Break Downs at Sea

[zeehag]

you can put in a million gallon per hour pump, but if the hole is large enough or the fail huge enough you will still glug glub despite all your prep to avoid it.

instead of prepping to avoid, why not, as things WILL break at sea, prep to repair that which fails while underway--so much squawk about omg its gonna--HELLYES ITS GONNA!!!!

figger out how it is gonna fix at sea... while underway.

you can spend all your life trying to make the perfect boat, but guess what--that boat is never gonna be perfect, nothing is EVER perfect.

so my stuff breaks down--rodlmao--my boat wasnt even up to derelict stahhndaahhhds, thankyou, so i did damgud to get over 2500 miles before any real major system failed--and i had sniggling niggling repairs of that same system entire trip so far. is a multiple fail we kept fixing different parts of while enroute to the whereverville of cruising.
i actually have consistently arrived at the places i said i would.
despite failures.
despite no fuel in tank and only 2 ounces in return line...lol.....
cruising is that--cruising. breaking down at sea. repairing boat in exotic places....lol

nothing is so bad it cannot be fixed if you catch it in timely fashion.

unless you hit a whale.

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by Mr B

Thats all been argued out on here before,

But I will give one example,

A 2 inch hole, 36 inches below the water line sucks in 20,000 Litres per hour,

5500 Gallons per hour,

Your batterys are usually down low, Water covers them, You dont have power,

How long has the water been coming in before you noticed it, Broken off thru hull,

Your sitting up in a darkened cockpit sailing across the sea, Cruising at 8 knots, enjoying the night, and the lights go out, Thats your batterys gone, = No pumps,

your cruising across a busy harbour, Your instruments fail, Your getting full of water,

The waters ingress has drowned your batterys, Now you know, There is a hole in your boat, And its two feet deep down there, and its full of floating ****,

Your outside steering your boat, your not watching the Bilge to see if its taking on water down there,

Is your boat one of those that will sink with a hole in it,

Can you operate a manual pump and fix a hole in your boat at the same time, I cant,

Now what are you going to do, ???????????????????????

Why sink of course

Dave

[barnakiel]

The pumps are there to buy you time while you locate and plug the hole. I think a bare minimum in even the most tiny cruiser should be that 4k gallons capacity.

A pump with say 1 inch hose dia will pump out WAY MORE water than inflows thru an equivalent sized hole! Think about it. Measure. Read.

I think saying 'pumps are good for nothing' equals new owners venturing offshore with whatever the manufacturers put there in the bilge. I am afraid this mindset (not the pumps) is a first class ticket to not being able to save your boat while you might.

And if you read about some recent mid Atlantic abandons, you will clearly see this is the point.

Please goo gle yourself that video where a VOR boat hits a ufo then they bail and pump and save the boat. Or look at the damage another VOR suffered just after their take off from Alicante. They too saved the boat.

PLS do not say one cannot save their boat when we hit things. Very often the case is we can. Provided we have the equipment, the mindset and the skills.

Now go and sail and do not sin(k) anymore.

b.

[barnakiel]

Originally Posted by Mr B

Thats all been argued out on here before,

But I will give one example,

A 2 inch hole, 36 inches below the water line sucks in 20,000 Litres per hour,

5500 Gallons per hour,

Your batterys are usually down low, Water covers them, You dont have power,

How long has the water been coming in before you noticed it, (...)

Actually, there is an alarm on the float in the bilge, so we know immediately.

Actually, our battery tops are some 72 inches above the deepest point of our bilge.

Actually, we have an inboard diesel with an alternator on it. All of that at least 36 inches above the lowest point of the bilge.

To sum it up, if you think you will one day face the trouble as you describe it, then it is time to rethink your choice of boat for serious offshore adventures.

PS A 5500 gph leak can be teamed with two big bilge pumps run off house bank FOR HOURS. Please look up big pump Amps, then look at the capacity of an average cruising house bank. (two big pumps will draw 30 Amps, so how big is you bank?)

b.

