Ocean that cover areas twice the size of Texas. The sailboat they will be traveling on is constructed from recycled plastic materials. They have a nice website that will keep you up to date on their whereabouts as well as information about the construction techniques used.

As we head into 2010 I wish all a happy new year and decade! Let's make sure that we keep our selves healthy and renew our commitment to keeping our planet a healthy place to live for ourselves and our loved ones. Good sailing!

Fix Leaking Hatches

Kevin Wetherby — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 08:09:55 +0000

Everyone has experienced a leaking hatch at one time or another on a sailboat and with the summer rains we have in Florida this is a handy maintenance tip for you.

A handy method to test the seal of a hatch gasket is to test by chalking the knife edge all the way around the hatch and then close and latch it.

Photo by Walkabout Wolf

Open the hatch and check the gasket. If the seal is good it should show an unbroken chalk line all the way around. And if not? Then you may have to do one or more of the following:

Check the edge that the gasket comes up against. Is it straight and square to the gasket? Look for knife edges that are bent, concaved, convexed, or wavy. If any of these are an issue then there is no way that a good gasket could get a water tight seal on those edges.
To fix misaligned edges you may have to file, hammer, or force the bent edges into alignment. Other less obvious repairs may need to be made by adjusting hinges and/or latches, rebedding the hatch or replacing the whole unit.

Using the chalk test on your gaskets seasonally is good preventive maintenance. Where can you get chalk? From your kid's art supplies, department stores or your friend that's a teacher.

How To Tension the Backstay

Kevin Wetherby — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 02:47:28 +0000

I thought this was a great video about adjusting the backstay. In case you were wondering what the backstay is, it is a piece of standing rigging that runs from the transom to the top of the mast. On many boats this piece of equipment can be adjusted while sailing. If you have hung out at Sailnet's forum you will find the author involved in many conversations and is well respected. This is a nice basic overview of tensioning the backstay and how this affects the handling of a sailboat.

You should come away from this video with the following points:

identify where the backstay is located
how this affects the shape of the mast and sail
when you might want to add tension to the backstay

Go Sailing – No Excuses

Kevin Wetherby — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 14:08:51 +0000

Okay, I admit it there are times it seems to be too much work to get out for a good sail. Sometimes I'm tired or maybe there is work to do, or some other at-the-moment pressing issue. Here's a clip of Hilary Lister sailing and she is a quadriplegic. Simply amazing. She just sailed solo around Britian using straws to guide her boat. I'm sure there have been a lot of issues that could have prevented Hilary from going sailing but she persevered. Wow! I'm in awe. I'm going sailing.

Circumnavigation At 13 Years Old

Kevin Wetherby — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 13:43:00 +0000

Breaking my silence with an interesting story about a 13 yr old girl who is suing to be able to sail around the world.

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) - Thirteen-year-old Laura Dekker wants to become the youngest person to sail solo around the world, and her parents think that's a great idea.

But the Dutch Council for Child Protection is so concerned about the dangers of the marathon voyage it has asked a court to grant it temporary custody of Laura so it can do what her parents refuse to: Halt the trip.

"Laura has divorced parents and it is very normal for a child of this age to be very loyal to the parent (he or she) is living with," Child Protection spokesman Richard Bakker told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "How much does she identify herself with her father, who is a good sailor?"

In an editorial Tuesday, the Dutch daily De Volkskrant warned that the young sailor was unwittingly putting herself in significant danger.

"She simply does not have the experience to anticipate the problems and possible crises that await her," the paper wrote.

What do you think? Can a child of 13 have the experience to accomplish such a feat? I know at 13 I was not equipped to handle this. She must be an amazing kid to be attempting a circumnavigation!