Wander Lost

Category: Maintenance

Maintenance work on Lady Cindy

  • Cherbourg, France

    In this blog entry.. crashing the boat, crossing the English Channel, playing dodgem with big ships, storms, checking into France after Brexit and more changes in plans (why do I bother planning?).

    Let’s start with the embarrassing 😳 bit, hopefully you will have forgotten all about this by the time you reach the end of this blog.

    I set off from my mooring at Deacons Marina in the Hamble at 9am. The marina is on a tidal river with a fast flow, I headed to the Channel. As soon as the bow got into the river flow, it swung the front to starboard (right), toward other moored boats, then the stern swung against another boat, its anchor went through my cockpit canopy canvas. I was pinned there by the current and had to wait till the current lessened to move again.

    Fortunately no other boat was damaged, only mine. I eventually got clear and under way around 11am. I spent the first half of the Channel crossing sewing up the canvas.

    Have you stopped laughing yet?… OK I will carry on 😳.

    The Channel crossing went very well, it was a night crossing and the only scary moment was crossing the busy shipping lanes outside Cherbourg. There are two one for eastbound ships, one for westbound, they are separated by a 5 mile gap. First I had to cross the Westbound lane, that was straightforward, not so scary I thought… then I picked up the AIS signals from the Eastbound lane. Think of crossing the M4 on a bank holiday and you will understand. These were big tankers, container ships, ferries, cruise ships etc. Fortunately I also have AIS and one ship changed course so I could thread the needle at an angle…

    After Cherbourg I rounded a Cape where the winds and waves started to pick up. At first I just thought it local winds and tides, usual around headlands. But then both French and UK coastguards issued new storm warnings on the radio. Things were getting worse, the forecast had obviously changed so, change of plan again, I decided to head to nearby Guernsey in the Channel Islands. There I could find a sheltered anchorage and have a good look at the new forecasts.

    The new forecast was not good news. A big depression was due south of Ireland and will spread its tentacles around Biscay, worse it was set to last until the end of the week and another was hot on its heels brewing in the Atlantic.

    I needed to enter the EU by a Port of Entry. Crossing Biscay to Spain was out but I had two options in France. Brest was best but it will be effected by the storm, Cherbourg was the safe option, although it meant going backwards. I am now in Cherbourg marina with my passport stamped as is Dotty’s health certificate. We are good to stay in the Schengen zone (EU) for 3 months.

    I plan to stay here at anchor in the harbour waiting for the storms to clear from Biscay. If I get the chance I may run to Brest to wait. I am in no rush.

    Oh yes, nearly forgot. This is a big squall that passed through the marina earlier. The video shows the start, in the middle of it a massive gust knocked the boat against the pontoon.

  • Milford, Lundy, Padstow… and back

    We left Milford Haven and had a great sail with good winds and moderate seas to Lundy and then on to Padstow. That’s the good news… the bad news is that Ffion was seasick the whole time and when we arrived in Padstow the anchorage near the lifeboat station was very bumpy. Things got worse when the wind shifted to North Easterly and the waves in the anchorage got worse.

    There was no way we could stay there overnight, especially with Ffion so unwell and there were no local safe harbours accessible at low tide, especially in that swell. There was no choice, we had to move and as we had decided Ffion would go home, Milford was the best option .

    To make things worse, the anchor snagged, I shredded the skin on my thumb trying to free it and the anchor bent in the process; It’s still usable though (anchor and thumb). While raising the sails in the now 20 knot winds, the genoa (the front sail) was flogging in the wind for a while and that has shown weaknesses in its sacrificial strip (also known as a UV strip because it is exposes to sunlight when the sail is furled) it has shredded in a few places.

    As it was 9pm and it was a 24 hour sail against a North East wind back to Milford, we sailed North West into the Celtic Sea away from land during the night and tacked back North East the next day. It took 26 hours in the end so we were exhausted and more or less went straight to sleep.

    This morning I had a good look at the genoa and it looks sound except the sacrificial strip which has done its job by absorbing uv sunrays and become brittle. I have spoken to a sailmaker in nearby Neyland who has given a rough price of £350 to replace this strip so tomorrow I hope to get a taxi over with the sail. He may not be able to work on it till later next week so I will be here at least a week.

    Ffion will stay here with me, at least for a few days and will then go home, alas she is not a good sailor due to seasickness. I will then cross the Bristol Channel (again) and continue in to Southmpton arriving a little later than planned.

    I will be looking for a crew member to help with the sail from Southampton to the Mediterranean if anyone is interested and can spare a couple of months.

