From Charter to Liveaboard – Scheduled to Change – Part III

Well it has been weeks since I have posted, but between projects and a lack of internet, I have a valid excuse.

After almost three months of work, we are calling a truce on projects aboard LIB. We have completed a long list of items and now it is time to put some FUN back into the Meter!

I thought some folks might be interested in what we have spent our time and effort on, so I will recap those things we have not covered in parts one or two.

Light Project – Done

I am very happy to say that this project went much better than expected! It took us two days, but we replaced the existing LED lights in the salon, we added LED lights to the salon especially the galley and we added a few lights to my “closet.”

The galley is much brighter!

So bright it looks like a department store!

A lamp from Texas

In addition, Frank rewired a lamp from home and added a 12V plug so we can create a more “homey” feel on LIB.

Fuel Filter for Day Tripper – Done

We really like our engines to run well and bad diesel or gas is a quick way to cause problems. Last year we added a fuel polishing system to LIB and now we have added a fuel filter to Day Tripper. The last thing we want is our dinghy engine to fail us…. after all that is our “car” here on LIB.

Organize the Forepeaks – Done

This project was very time consuming. We had a few (read 4) mis-hits on getting the boards properly attached which means Frank had to do and redo this project several times. Since drilling holes in the side of the boat is not an option, Frank had to find a way to attach the boards he used to organize everything in the forepeaks. He was trying to avoid using 5200 (think superglue on steroids) but in the end it was necessary. I commend Frank’s perseverance and the finished organization is fabulous!

 

From big mess to very organized!

The other one…

Water Heater – Done

Originally we thought the element on the water heater needed to be replaced, but after delving into this project we had to replace the whole water heater.  There was a leak between the heat exchanger on the water heater and the engine. Because the fresh water is pressurized, the fresh water was getting into the engine heat exchange and causing us to loose coolant from the engine into the engine compartment.
Not a good situation and one that required a whole new water heater.
In addition we changed the wiring on the water heater and removed it from the inverter. Now we can heat water using the engine or the generator.

Booster Wifi Antenna – Done

In an effort to improve our ability to obtain wifi signal, we installed a BadBoy Xtreme antenna. Our hope is that this antenna will improve our wifi signal and allow us to have more consistent communication while traveling. Obviously we have not mastered this or I would have been able to post more blogs. 😉

After a phone call today and excellent customer support from BitStorm, we have some internet at the moment!

White Stern Navigation Light – Done

When sailing at night, the stern nav light spewed a lot of white light into the cockpit effectively ruining our night vision. Following the example of Starry Horizons, we moved our light to the end of our starboard davit arm.

Evaluate Bilge Pumps – Done
We spent several hours washing out the port and starboard hulls with fresh water and checking how well our bilge pumps work. While not an exciting job, a necessary one and we are really glad we did since the impellers on both pumps on the starboard side were clogged by hair and debris!

In addition to being gross, these hairballs could cause serious problems!

Commodorizer – Done
Frank added a commodorizer to each of our head seawater intake lines and they have made a very positive difference. Into each of these little devices we add a chlorine tablet which slowly dissolves and is added to our head lines. These eliminate odor and staining! We are very happy with this addition.

EPIRB – Done
We ordered, registered and mounted our EPIRB. And we pray we never need to use it!

Labeled  Electrical Boxes – Done

Labeled the outside of the electrical distribution boxes so we don’t have to open them to know which fuses are inside.

Special thank to Frank’s Mom for doing this for us!

These little descriptions could go on and on, so I am just going to list other things we have accomplished!

~Changed inverter/charger from 2000 watt/80A to 3000 watt/120A.

~Bought and assembled a high capacity, portable bilge pump.

~Evaluated the main traveller and replaced both of the end stops and foot blocks.

~Removed the old caulk around the aft steps and put in fresh caulk.

~Added 12V plug to helm for charging tablet, phone, etc

~Added remote VHS to helm station.

~Changed fan on galley freezer.

~Placed DriDeck on the floor of the anchor compartment and the cockpit storage compartments.

~Added carpet to the paddle boards to make them less slippery for Captain.

~Added carpet to the bow hatch of the dinghy so Captain can grip better.

~Bought a small anchor for our dinghy, Day Tripper.

~Replaced our outdoor grill with a new one.

~Disassembled, inspected and lubricated our davits. This is an ongoing item as we do not think the shives are in good shape and we may need to replace those and the lines.

~Bought and installed a Lifesling II – used if someone falls overboard.

~Replaced one end of the shore power cord.

~Stripped the plastic coating off the lifelines and cleaned the stainless steel lines.

~Added clam cleats to the mast to make adjusting the lazy jacks easier.

~Added cleats on the mast for the flag halyard.

~Replaced non-working outdoor stereo speakers.

~Re-glued all door and cabinet veneer that was loose.

~Touched up scrapes and scratches incurred during LIB’s charter life using a painter’s marker.