Daydream believer
Well-known member
No, it would not be my choice. But I am not the one buying it, so it is only an opinion that the OP can bin if he wishes.
But let's be sure
One would still want to wish him luck with his new boat though
Thinking of buying a wooden boat...
- Thread starter Travellingwithtoby
- Start date
But let's be sure
One would still want to wish him luck with his new boat though
Wansworth
Well-known member
Staving up the bowsprit is raising it up using a hallmark so it doesn’t stick out beyond the bow,as seen in many Dutch bitters and 16th centuary paintings of Dutch waterways
Travellingwithtoby
Active member
No, it would not be my choice. But I am not the one buying it, so it is only an opinion that the OP can bin if he wishes.
But let's be sure
One would still want to wish him luck with his new boat though
Thanks daydream believer! I do still appreciate your input
Aha makes sense!
I have the privilege of reading a copy of "The Iota story"
All about the waterwitch!
srm
Well-known member
All the best and fair winds.
Owning a boat puts you on a very steep learning curve, but there is a solution for everything. (I have even salvaged a sunken boat using improvised lifting gear - not my own boat fortunately).
38mess
Well-known member
Nice boats, always wanted one. I settled for a 26ft eventide. Nice boats but shallow draft so don't expect good upwind stuff.
Mine was cascoverd and nearly 30 years and as good as new. I loved that boat.
Mine was cascoverd and nearly 30 years and as good as new. I loved that boat.
oldmanofthehills
Well-known member
Folks, remember the OP needs to live on it. There may not be much ditch crawling this year and many places will not let you in or be very hostile until Coro is over. That on the outside will linger till 2021 if it follows the pattern of Spanish Flu. Being stuck in muddy creek with little access to tools and materials would be a challenge if it needs much work (and my experience of wooden is that it will always need more work than GRP).
The question is it big enough or suited to live in with no major costly ongoing maintenance, which the Op might not be able to afford?
Wishing Toby the best of luck. Stick in there fellow!
The question is it big enough or suited to live in with no major costly ongoing maintenance, which the Op might not be able to afford?
Wishing Toby the best of luck. Stick in there fellow!
Travellingwithtoby
Active member
Hi there Julian!
I do see what you are saying
it's big enough if I simplify even further than originally planned, which is fine by me. I have kept a close eye on all of the paperwork and this is similar to your boat in that it has got recent xyz and a decent owner that take care of the boat
I will be carrying tools instead of clothes at this rate, but I'm happy having spent two days going over it that it will not cause me any substantial issues in the near future.
Heating is by kerosene as is cooking so no gas to worry about.
And updated chart maps and paper ones, along with an east cost pilot book. So that solves some of my issues!
Now something it doesn't have... extra power generation.
One 110ah lead acid house battery. With only charging source currently the engine. I have two 125w solid solar panels that I will hook on whatever side the sun happens to be on. But that's only for days I'm on the hook....
So anyone got any recommendations?
I'd rather not end up replacing the 1100ah battery bank I just sold...
I think it would ruin the waterwitch if I covered it in solar panels!
Thoughts ideas or just a few puns please folks
Wansworth
Well-known member
Just put the solar panels out when you want not fixed,awful,saw a very nice wooden gaffer and they just disposed two to catch the sun as required.Hi there Julian!
I do see what you are saying
I have kept a close eye on all of the paperwork and this is similar to your boat in that it has got recent xyz and a decent owner that take care of the boat
I will be carrying tools instead of clothes at this rate, but I'm happy having spent two days going over it that it will not cause me any substantial issues in the near future.
Heating is by kerosene as is cooking so no gas to worry about.
And updated chart maps and paper ones, along with an east cost pilot book. So that solves some of my issues!
Now something it doesn't have... extra power generation.
One 110ah lead acid house battery. With only charging source currently the engine. I have two 125w solid solar panels that I will hook on whatever side the sun happens to be on. But that's only for days I'm on the hook....
So anyone got any recommendations?