  • Having a clean bottom

    Lady Cindy has spent the last two weeks out of the water to have her bottom cleaned; we all need one of those.

    No issues were found with the hull, so we rubbed her down and applied new anti foul. The blue section got polish and a touch-up wherever the gel coat was damaged. All the through-hulls were checked and serviced.

    The next time she is lifted, I want to rub down, fair, and repaint the blue as well as re align the white boot line because its a little high at the bow and low at the stern.

    Ffion and I have had a great time when not working; we have been taking the dogs to training (Dotty watched), had days out with friends, and generally enjoyed life.

    What’s next?

    We have a very busy week ahead with plans ashore as well as preparing to leave Aberystwyth Marina next week. We hope to sail down to New Quay to anchor for a short while before heading south to Southampton.

  • Managing Dampness on a Boat

    Note that the title is managing, not preventing! Dampness is an inevitable fact of living above a large body of water out in the open so water can come in from any direction. Add to that the moisture in the air from evaporation of bilge water and from your breath, there are many sources of water and not all can be prevented.

    This article lists many of the water sources but focuses on the most difficult to manage, air borne moisture.

    Stopping water from above

    Rain water and sea spray can enter from deck fittings, window and hatch seals, the anchor hauser pipe, the mast, shroud chain plates, cockpit drains, etc. Almost all of these are preventable with a bit of sealant and maintenance.

    Stopping water from below

    Sources include the prop shaft, through hulls, transducers, osmosis, and cracks or holes in the hull. All can be sealed/repaired, but these usually require the boat to be out of the water.

    Managing air borne moisture

    Unless you stop breathing, completely seal your bilges, and only sail off the sahara coast, this one can not be prevented; it has to be controlled and directed.

    Warm damp air rises; it is less dense than dry air. When this air hits a cold surface, the moisture condenses on that surface, forming drops of water. We have some control over which surfaces are coldest and can often direct that water down to the bilge. An efficient automatic bilge pump can remove nearly all of that water.

    Managing which surfaces are cold, and therefore where the water forms needs a combination of ventilation and insulation to prevent moisture condensing where you dont want it and have cold surfaces in places where you can direct the water drops into the bilge; its important to think about how the air will flow in the space to ensure the damp air passes over the cold surface. If you can get this right, you can create a dehumidifier using the hull or cabin top as a condenser.

    On Lady Cindy, I have four spaces: the forward V berth, the heads, the saloon, and the engine compartment. Of these, I am only concerned about managing airborne moisture in the V berth and the saloon.

    The V berth was the priority as I had made it my sleeping cabin, and it had no insulation apart from a couple of side panels; the roof was plain fibreglass so got cold, especially at night. My breath overnight resulted in a dripping cabin roof and wet hull surface in the morning, soaking my bedding.

    After lowering the bed by six inches to gain headroom and widen the bed, the old side panels no longer fitted. New ones were made from ply, and the fronts covered with foam backed headlining and backs with foil covered bubble wrap. The hull behind the panel was covered with the same foil covered bubblewrap. The insulation is designed and marketed to insulate garage doors. There is now an air gap between the hull and the panel where any water vapour can condense and run down to the bilge, very little does as although not sealed, little air can flow into the space.

    The bubble wrap insulation has also been placed against the hull at the back of all lockers in the V berth, heads and saloon to prevent moisture condensing there, each space still has a cold uninsulated locker where most of the moisture can condense and drain to the bilge. This has been partially successful. I am having to double the insulation on some lockers to improve things.

    The roof was more complex; I covered it with the same foam backed headlining, but I had to ensure damp air did not gather here but instead flowed forward to the chain and sail locker at the bow to condense on its cold surfaces or through to the saloon and managed there. Which direction the air goes depends on wind direction outside as this determines the direction of air flow through the cabin. There are four external air vents on the boat: Anchor hawse pipe, V berth roof, heads roof, saloon roof, and cockpit door. There is a gap above a panel separating the V berth from the bow anchor locker for air to flow between those areas. I also installed a small 12v fan so air can be moved even if there is no wind outside.

    What about windows?

    As I am not prepared to replace all of these with double glazed units, I have to accept water drops will form here and drip down. I wipe them daily and ensure there is nothing below them that could suffer water damage. Keeping the boat warm and ventilated is the only solution, but I do have a small 12v dehumidifier which helps a little.

    Is my boat now dry?

    No, that would be impossible, but my bedding is dry, stuff in my lockers no longer feel damp, and black mould is no longer an issue in my living areas. I would call that a success.

