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Anbody concerned about their boat in this weather
- Thread starter sailorman
- Start date
crazy4557
Well-Known Member
Southampton today - outdrive problem
I ventured down to my boat at Ocean Village today and am glad to say all's well. Southampton has had about 2mm of snow and apart from a light smattering of flakes on the pontoons every thing was clear. A little ice on the decks but otherwise just bleeding cold.
No frozen pipes or mishaps so well pleased.
Went for a quick blast down Southampton Water and god was that freezing with the windchill.
One outdrive decided not to go fully down so aborted the 'cruise' and headed home. Did a quick check and the pump motor's not responding although it does click when tried. No fluid leaks and resevoir up to mark so maybe the motor's packed in? Any idea's on this one.....
I ventured down to my boat at Ocean Village today and am glad to say all's well. Southampton has had about 2mm of snow and apart from a light smattering of flakes on the pontoons every thing was clear. A little ice on the decks but otherwise just bleeding cold.
No frozen pipes or mishaps so well pleased.
Went for a quick blast down Southampton Water and god was that freezing with the windchill.
One outdrive decided not to go fully down so aborted the 'cruise' and headed home. Did a quick check and the pump motor's not responding although it does click when tried. No fluid leaks and resevoir up to mark so maybe the motor's packed in? Any idea's on this one.....
Bubblegtt
Well-Known Member
Brightlingsea today
It was a near blizzard at one point 3.0pm this afternoon
My boat is out of the water in the yard, but I took this pic of the floating pontoons.
The hard at Brightlingsea.
It was a near blizzard at one point 3.0pm this afternoon
My boat is out of the water in the yard, but I took this pic of the floating pontoons.
The hard at Brightlingsea.
Seahope
Well-Known Member
Thanks for giving me something else to worry about
It will be the Spring before I will find out whether all OK on the domestic water side. I Checked out the boat in Poole today and all seemed fine, just lots of ice on the outside of the boat. My memory let me down as I'd ordered a 120w greenhouse heater which was doing fine.
oldgit
Well-Known Member
As Promised.
"In fact out of interest will take a dual digital thermometer down to boat in morning and measure internal (bilge)and external temps ?"
Internal bilge temp 2C External 5C.
Wind made it feel considerably colder.Just to show how bad things are spotted either a Moorhen or a Coot shuffling along the shoreline,a definate sign that conditions inland are rough.
"In fact out of interest will take a dual digital thermometer down to boat in morning and measure internal (bilge)and external temps ?"
Internal bilge temp 2C External 5C.
Wind made it feel considerably colder.Just to show how bad things are spotted either a Moorhen or a Coot shuffling along the shoreline,a definate sign that conditions inland are rough.
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nordic_ranger
Well-Known Member
I would not leave a fan heater on at all. I have a friend who managed to catch the one he had on board as it stopped metlded and smouldered just before it was going to burst into flames. I was given a quick bath and is now at the bottom of the marina.
Allegedly the Sealine that was destroyed at 'Kip' last week was the result of a fan heater being left on overnight. Oiled filled radiators or tube heaters are the way to go if being left unattended.
mjf
Well-Known Member
A mate was now on our pontoon yesterday - pontoon covered with loads of snow and ice.
no clearing of the approach road nor car park.
Seemingly sport boats are having canopy issues with feet od frozen snow causing big sagging. His boat had stalactites on the inside of the covers!
I forgot to drain my transom shower last year and £6 later was ok. Drained it last time I was down just in case.
no clearing of the approach road nor car park.
Seemingly sport boats are having canopy issues with feet od frozen snow causing big sagging. His boat had stalactites on the inside of the covers!
I forgot to drain my transom shower last year and £6 later was ok. Drained it last time I was down just in case.
Trundlebug
Well-Known Member
Have just returned from an overnight stay on the boat, and despite appearances all was well!
A proper winter wonderland in our marina, the ice was 2 inches thick in some places and I had to hit the end of the boat hook with a lump hammer several hard blows to break through it! It took around half an hour to work my way all the way round.
