• Other Issues

March 2011

Port Publishes Biocide-free Antifouling Study

Subscribers Only Paint companies, boatyards, and boat owners will no doubt be closely checking the impact of an antifouling report issued last month by the San Diego Unified Port District and funded by the Environmental Protection Agency.

Paint, Soak, and Rate

Subscribers Only The paint samples were applied to 6-foot-by-2-foot fiberglass panels for testing. Testers follow the makers’ instructions for preparation and application. There were 11 samples per test panel. All but two samples had two coats of paint.

Suck-It-Up Challenge

Subscribers Only All the battery-powered vacuums were tested with brand-new batteries charged to their makers’ specs and brand-new filters. We put them through a series of simple bench tests and real-world use.

Sealing Anchor Chain Spill Pipes

Subscribers Only Anchor lockers are a convenience to coastal cruisers but no friend to offshore sailors. Passagemakers often forgo a deck-clearing locker for a belowdecks anchor-chain well. An angled spill pipe leads the anchor chain from the deck to the well, which often is under the forepeak and behind a watertight bulkhead. The setup not only eliminates the flooded-bow worries inherent with an on-deck locker, but it also moves the chain and anchors’ weight lower and further aft, where it should be to avoid hobby-horsing.

Anchor Lockers II

Subscribers Only When a boat is floating at rest, an anchor locker drain should be able to shed all water in the locker. Residual water evaporates, but it leaves the salt behind. The brine combines with the sulfur-laden bottom residue, creating a galvanic reaction and a puddle of rust. Even on this new boat, anchored only a few times, water trapped in the anchor well has already becoming a chemistry experiment.

Anchor Lockers Part I

Subscribers Only The contemporary anchor locker setup favors clear-deck convenience. This compromise can have some serious disadvantages. As with most things on sailboats, boat owners/buyers have to weigh the pros and cons and find a balance that meets their needs.

Antifouling Test 18-month Checkup

The latest report on our ongoing bottom paint tests, this look at Practical Sailor's antifouling test panels includes 65 hard and ablative paints that have been submerged for 18 months. The test paints include those from Blue Water Paints, Epaints, Flexdel, Interlux, Pettit, Sea Hawk, West Marine, and Copper Coat. An experimental stick-on paint, BoatKote Laminate, was also tested. Some copper-laden perennial favorites again topped the ratings, but some eco-friendly antifoulants from Epaints also did surprisingly well. The report also compares the results of PS's long-term bottom paint test to those of a test conducted by the San Diego Unified Port District and funded by the Environmental Protection Agency. San Diego's “Final Report on Safer Alternatives to Copper Alternatives in Antifouling Paints for Marine Vessels” evaluated how well certain alternative antifouling paints (with limited or no harmful biocides) performed.

Practical Sailor Tests DC-powered Handheld Vacuums

Subscribers Only Crumbs. Sand. Sawdust. Dried mud. Dock dirt. There are always plenty of particulates to clean up on a boat. And while there’s nothing wrong with a dustpan and brush to get the job done—it’s a cheap, time-honored, low-tech solution—a lot of us rely on DC-powered hand vacuums, too. They’re fast and easy to use, can suck dirt out of corners a brush won’t reach, and tend to be better than a dustpan at keeping the…

A Look At Anchor Lockers

Subscribers Only For several years, Practical Sailor has peeked into anchor lockers at the Miami and Annapolis boat shows and recorded the good, the bad, and the just plain poorly designed. This photo essay highlights some of the highs and lows of locker design, and shows examples. If you're looking to buy a sailboat or to make sure your foredeck is properly set up, then checkout this report. A few points that we look at: all points of locker access should be able to be made watertight; cleat leads and opening the locker do not conflict; the bitter end of the chain is tied (rather than shackled) to a hard point; and on-deck anchor locker versus belowdecks anchor well.

Chandlery: March 2011

Subscribers Only More and more boat bottoms are being coated with low-biocide and biocide-free antifouling as environmental regulations and boater eco-consciousness continue to evolve. As a result, those bottoms are being cleaned more frequently, and boat owners are seeking out tools that will make the job less work.

