Systems & Propulsion

Portable Fuel Tank Update

Everyone hated the first generation of CARB gas cans. Intended to reduce volatile emissions by recovering vapors and reducing spills, they did exactly the...

Green Boating From a Practical Perspective

Before diving into the topic of responsible boating, we’re required to say something about global warming and carbon. Primordial carbon was sequestered by several...

Dissecting the Desiccating Head

Our first cruising boat had a conventional portable toilet. We didn’t like it, but we made peace with it, cruising for up to two...

DIY Desiccating Head Options

No standard dry toilet, even the CHead Shorty, would fit the available space on our Corsair F-24, so we decided to build our own....

Packing Extraction Tool Tested

The packing material encircling your shaft and tucked out of sight inside the packing nut is truly your boat’s Achilles heel. Installed improperly it...

Rhumb Lines: The Diesel Engine Dilemma

As the threat of global warming is forcing policy makers around the world to explore ways to wean their economies off carbon based energy...

Even 2020 Yielded Some Great Gear

Once more, the bulk of the past year’s testing focused on maintenance products, safety essentials, and do-it-yourself substitutes for higher priced marine gear. Part...

Testing TruFuel Storage Option

Canned gasoline products like TruFuel formulated without ethanol and using more highly refined alkylate base stock offer the promise of improved storage stability. Could...

PS Advisor: Grounding and bonding

A client sent me an excerpt from your eBook “Marine Electrical Systems,” and I was a surprised to see the following line of thought. Use...

Coexisting with a No Discharge Zone

Sanitation systems aren’t the sexiest part of sailing, but they are, well… necessary. And although the risk of transmission of COVID-19 through means other...

Why the Catalina 42 Took Over the Caribbean

You see them everywhere — the Bahamas, the Virgin Islands, all across the Caribbean. The Catalina 42, especially the Mark II, has quietly become...

Latest Sailboat Review

Dragonfly 25-2 Boat Review

If you’ve ever dreamed of blasting across the water at 25 knots with the wind in your hair and the spray in your face...