[Capt Phil]

The number one problem that has plagued me delivering boats is dirty fuel tanks. Some time ago I quit asking the last time they had been cleaned (everybody lies), they need cleaning before we do the delivery, will you look after it?(everybody lies), etc. etc., Before I leave the dock whereever I am, I have the tanks cleaned, lay in a case of filters, O-rings, couple of spare rebuilt injectors and my tools. Power or sail, matters not, I want that motor dependable and serviced.
Have only lost steering due to cable failure once in a CT 41 (sorry Zee). Knockdown on a delivery off Pt Conception in 1983. The galvanized cable just parted. Reran with a long piece of smaller gauge plastic covered clothes line I found rolled up in a coil. Steering was a little sloppy but got the job done well enough to make SF to affect permanent repairs. Nearly knocked myself silly on my back under the cockpit running the new line through the sheaves and up to the pedastal. Not a lot of room under there particularly 75 miles offshore with a sea running!
You have to be able to jerry rig with what is available, be determined to get the job done and never, never, give up... Phil

[zeehag]

capt phil--mine jumped off also--while i was being towed in the lagoon here---is a good thing i have a hydraulic autopilot mounted on quadrant so that isnt a big issue ..unless i am hand steering for some reason....and all boats get issues...none is perfect.
i carry spare cable fro this ....and fittings for ends


never ever give up. never.

[svmariane]

Stuff happens. Even with "new" items.
Much of the outcome depends on attitude:
Can you do a "MacGyver "?

The photo shows our Monitor wind vane. The standoff legs were custom fabricated for us in Mexico. Corrosion broke one leg, mere months later, while heading for Bora Bora. Bummer. We did NOT want to hand steer the rest of the cruise.

Some hose clamps, chunk of hardwood, piece of aluminum strap. Extra lines tied port & stbd at lower/outer legs and run to docking cleats for additional stability. Worked just fine all the way to New Zealand.

[barnakiel]

Originally Posted by svmariane

(...) Some hose clamps, chunk of hardwood, piece of aluminum strap. Extra lines tied port & stbd at lower/outer legs and run to docking cleats for additional stability. Worked just fine all the way to New Zealand.

Similar story from our boat: vang lower shackle broke twice, replaced with spectra 'empropmtu' repair that held for another 15k Nm!

Some emproptus are better than the proper thing!

b.

[Capt Phil]

Good job, Zee... this was an older CT with cable steering through the quadrant... can't remember the make but we made do... cheers, you are in one of my favorite anchorages, Barre Navidad... great little bar in town and was a favorite of clients of mine who used to tie their big boat up in the marina... Phil

[Bruce626]

noelex 77 asked: "Is the autopilot connected to this rudder?" ==> No, I do not have an autopilot. The only thing connected is the wheel at the helm station which is connected via what looks like motorcycle chain (at the pedestal)and stainless cables to a quadrant attached to a huge stainless tube that ties the two rudders together so that they turn in unison. Nothing else is attached to either rudder assembly.

[Mr B]

Boatman61 crossed this bit of ocean earlier this year, He can tell you about it,

Perth to Tasmania,

I live on the mainland just above Tasmania,

These are the oceans I sail in,

I am very aware, I try to go prepared, For the worst scenario possible,

I have very much respect for the sea, I do know what it can do,
Against it, I am totally insignificant,

I have a good boat, Its safe, I now know its limitations, and its plusses,

I know how to keep it on the surface at all costs, Its very simple, quick, and doesn't take up any extra room,

It can be run on electrics or by Hand, I am going Air Bladders, Pump up only if ever needed,

Across the north of Australia, you step off your boat into the water, You might be lunch for a 5 metre Saltwater Crocodile,

Across the south of Australia, Its goodnight, Jack, You just disappear,

How you sail your boat and maintain it, is your concern,
I am only interested in the best way to keep mine afloat, And what works for me and my boat,

The worst constant bad winds in Australia, Are at 153"E 35" S, About Port Stephens in the Tasman Sea,, Its like a mini cyclone is tied up there all the time,
How they predict winds there is anybodys guess,

Every where else around OZ is usually constant in one direction for 3 or 4 days, USUALLY,