Shoestring Sailors (Cruising on $500 per month - part II)

[roverhi]

Have an awning made, add a couple of through hulls, a hose to carry water to the tank and pray for rain.

[Therapy]

It is the bird poop I worry about inshore.

[Mike OReilly]

Hmmmm, good point about the salt spray. Obviously sometimes the dinghy does pick up a lot of salt spray, but there are times when this is not the case.

I guess a simple water tester would be useful here.

[BenBowSirocco]

These filters may help. Practical Sailor has a good write up about about various apparatus for using them. I personally made up a simple PVC funnel from dinghy repair trimmings. 1 micron will take out most everything but salt. A dinghy washing as the rain starts helps and you get a free shower to boot.

https://www.mcmaster.com/water-filters

[asistephen]

No didn’t realise thanks

[over40pirate]

On my Bristol 35, 1 thru hull at low point of 1 deck. 2/4" garden hose to y valve.
1 y went to tank. Other y went to 6' hose, to fill jugs.
Taste water from hose, to be sure deck salt is washd away, before fillings tank, and jugs.
No tarp needed. 1 side deck fills a 5 gal jug in minute or so!

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by BenBowSirocco

These filters may help. Practical Sailor has a good write up about about various apparatus for using them. I personally made up a simple PVC funnel from dinghy repair trimmings. 1 micron will take out most everything but salt. A dinghy washing as the rain starts helps and you get a free shower to boot.

https://www.mcmaster.com/water-filters

Originally Posted by over40pirate

On my Bristol 35, 1 thru hull at low point of 1 deck. 2/4" garden hose to y valve.
1 y went to tank. Other y went to 6' hose, to fill jugs.
Taste water from hose, to be sure deck salt is washd away, before fillings tank, and jugs.
No tarp needed. 1 side deck fills a 5 gal jug in minute or so!

Thanks folks. This is useful information for us frugal cruisers. The McMaster site looks amazing. I feel like a kid in a candy store looking through their stock. And thanks for the description of your set up Over. Sounds simple.

I’m sure I can figure out some way to use my vessel’s deck as a collector. My slight challenge is my water deck fill is elevated above the level of the deck. It’s also inset into the teak deck, which makes creating a simple dam/funnel more challenging.

I plan to rig my solar panels with some sort rain gutter, which I can then direct to the tank. But when at anchor my dingy can easily collect many tens of gallons of water. I’ve used the water for our deck shower, and it always seems fine. That’s why I thought of using a simple lift pump and inline filter to move it into the main tank.

[Therapy]

Mike,
Here is a standard camping water filter for land cruisers. I don't see why it can't work for you. Many filter choices at Home depot. Most do not require a lot of pressure to get through.

The pic is from Amazon but there are other places and price varies.

I met a guy selling his Admiral 50 (I was "that" close) and that boat has the piping and bypass vales from the roof surfaces built in. He said they don't filter it and have no problems. That is why I mentioned the bird poop inshore. Maybe I am just scared too easily.

[thinwater]

Originally Posted by BenBowSirocco

These filters may help. Practical Sailor has a good write up about about various apparatus for using them. I personally made up a simple PVC funnel from dinghy repair trimmings. 1 micron will take out most everything but salt. A dinghy washing as the rain starts helps and you get a free shower to boot.

https://www.mcmaster.com/water-filters

More here: http://sail-delmarva.blogspot.com/20...t-version.html

Yes, that would be my writing. The holder is just 4" PVC and whatever fittings adapt to your tank. The filters can be washed and sanitized in the sun. I cruised on rainwater collected with system for a season. I then chlorinated the tank, and then dechlorinated/filtered out the cysts etc. with a $12 carbon block filter (filters fast, Floplus 10).


Keeping the roof clean is important but not hard when you are on the boat. With the clean roof, the sun can santize that too. Roof collection has been well studied in Texas and Australia. Google it. I would NEVER put unfiltered water into the tank. 1 micron polyester bags work great.


This system is WAY more effective than hose filters and over time, cheaper (the prefilter is washable and the carbon block filter then lasts a LONG time.

[Mike OReilly]

Thanks guys, both great ideas. Thin, is that a bag filter inside the housing?

[newhaul]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

Thanks guys, both great ideas. Thin, is that a bag filter inside the housing?

I think I posted this before but could have been on sailnet 500 thread.
https://www.practical-sailor.com/iss...r_11660-1.html
5 micron filter sock to build the above unit
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Pentek-BP-4...IAAOSwjW5badC9

[thinwater]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

Thanks guys, both great ideas. Thin, is that a bag filter inside the housing?

Yes. They are available in many sizes, I picked one that fit 4" pipe so that it would be cheap to build a holder.


This project actually evolved from a friends request for something he could use with his boat he kept on a mooring. It really works and you can't buy anything equivalent. Works for hose water and rainwater.

[Hasbeen]

I made a foredeck waning of Hypalon. It went from the mast forward 8 ft. It fitted just inside the lifelines, & could be tied out to them, & the front raised on a topping lift.


I added a skirt across the back, & forward about 5Ft. It hung inside the life lines & was controlled by them. The forward hatch was just infront of the back skirt, & opened up hinged at the front.


I cruised mostly with in about 500 miles either side of the equator for 6 years, & this awning funnelled lovely cool air through the boat 24/7 at anchor, even when raining but that is not all. I fitted a 1/2" hose fitting near the centre of the waning, & could attach a hose from it to the tanks, or spare jerry cans.


The islands are cockroach country, so I never went near a jetty, & things like a bunch of bananas were hung underwater off the bow for an hour or 2 to encourage all the creepy crawlies to depart. I never once had to carry water to the boat, & my water was perfect without treatment.

[Hasbeen]

Cruising is cheap in the Pacific islands if you keep off the beaten path.


$50 worth of fishing gear & $50 of trade tobacco would buy all the vegetables coconuts & bananas you could eat in 3 months from the villagers, & a few dollars would buy some great carvings for you, or to sell.

[smbdyiam2]

If you stop at Thrift stores this may help. Look for thrift stores in well to do localities. Well to do donate to thrift store, but few shop at them so you find better stuff at lower prices.
In Florida we have snow birds. They leave in spring about April 15 tax time . A lot of them donate to thrift store rather than store, or take back north. This is best time to find bargains. Thrift stores are overstocked. Fall Oct. Nov. snowbirds come back this is worst times to find bargains,
Same systems work in collage towns. Graduation stuff goes to thrift stores. Beginning classes students looking for bargains. Worst time there.