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I've bought a lot over the years from Seattle Fabrics. Made skiing, backpacking, kayaking, boating, biking, etc. gear. Not quite as extensive of inventory as Sailrite, but very convenient for Seattle residents. During Covid, I used their mail order option. It was okay. They are still not...

I don't know if stainless pipe is fabricated such that the exterior dimension of one size (say 1 inch) is also the interior dimension of a larger pipe (say 1.25 inch pipe). If so, it might be possible to cut each stanchion post, add a sleeve of the right length to raise the upper railing, and...

The biggest benefit to my fuel polishing system is the use of the little transfer pump. Besides being able to transfer side-to-side through the Racor (polishing), I can pressurize the line to the engine. Nice when changing the secondary system, or if leaking/lacking fuel to the engine (or...

I'd be interested, too. I saw where people were claiming success with inexpensive video cameras connected to Garmin MDFs, but the threads would go dead before anyone actually posted useful, successful, detailed information.

The article reminded me of two things. First was the comment about using the reclaimed logs to make fuel for pellet stoves. That's a bad idea. My neighbor used to think it was simple to cut up drift wood along our beach front for firewood. Because of the salt on the wood, he replaced his...

If you have long runs of coolant hose to the Red Dot and water heater through unconditioned space (like the engine room and/or bilge), it is possible to use "pool noodle" type of pipe insulation to cover the hose. The insulation keeps the heat for the heaters. If your hose goes through a...

For Coast Guard and various State licensing purposes, LOA generally excludes swim step, anchor pulpit, aft davit, and even the outboard motor. My trawler sold as 30 foot and is federally documented as 30 foot. Marinas will have none of that and I pay for 32' (even though I'm 33.5'. Shhhhh)...

I heat my entire house with a little heat exchanger like shown in post #11 (8x3 inch 30 plate). Only difference is my fittings are 3/4 inch. Potable water on one side and hydronic heat to a concrete slab for a 2 bedroom home. These plate heat exchangers are way more efficient size-for-size...

I bought Spinlock AIS MOB1 for my wife and I. I have yet to go through the test procedure and reassure myself that it works as advertised. I tell my wife to tell me when she goes outside and I'm at the helm. Freaks me out to turn around and she's not in the cabin. If they work as advertised...

I think the auxiliary hot water takeoff on the block for heater/hot water doesn't cause any extra wear on your water pump. The pump just does its thing and it doesn't matter where the coolant goes, as long as it circulates. It might be possible to have too much restriction in the heater/hot...

A down comforter costs the same or less as an inverter for 120V household blanket. The 12V electric blankets are generally small. In larger sizes, they are also >$100 and would require a 12V cigarette lighter plug-in or something next to the bed. Down is simple and can tuck into a tiny bag...

When a boat with propane blows up, propane would get the blame even if the cause was an old can of Right Guard that fell over and discharged. The incident I heard about was an aerosol can that didn't fall over, it simply rusted out. I can't think of any aerosol product that is immediately...

And boats that have propane onboard. And boats that have aerosol cans onboard (paint, deodorant, cooking oil, etc. commonly have heavier than air propellants like nitrous oxide, propane, n-butane and isobutane). And boats that have lead acid batteries onboard. I've gotten rid of all but the...

I'd look into a Balmar 100 amp alternator with their external regulator and temp sensors. That combination might safely double the original output. I had a 4Kw generator onboard (8hp Yanmar diesel). I removed it and gave it away (faster than selling). I "replaced it" with the new alternator...

What he said. In addition to flushing the tranny and crankcase, be wary of water having entered the flywheel cover. Your starter might still be good, but if the water doesn't drain out of the flywheel cover, starting the engine will cause the flywheel to constantly spray rusty water on the...

We used to go through the Ballard locks every weekend and check out what the Corp of Engineers had pulled from the lake. The picture would be a couple of weeks worth of junk. A common joke was to tell friends that we saw their boat at the locks, up on the barge. I wonder if anyone ever...

If you don't need to plane, electric is so much cleaner, quieter, safer and can be cheaper. We have the 36# thrust Newport for our 9' dinghy, but they are available up to 86# (weighing a whopping 26 pounds, which is lighter than the smallest gas outboard). An 86# thrust might even plane our...

Maybe you could go low technology with a tried-and-true solar backpacking shower. I've seen several that claim their bags are food safe, so could be used for cooking and save some battery/fuel. There are some solar pool heaters that could be more permanent. Or, this fancy black painted...

When I did my tanks, there was some question as to where and how many baffles. Tapping on the side of the tank indicated two baffles, i.e., three compartments per 120 gallon tank. But once the layout is assumed, an exploratory hole is drilled. A piece of wire (clothes hanger) is bent at 90...

We kept a boat just inside the Ballard Locks (fresh water) for years. Almost once a week we would go through the locks and spend at least two days in saltwater. Painted the bottom when we first got the boat and it was still perfect 6 years later. If we spent several weeks out in the salt...

I’ve wondered about ventilation in my engine room. The PO had cut some raggedy holes over the years and I’ve been closing them up for sound attenuation. But I haven’t really seen anything that looks like it was original ventilation, certainly nothing that mechanically exhausts outside of the...

Our solution to improve the ergonomics of the built-in seating was simple. Make the block-shaped cushions ergonomically correct. Instead of a straight block of foam for the back rest, have the foam cut so that the back slants. It doesn’t take much to make a huge improvement. I’m sure the OE...

I don’t think either test will tell you much. Certainly won’t tell you how soon a tank will fail. A visual test by installing inspection ports would allow one to actually clean out the tank and see the extent of the corrosion. Unless the tank bottom was absolutely perfect, I would line them...

As to angle and speed to cross a ship’s wake, I’m sure a naval architect could figure out what is best for a given vessel. It would have a lot to do with your vessel’s roll period. My little trawler has a roll period of approximately 3.4 seconds (port, starboard, and back to port). It varies...

It turns out that amperage anxiety got the better of me. As I mentioned in post #126, I thought that having a separate lithium battery for my new induction top would be a good idea. It is a 120Ah battery, so about 100Ah usable. I can recharge it quickly in several different ways, with varying...