Those Simple Ideas Liveaboards Have to Improve Life

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by newhaul

The wire nuts do work just fine on stranded wire used in DC systems they do not seal the wire from corrosion and vibrations can and do cause them to get loosened excelerating the corrosion. All causing heating due to poor connections.( possibly causing a fire.) . Crimp connections are better best however is to solder the wires together and cover them with shrink tube. IMO you should also use shrink tube on crimp connections to seal out moisture.

Besides, wire nuts are made for solid wire not stranded. Stranded ends up tearing apart upon putting one on. Ask me how I know. Tinning it the only way I could see them working and why when there is a better way?

[Stu Jackson]

Originally Posted by Luther

Fender covers were $45 at Westmarine. I bought a pair of 3XXL sweatpants from Walmart for $12 and made two covers for my 38" circumference fenders . Chop off the legs, hem the cut end and put a cord through it to pull it tight. The bottom (ankle) end will be ok as is. It took me 20 minutes with a sewing machine to make the 2. They look as good as my store-bought ones.

I take the opposite view: that covers are just one more piece of extraneous gear, not a KISS idea at all.

Many folks use acetone to clean fenders. I used to. Then a friend told me about paint brush & roller cleaner. Easy on, easy off, much faster and easier than acetone.

It's so easy to keep them clean that the topsides no longer get dirty. I do use acetone on the hull for those small dings that happen sometimes, then fleetwax over.

[robwilk37]

azul... you are not alone.

[Annie in WA]

On fender covers, we went without them for years but our painted hull is so old that the paint becomes thin where the fenders are usually hung. Especially now that we hang the dinghy every night against the fenders since we are cruising. Now, we put teeshirts from Goodwill on the fenders to protect the boat. It actually looks kind of cute.

[jheldatksuedu]

Originally Posted by Jolly Roger

I would actually like to offer an opposite view to all this “simple life” stuff.

This brings me to another observation over many years of sailing. A lot of simple life type boaters can’t afford to maintain their boats, and if something breaks down it is blamed on too complicated systems. Some are to lazy to maintain their boats, even when a good clean, or can of paint would make a big difference.

Simple and manual operated often means easier, quicker and cheaper to fix or override, and often less chance of a breakdown in the first place. I certainly can afford more complicated, and have no problem understanding it and fixing it. I have a machine shop on board and I'm a retired physicist, mechanical and electrical engineering instructor and have been working with computers since they had 1K of memory. If simple does the job with a little bit of labor and it's cheaper, I'm all for it. As for AIS and stuff like that there is no simple and manual operated alternative, so it's electrical and computer operated. But when it comes to a windlass and many other systems, I'm all for manual operated and simple. If I'm sailing single handed on a 45 foot ketch, trying to get buy with one hour of sleep, 1000 miles from shore, the last thing I want to deal with is a broke down autopilot, so a wind self steering gear is also aboard my boat.

[bobnlesley]

DECK SHOWER: In sunnier climates, rather than use the internal shower - it takes longer to clean & pump/mop-out than the shower itself took! - we have for many years used the solar shower bags, latterly however, we've been converted to the water-bottle shower: Take a 1.5 litre plastic water bottle (similar to the one shown in the earlier post as an emergency anchor light) and punch lots of small holes through the cap - smaller is better. Fill with water and screw the cap back on. If you've got the hols right, you can invert the bottle and barely a drip escapes, but give it a gentle squeeze and you receive a great shower-spray. They're cheap, easily replaceable, very economic in water usage and offshore in ocean swells, or even inshore in a rough anchorage, they're far easier to keep under control than a shower bag hanging from the boom.

[svfraidknot]

an addendum to the use of wire nuts ,, i had an electrician help me on my boat he saw wire nuts and went ballistic as they have no place on
"A BOAT "i bought connectors of every size and description ,,, i have 5 bilge pumps 4 with float sensors .. i changed out everything on my boat after 3 years and standing on my head in the bilges with connectors and shrink tape and bad lighters ENOUGH .. i had a friends that had lived on his boat 12 years brought me a 49 cent bottle of children silicone glue .. now i use wire nuts unless like a battery connection that i hope is almost permanent ?? i turn the wire nuts over fill them with soft silicone .. never had one come loose until i had to change !!!water proof !!!

[Jolly Roger]

With regard to manual windlass’s: I suppose if depends on the weight of your boat, the chain, your fitness and age.
My old tub weighs in at about 22 tons, with more than average windage. It came with a manual windlass which took ages to wind in 300 feet of 3/8” chain, which incidentally did not self-stow for the last 50 feet. It took so many back and forth strokes that I would literally stagger back to the cockpit exhausted.
Needless to say, replacing that inadequate, ( but simple) system went to the top of my list.
I now have a powerful Maxwell horizontal, which I can actually bring-up-and-down remotely from the cockpit, then go forward and raise my 60 lbs CQR through the self stowing bow roller without even getting my hands dirty.
This windlass also has a manual override far more efficient than the contraption it replaced.
It also has a winding drum which the wife can get me up the masts like an elevator and warps the boat in from any angle through a snatch block.
Simple is all very well, but not at the risk of a heart attack.

