What’s Involved in Setting Up a Lithium Battery System?
Our 2004 Privilege 435 Confianza (Connie for short) came equipped with traditional lead-acid batteries—5 100ah for the house bank and 2 starter batteries. We...
Leaping Into Lithium
Your dock neighbor just switched out her old 12-volt lead-acid batteries for lithium-ion batteries. Should you? The lithium solution will be more expensive, but...
Reducing Engine Room Noise
Noise impacts individuals differently. If your sailing partner complains about a noise that doesn't really bother you, it might not necessarily something that they can simply get used to. You will have to address it through active sound reduction measures. There are three basic approaches to making your boat quieter. The first step is to use flexible mounts to isolate the vibrating machinery from the hull. These help prevent the transmission of vibration through the solid structure of the boat, and the consequent reverberation of hull sections that can act like amplifiers. Correcting any engine-shaft misalignment will certainly help. The next step is to surround the noise-producing machinery in a tight, insulated enclosure to reduce air-transmitted noise. The final step is to line enclosed living quarters, such as cabins, with sound-absorbent materials.
Using Heat to Bend PVC Pipe
Over the decades, marine equipment has gone through a dramatic transformation as plastics have steadily crept into our onboard lives. In this first in...
Powering Your Boat Through a Storm
A sailing auxiliary engine should never be fully relied upon to bash into a storm; they are not sized for that. In many boats,...
Estimating Total Capacity in an Old Battery
Volt meters, ammeters, and bank monitors can all give you part of the story, but only a draw-down test, performed over 6-24 hours will...
Solar Power and Battery Checkup
Batteries and solar panels can be a black box. We can’t see or hear or feel what is going on inside. They’re not complicated...
Rhumb Lines: Yes, We Are the Lucky Ones
Slow down. Stretch. Breathe.
Before we let the coming summer carry us away, dreamy, windswept, mouth wide open, ready to inhale each sultry moment and...
PS Advisor: Tacking and Jibing with a Tiller Pilot
In very light winds the tiller pilot will make corrections that are too small and the boat will not turn quickly enough to complete...
The $15 Do-it-Yourself Tiller Lock
An electronic tiller pilot is a marvel for single handed sailors. It is a second crew member that never tires, holding a steady course...
Beneteau and Farr – Luxury FAST Sailboats
If you’re searching for luxury sailboats you can live on that don’t sacrifice sailing performance, the Beneteau Oceanis 461 is one of the most...
Latest Sailboat Review
Rhodes 22 Used Boat Review
Designed by Phillip Rhodes back in 1960, the Rhodes 22 is a trailerable cruiser for a couple that wants the amenities of a larger boat without putting up with the hassles and expenses of a larger boat. It's clearly not a racing boat. It's also not a "shoehorn special," whose claim to fame is how many persons it can sleep. And it's not an inexpensive boat for its size. The Rhodes 22, from its inception, has been a purpose-built boat. And, with a history of detail improvements and some innovative thinking, it meets that purpose quite well.