What's Important, What's not.

[robert644]

Sounds like way too much crap, but I wanted to pitch in regards to refrigeration. If you are like me and the need to cool 6 bottles to appropriate temperature is an important daily goal, then I understand.

Get a $100 walmart model and put that on one side of the seating area. You lose a seat, but save $900 over a Norcold. Plus where would you install one anyways ? When you are done carrybean cruising and go to sell the boat, it's still original and not with a hacked up interior and a fridge no one else wants.

Then, run the thing from an inverter. Get more batteries. Someone may say that the added current draw of the inverter compared to straight DC is something, but that's what the extra batteries are for.

[Mr B]

This is a 34 footer with everything except a windlass, and a Generator, As it didnt need a Generator,

The PO lived and worked on this boat on a swing mooring for 8 years, He didnt sail it very often, It was his home and office,

100 feet of 1/4 inch chain can get quite heavy, Especially if you hook up an old discarded boat cable,

The Solar panels are mounted on the roof and on the back of the hammock at the back, 270 Watts, It was plenty for me,
Running everything 24/7, Wind Gen, and 120 amp Alternator off the Main Engine, Twenty minutes on the main engine gave me plenty of hot water for showers, X two people, It also has a cockpit shower as well as the main Bathroom,
GPS. VHF, Radar, Autopilot, Depth sounder, Wind, Speed, Etc Etc, Watermaker, Macerator and Black Tank, Water catching Tarp, Nav lights at night,

It has gas fridge and stove, 1800 watt Pure Sine Invertor. 200 Amp hour batterys, Keep your engine battery separate from your house batterys,,Its back up in case,

I have the full Cockpit canopy, as I live in the cold south of Australia. Its a necessity if I dont want to Freeze, -2C in winter here, And very big waves,

You do need a good 10 foot dink with a reliable motor on it, around 4 HP is ample for your needs, Store your dink petrol on deck away from everything, including the cockpit,
I hate petrol on boats, Just personal preference, Seen too many burn,

Solar panels are cheap and reliable, 200 watt panel is $220-00 $40-00 Controller from China, Approx $40-00 Thats a good one, 30 Amp, And an Inline Fuse, $3-00 Max,
You need two X 200 watt panels, Thats more than you will need, Less than $500-00 all in,

5 feet by 3 feet each panel, 4 inches above the deck, keeps your roof cool,

My Tarp went under the boom for shade, That way I could still use the Mainsail and Boom with out moving the Lazy Jacks,
In the sun, you will need the Tarp across the deck, It gets very hot inside, I spent six weeks in Fiji, The Tarp over the deck kills the heat,

I lived on it full time for nearly 3 months, And crossed 3 oceans, I never ran out of power,

So it doesnt need to be big and Bulky, It can fit on and look nice as well,

[Terra Nova]

Out of that whole list I'd:

a) re-cover the dodger
b) hinge a solar panel off the pushpit

[Mr B]

Originally Posted by Terra Nova

Out of that whole list I'd:

a) re-cover the dodger
b) hinge a solar panel off the pushpit

There is two panels on the Pushpit, You can only see the edge of them,

The Dodger is folded forwards to allow the sun to hit the solar panels, Thats the Black stuff in a U shape on the top of the Pushpit,

It folds back over the panels and the Hammock, Magic spot in all weathers,
The dinghy hangs off underneath the pushpit,
Or Dinghy Davits and Back stay, With Hammock attached, Hahahaha.

[laika]

To the OP, Im in a pretty similar situation to you. Have been moving my boat around for a couple years with a computer job in tow Mostly solo with dog.

I really like what others have said about just covering your bases and slowly building out from there. I also really try to follow the the maxim that says if you no fix, you no bring.

While there are many things I've thought about bringing on over the last few years, in practice I've found myself actually simplifying the boat over time. I've come to find I want a strong, simple, uncluttered boat that is never far from being ready to sail. And I've found that the more sh!t I try to bring on, the harder it is to actually move. I also want the boat to be as cheap as possible to maintain to a high standard over time.

Not sayin whats what, but I totally get where you're coming from. My only advice is dont buy sh!t unless you know you REALLY want it.

Ryan

[Hudson Force]

Originally Posted by AirBoyzT

....................................
1) Air Conditioner .......
2) Enclosure ..............
3) Refrigeration...........
4) Windlass ...............
5) Boom Tents ...........
6) Water Maker ..........
7) Stern Arch for Solar Power, Wind Power, Radar etc.
8) Purchasing of Solar Power, Wind Power, and Radar.
9) Windvane .............

