October 2019

October 24, 2019October 30, 2019

Hauling Out at Canal Boatyard

Last month, Scott and I hauled out our 2002 Bayliner 4087 MY to do some work at the Canal Boatyard in Ballard. When we had the survey and haul out done in March, they recommended we take care of a few things before winter arrives.

The items that were on the list were:

Check rudder packing
Bottom paint
Check sea cocks and through holes
New zincs / anodes

Seemed simple enough. Since Scott and I planned on doing the work ourselves, we bought the bottom paint and supplies a few weeks ago. We scheduled our haul out at Canal Boatyard in Ballard because they allow boaters to work on their own boats. Some boatyards require you to hire this out. One thing to note about bottom paint (which we wish we knew before hand with Kokomo), is if you don’t know what type of paint you have (Hard vs. Ablative), then you have to use ablative. Think of it the same way as Latex versus Oil paint. You can paint oil over latex, but not visa versa.

After researching bottom paint, we selected Sea Hawk Cukote ablative. This paint is highly recommended, but very expensive. We paid over $240/gallon!

Scheduling the work at Canal Boatyard

Scott scheduled our haul out with Ivaylo at the Canal Boatyard about a month ago. He then recommended we call Pacific Fiberglass to have the rudders and sea cocks checked, which we scheduled as well. During the Boats Afloat Show, we met Doug with Pacific Fiberglass and discussed our haul out. He was super friendly and helpful. He said he would be happy to take a look at the bottom and see what type of paint they used and see if we need to change our game plan.

The boatyard also offers rental equipment including the vacuum sanders and tarps. They have 24/7 security access (but you wouldn’t want to work in the dark) and shore power. Scott scheduled the haul out for Friday, September 20th at 10am. This boatyard is located inside the locks, so we would need to allot time to get through the cut.

Our original plan was to work on the boat all weekend. If we needed an extra day during the week, we could take some time off work. Unfortunately, the weather forecast was rainy and wet for the weekend. On top of that, we both had to travel for work the following week. Now what? Change of plans.

Going through the Ballard Locks

The last time we hauled out a boat was last Spring and it was a very long process! We hired the boatyard (a different one) to do all of the work and we were there over six weeks. That was NOT in our plan this time. For this haul out, we left Elliott Bay Marina around 8am on Friday, September 20th and headed to the locks. Keep in mind, this is only the 4th time we’ve gone through them and only the 2nd time on this boat.

In front of us was a big tug boat. The lock attendants asked us our length. We told them our length was 48′ and then they motioned for us to move forward. Turns out the tug was 70 feet, we were 48 feet and the total length of the lock is only 120 feet. Really? Two feet to spare!?

As the doors to the locks started to close, they caught the dinghy pontoon. Luckily no damage was done.

Hauling out ……again

Since Scott and I got through the Ballard Locks so fast, we were now early for our haul out. I called Ivaylo at Canal Boatyard and he was thrilled we arrived early! He had a lot going on, so the sooner the better.

It was much easier getting out off of the boat this time, but still a bit tricky. We still had to go from the bow & then crawl under the railing, but at least he lowered it enough to make it easy on me – compared to Sea View. Yikes!

You won’t believe what the boat looked like when we hauled out! Below is what it looked like in March of this year during our survey.

And this is what it looked like when we hauled out just six months later!

Can you say BARNACLES?

Scott and I had planned on scraping the boat and bottom painting it ourselves. But once we saw what it looked like and the work involved, we quickly changed our mind. Money is valuable when you are in a boatyard and at $140/day, we couldn’t spare a dime.

So we met with Doug at Pacific Fiberglass and he gave us a quote to do all of the prep work, bottom paint the boat and apply PropSpeed to the props and shafts to prevent growth. Done! Deal.

It also turns out that we do have hard paint, so we didn’t need ablative. He gave us a quote for Seahawk Shark Skin, which was about $200/gallon. The nice thing about the paint we had bought already, is West Marine will take it back if it’s unopened.

