Sure is cold around here!!!

   OK ! We are ready for some warm cruisin weather. I went to the boat today and 'shoveled' the decks with a plastic dust pan. I can tell that Fryedaze isn't feeling the white stuff. The previous owner had her in Connecticut for the winter for over ten years but she was wrapped up tight in shrink wrap. I think maybe she is feeling a little neglected. The Quantum canvas guys installed the bimini before the snow. That was a big plus for us because the bridge isn't water tight. Quantum did a great job on the canvas and solar panel setup. We will wait for warmer temps to install the three 150 watt panel. More to come on that cool modification.

    We have been working on other little projects. The steps into the salon scare me to death when people have wet feet. They are very slippery and it wouldn't be long before someone gets injured slipping while entering the boat. I found some non-slip that can be added to polyurethane. It looks much better than the black non-skid tape and its will work great!. Another project is a set of steps down into the engine room space. The current setup has you/me straining down about 40" before you hit a little two step step stool. The new steps are removable and have 8" treads. 

   The propane stove mod is waiting on ME to take the stove to the boat. I will probably wait until we install the port door and complete the door slide mod. 

 The list keeps getting smaller even though we find more things to add to it. It wont be long before Fryedaze cast her lines and heads north.

 My new horns would probably sing an octave higher today.

 The cove is covered in a thick slush.

 Oyster season is in full swing. You can routinely see 10 oyster boats out on the river. At about 2 PM each day they re-enter the harbor.

 We masked off strips and painted the clear non-skid on the steps

Auto Pilot pump rebuild. Raymarine Type 2

Type 2 Autohelm shaft seal replacement

Our auto pilot hydraulic pump started leaking two years ago. It was a very small leak that was detected when the auto pilot started hunting due to low fluid. The leak would require about a 6-8 oz. fuild add every 100 hrs of operation. I did a lot of research and came up empty on any parts lists or drawings of the internals. I finally put it on the winter repair list and tore it down. Pretty straight forward assembly that most folks could repair if needed. That is, if you can find replacement O-rings and oil seal. I didnt need the O-rings but did need the shaft oil seal. It measured out to 8X16X6(mm). I found suppliers and orderd on line ($3.50). The following are a sequence of the pump disassembly. IF you only change the pump oil seal all you have to do is loosen the long bolts from the back of the motor and seperate the motor from the pump/hydraulic port assembly. Do not pull them out of the motor as they hold the brushes in place.
I tore up the oils seal getting it out. There may be a tool or method to remove it without damaging it.


Well, I decided to keep the rebuilt pump as a spare and install a new one. Here are a few shots of the new one.

Dave and Betsy Frye

Sliding door refurbishment

Fryedaze sliding doors have always been troublesome. A few years ago I replaced the worn bronze wheels with stainless. The doors rolled better but still jumped the track. The original wheel setup left a one inch gap at the bottom of the door. This gap let air and water enter the salon. I saw a fix on Trawler Beach House blog and decided to install high density poly in place of the wheels.

The fist step was to pull the door and keep the water out  of the salon for couple of  weeks. Not pretty but its well sealed. Probably not enough craftsmanship to be at ZYC :-)

 Pulling the door uncovered water damage on the bottom and the at the section of the door that was exposed outside.

 Several pieces of the veneer were lifting and had to be remove, cleaned up and epoxied to the door. There was evidence of a previous repair that had used expanding glue that actually raised the veneer.

 The water damage on the bottom of the door was sanded out. After the wood was brought back to normal, thinned epoxy was wicked into the end grain at the bottom of the door. The new track will prevent water in this area but the epoxy is a good insurance policy.

 This is the finished door ready to go to the boat

 1" X 1" Ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE, UHMW) The boat will have a track of the same material screwed to the door sill that will make up the track.

The door now has 10 coats of varnish on it. Eight coats of Epifanes clear and two finish coats of Epfane hand rubbed finish.

Shifting to propane

The stove on Fryedaze is electric. That works well at the dock but when we anchor out we must run the genset to use the stove/oven. The previous upgrades made to the alternators and batteries, along with the upcoming solar panel install will significantly reduce genset operation. So, propane just made sense.
There is a breaker labeled LPG on the breaker panel. It had a dyno label over it marked fish finder. That fish finder supply was moved during the fall electronics upgrade. I suspected that the boat either previously had propane or it was wired for it. I got lucky and found the LPG wiring. There are control wires and power supply feeds in the galley. A control wire is routed to the bridge for a the shut off solenoid.

 The stove is a three burner Euro style Seaward stove. It is the exact size as the Seaward Princess electric we removed.

