Saturday, April 7, 2012

Cleaning Day!

I went to visit Rhapsody today. I wanted to clear things out so I am able to clean up the inside, I'll explain more in a later post.

(Warning: Lots of Pictures)

Here's an example of the "stuff".




I started with what was in the quarter-berth and worked my way forward. I was going to take all the cushions out too but decided to leave them where they were. I took everything else out and put it all in my truck.

Here's a view of some of the storage spaces.






I was surprised at how much storage there is in this boat for its size. Looking at the storage areas, some of the yellow areas looked slightly cracked. I'm starting to consider painting those areas white to give it a fresh new look.

I also went up to the storage space at the bow and emptied that out too.


While I was there, I decided to take pictures of the mounting hardware for the windlass and big cleat at the bow. I took these pictures so I could see the condition and whether they needed re-bedded.



Since I was looking around in there, I noticed all the bolts used to attached the hull and deck.


Now, the only way to see those bolts was to get inside the storage locker. Since I cleaned up to that point, I decided to look back where I started at the beginning of the day.

Yes, I climbed inside the locker.

The only "stuff" I left was a box of supplies that I will use to do some cleaning and refinishing of various areas.

While I was there, I decided to check out the batteries. My volt meter showed ZERO voltage. I'll get to changing them out in the future.

Here's a view of the electrical panels. AC at the top and DC below.


I happened to see this hook in the galley. It looked like it didn't belong to anything.


I opened up a door and it didn't reach then I figured it out. It goes to the door for the head.


I thought it was a nice idea. If someone is up in the cockpit, it could provide more privacy for someone in the v-berth area.

I was curious about this. It looks like a zinc. The wire was tied to the fitting at the base of part of the stern pulpit. This thing was in the hole shown to the left. I thought zincs were supposed to be attached somewhere on the outside of the boat in the water.


While i was looking at this possible zinc, I noticed the caulking on the railing looked to need some servicing. In the supplies I currently have, I got 4 tubes of Boatlife caulk. I noticed other places it could be used.


Another place was the hole at the bottom of this brass fitting and railing.


Since the inside is showing signs of leaking by a couple portholes, I decided to see how they looked from the outside. Part of the seal that is visible is showing some cracking.


It was suggested to me that I leave the porthole alone and redo the rubber gasket on the inside where the opening part presses against the frame. I tried taking a picture of the gasket. In this next picture, you can see it at the top. I had to take the picture like this because it was too bright outside and other attempts didn't work out.


Anyway, I spent about 3.5hrs with Rhapsody today to clean out the "stuff" and have clear areas to clean up.

With all the work I did, here's what I have to show for it.


Here, I have some sails, cockpit cushions, a couple charts, stuff from the galley, life jackets and lots of other things. Now all this stuff is at the house, I can clean up what I can and organize to put back. I'm not sure if I want to keep the cockpit cushions but will hold onto them for now. As I sort through these things, I'll probably post some of my findings.

Stay tuned!

2 comments:

  1. Dan, the zinc thing you're looking at is, indeed, a zinc. In order to work, zincs have to be connected "electrically" to the metal in the boat. When bolted to the hull, the connection is either through a wire inside the boat attached to the mounting bolts, or using the conductivity of sea water if the zinc doesn't appear to be attached to anything other than the hull. What you're showing is some extra protection. We did this very thing while moored in Puerto PeƱasco, MX last summer. the water was notoriously "hot" so we supplemented our prop-nut zinc with a big ol' zinc brick attached by electrical wire to our prop shaft. Worked like a charm. Had to be VERY careful to remember to remove the wire before starting the engine, though. You undoubtedly have other zincs attached to the hull or the propshaft. This might have been a way to keep things protected until it was warm enough to attach a new one underwater or the boat got hauled out. BTW, you sometimes see zincs shaped like mermaids at the chandleries. This is exactly what they're made for. As long as the metal that the wire is attached to is somehow connected to the metal you want to protect, it should work although I understand that there's a limited distance that the zinc and the metal you want to protect can be.

    Just found your blog today after your comment on Sundowner's blog. As a fellow owner of an actual small cruising boat, I'll have to taek some time and give it a read. I've always heard lots of good things about Nor'Sea 27s and Greg and Jill Delezynski certainly love theirs.

    -Steve

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    Replies
    1. I do have a prop zinc. This one pictured above I wasn't sure about. I asked the previous owner about it and he said he didn't know it was there. Since I'll be in fresh water, I'll have to adjust things a bit.

      I do like my Nor'sea. I still haven't sailed it yet but I think I did good for my first (or only?) boat. :) I want to do a little sailing then work on some more projects later on. I found out I'm going overseas at the end of next year so I should have one season on the water then some additional upgrades will be in order.

      Thanks for stopping by. If you have any questions or interested in anything specific about my boat, let me know.

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