How long will the work take?

At $140/day, we couldn’t afford for the boat to sit in the boat yard for very long. We had hoped that Pacific Fiberglass would start right away on Friday afternoon, but they didn’t have it scheduled since we had originally planned on doing the work ourselves and they don’t work on weekends.

Monday was a gorgeous day, so I swung by the yard after work to see what progress they had made; unfortunately, nothing! Both Scott and I were flying out the next day and I started to get worried it wouldn’t be done by the end of the week. Scott talked to Doug and he assured us it would be ready by 3pm on Friday – yay!

Wanting some footage for the blog, I asked Kurt to go check on it on Wednesday. We were so shocked to see the photos!

Imagine, that they had to hand sand the barnacles off! Look at the shaft and props now! Wow! There’s no way Scott nor I would have been able to do this job.

After they cleaned them completely, they then applied Propspeed. Propspeed is a coating that protects the metal. With that said, you don’t want to ever hire a diver to go down and scrape barnacles after you have applied Propspeed. We were told that it should last at least two years. We plan on putting the GoPro in the water in a month or two and see what it looks like.

Time to go home!

Just as they promised, the boat was ready just a week later! Luckily, Scott was able to capture some pictures before it went in, so we could see all of the work they had done. Check out our new bottom paint!

Time to head back through the locks – it was a nice afternoon on Friday, so I prayed there wasn’t a wait. Guess I didn’t pray hard enough. After doing the “waiting dance” in the cut, we decided to tie up and wait, as it could be an hour before we get in.

Luckily, when we did get called it was for the small lock!! Yay. I did not want to deal with the large locks. When we got into the small locks another boat tied off on us and we were SNUG. We also had to tie up on the port side, which meant we would have issues with the dinghy motor almost touching the wall.

But we made it unscathed and headed back to Elliott Bay Marina. As soon as we left the channel, Scott throttled up the engines and we were shocked to see we were going over 20 knots! Now that we didn’t have 2″ of barnacles, we glide through the water.

It was nice to have the boat back at home and all secure. A big thank you to Kurt for helping us out! We couldn’t have done it without you! We’ll keep everyone posted on how the props look after a month or so.

People have asked us if we are finished boating for the season? Actually no. Since we have been trying to decide if we can live aboard a boat, our plan this winter is to stay on it during a few stormy weekends (once we figure out the cable situation) and also stay on it one night during the week. That way I can see what it’s like to come home from work in the dark and wet weather and also what it’s like to get ready for work. So stay tuned for those adventures.

A big Thank YOU

In each blog post, we say thanks for following our journey! Scott and I hope all of you reading this, understand how much it means to us. We’ve worked hard to make this dream a reality and we love sharing it with you.

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Cheers,

Scott & Ally

October 13, 2019November 23, 2019

Are our holding tanks leaking?!

A couple of months ago, I started smelling a rancid burning urine smell and wondered if our one of our holding tanks was leaking. The smell stayed in one spot near the forward holding tank, but not directly where it was. So we ignored it for a few weeks. Finally last weekend on the boat, I couldn’t stand the smell. In fact, I swore I could smell it everywhere.

So Scott and I decided to investigate. The forward holding tank is located in the third cabin under the bed.

Once we removed all of the bedding and the floor cover, we were able to access the entire tank. To our dismay, there was some sort of stinky liquid under the holding tank. GROSS. Since it is a tight space, we decided it would be me, who would sop up the liquid and dry the space out. This way we could try and see where it’s coming from.

This is a stinky job!

Unfortunately, we had not pumped out recently, so this was a very stinky job! We also checked all of the hoses running to the tank and they were bone dry. After drying out the area, we then flushed the toilet to see if water would appear under the tank again. Surprisingly, it stayed dry.

Scott and I then moved on to the aft holding tank. We assumed it would be the same story – NOT! First off, all you see when you lift up the floor board is a stinky bilge and the edge of the tank! You have to be kidding me!

