Tuesday 27 September 2011

End of Season

Well, I’ve failed to keep the blog up to date. Sad smile we had our last sail on the weekend, we stayed in the harbour just going down to Sparkes Marina and spent a night there. We had a great sail back up the Emsworth channel, only to be greeted by two powerboats weaving around the moorings.

My 8 year old son was at the helm, and I shouted at them to slow down.. BIG mistake, the lead boat came over, helm angry at me for shouting at him and wanting a fight.. not really civilised adult behaviour. I ignored him, as he was alongside and he shot off under the bridge and carved around in Langstone with his mate. While we were putting things away they came back and went into the marina where we launch the tender from.

We ended up getting the harbour patrol out to have a word with them, as I wasn’t comfortable with putting the children in the tender with the possibility that these guys doing would do something silly.

I find it really sad that people like this want to ruin things for others, Chichester harbour is a beautiful peaceful place, quite often we see guys out fishing in canoes, and others sailing or kayaking around, and behaviour like is so unnecessary. And the vast majority of other power boaters stick to the rules!

On the positive side, my son steered the boat onto the mooring, fantastic! And he got the boat doing 6knots on the way back to the mooring.

Its been a great first season, the boat has lived up to expectations, I have a list of jobs of things to tweak and improve over the winter, but that's part of the fun of it to me.

Saturday 20 August 2011

Portsmouth ahoy..

Our major trip out of the harbour this season, was to be a relatively short hop round the coast to Portsmouth.

We’re slowly easing into cruising, so we decided to use the boat as our floating base for a few days away. With small children the lure of something fun to do at the destination is always a good thing, so we decided that Portsmouth’s dockyard seemed to offer a good range of things to do, whatever the weather.

We took the boat into Northney marina for a night to load up, its always amazing to see a couple of trollies full of provisions,bedding and clothes, and think to yourself, will it all fit in!

Well it did, amazingly, although the Super Seal doesn’t have any bilges, so the under bunk storage seems small, it does seem to swallow everything.

Before we could set off, I had a couple of jobs to attend to, as the pipe for fresh water was leaking where it connected to the tank, and also the pump was leaking too. The previous owner had replaced the freshwater tank, but the pipe supplying the taps was simply pushed through a hole in the top of the tank, meaning it leaked!

I brought a suitable tank fitting from screwfix, and had some other plastic fittings around, so used those and some new blue pipe to connect to a tap. The tap is one of the plunger style ones, that pumps water when you pull the handle up and down.

The first challenge was how to empty the tank, so I could move it, and fit the tank connector. This was solved by shoving the bilge pump inlet into the inspection hatch and pumping the water out. The rest of the task was simply a matter of connecting everything up, and thankfully it worked! I also replaced the piece of pipe from the drain to the seacock, as the drain on the sink didn't;t work.. removing the pipe enabled me to see the problem; the pipe was blocked up with gunk.

My plan over the winter is to refit the kitchen, putting in pressurised water and a bigger sink, as well as sorting out the various cupboards to bring it up to date, so this is a halfway measure.

We also wanted to stow the tender away, while we were away for the week, I’d brought a bracket for the engine to mount it onto the push pit. This was going to be a quick job.. however I didn’t have a socket set on the boat! My wife went off to Halfords to find a socket set. And came back with one for a tenner.. perfect for leaving on board.

Anyway, back to the sailing! We eventually set off late morning, the sea was flat, and crossing the bar was uneventful. there was some wind, but as fate would always have it, it was coming from where we wanted to go! We tried to see what ground we could make under sail, however it was proving to be slow progress, so we ended up motor sailing most of the way there.

During my planning, I had thought we would try out Gunwarf keys, as it seemed local to what we wanted to do. However they could only offer us a berth rafting up to another boat, so it was time for plan B. My next choice was the Royal Clarence marina in Gosport, we called them up, and yes they had berths, great I thought, that was easy. We arrived, parked up, and went to find out where everything was.

A right royal disappointment…

The Royal Clarence marina, was obviously designed by an architect, who had in his mind that the boats would be pretty, but that facilities for sailors shouldn’t detract from this! Its about a ten minute walk to the facilities from the marina, they are tucked way back out of sight, right at the back of the complex. Added to this the wide open empty courtyard you have to cross, and its not really somewhere you want to be with small children.

Third time lucky… We up sticks and moved, much to the marina managers disgust. We went next door to the old Camper and Nicolson’s (now Gosport) marina. It was pretty much perfect. Excellent facilities, including a big family room, which is a god send when you have children to wash!

We spent a couple of days in the marina, using it as our base, and getting the Gosport ferry over to Portsmouth for days out.

Part two to follow..

Tuesday 5 July 2011

Busy Weekend

We (Well I!) decided it was going to be an ideal weekend to leave the harbour and venture over to the Isle of Wight. From the entrance of Chichester harbour, Bembridge is about 8 miles south/south west. So around 2hours sailing time.