Luckily the engine bay heater had worked well and everything inside was fine. I think the dangling fenders may have helped too.
Although I take your point about fan heaters, it's sitting on a metal platform and the boat electrics are protected by mcb's if any faults. The heater is also set on 1kw not 2 kw so shouldn't be at any major risk.
A proper winter wonderland in our marina, the ice was 2 inches thick in some places and I had to hit the end of the boat hook with a lump hammer several hard blows to break through it! It took around half an hour to work my way all the way round.
Luckily the engine bay heater had worked well and everything inside was fine. I think the dangling fenders may have helped too.
Although I take your point about fan heaters, it's sitting on a metal platform and the boat electrics are protected by mcb's if any faults. The heater is also set on 1kw not 2 kw so shouldn't be at any major risk.
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strakeryrius
Well-Known Member
I thought that I was going to be OK but I haven't had a chance to get down to the boat for 4 weeks due to Christmas and various nasty bugs. I have a dehumidifier and heater in the saloon on a timer. I also have a 100W tube heater in the engine bay on a thermostat set to go off if it drops below 2degrees.
Went down today and discovered that something had tripped the power off at the main box on the pontoon. It must have happened some time ago too as my meter had registered only 13 units since I was last down 4 weeks ago.
The engines seemed OK - I took out for a couple of hours for a run around the harbour - no speed limit so bags of fun - and got out as far as Studland before deciding that I was cold enough.
The problem looks like its with domestic water. I'd left the tank on "the red" with less than a quarter full, but it must have gone well below freezing inside the cabin. The water in the pipes of my dehumidifier had frozen solid and fractured them internally - looks like a new one will have to be bought, but the main worry is that I could get nothing from either hot or cold tap even after having the immersion heater on for over an hour. There was an icicle hanging from the mixer in the galley when I first arrived.
Looks like I won't know if there is any serious damage until there is a general thaw and she comes out of the water in a few weeks.
What's the panel's opinion though - should the marina staff have noticed that the power was out at the shore power control box and turned it back on? - as I've said it must have been off for over three weeks and no-one there seems to have noticed. It won't just be my boat that is affected but there were no other owners about today to compare notes with.
Went down today and discovered that something had tripped the power off at the main box on the pontoon. It must have happened some time ago too as my meter had registered only 13 units since I was last down 4 weeks ago.
The engines seemed OK - I took out for a couple of hours for a run around the harbour - no speed limit so bags of fun - and got out as far as Studland before deciding that I was cold enough.
The problem looks like its with domestic water. I'd left the tank on "the red" with less than a quarter full, but it must have gone well below freezing inside the cabin. The water in the pipes of my dehumidifier had frozen solid and fractured them internally - looks like a new one will have to be bought, but the main worry is that I could get nothing from either hot or cold tap even after having the immersion heater on for over an hour. There was an icicle hanging from the mixer in the galley when I first arrived.
Looks like I won't know if there is any serious damage until there is a general thaw and she comes out of the water in a few weeks.
What's the panel's opinion though - should the marina staff have noticed that the power was out at the shore power control box and turned it back on? - as I've said it must have been off for over three weeks and no-one there seems to have noticed. It won't just be my boat that is affected but there were no other owners about today to compare notes with.
AdeOlly
Well-Known Member
Assuming you're in a mainstream marina, yes they should. I'd be peeved in the extreme if I'd turned up at my boat and found what you did, and to then find the whole pontoon had been without power for three weeks. Without question I'd be talking to the marina manager and demanding an explanation.
Scubadoo
Well-Known Member
Is it really worth taking the risk when there have been incidents of Fan heaters catching fire. The risk is the fan failing and then the heater over heats and catches fire. I recommend you consider getting a safer cheap oil filled heater, B&Q are selling them cheap for £20 which can be selected to 900watts (I think).
Scubadoo
Well-Known Member
On firday I emailed my MDL marina asking about the conditions and popping down to check the boat over the weekend. They responded saying access is restricted to the pontoons so decided not to drive down, I guess if I insisted they would have let me through.