  • Installing Lithium Batteries

    Last year I installed Lithium batteries from Sterling Power onto Lady Cindy. This is how I did it and a summary of how the system is working out in real usage.

    The problem with lead

    Lead acid batteries traditionally used in boats suffer from a major problem over time… sulphation. This reduces their life span and their capacity. They can also degrade if they are discharged below 50% capacity, they drop voltage as they discharge which means you should only use about half the power stored in them, and they take a long time to charge from 80% to full capacity.

    Advantages of Lithium

    Lithium batteries can be discharged to near zero and maintain a steady voltage throughout the discharge cycle. Most come with built-in battery management systems that optimise the charging and monitor cell performance. Often, they provide remote monitoring via Bluetooth. Lithium is far lighter than lead, so although they are similarly sized, they are easier to manipulate and can be installed on their side, which gives more install location options.

    Lithium is expensive

    There are issues with lithium, too; they are very expensive and can not be used in the same bank as lead batteries as they have different charge and discharge characteristics. The established view is that you cannot mix lithium and lead and must throw away perfectly good lead leisure batteries to install Lithium… BUT THIS IS WRONG. I have done it with minimal rewiring, but a special charger is needed.

    How to mix lead and lithium batteries

    The secret is to have separate battery banks, and the lithium is added as a new bank isolated from the existing lead bank by a battery to battery charger. I chose UK based Sterling Power for both my batteries and my charger after speaking to their technical team to confirm their product could do what I needed. That was to charge the lithium side when the lead side was over 12v (charging or charged) and isolated the lithium when the lead side was less than 12v (discharged below 50%).

    All house loads such as lights, fridge, instruments, etc. were moved from the lead leisure battery to the lithium bank. Charging sources (wind, solar, alternator, mains) remain on the lead side, so they are unchanged. The separate lead starter battery and its charging sources are also unchanged.

    How the charger works

    When there is an active charging source on the lead side, not only are the lead batteries charged, the Sterling charger takes some of this power, regulates the voltage and controls the current to charge the lithium bank.

    When the charging sources disappear, the lead battery provides power to charge the lithium until the lead side drops below 12v (50% discharged). When this happens, the Sterling charger isolates the lithium bank, which continues to provide power to the house loads.

    Has it worked?

    Yes, and better than I hoped. I used to have 2 x 120ah lead leisure batteries that I could use half of (120ah usable power). Adding 2 x 110ah Lithium batteries could have given a total of 340ah of power. In practice, I decided to reduce weight at the aft end (where the lead leisure batteries are located) by removing one of these batteries. So, currently, I have 280ah usable power, and that power is always at a stable voltage. The only negative is that there is a cooling fan on the charger that is noticeable but not loud when it kicks in, so think more carefully than I did as to where to locate this.

    I am very happy with the power I have now. I live aboard Lady Cindy and have never run out of power. I charge when I am in a marina, when there is daylight or wind, or when I run the engine. I have a 240v inverter aboard to run various electronic device chargers, and an xbox and have run that for 4 hours before getting to 25% charge and turned it off, so I had power for lights in the evening. The next day was sunny, and I was back to nearly 100 % charge on everything at the end of the day.

    How I installed on Lady Cindy

    Lady Cindy’s starter battery was installed under the starboard side saloon berth/seat. The two leisure batteries midship under the floor in the galley area. When I rewired the boat, chargers, loads, inverter, and isolation switches were all moved to a locker under the port side map table. This was my start position for the installation.

    The lithium batteries and their charger were installed under the port side saloon seat/berth. And charger wired through to the leisure batteries. As all loads were on a single terminal under the map table, it was a simple job to switch the terminal input from the lead leisure battery bank to the new lithium bank. You may have a more untidy setup with lots of loads directly onto your leisure batteries. In this case, put a new terminal near these batteries, move all loads to the new terminal, and then a heavy gauge wire from there to the new lithium battery bank.

    Negative terminals of all loads should go to the negative post of the lithium bank. The negative side of all banks and all charging sources should be connected together by a heavy gauge wire.

    Future upgrades

    Although the original design idea was to be able to install Lithium alongside lead and the battery to battery charger allows that, there is another plus from that charger in that it protects the lithium from any excessive voltages that a charge source such as an alternator may generate. This is a useful function even when the lead battery reaches the end of its life and is removed. Any new batteries in the future will be lithium and added to the existing lithium bank.