We assumed the worst!

Determined that we had leaking holding tanks, I contacted my parts department at Union Marine to find out how we could order new tanks. Then we realized, how in the world do we even access the aft tank? There must be an easy access. I contacted Bayliner and to our surprise – no access. Oh joy. Our best option, would be to dismantle the entire bed frame and cut a hole in the floor.

That’s when Scott and I decided to investigate further. That can’t possibly be true! So we tore apart our bed to see what we could find.

Turns out, it is one solid piece. We would have to remove the edging (which would most likely destroy it), unscrew the top and the sides.

What we did discover, is there is an access panel to the water tank. So we used our remote camera to try and see if there was any way to access the holding tank, but it didn’t tell us much. It did indicate we would have to unscrew the bed frame from the inside though!

Option #2

Before we dismantle ANYTHING, let’s make sure that this tank is actually leaking! We know the bilge belongs to the holding tank, so we decided we needed to dry it out too. This time it was Scott’s job to clean out the stinky bilge water and see if it leaks.

To better access the situation, we decided to pump out so that we were dealing with empty tanks. Our plan was to fill up the forward tank with fresh water to see if it ever started to leak.

Surprisingly, there was never a leak in either bilges! What the heck? Where did that liquid come from?? We can only guess that there might have been a leak at one time and after they sealed it up, they never cleaned up the liquid.

The smell is still there!

Back to our original problem – it still stinks in the forward stairway to the cabins. Interestingly enough, that’s also where the vent is. We have noticed a slight corrosion from salt water on the outside vent. Maybe that’s all it is? But it’s not easy to access.

So what’s our plan? Right now, we’re planning on flushing fresh water into both tanks over the next couple of weeks and not using them. Then have them pumped out a few times, so we’re only dealing with fresh water. At the same time, we’ll check the outside thru-hull and see if we can clean up the corrosion. I don’t think we can easily remove it (especially while we’re in the water) . But if anyone out there has dealt with this same issue, we’d love to hear your advice or experience!

Lots of people have also mentioned the hoses can go bad and get stinky. Again, they are not easy to access, so this is a huge job! Obviously, if we were to consider seriously living on the boat, this would have to be addressed right away. We did try to run water thru one vent, but nothing happened. Then we tried to disconnect the vent hose from the tank to see if we could see a clog, but it wouldn’t budge.

Stay tuned for updates as we try to figure out the issue. If anyone out there has successfully accessed their aft tank, please give us your tips and advice. We’ll share as much as we learn with you all too. It could be that they just stink – they are 17 years old after all.

**** UPDATE****
We ended up calling Emerald Harbor Marine to see if they could check the line. Turns out we have an inline vent filter and those need to be changed every few years. (each tank has one, but we only changed the forward vent). We didn’t know we had a vent, because we couldn’t see it. It was located behind the battery bank panel. The labor was the most expensive part of the bill (2.5 hours) and the filter was about $85. Hoping this fixes the smell. Stay tuned!

As always, thanks for following us on our journey! Next weekend, we are hoping to take the boat up to the Port of Everett if the weather is nice. In our next blog, we’ll share our haul-out at Canal Boatyard.

Cheers,

Scott & Ally

October 1, 2019October 1, 2019

Boats Afloat Show – Where it all began!

It was at the Boats Afloat Show in 2010 where it all began! Scott and I had owned The Wine Alley since 2005 and we decided to head to the show for something to do. As we admired all of the beautiful yachts, we knew those were not in our future. Then headed to the sailing dock and toured a 35′ Lagoon Catamaran. All of a sudden, we knew we would someday retire on a boat.

After the show, we spent time with a local charter company and actually considered investing in a new Lagoon. Thanks to the recession and the fact that we still owned a business, that wasn’t going to happen. So, in the meantime, all we could do is attend shows and work towards our dream. After we sold the wine shop, we started searching for our first boat and bought Kokomo in 2017.