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by Jolly Roger

With regard to manual windlass’s: I suppose if depends on the weight of your boat, the chain, your fitness and age.
My old tub weighs in at about 22 tons, with more than average windage. It came with a manual windlass which took ages to wind in 300 feet of 3/8” chain, which incidentally did not self-stow for the last 50 feet. It took so many back and forth strokes that I would literally stagger back to the cockpit exhausted.
Needless to say, replacing that inadequate, ( but simple) system went to the top of my list.
I now have a powerful Maxwell horizontal, which I can actually bring-up-and-down remotely from the cockpit, then go forward and raise my 60 lbs CQR through the self stowing bow roller without even getting my hands dirty.
This windlass also has a manual override far more efficient than the contraption it replaced.
It also has a winding drum which the wife can get me up the masts like an elevator and warps the boat in from any angle through a snatch block.
Simple is all very well, but not at the risk of a heart attack.

What an ambitious thing to do. I love the belaying pins.

[Golden Echo]

Originally Posted by Privilege

Here's a couple of tips for you;

When setting up a 12v DC lighting system for your live-aboard, toggle switches purchased at a chandlery are often functional but not pretty. Instead, consider these AC switches purchased at Home Depot for $2.48.


The single pole on/off switches work perfectly well with 12v DC. Don't buy the AC dimmers, lighted switches or anything fancy.

Also, everyone knows that these little wire connectors have no place on a boat...



..wrong! Keep a pack in your toolbox. When you open a tube of 5200 or silicone, glue or whatever, they are perfect for sealing the top. The internal screw will seal out the air.

Fantastic idea

[Golden Echo]

Originally Posted by mwells

I noticed in a earlier posting in this thread, that Goosebumps mentioned having a manual windless. I have a 27 foot Hunter; most of my sailing is single handled. Pulling the anchor manually has been a struggle; might be related to age................

I'm interested in finding out who is using a manual windlass and what manufacturer etc. I prefer keeping it simple and not having to run wiring to the bow.........like to hear thoughts from others.

Mike

We have a manual winlass. It is a Simpson Lawrence Sea Tiger. No complaints, simple, uses no power and my wife finds it easy to use. Recommended highly.

[Goosebumps]

Originally Posted by Jolly Roger

I thought my last paragraph might raise some hackles and I don’t mind being to be taken to task for it. I therefore tried to choose my words carefully and didn’t mean to imply that (all) people who prefer simple boats and simple systems do so primarily because they either can't afford the good stuff or are simply lazy.
If we are splitting hairs maybe I should have said, “I have met a lot of simple life boaters who......”
Clearly, Azul falls into neither of these categories because he has the envious advantage of being able to have it both ways.
I feel the need to apologize to Goosebumps, because I miss-interpreted his post, which was not so much about people, as about ideas which make for simpler boating. I’m all for these, and employ a lot of them on my otherwise very sophisticated little ship.

Much appreciated, I actually never suspected you meant it negative! Please share some of your useful ideas you mention you have!

[Goosebumps]

Originally Posted by Golden Echo

We have a manual winlass. It is a Simpson Lawrence Sea Tiger. No complaints, simple, uses no power and my wife finds it easy to use. Recommended highly.

ANCHORING: MANUAL WINDLASS: I actually feel that few nivice cruisers realize hiw important anchoring is, and the userfriendliness of manual windlasses.

[GrahamHO]

Originally Posted by newhaul

The wire nuts do work just fine on stranded wire used in DC systems they do not seal the wire from corrosion and vibrations can and do cause them to get loosened excelerating the corrosion. All causing heating due to poor connections.( possibly causing a fire.) . Crimp connections are better best however is to solder the wires together and cover them with shrink tube. IMO you should also use shrink tube on crimp connections to seal out moisture.

Yes, and also self amalgamating tape is good when it's difficult to use heat shrink. I always have a roll handy. It's quite expensive but worth having around.

[2hullvenus]

This one interests me.

I have an 80lbs Manson Supreme with 3/8" HT chain.

I have a Lofrans manual and love it.

The heart attack part is the part I'm most curious about. Isn't exercising more a better route to preventing heart attack?

I am definitely winded and staggering my way back after hauling in a ton of rode as well, but I view it as my cardio workout for the day. I imaging doing this on a daily basis is good for me, not something that puts me at risk of a heart attack.

What's the consensus on that?

PS: I'm in Titusville right now too. If you're up and about in the anchorage in the morning, you can watch/laugh as I get my morning workout.

Originally Posted by Jolly Roger

With regard to manual windlass’s: I suppose if depends on the weight of your boat, the chain, your fitness and age.
My old tub weighs in at about 22 tons, with more than average windage. It came with a manual windlass which took ages to wind in 300 feet of 3/8” chain, which incidentally did not self-stow for the last 50 feet. It took so many back and forth strokes that I would literally stagger back to the cockpit exhausted.
Needless to say, replacing that inadequate, ( but simple) system went to the top of my list.
I now have a powerful Maxwell horizontal, which I can actually bring-up-and-down remotely from the cockpit, then go forward and raise my 60 lbs CQR through the self stowing bow roller without even getting my hands dirty.
This windlass also has a manual override far more efficient than the contraption it replaced.
It also has a winding drum which the wife can get me up the masts like an elevator and warps the boat in from any angle through a snatch block.
Simple is all very well, but not at the risk of a heart attack.