So I will pop down later this week and hoping the heaters are still working, I guess alot of us had a false sense of security in the south for many years as the temperature has not really been so cold.
So I will pop down later this week and hoping the heaters are still working, I guess alot of us had a false sense of security in the south for many years as the temperature has not really been so cold.
SolentPhill
Well-Known Member
Fan heaters are ok if you look after them, buying cheap isnt always good but what causes the problem is dust, the dust blocks the air vents and sticks to the blades and stops the cool air getting in, at least once a year you should remove dust from anything that has a fan, this includes your home PC, if you take the side off you can put a hoover inside it, make sure its off and using a dry clean paintbrush to remove the stubborn bits. If you take your fan to a garage where there is a air line and blow out all the dust it will allow the cool air inside it and it should'nt get hot.
Trundlebug
Well-Known Member
Good point about cleaning the fan heater internals, I'll have a look at that.
I have to say that although some perceive a huge risk, I don't. The fan bearings are in good order (it's quiet), the airflow is good, it's working in a clean environment, sitting on a metal surface away from flammables, the engine room has two automatic fire extinguishers, the electrics are protected by mcb's, the heater is not set on its maximum setting. All of these things lead me to my conclusion.
Whilst I accept that an oil filled heater has no moving parts, it's also slower to heat up, and slower to cool down. I would argue it's less efficient overall; it's certainly slower to ward off any sudden and sharp frosts and doesn't circulate the air in the engine room to the same extent. You have some hearsay evidence of one or two fires caused by fan heaters, can you honestly say that NONE have been caused by oil filled radiators?
I have to say that although some perceive a huge risk, I don't. The fan bearings are in good order (it's quiet), the airflow is good, it's working in a clean environment, sitting on a metal surface away from flammables, the engine room has two automatic fire extinguishers, the electrics are protected by mcb's, the heater is not set on its maximum setting. All of these things lead me to my conclusion.
Whilst I accept that an oil filled heater has no moving parts, it's also slower to heat up, and slower to cool down. I would argue it's less efficient overall; it's certainly slower to ward off any sudden and sharp frosts and doesn't circulate the air in the engine room to the same extent. You have some hearsay evidence of one or two fires caused by fan heaters, can you honestly say that NONE have been caused by oil filled radiators?
ian38_39
Well-Known Member
I have a cheap B&Q oil filled rad that I bought as an emergency measure when a 180w tube heater (12 months old packed up) left it in the engine bay for a week till Icould get back with a new tube heater.
To my mind the same type of element is used to heat the oil in that as a fan heater, have always felt a lot happier about tube heaters as they are totaly enclosed, if they go wrong they stop working instead of catching fire.
Sure someone will be along to tell me why I am misinformed shortly.
Ian
To my mind the same type of element is used to heat the oil in that as a fan heater, have always felt a lot happier about tube heaters as they are totaly enclosed, if they go wrong they stop working instead of catching fire.
Sure someone will be along to tell me why I am misinformed shortly.
Ian
Scubadoo
Well-Known Member
The fan heater has an exposed element where as tube heaters and oil filled heaters don't i.e. less risk of a spark igniting any gases, more relevent to petrol but battery gases etc can be a risk. The safest I would suggest is the tube heaters.
Also fan heaters have moving parts to fail, can get clogged up (as someone has suggested) etc etc and simply to much of a risk for an engine bay in my opinion.
At the end of the day any heater is of course a fire risk including using timers etc, but you can I feel reduce the risk.
I simply wouldn't want take the risk of leaving a fan heater unattended on a boat.
Also fan heaters have moving parts to fail, can get clogged up (as someone has suggested) etc etc and simply to much of a risk for an engine bay in my opinion.
At the end of the day any heater is of course a fire risk including using timers etc, but you can I feel reduce the risk.
I simply wouldn't want take the risk of leaving a fan heater unattended on a boat.