I'd rather not end up replacing the 1100ah battery bank I just sold...
I think it would ruin the waterwitch if I covered it in solar panels!
Thoughts ideas or just a few puns please folks
srm
Well-known member
We use a high output wind turbine - AirX - with silent blades plus three solar panels (about 5 amp each), one fixed on a gantry plus two portable. Also mppt charge controller. No problems for weeks at a time during summers in Scotland, and I always try for sheltered anchorages so wind turbine often gave little or no output when not sailing. All LED lighting and battery monitor to see what was happening to the 400 AH AGM domestic bank. Small fridge with underwater cooling plate ran 24/7. I don't think the batteries ever discharged more than 40% of capacity. However, this was only living on board for up to 6 months / year. Winter conditions will be more challenging and a good wind turbine will probably be more use than solar then.
I did live on board for one winter in Shetland (very many years ago) with an Ampair wind turbine but also needed to run the engine at times to bring the batteries up.
I did live on board for one winter in Shetland (very many years ago) with an Ampair wind turbine but also needed to run the engine at times to bring the batteries up.
srm
Well-known member
Another point to consider for living on board.
Condensation can be a big problem, especially in winter. All external surfaces above and below the waterline (except the bilges) will need to be insulated. Lining lockers with carpet may be sufficient, but the deck head will need something more efective. My first boat was built of plywood and the wood did not provide insulation. Same problems with my steel and fibreglass boats.
Condensation can be a big problem, especially in winter. All external surfaces above and below the waterline (except the bilges) will need to be insulated. Lining lockers with carpet may be sufficient, but the deck head will need something more efective. My first boat was built of plywood and the wood did not provide insulation. Same problems with my steel and fibreglass boats.
Travellingwithtoby
Active member
I will have a look at the AirX! I did look at the cheaper amazon ones but not no reviews on most of them.
An upgrade of batteries is definitely on my list!
I would love a cooling plate fridge! How well does it work?
Yes this does worry me a bit, but again I have the Taylor's heater that vented outside, and il planning on a thermosyphon style coil to warm some very small radiators, hopefully that will help keep things dry!
What woul you suggest as removable insulation that wont trap moisture and still let the wood "breathe"?
I'm so lucky it's coming into summer!
Thanks guys and gals!
Might make another thread about wind generators ?
Kukri
Well-known member
When I was living aboard a wooden boat in the UK winter I was not troubled by condensation, but I had a solid fuel stove vented well above deck. And I used a canvas winter cover over the whole boat.
There is a very simple trick to using a vented stove under a winter cover, which I was taught by other liveaboards - use a length of stainless double wall central heating boiler flue. It comes in metre lengths that clip together, and run your stove flue up inside that, with an ordinary mushroom cap at the top.
There is a very simple trick to using a vented stove under a winter cover, which I was taught by other liveaboards - use a length of stainless double wall central heating boiler flue. It comes in metre lengths that clip together, and run your stove flue up inside that, with an ordinary mushroom cap at the top.
doug748
Well-known member
This chap lives on his uninsulated boat, above the Arctic Circle, in winter so worth looking at:
Lots of talking but his other videos are spectacular.
.
Lots of talking but his other videos are spectacular.
.
Kukri
Well-known member
I agree with the H shaped flue top.
DownWest
Well-known member
'Colt' shaped flues also work.
srm
Well-known member
Warm air inside will pick up moisture even though it feels nice and dry. The trick is to keep the warm moist air inside away from cold surfaces. If the inside of the cabin is painted the wood is already sealed from the air so can not 'breath'. I would suggest a lightweight lining or thin battens, over the frames to hold pieces of polyurethane sheet foam insulation against the deck head and cabin sides. Fit it so that the lining and foam can be removed. (Do not glue the foam to the plywood as this could lead to rot problems). Ensure you do not create water traps where condensation can puddle and eventually soak into the paint and wood. Even one centimeter foam will make a big difference. My GRP cabin sides have 1 cm foam and thin ply glued on the inside making a very snug and dry interior.
