We are planning a trip to the Dry Tortugas next week and are preparing the boat for the trip. I've targeted the most important/critical projects and have been knocking them out as quickly as I can. At this point we are almost there, but it's going to be a full week. Preparing for a trip is one of those things that keeps me up at night. My mind starts racing thinking about all the what ifs, the spares, what I need to do, and I've got lists scattered all over the boat. I've got a list for daily to do's, projects that need to be completed before the trip, projects I'd like to get done and projects for the kids etc. A dozen times a day I'm reaching for my notepad and a pen.
The Dry Tortugas is a national park located about 70 miles west of Key West. The trip isn't extremely long but there is some nasty water in between and the area is known for getting pounded by summer storms. Someone that just returned from the area was talking about one night of 42kt sustained winds for 45 minutes, enough to make you question your anchoring and keep you on your toes ;-) The island is full of history and it is home to Ft Jefferson.
The Tortugas have no services, no water, no fuel, no provisions. You are on your own and are far from any kind of repair shop, or store of any kind for that matter. You must take everything you need, from water to food and fuel. You can leave nothing behind and must leave taking any and all trash with you. It's partly because of these rules the area is known for being crystal clear, described as "Bahama clear" water. It should be a great history lesson for the kids and will be full of swimming, snorkeling and exploring.
The secondary reason for our trip is to test out all the new systems on the boat and to try and break what we can to see the weaknesses that remain on the boat. I plan on having a "drive it like I stole it" attitude and putting her through the paces. This isn't a trip we are taking lightly and there is some significant blue water sailing involved in an area that is known to be nasty at times.
WATER HEATER PROJECT
Water Heater Packed In
The other day I set out to rip out the water heater, which was a major project that involved removing the steps on the boat as well as all the surrounding support and trim. The water heater was old, AC powered, leaking, completely corroded and also put in at the same time as the engine. When it was installed I have no doubt it was not intended to be removed. The space the useless heater occupied was going to house my new battery bank which consisted of 2-6volt batteries (370 amp hours!) wired in series to make a 12 volt system. The batteries didn't have a huge footprint, but they are almost 2 feet tall and this spot would make the perfect fit.
The boat was an absolute disaster with project stuff occupying our entire living area, but it was time to get down and dirty.
The Two Monster Batteries (113lbs each)
First step was to remove the plumbing for the water heater which was more than just water and electricity. The water heater was plumbed to the engine so that the engine could heat water while under power. I managed to find 2 plugs to cap off the connection at the engine at the local Yanmar dealer and disconnected those first. I also took the time to re-plumb the majority of my fresh water system, as well as do a bunch of much needed re-wiring to correct the previous owners negligence.
Corroded Wiring Connections
All new wire with heat shrink
Twist connections are not for boat use, especially in the bilge.
Masking tape connecting 2 wires
This was the same connection, masking tape and unprotected corroding wire inside.
Heatshrink and heat gun
Bilge cleaned out after heater removed
Almost enough room for another engine in there!
Since I was running new freshwater lines I decided to run lines to my new manual hand pump. I had to tee in pre freshwater pump. This new pump not only saves water by reducing waste, but it gives me a backup in case I lose power or the pump dies.
New Whale pump fully installed in the galley
Batteries were a perfect fit
Water heater removed, bilge cleaned, freshwater re-plumbed, hand pump installed, lots of rewiring and finally the install of those two massive batteries.
All the trim, stairs and everything put back together.
By the time I was done, Jess was already in bed.
It was an entire day spent busting my knuckles, slicing my fingers, smashing my hands and contorting into ways a person my size has no business doing, however I got a lot done.
The batteries are now wired up and the old bank is now a back up, giving us 640 amp hours of total battery bank. To put this into perspective, our average daily use on the boat is around 30 to 35 amp hours, however you don't want to completely discharge a battery or you will greatly reduce it's service life. Doing the math you can see it gives us ample reserves with no input. This combined with our solar and wind will mean more self sufficiency. The solar panels are going to be finished when we get back from our Dry Tortugas trip and we might fire up the generator or run the engine to top them off during our trip, but we don't use much and the wind really helps keep up. Once the panels are wired doing the math we should be topped up all the time with sun.
OTHER MISC STUFF
We are back in the mooring field and off the dock!!!! It feels so good to be untethered from the dock and back to the peace and quiet of the moorings. We do more here, we socialize more and really enjoy being part of this community. We are on a mooring ball that is a short ride to the dinghy dock and I am in the community center as I type this peaking out looking at my boat. Today I go into work for a few hours and then tomorrow is engine maintenance day. New fuel filters, oil filter, oil change, belt checks etc. I am also removing the alternator and we are redrilling the mount to install a larger bolt, the old one had bored out because it was left loose. Tomorrow is the day to finalize all the systems preparations and Thurday/Friday will be days to trip plan, grocery shop and fuel up. We are watching the weather and the tropical systems out there closely, if all goes well we will be unhooking early Saturday morning and making our way to Boca Chica for the night then on to marquesas keys where we will anchor on the lee side of the island and enjoy the day and night before making the additional 50 miles to Tortugas. Of course everything is weather dependent and we will be playing it by ear.
Today I pick up our new safety device and communicator the Delorme InReach. (link for more info) The InReach is a 2 way satellite communicator that works off the Iridium network, which has pole to pole coverage. It will lay a track down and people will be able to see our progress as well as location on a website and we will be able to send important messages to family/friends to let them know we are safe. The device is also able to fire off a distress signal with our exact location that will alert search and rescue as well as family/friends we choose to let them know we need help in an emergency. Unlike an EPIRB device this will also allow us to communicate with rescue and let them know the nature of our emergency and location.
STAYING ACTIVE
This past weekend Jessica and the kids ran in the Hawks Cay Heroes 5k run and I'm proud of them all especially Peyton who took 1st in her extreme youth division. She has been wearing the medal ever since ;-) Some pictures of the event below.
There should be at least one more post before we leave, our fingers are crossed and we are watching the tropics in hopes of clear weather and fair winds.
S/V Kainoa
Cory
One or two updates prior to your voyage would be nice.
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