 Some people have concerns about propane on boats. Fears of fires and explosions influence the cooking and refrigeration equipment decisions. We have always had propane stoves, dryers and gas fire place logs at home. So we are comfortable with the gas. As a measure of safety there will be propane sensors in the bridge where the propane locker will be, and one down in the galley. These sensors will alarm at the control panel in the galley that  also operates the solenoid shut off valve.

 I ordered King Starboard on line and had it all cut to size. The big plan was to screw and glue it together. Turns out that Starboard does NOT glue well and if you do glue it you have to use very expensive glue as well as flame treating the board.

 Plane 'B' was to install 1/2" mahogany cleats and screw everything together. I also flame treated several edges and used 3M 4200 on all seams. I think that will seal well but realy wont know if it bounded to the poly. There are 176  3/4" #4 screws in the box.

The box has the regulator - gauge and solenoid mounted on the back wall. It will not be air tight due to the latch I installed. There will be a drain that will vent the box outside the bridge area.

 The locker is complete and ready for install on the bridge.

 Top fitting is a vapor tight fitting for the power to the solenoid. The lower fitting is the 3/8" connection for the LPG hose to the galley. There will be a vent/drain installed when it gets mounted on the boat.

Fireboy Xintex Propane solenoid control with two propane detectors. Fireboy-xintex.com  One detector is at floor level under the steps next to the stove and the other is in the bridge enclosure at deck level. The unit will shut the propane solenoid on the bridge if it alarms. Propane is heavier than air so it sinks, hence the floor level for the detectors. There are two 1 amp fuses next to the unit. One for the solenoid and one for the monitor. The fuse holders selected make a nice install and will be convenient to work on.

 

2/22/2015 Today was completion day for the new stove. A friend helped me move it to the boat yesterday and today I hooked it up. Before I connected the LPG hose to the stove I ran a test on the propane sensors that shutoff the gas if you have a leak. I hit the button that opens the valve to the stove and let it port gas into the galley. In less than two minutes the alarm went off and the system shutdown the gas. I could barely smell the gas. Feels like a successful test for our propane safety equipment.

December Work List

Dave has been extremely busy with ordering, upgrading and completing work on FRYEDAZE preparing for our Loop Cruise in May. Here is a our work list. The items in yellow are complete.

Status	JOBS	Status	PARTS & MATERIALS
	Replace water heater		Engine filters (3sets)
	Repair/replace autohelm hydraulic pump		Oil 2 changes (15W40 and 40W)
	Replace Stb fuel lift pump	X	Genset impeller spare
	Replace domestic water pp	X	Engine fuel lift pp(2) 1 spare
	Replace oven(Seaward Princess)	X	Oil press/engine temp/ spare
	New Bimini/Solar mounts/Strata glass		Starter( based on price)spare
	Propane locker		Head controller spare
	Mod cabin door slides w/ UHMW		Head solenoid spare
X	Install new horns		Spare breakers 1 each size
	Build anchor snubber		Floating line, dinghy
X	Replace strainer O-rings		New lines 2-25', 2-35', 2-50' with big loop
	Repair port raw water strainer mount	X	21" ball fenders
	Add vac bkr loop to AC/water	X	Magnetic tach Pickup
	Send oil samples out(port coolant loss)	X	Tach/run hour meter
	Re-seal windows (flowable silicon)	X	Injector pump seal kit
	Refinish window seals	X	Kohler Part #260085 Kit, zinc anode (2)
	Wool pile replacement on windows(3)	X	Kohler Part #229678 Filter, Oil (2)
	Weather strip doors ( brush seal??)	X	Kohler Part #229715 Element, Fuel  (2)
	Stanchion repairs	X	Kohler Part #363064 Belt, drive (B)
	Weaver davit pad repairs	X	Kohler Part #GM13660 V-Belt, 25.5 in.
	Vent fridge enclosure	X	Kohler Part #278858 Element, Air CleanerB
	Install search light		Spare belts
X	Water proof bimini
X	New tach pickup
X	New run-hour meter
	Solar Panel Install
X	Battery Monitor
X	Solar Charge Controller MPPT

Lots of new equipment has been ordered: new water heater, new bimini and Strataglass windows. Flexible solar panels to be sewn into bimini.

The gage board removed to add new tachometers so that we can accurately record engine run hours. We were having trouble with old tachs as they were connected to the alternators and would switch on and off depending if alternators were charging.  New tachs have a magnetic pick up on the engine.

More of the equipment that came off gauge board.

Our new recliners for the salon arrived . So excited to have comfortable chairs!

December 2, 2014

Dave and I have set-up this blog so you can follow our preparation and eventual cruise on the Great Circle Loop in May of 2015. Please follow us as we circumnavigate the Eastern United States. We are planning a lot of boat upgrades and maintenance as we get our boat and ourselves ready for this year long cruise.
Check back frequently!

Dave and Betsy
FRYEDAZE
MV 42' Monk Trawler