  • Long winter

    Wow, it’s over two months since my last blog entry 😳 I am sure nobody noticed 🤣

    Up until New year’s eve, I was working 5 nights a week in Tescos from 5pm till midnight and on my days off I usual either went to Ffions or she came up to stay on the boat with me. We spent Christmas and New year together too. I have done some smaller maintenance jobs on the boat but not much. From now until mid March I will work two nights a week at Tescos and spend more time working on the boat. I have booked a lift out for February to renew the hull anti fouling and check some through hull stopcocks.

    The New Year is here though and a new start. I have dismantled then re installed the new V berth to paint the new wood and and put up some insulation against the hull. Condensation is always been an issue in here and the superwrap insulation seems to be working so far. I have done the starboard side, I now need to do port side.

    Underneath modified v berth

    My current plan is to leave Aberystwyth marina at the end of March, sail back to Southampton, spend a couple of weeks there with family and wait for a good weather window to cross the channel and head South toward the Mediterranean in May or June.

    For regular readers with curious minds (nosey), Ffion will not be coming with me when I sail South. We have had a great time together over the last 7 months but our futures lie on different paths. We have both always known and accepted this. I think and hope we will both be happier, richer and better people having spent so much time together. I would like to thank her publicly for the fun, the singing, the company, the long chats, the tapas, the hugs, the sailing, the driving, the theme parks, the fancy dress, the shopping trips and giving me the courage to try new things 🥰. I would also like to thank her parents, her brothers, sister in law, nieces and nephews for making me welcome and trusting me with Ffion.

  • Remodelling started

    I have started the changes I want to Lady Cindy’s interior this week with the V berth. I have lowered the bed by several inches which gives extra head room.

    There is still a lot to do in there with a new cupboard, painting and work on the side and roof panels but the bed is structurally complete and much stronger than the old one. Behind the panels i found one deck safety rail stantion and one chain plate were leaking at the deck, this will be a major reason for damp in this cabin. These are easy fixes with sealant when the weather dries up.

    I am back at Ffions parents for a few days to help her dad and help prepare for her test next week.

  • Can you have too much fun?

    No, of course not 😊 A three day trip to Alton Towers that turned into four days, plus Ffions birthday week (why just have one day when can have a week?). Smiles and laughter have been the theme.

    Ffions mum looked after Dotty while we were away. She howled, escaped across a busy road looking for me, climbed on the kitchen sides to look for me out of the window and pood in their front room. Does anyone have a collar of shame i can borrow for a month 🥺

    Meanwhile Ffion and I were doing this…

    We had so much fun we booked an extra day.

    This week its Ffions birthday so had chinese with her parents and her niece, went to Folly Farm and moved a sheep at her field..

    Today I got the wood needed to start structural changes to the interior of Lady Cindy and later will drive down to Ffions parents to stay overnight. We plan an early start for a day out.

  • In Aberystwyth for the Winter

    I have moved the boat to Aberystwyth Marina on a 6 month winter mooring package a week earlier than planned. The weather has changed this week with a colder and windier outlook.

    When preparing to leave Aber laat week, i noticed a leaking fuel hose, I managed to find a replacement online.

    Leaking pressurised fuel line

    During the winter I have lots of plans for doing improvements based on my first 6 months experience living on the boat. I want to move the anchor winch further forward, improve interior storage spaces, lower the front V berth beds to give more headroom, make the table a drop sided one so i dont need to keep putting it away when not in use, I also want to get the boat lifted out for anti fouling and other hull maintenance

    I also have other things i want to do this winter. It’s Ffions birthday and driving test next month so today Ffion and I have a 3 day trip to Alton Towers planned, it should be a lot of fun plus great driving experience for Ffion with new unfamiliar roads and following SatNav.

    Ffion and her dad need help up at the field to do some work in the farm shed and they are also preparing for a house move.

    I want to restart developing some computer software etc which will eventually provide me with an income.

    I also want to do sone winter sailing to gain more experience before heading off to the Med.

    I think I have a very busy winter ahead of me 🙂

  • Keeping busy

    Since returning to New Quay I have spent as much time ashore as on the boat. I have spent a lot of time at Ffions house and their field where Ffion keeps her horses. I have been helping her dad by moving tons of ballast, dismantling a shed, moving swings etc.

    I have done some smaller jobs on the boat such as installing a rain collection and storage system including a pump and cockpit tap. It uses an old original tank at the back of the boat that I can also fill at marinas. I will use this water for washing and deck showers. Ffions dad gave me a gas cylinder so I have a more plentiful supply for cooking. Previously I only had two small cylinders in the cockpit which were not enough for liveaboard.

    There was some excitement in New Quay last week when somebody got stuck on rocks at target rock on the headland in New Quay. The Coastguard helicopter was called out to airlift him and his dog back to safety.