Unfortunately, due to the Goodwood festival of speed being on this weekend, it took us longer to get down to Northney than usual. We did manage to avoid most of the traffic by jumping down the lanes south of the A27, but unfortunately took a wrong turn and ended back in the traffic for a long 100 yards!

HW was 13:26 at Northney; we finally set off around 13:00. The wind was almost due South, but a lovely force 2/3 and the sky was clear.

We tacked our way down the Emsworth channel and out into the Solent. We were able to set a course beating to windward across the Solent, and managed to keep the boat speed to a healthy 5.5 knots.

We arrived in Bembridge about 16:30, with very little water left (about 2-3 feet over the bar :-), so we raised the keel and rudder and motored slowly down the winding channel to Duver marina.

The pontoons were all around 5/6 boats deep, and we were allocated a space tucked in alongside a Vancouver 28. But first we had to tuck ourselves in. I motored past the stack and reversed into the gap.

We ate tea, and then took the children ashore for a run. Then back to bed for a 10pm bedtime.

Waking up at 8 on Sunday, to a bright clear but windless morning. We ate breakfast, and could see that hanging around was going to be a problem, as by around 11am the boats on our inside would want to go, so leaving the boat was a bit of a non starter. So at 10am we slipped, and left well ahead of the crowd.

We motor sailed back across the windless Solent, The sails adding a knot or so to the overall speed.

We arrived back in Chichester around 12:30, and snuck our way into a very crowded East Head.  As high water was not for a couple of hours, we lifted the keel and went in close to the shore.

BBQ ashore for lunch, and we left around 15:00 back to Northney. finally arriving around 16:30.

A bit of an adventure, and lots of lessons learned, it was too long on the boat for the children, they needed to get off and expel some energy. Realistically 2 hours is the most they can do in a single stretch. And being somewhere without easy shore access is a real pain.

However my son finally started to get over his phobia of the boat heeling even a few degrees. He spent the afternoon with my elder daughter on the leeward rail dangling his feet in the water when the boat heeled!

Overall a very tiring but enjoyable adventure.

Wednesday 8 June 2011

Charger

I’ve had to buy a new charger, as the one that came with the boat unfortunately went bang the first time I plugged it in!

RSC8

We gave the battery an overnight charge when we were last down there, I’m not sure of its condition as it came with the boat, and its charge was down to 7volts before I charged it which is not good.

I brought the Ring Smartcharger as it seems to have a good range of options including maintenance routines. Is it me, or does this look more like a radio than a battery charger! The leads pack away into the back of the charger, making it a nice tidy package.

Our power needs on board are relatively modest: depth sounder, yeoman / GPS, VHF and LED lighting.

On our last visit two weeks ago, I installed the new 20watt solar panel, so it will be interesting to see if this has managed to maintain the charge in the battery while we’ve been away.

Friday 20 May 2011

Solar Panel

Stargazy lives on a swinging mooring, and our power usage on-board is limited to instruments, lighting and radio. Recharging the battery currently is limited to using the alternator on the outboard, but the power output from this is very limited.

So we are essentially "off grid" and given that nuclear power is complex, and tricky to install on a 26ft boat :-) I decided to see what alternative energy sources we could utilise.

Jan and I met 21 years ago at the Centre for Alternative Technology in Wales. We experienced numerous weeks of off grid living; the power for the cabins we stayed in came from alternative energy sources (solar, hydro and wind). Now you'd have thought that being on a Welsh hillside, wind would be the best of these, however this was rarely the case!

For Stargazy, I decided to start with a solar panel charger for the battery, on the basis that they are now relatively cheap, simple and hard wearing. The likes of Maplin sell various solar panels, however their construction I didn't feel would last too long in a marine environment.

I happened to notice that Nasa Marine had expanded their product range, and now offered solar panels, so I've taken the plunge and ordered a 20watt panel which arrived this morning, along with a couple of free gifts!
IMG_0232
I'll report back when its been fitted.

Electric Engines

Super Seals came with the choice of an inboard or outboard engines. Over the years, many owners have converted their outboard powered boats to diesel inboards, this being a relatively easy thing to do.Stargazy however still has an outboard in a well, and I feel their are certainly some advantages to this setup:

  • The engine can be removed from the boat for servicing, and can be taken home over the winter.
  • No Stern gland or seacocks for water to creep in through.
  • Replacing the engine is easy, carrying a spare is feasible (even a lower powered one for emergencies).
  • Clearing the prop is easy, and can be done from the cockpit.
  • No smells down below, many yachts smell of diesel downstairs, especially when under power. This is a sure fire way of feeling sea sick!
However their are obviously many disadvantages to this setup:
  • It's nosier in the cockpit, the engine is under the tiller.
  • Its easier to steal, although it is locked in place!
  • Manual starting (although newer engines are available with electric start).
  • Petrol is volatile, and storing large quantities of petrol has to be done carefully.
  • Fuel consumption is higher than with a diesel, an inboard would probably consume around 1 to 1.5 litres and hour. Our outboard probably consumes around 4.5 litres an hour.
  • Now that 2 stroke outboards are no longer available new, and equivalent 4 stroke models are bigger and heavier, there may not be a model that will fit in the well.
For the type of cruising we will do, I can live with most of these, she sails faster than she motors, so the engine is not my first choice, however sods law dictates that the wind always comes from where you want to go to!