What are we looking for at the Boats Afloat Show?

Now that we own a boat, you might be asking why are we at the Boats Afloat Show? Scott and I are not looking for another boat, but there’s a lot of things we can do to remodel our current boat. Time to look for ideas! In addition, we have found a few of our vendors (Lending Associates, Global Marine Insurance, Color Glo Marine & Pacific Fiberglass) at the show, so it’s a great place to connect with people.

Let’s start with the carpet. Our boat, a 2002 Bayliner 4087 Aft Cabin M/Y has the original carpet and it needs to be replaced. We have talked about replacing it with a wood laminate and it wouldn’t be too costly, except for the stairs. Then we toured the Aquila 44 at the show. How ironic, because that’s what we are chartering in April in the BVI’s!

I immediately noticed that they had Snap-in Carpet for the interior. Interesting. Thoughts anyone?

Scott and I have also been talking seriously about the possibility of living on THIS boat. That was never in the plans, but I would consider it to save money. However, we would need to make some changes to make it more livable and user friendly. Check out these table designs. It would be great if we could lower our dinette table so we could easily relax on the seat and watch t.v.

Galley Remodel

While we wont’ be remodeling our galley anytime soon, it’s on the list if we end up living on it. Here are the list of things we need to change:

Swap out the double sink for a single
Replace the faucet with a smaller, taller, skinnier faucet
Replace the microwave with a microwave/convection oven
Remove the propane stove top and replace with an electric stove top.
Remove the oven and replace with cupboards

Why? Well, we can’t fit pots or pans in the sink. The faucet is so low and huge, it practically is in the sink. To use the stove top and oven, we have to turn on the gas at the tank, turn on the switch at the electrical panel, turn on the switch in the galley and then light it with a lighter! No thanks.

The question will be, is can we find a small enough microwave/convection oven? We have a pretty tiny microwave.

On one sailboat, they had a pretty cool set up for their bbq, but I’m not sure how you could do that after market for a boat like ours.

Check out the galley on this catamaran!

As we toured the sailboat row, Scott and I stumbled upon a peculiar looking catamaran. It was a brand I have not heard AND it was very green. This is a Baracuda X 2013 Chris White Atlantic 47 Catamaran.

At first, I didn’t want to go on it, but am I glad I did. They thought of everything on this boat!

The galley is not on the main level, but down below (similar to the Antares). It’s also massive! There’s more counter space here than my condo has.

Then they built in a “shop” on the other side, where there’s the engine access and the washer and dryer!

By the initial looks of this boat, you could easily do some off-shore cruising. The craziest thing about this catamaran is has patented Chris White Designs MastFoil™. This is a unique combination of modern rigid airfoil technology with proven soft sails.

Other cool things at the Boats Afloat Show

New to the market is the center console from Ocean Alexander. I’ve read about it in magazines, but to see it in person was unreal. Who owns a boat like this? Has to be some huge yacht and they use this as their tender! We saw plenty of them in St. Barths.

With four 350hp engines, this boat can easily go over 50mph! Crazy.

Then we toured a 1990 yacht that is moored in our marina. Everything about this yacht was unique and eccentric. So we had to check out the bridge. Is this a boat or a helicopter?

Check out this Life Proof Boat! It’s made out of a patented Styrofoam. You can stab it with a knife and the pontoons will not deflate!

That’s a wrap of the boat show! What’s next for us?

It was a quick tour of the boat show. When you work the boat show as an occupation, it’s not as fun to tour it anymore. Next up for us is to figure out our leaking holding tank situation. Since we’re hauling out in a couple of weeks, now is the time to fix it. We’re also gathering information for our Moorings BVI bareboat charter, so if you have any tips or suggestions for an itinerary, please reach out.

As always, thanks for following our blog! Please subscribe to our social channels too, on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Not only do we want to share our story & experience with you, we also want to hear from you too! We’re learning everyday!

Cheers,

Scott & Ally

@boatingjourney #boatingjourney