PS Tests New Green Rescue Laser

Subscribers Only Practical Sailor tested a prototype of Greatland Laser's Green Rescue Laser a few years ago, and we took the opportunity to check out a production model for this report on the visual distress signals. The Green Rescue Laser flare looks like a mini-Maglite with anodized aluminum bodies, measuring less than 5 inches long and 7/8 inches in diameter, and weighing 3.3 ounces. In tests, the green laser's exceptionally brilliant light proved to be visible from greater distances than red laser flares, flashlights, and strobe lights; its signaling capability lasts hours rather than the minutes of pyrotechnic flares; and its green light is easier to spot against a cityscape than a white flashlight. Waterproof to 80 feet, the Rescue Laser is compact and can be reused, doesn’t expire, and can be carried through airport security. While it would be a good addition to a ditch bag or foul-weather gear, it's not a replacement for aerial flares, in our opinion, and its $250 price tag is a hard pill to swallow.

PS Advisor: Tangled Up in Turbochargers

I have noticed that several new sailboats are being offered with turbocharged diesel engines. Seems to me these pose two problems: excess fuel consumption and excess heat. Do you have an opinion or technical advice on their use practicality?

Where Credit is Due: March 2011

Letters to Practical Sailor, March 2011. This month's letters cover subjects such as: Caframo, Power Film, and more!

Mailport: March 2011

Letters to Practical Sailor, March 2011. This month's letters cover subjects such as: Wind Gens, Great Anchor Debate, Bottom Paint, Designs, and more!

How Do We Plumb Thee? Let Us Count the Ways

Subscribers Only Elizabeth Barrett Browning would have a fine time counting the variety of ways to treat waste aboard a sailboat. Let us count the ways. Apart from the “standard” electric toilets that we tested here (either raw-water or freshwater plumbed), there are portable toilets, composting toilets like the Air Head, hold-and-treat systems like Raritan’s Lectra San, and vacuum-based systems like Sea-Land’s VacuFlush. In addition, there are multiple ways to plumb a holding tank into the system.

Pump Details: The Modern Macerator

Subscribers Only Most of the macerators that PS looked at for this test used a variation of the centrifugal pump/macerator design introduced by Tecma in the 1990s.

Modern Flush Switches Also Feature Tank-full Indicator

Subscribers Only All of these units came with what we call “smart” switches, which control the flow and timing of various filling and flushing functions. Most allowed for about a half-gallon of water for a full flush and a 5-second delay between rinse and flush. On some units, the user could adjust the timing and volume of water required for flushing.

Controlling The Flow of Water

Subscribers Only Subtle difference in which valves and pipes are used to fill and flush the bowl can add up to less odor, reduced water use, and less energy use over the long run.

Electric-Flush Marine Toilets Part 2

Subscribers Only Practical Sailor evaluated 14 electric marine toilets from seven manufacturers. This article is a follow-up to the February review of seven compact electric toilets; it focuses on the seven larger, heavier, more expensive test toilets, which are similar in size to standard household toilets. Part 2 of the toilet test report included heads from Dometic, Jabsco, Planus, Raritan, Thetford, and Tecma. These heads, equipped with more sophisticated flushing systems than those previously tested, are best suited to boats over 40 feet. Testers looked at the toilets' varying approaches to macerators, flow valves, and plumbing. The bench tests also evaluated noise levels during flushing, construction quality, ease of installation and maintenance, time to flush 1 gallon of water, and macerator performance.

The Pitfalls of Eco-nice Antifouling

Subscribers Only As much as I enjoy messing around with boats, the job of prepping a hull and applying antifouling paint is one I could live without. A do-it-yourself paint job is not as loathsome as it used to be, but it’s still one of my least favorite tasks. In recent years, paint makers have begun adding a range of water-based antifouling paints to their lineups. These new paints eliminate most or all of the strong solvents that make painting unpleasant and that, over time, can be harmful to our health and the environment.