We currently have an 8hp Mariner Sailpower outboard, about a 1998 vintage. While I can't see that in the near future we will need to change, its always good to have a plan in mind to cover any eventualities!

A 4 stroke outboard engine is certainly an attractive proposition, as noise and consumption are lower than 2 stroke. However due to the bigger size and weight of 4 stroke outboards, I doubt that I could find one to fit in the existing well, without serious modifications. I intend to take some measurements with me when we vist the Southampton boat show later in the year, and to trawl round the various manufacturers stands to see if there is a possible fit.

We could look to fit an inboard, however I feel it could be a whole pile of hassle, and is not reversible if we change our minds!

I'm also keeping my eye on the electric engine market. There has been some innovation in recent years, however I'm not sure this will this mean it may become a serious contender...

Torqueedo is a German company, they produce a range of electric outboards, ranging from trolling motors to some reasonably big beasts, such as this one:



(Cost approx. £2699.00 which is comparable with a new 4 Stroke Yamaha - £2015.00)
Now on the surface, it looks like a great idea, it has some clever power management technology that allows you to see what range you have left, using a built in GPS.

The Cruise 4.0 needs a 48volt supply. Torqueedo have been working on a this power pack:
Its a Lithium power pack, which weighs about 20kgs, and approx. 104A/hr, and you'd need at least 2 of these (at around £2k each). I'd recon a budget of £7-8k would give a setup that could be used, however that's a big outlay. And at 4.5knots, you would still only have a range of 13miles! Recharge time is quoted at 11hours per battery.

I love the idea of electric propulsion, however the equivalent 40kgs of combustible fuel (approx. 40litres of petrol) would give me a range of 30/40 miles and with £4000 I could motor for approximately 2800 miles!

Monday 16 May 2011

First Night On-board

We went back down on the Saturday following the launch on Friday, but given all the rushing around the previous day, we left home around noon, figuring that the purpose of the day was to get the children afloat, and see how they took to the boat.

We launched the tender from Northney marina around 2pm, and pootled out to the mooring. We'd booked a berth in Northney for the night, as we had a load of bedding and other items still to take aboard.

Having got ourselves sorted, we motored off the mooring and headed down the channel, we had planned to get to East head, but time and wind direction got the better of us, so at 4pm we turned round and headed back to Northney for our first go at marina parking...

The first thing I realised, was that without a full trained crew, it was going to be a tricky. We found the berth, and moved off to put fenders and lines on the right side to enable us to come alongside.

Being an outboard powered boat has some advantages, not least of which her ability to go backwards! I reversed into the finger berth, and all went ok, we had a little problem with getting the right lines ashore, but plenty of fenders down, and no one got bumped or damaged. Lots of learning still to do!

We knew the forecast was for rain overnight, and lots of it. However we discovered we had a few more leaks than first thought, the Port settee was soaking, and it was getting late, what should we do, stay or go-home?

We opted for a trip to the local B&Q to find some silicone sealant, to plug up the gaps, which thankfully did the trick. Following a quick pasta tea, which daughter No1 pronounced as "the best homemade ever!" (it was from a jar) We all eventually got to bed around 10pm.

And so it rained, and rained and rained! (The best way of knowing how much it rained, is always to look in the tender! - a good few inches in the morning)! We found another couple of leaks, which we've hopefully plugged up, and started to make a list of fittings to be removed and resealed with Sikaflex in the winter.

The next morning, we had Bacon rolls, and got ourselves up and organised to take the boat back to the mooring, and then off home. as daughter No1 had a party to go to.

Overall not a bad start to the season! We spent a night aboard, everyone was reasonably happy, and lots of things to learn!

Friday 13 May 2011

Stargazy

It all began in early April, we never intended on changing the boat, we'd brought a lovely drascombe Lugger last year, and the children had really taken to it, enjoying days out from Itchenor in Chichester Harbour, and also a camping weekend down in Poole. I was slowly getting the Lugger ready for the coming season, and had a list of changes I wanted to make to her.


We'd fallen in love with a Baycrusier 23 at the Southampton boat show back in September, but as they were only available new, and out of our immediate price range. The attraction of the Baycruiser was that she was stable, and trailable. This coupled with some of Matt Newlands excellent design features means it is a lovely package.

Having lived with the Lugger for a season, we had a couple of issues with the Luggers design. I know many see them as a "classic" however the design has not been evolved at all in the last 30 years. This I feel is its biggest downfall. The biggest concern we had was with the rudder; on a Drascombe, it’s a huge piece of metalwork, with a large swinging plate on a long metal pole which fits through the hull, and on the end is the tiller.

This design means it’s hard to come into shallow water, as the board swings up you cannot remove it from the slot in the rear deck. If you do choose to remove it, you end up with a very heavy arrangement to ship. I know many Drascombe lovers say that you can put a block of wood under it in the slot, and then tie the tiller up on the rear mast, but this is still a very clumsy arrangement. I did give some thought as to how you could modify this arrangement, but it would have needed serious surgery. Coupled with its less than sparkling sailing performance, it never made it the perfect boat for me.

I was having a cheeky look around at what other boats might be available, we'd nearly brought a Moody 29 last year, but it had the dreaded osmosis, so we left it. I spotted a Seal 22 on Boats and Outboards, and got thinking about how it might be the right sort of boat for us, good reputation, lifting keel etc. But if we wanted to sleep on it, it would only really be good for 4 people.

I'd looked at a Super Seal 26 on Yachtsnet, and it seemed ideal, slept 5, good performance, lifting keel. The Super Seal was built for about 3 years in the late 70's, and many examples are showing their age. I spotted our boat on Apollo duck, and we discussed the merits, and from the pictures it looked right, and most importantly cared for.


So off we went to Canvey Island to take a look. She was definitely "end of season" but only really suffering from lack of cleaning and paint and polish. Inside was really tidy, outside was in remarkable condition, especially for a thirty year old vessel. We discovered that she'd been brought originally by the owner of Tiptree Jam, and for most of her life was kept in the warehouse there, which explained her condition. I think I was beaming like a Cheshire cat, and Jan seemed to like it too. We spent the afternoon pondering an offer, and reading the last survey.

When we got home, we made an offer and it was accepted, rightly or wrongly we'd decided not to make it subject to survey, as having been over it was a toothcomb, we couldn't find anything too much wrong with it; The Super Seal is a very simple boat:- No keel bolts, inboard engine, hot water, or other complexities of modern yachts. The interior woodwork is all Teak; something you'd never see on a boat now!


So we spent the next few weeks running up and down to Essex, we completed the purchase on Maundy Thursday. We then spent Good Friday and Easter Sunday antifouling and cleaning.

We'd debated where to keep her, I first off thought it may be interesting to keep her on the east coast, certainly the cost of moorings and yards is tiny compared to the south coast, but the lack of access and small tidal windows was a real put off. So finally we decided to move her back to Chichester. One of the big advantages of a lifting keel is the mooring options it opens up to you, Keel up the Seal draws about 18inches, and keel down around 5.5 feet. Thanks to the Chichester Conservancy, affordable moorings are available around the harbour, even more so if you can take the ground.

The final piece of the jigsaw was to get her moved south. I did contemplate sailing her round, but time was going to be an issue, along with availability of suitable crew. So I decided to investigate road movements. I found a couple of adverts, and eventually chose Chris at boat towing in Southampton.

His service was excellent, he put up with all my emails, and daft questions, and even the agro from the Yard on Canvey Island. We'd naively presumed that it would be easy to book a slot to get the boat lifted in, but a few phone calls later and it was clear that we'd missed one important detail, that most people don't launch until the beginning of May, and therefore we should have booked this months ago. We racked our brains and called around a few yards we knew. We came up trumps with Emsworth Yacht harbour, they could slot us in, but only if we were there by 10:30 Phew!
 

So finally Friday morning came, it was a very stressful time from my perspective, was everything ready, I'd taken the mast down a week earlier, and now I was to put it back up for the first time. But Emsworth handled everything really well, I always think that these are stressful times for the yards, lifting and moving boats with owners present must be a nightmare!

Everything in place, we launched around 11:30, and the mast was up around lunchtime. We moved her to the other end of the marina and got ourselves organised for the trip out to the mooring, finally setting off around 3:30.

We motored out of Emsworth, and got the genoa out on the way, she happily did 5 knots under genoa, I was really pleased.

We picked up the mooring first time (hooray for team work!) I'd originally thought we'd go back to Emsworth in the tender, but the little engine was not happy, and with the sea breeze filling in, it would be a very wet 2 mile ride back. We'd chosen this mooring due to its proximity to Northney, so we pumped up the tender and made the short, but very soggy journey over to Northney. They kindly organised us a taxi, so we deflated the tender, tried to make ourselves look presentable and shoved the tender in its bag. All in all a very long but good day.