End of the Project? Long Live the Project!

Alright, here I am for a long overdue update for those three to four hard core followers who occasionally inquire if we have forgotten about the blog! This one is for Mike, who follows our blog from way down in Jekyll Island. Hello there Mike, hope you enjoy the update! 

Last summer we completed some major projects that allowed us to start actually using the boat a bit, and hence started transitioning from all-out all-consuming project mode to a more balanced boating lifestyle. So while we still have plenty of projects on the docket (always will, it's a boat!), it does feel like we have reached the end of the "big overhaul", and have time to enjoy moments like this: 

Above on the left the beautiful Lake Superior water, at anchor by Stockton Island, on our of our first outings where we didn't have to worry about cruising too far from restrooms. That is, because last year we finished the full installation of the new waste system! From thru-hull to thru-hull, the whole thing is new and functioning flawlessly: new cross-ventilated custom waste tank, new hoses, new programmable toilets, tank monitors, etc. The photo below left shows monitors attached to the tank. On the top right, the blue LED light display shows our tank fill level. A separate monitor alerts the flushing mechanism in each head, disabling the flushing buttons if the tank is full. And voila, it works! We filled the tank with freshwater and the little red light flashed right up! Probably the one time I'll ever be happy to see that light come on. 

That was really the last major update to let us start to truly using the boat, so we ended up going out quite a few times last year. But other smaller projects have kept marching forward. Most of them don't really need mentioning, but I'll touch on a few fun ones. 

We built a headboard! With big help and shop space from Becca's sister, Kristi, we cranked out a headboard in a few hours. What an upgrade that was for our bed, over the piece of cardboard that was there before, taped in place to cover a big access opening to the bilge. 

Less important but definitely fun, we added a new Fusion stereo system. What's great about it is that we can use our phone to control the stereo, including adjusting volume independently for the salon and flybridge speakers. We also connected this to the newly installed NMEA 2000 network, which allows the radio to also be controlled from the multi-function Garmin displays at the helm. The NMEA 2000 network is on its own power switch at the helm, allowing us to kill the power to it when desired to save battery life. 

Another odd project worth mentioning is what we did with the old non-functioning electric stove. After way too much energy spent trying to find a replacement to fit into the existing opening in the counter (we wanted to retain the original trim around it and minimize the work), we decided to simply save and re-purpose the shell, and put a small counter inside of it. We bought a small induction burner to use here, and the original stainless lid still closes over it, allowing for use of the full counter space when the stove is not in use. We made a teak face for where the control knobs used to be. (Pic of induction burner in use further down).

We also installed a new a/c with reverse cycle heat! The boat had two old units that were not functioning well. We decided to simplify the refit by scaling down to one unit, which should be plenty in our climate. We replaced the whole thing, including the water pump, thermostat, etc. And, it works! Below left, the old units came out the side of the boat right before haulout last Fall. Right, new unit arrives! 

Now, as the big projects slow down, we have time to tackle some of the small ones. To be honest, sometimes the small ones are just as satisfying. From day 1, Becca has frequently commented on the sad, ugly status of the plastic engine room vents on the side of the hull. They were discolored, broken in several places, and were one of the things that - even though small - made the boat look noticeably older and not loved. We took care of that this spring! As expected, the best fitting grilles I found wouldn't just fit right, they worked but didn't fully cover the old holes which were bigger. I had custom stainless steel transition plates made, which did the trick! 

The biggest upgrade this year has been the addition of a new radar. I had never had radar before, but after being surprised by a big fog cloud once, we realized it's a necessity on the big lake. After lots of research, I ended up going with a Garmin Fantom unit, mostly because of the motion-scope technology that uses the Doppler effect to show trails for moving objects, and color codes them differently if they are moving away or towards you! Exciting technology! Installation was actually easier than expected, and included a custom tower and a new 10" display at the flybridge helm. The radar is also on a new switch (bottom middle image), which is not required but - similarly to the network - allows us to fully power it off when wanting to conserve the batteries. 

As part of the radar installation, I took the opportunity to upgrade all the navigation lights to LED and give them new switches as well. It will be nice to have lights we can trust. Oh, the horn the bottom right image is new as well! Bottom left: new radar on its pedestal mount with integrated nav/anchor light. 

That's probably enough of an update on projects for now! Back to the whole quality of life thing... Below left, the new induction cooktop in use. Below right, a new toy for the boat......... an espresso machine! I had talked about this for a while, but Becca wasn't quite on board. However, after we spent several nights on the boat, waking up to drip coffee, one fateful morning she says - "how much would a small espresso machine be?"... It was ordered an hour later. This little Breville is not quite as great as our Rocket at home, but it makes really, really good shots. 

Of course, boating always comes with some misadventures. And we had a bad scare this year, as we hit a massive piece of wood out on the water, giving us a big rattle and causing a pretty aggressive fold on one of our props. Thankfully everything else seems ok. Sadly, a couple years ago I sold the extra set of props we had found on this boat. I had thought, I've owned boats for 20 years, never needed a spare, what are the odds? Well, the odds were good enough. But, we decided to make lemonade with this one... I had wanted to try four-bladed props on this boat, but we hadn't been able to justify the expense. Until now! Check out those brand new Michigan Wheels (pic on right). Four-bladed props should give us better speed and efficiency at slow/displacement speeds, which is how we run this boat, and reduce vibrations. And, for the rare occasion we get on plane, should give the aft of the boat a better left (she's a bit heavy with the aft cabin!)

The props went recently and on the test spin we gave it, it ran better than it ever had even before the old props were damaged. 

Thanks for hanging in there for this lengthy update! While we love the projects, we hope to do more and more of this in the summer to come: