Solving the curious case of the creeping crud

First of all, I do NOT recommend Category 4 hurricanes as a diagnostic tool.  But that being said, we would never probably have discovered this problem without 100mph winds and torrential rains.

Our first suspicion had been hatches, we have two in the general area, but after those were replace and we had a few more tests by thunderstorm, we knew it was still there.

So that means tearing apart the boat.  Shit.

Off goes the cabinetry, the veneer, all of our crap (back berth, our living quarters) and there it was, a little bitty crack in the sealant at the deck/hull joint.  Top sides there was a little bitty gap at our built in chock.

But at least we found it.

Diagram provided by Jorg--boat builder/fixer extraordinaire.

Gap on deck.

Zeus, the one of a kind super electric dinghy.

And my husband our our Kiwi friend Russ will be happy to recreate it for $1 million.  That would be in US, not NZ.

Let's start with the basics.  The dinghy is a ultra-light (well....at first), carbon fiber rigid dinghy that weighs less than 100lb empty.  Cool little dinghy.  Actually was tested by the NZ coastal rescue and they couldn't sink it.  Go visit their website or Facebook page.  www.octenders.com

Tim got together with Russ and explained his plan...to which Russ replied.  "You are quite mad, mate."

However, you can't dissuade Tim, he's a man on a mission.  To help explain:  We found a superlight dinghy and equipped it with a Torqeedo/Battery bank/solar power.  It can take one person for a romp at 10-12kts, or it can recharge itself for the practical anchorage to shore trips every day. As back up, you can hook her up the big boat either under shore power or the generator if needed.

We are still testing the actual performance data, but at a normal cruising speed, she lasts a long time.

So first step--we help OC to figure out how to get a boat to the US.  You know with customs and all that.  I think at first they didn't want to, which is understandable because they were more just a local, make as you go business. But they got through that, and we had the boat shipped to Kansas so that Tim could start his mad genius work.

Think..."It's alive.  IT'S ALIVE!"  and then cue in Danny Elfman's "Weird Science"

So, below are a few pics.  We named it Zeus to keep with the Elysium theme.

Gel coat being applied over the base.

Packing for shipping.

Off to the cargo ship.  We had the info, so Tim and I tracked it on VesselFinder.com.

After arrival in Kansas, the battery platform was built and batteries installed.

The first part of my involvement in this escapade-a cover for the battery bank/seat.

Okay, it doesn't really have everything on this switch panel, okay, it has everything except cabin lights. 

Arrival in Key West. Not all power cells installed yet.

All power cells, and front nav lights can be seen.

Zee Torqeedo.

The control that run from solar to batteries.

Bahia Honda revisited.

We took Elysium up to Bahia Honda.  Of course, we had anchoring problems.  No more Bahia Honda for us.  It's a jinx. Here's link to the last brouhaha.

This time it was the control for the windlass, could get it up, but not down. It was odd how we thought to check if it worked BEFORE anchoring, yay us.  But windlass down not a big thing, since gravity helps with the down.  However--Bahia Honda---between two bridges, not a lot of room for error.

First try didn't quite go the way we wanted.  And of course shore side peanut gallery was there.

So we try again and got well placed.  Then tidal swing and the tour boat pontoon got pissy, but seriously they had 5 boat lengths between us and shore.  AND ITS A PONTOON.  Later we found out that the captain is just a whiner.

No wind, so we didn't have that to add to the tidal swing.  Soon our chain rode (love my chain rode), got settled into the bottom and we were sitting pretty.

  

Going through the original Bahia Honda Flagler RR bridge.  They took a span out to allow sailboats in.

Anchored with US1 behind us.

After we got settled, we headed into the park to walk around.  Five hours at sea, oh my, we must get moving about!  :-)  Both times I have asked if we need to pay a park fee, they ask 'How did you get here?' I say by boat. 'You just staying overnight?'  Yeah.  'Don't worry about it'  There's usually a donation box they we wind up putting money in.

I knew there was a trailhead that we hadn't visited the last time we were here so we opted for that since it was afternoon already.

Beautiful original tropical hardwood hammock that most of the Keys looked like before development (or overdevelopment, if you prefer).  However, the first damn sign we see on the trail head is pointing out the POISONWOOD tree.  Yeah, don't take that name lightly.  Way way way more toxic than poison ivy.  Metopium toxiferum if you want to Google its fun filled facts.

 Immediately, my husband (very allergic to poison ivy, have no idea what this would do to him) freaks the hell out.  'WHY? WHY WOULD THEY HAVE A F*CKING POISONWOOD TREE ON THEIR TRAIL!!' 

Well, it's supposed to be a native nature trail full of original plants, my dear.  (City boy)

Once I got him calmed down, and off the parking lot and back on the trail-I really believe he thought the tree was going to attack him-we continue on our lovely journey.

Mid trail you pop out on the beach--pretty is it not?
(more about the little island off in the distance)

 

 

 

 

 

 So we made it through the trail with no attacks by the flora and fauna, and in time to meet our peanut gallery.  We refrained from any witty comments, just smiled and said, yeah, we were having problems with our windlass.  To which peanut gallery looked at us like we were speaking Martian. (Yeah, I thought so, f*ckers)

 Clouds moved in so no sunset pics.  Just a good Elysium eye view of our anchorage.

Final update on previously mentioned projects.

Heads--are awesome.  No more pumping a handle 15 times to find that it didn't flush.  The build work that George did is fabulous and looks like it was always part of the boat. The man is a fiberglass god.

As I might have previously mentioned, the day head can also convert to be salt water, manual flush, so backup plan is in place.

Some experimenting with how the heads use up our fresh water supply (no water maker--yet), doing good, the holding tanks fill up before we make a dent in the water.  Not a problem if we are in open water, because we'll be set to pump and dump.

Fridge--We we first started the nonsense with the fridge (previous post) , we thought it was not enough refrigerant.  So after a while with the new (and most awesome) thermostat, we called the guy that runs the service department at the marina, sure enough, needed refrigerant.  So he charges it and also shows us how to charge it ourselves.  YAY.

Now--now we have a fridge and freezer that works TOO well, as our last trip testified with frozen stuff in the fridge.  When we are on the hook it helps to place a towel over our fridge to help with condensation, but those suckers work with authority now.

Sunken boats and grounded boats

When I arrived last week, I noticed a sunken fishing boat in the mooring field between our marina and the NAS channel.

A few days later, we had an abnormally high tide.  Evidently the fishing boat still had enough bouyancy that the extra foot of tide sent her adrift and she caught the current.

So, we take off and I noticed the boat is gone, I told Tim, hey they must have salvaged it, that would have been cool to see.

Ummmm.....no.  Since I'm the channel expert, I'm usually helming us out into open water.

I look ahead, and told Tim oh, shit. There's the fishing  boat.  RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE CHANNEL.

Of course, that sent my spouse into a spazout about derelict vessels and hazards to navigation.

Fortunately, we were able to scoot around it, but we both were wondering what will happen if it gets into deeper water.

 

 

Returning, we decided to see if we can nose into our slip, so I went about prepping the boat accordingly.  I give the helm to NotSoMuchTheChannelMaster.  As I am tying off fenders, the spouse says, I think we are dragging something.  I look over the edge and see in startling clarity the bottom of the channel and fishes waving up at me.  Uh, nope, honey, you are grounded.

There were two things, he got to close to the one edge and our keel must have been further down than we thought, so hit the button, raise the keel and off we go.  Very soft grounding thankfully or I might have been launched off the front of the boat, at which I would have walked to shore and met my spouse soaking and pissed.

Our second point of merriment is getting Elysium into our rather narrow marina entrance, turning into the current and trying to make a hard left required some inventive use of the thrusters again.

We arrive back at the slip and had a welcoming crew, of course, Tim did his world famous get two lines on the boat and then off to chitty chat with our visitors. Sure, honey I'll be more than happy to get the rest of the boat tied off by myself.  However, the guys too pity on me (or maybe it was my inventive use of foul language) and we got her situated.

All in all, a good day. 

First shake down sail with the owner crew.

Since it was a light wind/fairly flat sea state, we had a good opportunity to take Elysium out for a systems practice/check.

We already knew we had a coolant leak issue from the delivery captain, so once again, I got to do my favorite job of helming the boat while Tim messes around the engine room. We found the leak, but it'll take somebody with specific wrenches to tend to.  Yes, we have 6 toolboxes on board, but not these specific tools.

It might be because we are so used to and comfortable with Garmin products, but we are not fans of the Raymarine setup.  Currently working on going through every menu, the chart table is a touch screen, but the helm station isn't and it's very annoying.

Other than a few small ticky tack things, everything went pretty smoothly.  A lot heavier boat than HemiD and Patriot, definitely maneuvers like a tank.

My little push button sailor is in seventh heaven.  Bow/stern thrusters,  auto, electric winches, adjustable keel.

Commissioning the boat....finally

After we sold Hemisphere Dancer, we put all our crap in a storage locker in Key West. Knowing that yes, we would be coming back. Using almost heard of restraint, we waited an ENTIRE year before purchasing Elysium. (Who may or may not sometimes be referred to as Lizzy M, or just Liz)

We had a delivery captain bring her on down, and I was struggling with providing them with enough stuff for the galley and bedding, knowing full well I already have it in the locker. We brought things from home and he purchased a few things, some of which will be coming home with me because I have this thing with glass aboard my boat. A Pyrex baking dish might not break if it were to go flying, but it would probably break my foot. That's just my luck.

The boat yard pretty much tried to do everything the last week she was there, even though they had her for six weeks. Tim was there to oversee/project manage/help. Granted, the boat yard did find some things that had the potential of being show stoppers, but they also dinked around too much.

After a fairly uneventful delivery, the lady sits at berth at the Key West Harbor Marina. Whoo hoo.

So, back to the storage locker. Even though the management goes around and periodically WD 40s our locks, ours still managed to freeze up. I had had a long day travelling and wasn't in the mood to fight with it, so left it. This morning I came back with a can of WD40 and went medieval. Turned out that the entire door needed WD40. So, here I am looking like a spray paint artist going to town. With the high wind, I was covered in WD40, the rental car was, it was great. Finally, the lock unlocked and the door opened. Hey, all our crap is still there!

Amazingly, we also did a well thought out job of packing and storing it. The vacuum seal bags, the dryer sheets, the moth balls, the extra wrapping,  all our stuff seems to be very much intact, mildew and odor free. It also helped that no hurricanes hit Key West this year and got the sheds wet.

But....I recall that HemiD was a two cabin sloop. So, how the hell did I wind up with enough bedding to outfit the QE2? HOLY CRAP. Some of this will wind up getting donated.

Open the next container....hey, Tim and I were wondering where all those shoes went. What possessed us to keep them in a storage locker in Key West? Huh.

Next container...Holy crap! The illuminated palm tree lives!

Next container...BINGO! Hair dryer. It's 65deg in Key West, I need a freaking hair dryer or get pneumonia.

So, I still have several containers to go, Tim gets to figure out his tool situation when he arrives. And maybe, just maybe...the weather will warm up.

The latest gadget

Since we have a delivery captain taking the boat down, Tim wanted an opportunity to track her (with our captain's blessing, of course).

He's been eyeballing this gadget at West Marine for some time now, so he finally bit the bullet and bought it.

DeLorme inReach.  The unit itself is about $300, and you can get a monthly plan starting at $15 for starter plans to the next one up $35 for unlimited checkpoints, etc.  We can cancel after one month until we use it again for a passage.

It has the ability to send messages, and you can track it online.  Very nice.

So, we've started it today as the boat heads south. Our delivery captain has been sending us text updates all day (I think he's having fun).

This will also be handy for my parents and whomever we designate our point of contact for our float plan.

How much is a 9 ft draft?

A lot, especially when she's out of the water.  Getting ready to have the final paint job done on the keel.

So, the final list of things that were done?
1.  Bottom and keel soda blasted, keel cleaned up and treated, barrier and bottom paint applied.
2. Dings in side of boat fixed and painted (paint doesn't match, oh well) waxed
3. Topsides waxed
4. Generator serviced, engine serviced
5. Fuel filter set up replaced with Filter Boss
6. Power monitor installed
7. Raymarine chart plotters updated and returned for replacement
8. Stereo replaced so chart plotter can act as remote (safety issue)
9. Outside speakers installed
10. Propane valve inside the boat relocated as required
11. Dorades replaced
12. Vents replaced with solar vents with two-way (in/out) control--essential in the tropics
13. Prop serviced
14. Bow thruster serviced
15. Stern thruster installed (talk to the spouse, roll your eyes at him)
16. Pennant for retractable keel replaced and keel fixed to go completely up
17. Had forward hatch repaired for leaks.

..I'm sure there's a lot more things, but I can't remember.

Still to do, overhaul heads and replace nozzles in bathroom sinks so they can act like a proper shower as they should.

Clean, clean, clean, clean.

Replace all of the lights with LEDs.

Eventually we'll get to enjoy this thing!!!!!

The care and feeding of your boat--not the crew, the boat

If you buy a boat, and the previous owner says:  Oh, I didn't do a lot of required maintenance because for the first 10 years of her life she sat mostly on the hard.

If you hear that, you have some options:
1--Run like hell.
2--Decide if you really, really, want the boat.  If not, run like hell.
3--Know you want the boat, it ticked off a lot of what you wanted, and break out the wallet.

Elysium wasn't used much her first 10 years, maybe twice a year for a couple weeks and then on the hard for the rest.  The second owner thought that routine maintenance shouldn't be an issue...since the boat wasn't used much.

Horseshit.

Whether it be boat, car or bike.  Neglect is neglect.  A boat that isn't used (or a car for that matter), shit will dry out, shit will seize up.

Some things were flagged on the survey and fixed at close.  However, and since we are anal and like to start fresh when we buy a boat used--we found a lot of other things that needed help.

The engine and genset have got some long overdue love, the hull is getting fixed up and beautified. We found a leak in one of our hatches, so we sent it off to be refurbished.  Evidently, the prop was serviced by somebody who didn't know what the hell they were doing, so we had to get that sent off, I think we just wound up getting a new prop.

The sailing part of the boat is in good shape, lines and sails, some UV needs to be repaired, but that is a spring project, for now sail tape will do.

Our ambitious and aggressive list for the boat yard is slowly getting ticked off, but we are running out of time, mainly I want to make sure the gas valve for the stove is moved outside per US standards, nothing would piss me off more to start up the stove and boom.  It would really ruin my day.

Mainly, we just need to get the boat in the water so the spouse and our delivery captain can do a shake down cruise before it makes a 1000+ mile journey to the Keys.  Not much to ask for correct?

BTW--I have left out names of the surveyor and broker/owner to protect the guilty.