Near Term Goals: Sleeping and Dog Bed, Bathroom, Stove, Computer/Navigation/Electric

Sleeping and Dog Bed

If I am living on the boat, at least a few days a week, I'll be more likely to be working on the boat making it better.  So I want to be comfortable over-nighting on ECHO.

Making ECHO's V-berth functional for sleeping has been my near term priority.  Last week I cleaned the V-berth and the forward head.  I wiped down all the surfaces. I also taped off the forward hatch on the outside with shrink wrap tape to make it more weather proof.  I noticed some white drip marks on the teak slats on the inside of the hull.  So that means the caulking was worn out--at least in a few spots.  So today I  caulked the toe rail on each side from the bow back to the mast.  I'll do the back of the boat on another warm day. Caulking and taping the large hatch should eliminate any leaks.  Dry V-Berth--a very good thing.  It has a duplex AC power outlet, so I can plug in my electric heating on medium or low and it is within reach while sleeping.  I could also run a charger for an iPad or iPhone.

Yesterday, I pulled my V-berth cushions out of the attic, I unzipped them and found there was no plastic wrap around the foam.  So today I bought some plastic sheeting and yellow duct tape.  I will wrap them up, trim to fit with a razor, tape the seams, and reinsert the foam into the cover.  Then these cushions can go down to the boat, and even if they get wet, the foam will not.  It makes a little noise when you move around, but is well worth it for a dry bunk.

I have used an acrylic blanket as a soft, warm, and dry top sheet--mainly to protect the upholstery.  I have a couple of cotton Indian blankets and a down comforter more blankets for me.  With everything tucked under the hull side of a berth it holds together well when sleeping.  I thought I might use a lead ankle weight to keep my down blanket from moving around--it is worth a try as that is the blanket that tends to fall off.

I think I will buy an electric blanket, and I might build an insert to fill in the gap in the V-berth, but I could not rely on that alone.  I need a few pillows and I'll be ready for anything. The V-berth will be cosy and an inviting space to hang out or sleep.

Kokini seems to like lounging around deck while I'm working--when it is sunny, but she does not seem to like it below.  The problem is she doesn't have a clean, comfortable, warm place to lay down.  I will bring her smaller dog bed to ECHO.  A a supply of treats, chew strips and chew toys will keep her occupied and happy. 

Today for the first time, Kokini climbed out the companionway on her own.  But she can't climb down--it is too steep.   It is a rise of 6.5 feet and with a run of 3 feet.  She puts her paws on my shoulders and I grab her rump to carry her down stairs.  She did it twice with only a little urging.  Clearly though, she will need a way to come in on her own using another route.  My idea is she should come into the boat using the starboard cockpit hatch which is mounted vertically just above the cockpit sole.  She can step in if there is a platform there and a step halfway to the floor.  I will have to make something out of plywood and carpeting for these landing pads, and perhaps a drapery to keep out the cold, once she learns how to get in and out this way.

Bathroom

The next most important thing for me is to get a marine head (toilet) installed on the boat. This involves buying a marine head, painting the shower pan, cutting an access panel, buying through-bolts and fender washers to secure it, buying and installing the various hoses, and a sink/shower head, running a DC circuit to the head and installing two lamps for redundancy.

A new electric marine head can be expensive.  But a step on a switch to flush will be easier for visitors and me too.   It will only be used for urination until I can install a holding tank.  I have no immediate plan to install a holding tank. 

So painting the shower pan will be the first step and I have the paint ready to go.  Installing the head is second.  I will need to buy large diameter hose and 1/2" hose for the inlet hose. and four stainless steel bolts.  I will use a T fitting and a ball valve to control feeding it fresh water when used in-shore and sea water when offshore. 

Another interesting things is that I have a new 6 gallon hot water tank.  I might as well temp that in and use it.  I like the idea of having hot water on board at all times--particularly while I'm at the dock.
 
Stove

I brought my "Force 10" 3 burner stainless stove down to ECHO two days ago.  It is sitting in its mounting bay.  I wanted to mount it today, however, I will need to shim out the mounts some to make it fit.

I have all the hoses, regulator, two aluminum propane tanks, and an electrical cut off switch which would go in pretty easily once the stove is mounted.  I would have preferred CNG fuel, but that is hard to find in the Caribbean, and propane is everywhere.  I will need to fabricate a mount for the tanks in the cockpit.

My plan is to make a ladder into the cockpit and put the tanks under the bottom step with the idea that each shut off valve can be reached from inside the boat via the cockpit hatches.

I was hesitant for a long while on bringing the stove down to the boat as I plan to rip out the galley counter over the ice box, but like all things related to boating, it seems you have to do any job twice or three times.  Getting the stove out of the house freed up some space which is much needed.

So the stove went to the boat.  Now it is up to me to get it working.  I suppose I will need another tea pot, one for the boat.  I also have a nice pressure cooker I want to bring to the boat.

Getting the stove working involves fabricating a support for it, two boards should do it although I might need a third or fourth to get it set right, and a few screws to secure it.

My boat's measuring tape is in the car, so I will bring it back to the boat next time.

I will then need to run the propane low pressure hose, install the regulators, and find a box to secure the two tanks until the I can find someone to weld up a ladder with mounts for them under the bottom step.


Computer/Navigation/Electric

My goal is to have Internet access down at the boat, and a functional computer/navigation system.

I have a 24" monitor, VESA mount, and a Mac Mini computer, with a special MacGrab wall mount.  That will be my new navigation system.  For the short term I have a USB GPS antenna.  I have other electronics as well.  One issue is powering this.  I have a 3000 watt inverter which would wear down my batteries pretty fast.  I probably should get an inverter sized for my computer and monitor

For Internet access I have a YAGI directional WiFi antenna and 1 watt amplifier/bridge with it's mac address pre-authorized through Optimum Cable.  I plan to tap into the Optimum WiFi node south of me--with a simple fixed mount pointed to the nearest tower.

This system should go on pretty easy, but it will need a properly sized inverter.

I need to decide what to do with my Heart 3000 inverter back along with a new Link battery monitor.  This should be worth at least $800 if I sold it.  Or I could put this recently repaired component back on the boat.  I could that charger for the house bank and this inverter or a smaller inverter for my computer system.  I'll have to remember to shut off the AC circuits when I leave the boat so a power failure won't run the batteries down to nothing.  If I used this big inverter, I will need two new 4D batteries.  My last pair died along with the old charger.  They froze last winter when the charger died, and I've been using just a starter battery every since.   Two new house batteries might be my next purchase after a new marine head.

So--next up is reinstalling this inverter--which means moving my 20 Amp charger over to be a dedicated starter battery charger.  After that I will need two new 4D AGM batteries @ $500 each.  I think I'll wait on the new batteries and get the marine head next.

Finally, I also have a microwave oven that fits nicely on the counter.  I will probably bring that back to the boat and wire it in directly to the panel.