Other people will have different methods.
They are quite expensive. Also, the standard black blades are very noisy and could be classed as anti-social. I managed to break my blades while stowing a boathook (quite dramatic as the turbine was running) so replaced with blue 'Silentwind' blades which made a big difference. Silentwind now make their own turbines that look much the same as the AirX only with an upward pointing tail fin.
In simple terms high output turbines have three thin blades and spin very fast. Those with more and wider blades have a lower spin speed and lower power output for a given diameter but are generally quieter and may start to give a small charge at lower wind speeds. Also, the bigger the diameter the higher the potential power output.
On a conventional fridge the coolant goes through an air cooled coil on the back of the unit to dump heat taken from the inside. In the confined space available on most boats this leads to a build up of heat (especially in warmer weather) and reduced efficiency so the compressor has to run more frequently to keep the inside temperature down.
On my unit I have a small bronze plate, similar in size to a hull anode, mounted below the waterline. The fridge coolant goes through this unit to dump heat directly into the sea water, which incidentally is about 26 times more efficient at conducting heat away than air at the same temperature hence the small heat exchanger unit. Obviously, the efficiency depends on the sea temperature. When I fitted it in Orkney I ran it for 24 hours and monitored the battery usage. The battery monitor showed a discharge of around 18 amps, so an average drain on the batteries of less than 1 amp/hour. It will use more power in warmer sea temperatures, but I think it is still significantly less than a conventional air cooled unit with the same internal volume. (Incidentally, while running the compressor draws about 5.5 amps so the less it runs the kinder to your batteries).
I have run the fridge with the boat ashore by placing a pad of old towel over the underwater unit kept wet with a dripping water hose.
Hope these ideas are of use, but you may well find different solutions that suit you better.
Zagato
Well-known member
Somebody may have already said this but the Waterwitch in question maybe the one filmed for "My Classic Boat"!
Travellingwithtoby
Active member
Ok, so it all went to the dogs
I cannot get my lovely wooden boat launched. I am out of time and had to buy another boat risking losing my deposit (even given the extenuating circumstances of covid 19)
I have bought a steel hulled eventide 34 feet long. It's a doer upper but I didn't have any other options for housing.
So I'm going to be resident of Dartmouth for a little while!
I am totally gutted. But at the same time at least I managed to get something to live on!
So if anyone knows of a cheap dingy and outboard between weston super mare and Dartmouth I would be forever in your debt.
I have use of a tender to load my stuff after that I am stuck on the boat. Unfortunately I cannot row as I have torn a rotator cuff on my shoulder!
I cannot get my lovely wooden boat launched. I am out of time and had to buy another boat risking losing my deposit (even given the extenuating circumstances of covid 19)
I have bought a steel hulled eventide 34 feet long. It's a doer upper but I didn't have any other options for housing.
So I'm going to be resident of Dartmouth for a little while!
I am totally gutted. But at the same time at least I managed to get something to live on!
So if anyone knows of a cheap dingy and outboard between weston super mare and Dartmouth I would be forever in your debt.
I have use of a tender to load my stuff after that I am stuck on the boat. Unfortunately I cannot row as I have torn a rotator cuff on my shoulder!
oldmanofthehills
Well-known member
Hi Toby
what model Eventide is that, its clearly not the 27?
Has it got your favourite the Taylor stove as is that part of the doing up?
Also how far is the boat from the landing stage?
All the Best
J
what model Eventide is that, its clearly not the 27?
Has it got your favourite the Taylor stove as is that part of the doing up?
Also how far is the boat from the landing stage?
All the Best
J
Travellingwithtoby
Active member
It's a 34 foot one off!
No it has a pansy stove that I cannot get to bloody work!
Well its lit. But the output is meager
It is now about 15 min with a borrowed 25hp tender, new mooring is even further again!
Thanks, I'm just happy to have a boat!
Take care
Toby