1- I agree that the air conditioning will be essential at the dock in the Southeast US, but when cruising you might do best finding a place to store it ashore.
2- I'm in agreement with your enclosure plans, but I would add the ability to roll-up or open the forward windscreen. At anchor you will be facing into the breeze an blocking it can be a disappointment.
3- Refrigeration is the big "power pig" while cruising. For your refrigeration at the dock I would accept a 110V small apartment fridge, but it makes no sense to buy an expensive 12V unit that could be used while cruising if the front opens and spills all your cold air out. If you want to cruise with refrigeration the top loading nuits with an air cooled Danfloss compresser will do best, but you can calculate a cost of a continuous 1.5 to 2 amps.
4-You can single-hand raising your anchor at the bow. Your auto pilot with low rpm forward can sometimes suit. Sometimes you can plan the first tack of departing from anchor by backwinding a small piece of jib by hand that has been prepped for that purpose. Most often you will have casual time with knowledge of your set and drift to take care of your needs at the bow before tending things at the helm. I rather have the small manual horizontal windlass for a boat your size.
5- A small cover over the bow area kept low and rigged with the forward end lower than aft will not be a problem, but having just the hatch cover-wind scoop and rain cover will be less cumbersome. The boom tent over the bimini will lower temperature, but I don't think it's worth the clutter or hassle,- especially adding it as something to wrestle with when the afternoon squall lin rips through.
6- Your 35 gallons of water can suit you well,- add a couple of added water cans and you'll do well. Nobody cruisng in the Bahamas or Caribbean is dreaming of a hot shower; conversely, it's the cool rinse that's desired. We always enjoying a swim and soap off the stern late in the day with a small volume fresh water rinse. Never take any salt water below or into your cockpit. Salt here will never allow drying and cause a plague of clammy bed sheets! Huge volumes of saltwater for luxurious bathing and then a conservative rinse.
7 & 8- I'd set up a couple of ca 100 watt solar panels and not bother with the wind generator or radar. Notice that all those mentioning the radar in the posts above were from the Canadian Maritimes, New England, the Great Lakes or the Pacific Northwest. In the Southeast US and the islands occasional fog in the morning is usually gone by mid morning. I cruised for over twenty years without radar, but only added it when we started cruisin to Maine. I favor my brother, Pistarckle's plan. For our first twenty years of liveaboard cruising we did without refrigeration, radar, windlass, watermaker (still without).... even no depthsounder other than a weight on a string. There's a great freedom with less!
9- The need for the Vane is lacking with the auto-pilot of short terms away from the helm. For long offshore passages the vane attached to a complicated and expensive self-steering mechanism can be a value, but there's much to be said for some balance of your sails with your tiller tamed by some line and bungie cord. In addition, with suiable solar panels, you can often power your auto-pilot without draining your batteries.

[DefinitelyMe]

I've lived aboard for about 8 years now and moved boats once. The second time was much easier. These are my priorities, in this order (I'm going to assume that the boat is structurally sound and doesn't leak too badly!):

- Water. Doesn't need to be fancy, just needs to be there. A tank and a tap will do. I took out the pressure system years ago and have never looked back.
- Power. Solar. All solar. It's worth investing in a good set-up. And good batteries.
- Refrigeration. I've cruised extensively in the tropics for extended periods without it and did fine, but now that i have it i consider it a priority.
- All the stuff that lets you move, like rigging, sails, deck hardware and all that jazz.

Incidentally, white painter's drop-mats work really well to keep things cool down below. No need for fancy expensive canvas-work.

[sparrowhawk1]

After rereading the thread there seems to be two schools of thought on the refrigeration. Coming from a person that lived without refrigeration for 10 years and made the choice of go small go now go minimal to get out there and be doing it. If I knew I was going to be in a marina for a year I would definitely buy an Engle. It will virtually pay for itself in one year. If you factor in everything, the 1) cost of ice, 2) I used to throw out at least one quarter of my perishables, 3) go grocery shopping 2 to 3 times a week instead of the necessary once a week, 4) if you have to take your car to the store or even a motorized dinghy then you have to factor in fuel and maintenance, 5) and lastly and maybe most importantly you just eat better. One more thing that is a huge factor is most food is cheaper if you buy larger portions. Edit.. I also can stock up on things when it's on sale

[s/v 'Faith']

Skip the water maker.... Or at least wait until you have been out for a year and decide then... I am quite sure you will decide to skip it then.

Skip the windvane. Unless you are crossing oceans, it is going to be in the way and make docking and dingy handling a nightmare... Spend the money elsewhere.

Start off small, an Engle fridge can run off of a 120w solar panel and a pair of golf cart batteries quite happily,,, add more if and when you need it.

[Blue Crab]

From Capt Force:
3- Refrigeration is the big "power pig" while cruising. For your refrigeration at the dock I would accept a 110V small apartment fridge, but it makes no sense to buy an expensive 12V unit that could be used while cruising if the front opens and spills all your cold air out. If you want to cruise with refrigeration the top loading nuits with an air cooled Danfloss compresser will do best, but you can calculate a cost of a continuous 1.5 to 2 amps.

And the AB system is noisy in the extreme.

[sparrowhawk1]

At the risk of sounding like an Engle salesman... The reason the Engle is so efficient is it uses a piston inside an electromagnet for the compressor. Allowing slow start ups so there's no surge like with the Danfoss every time the compressor turns on, and only one moving part.
If you change boats you can take the Engle with you

[Hudson Force]

I don't have any first hand information about the Engel, but when I read their literature I see that the "big" 80 quart top loading model draws the same amps/hour as my Technautics "cool blue". The striking difference to me is that I'm freezing more than 2 cu.ft. & refrigerating over 4 cu.ft. The 80 quart Engel converts to a total volume of 2.67 cu.ft.

[danseurduvent]

Does anyone have thoughts on the isotherm refers that are water cooled with self pumping thru hull.

[Terra Nova]

The Isotherm and Frigoboat units with thru-hull keel coolers are very efficient and quiet operating.