Login

Attainable Adventure Cruising

The Offshore Voyaging Reference Site

Topics > Tips

Tips, Tricks & Thoughts:

Tips

  • Learning From A COB Tragedy

    7 CommentsReading Time: < 1 minuteFree
    Learning From A COB Tragedy

    I have just finished reading the above report from the Transportation Safety Board of Canada about the death of a crew member on the St John’s, Newfoundland pilot boat who fell overboard just two miles outside the harbour during a pilot transfer. At first glance we yachties might think that the lessons learned from this […]

    Read more: Learning From A COB Tragedy

  • Solar: Lead-Acid Battery Saver, Potential Lithium Wrecker

    20 CommentsReading Time: 3 minutesMembers
    Solar: Lead-Acid Battery Saver, Potential Lithium Wrecker

    The above is a graph of battery voltage on our J/109, currently still out of the water but uncovered. As you can see, each day shortly after dawn our solar panel starts charging and since, other than the first day when I was aboard and using power, there are no significant loads and the batteries […]

    Read more: Solar: Lead-Acid Battery Saver, Potential Lithium Wrecker

  • Boatyard Fall Prevention

    16 CommentsReading Time: 2 minutesMembers
    Boatyard Fall Prevention

    Us offshore sailors think and talk a lot about crew overboard prevention, but there’s another risk we subject ourselves to frequently that does not get much air time (ouch, bad pun): Falling off the boat when she is out of the water. And, believe me, even a 6-foot fall onto a hard surface can do […]

    Read more: Boatyard Fall Prevention

  • Summary Table of Contents

    2 CommentsReading Time: 2 minutesFree
    Summary Table of Contents

    AAC, like most every WordPress-based web site, lists articles under Topics (or Chapters under Books) with title, image, author, number of comments, date and descriptive excerpt. And that’s great if you are exploring an Online Book to decide which chapters you want to read. But if you just want to get a sense for what’s […]

    Read more: Summary Table of Contents

  • Elliptical Hole Hack

    14 CommentsReading Time: 3 minutesMembers
    Elliptical Hole Hack

    I have to cut an elliptical hole in the stern of our boat to accommodate the heater exhaust fitting above. And just to add to the fun and games, I need to also make two high-temperature gaskets out of silicon sheet. So how the heck do I get a nice clean hole just the right […]

    Read more: Elliptical Hole Hack

  • Don’t Fill Lead-Acid Battery Space With Lithium

    11 CommentsReading Time: 2 minutesMembers
    Don’t Fill Lead-Acid Battery Space With Lithium

    In this Tip I’m building on the last Tip in which I concluded that huge battery capacity makes little sense for most usage profiles. It’s tempting when replacing a lead-acid bank with lithium to simply default to installing all the lithium capacity that will fit where the lead-acid batteries were. And indeed that might make […]

    Read more: Don’t Fill Lead-Acid Battery Space With Lithium

  • Huge Battery Banks Generally Make No Sense

    9 CommentsReading Time: 2 minutesFree
    Huge Battery Banks Generally Make No Sense

    I’m working on the second part of the Adventure 40 electrical system specification. One of the fun things about this project is that since we are starting with a blank page, rather than upgrading an existing boat, which I often write about, design fundamentals become more apparent. Here’s one that just came to mind:

    Read more: Huge Battery Banks Generally Make No Sense

  • Great Headlamp

    13 CommentsReading Time: 2 minutesMembers
    Great Headlamp

    I’m a huge believer in always having good light when working on our boat, so I wear a headlamp pretty much from the time I start a job below to when I knock off. And not one of those wimpy little things with a couple of AAA cells in them for me, I want a […]

    Read more: Great Headlamp

  • Beware of Ocean Options, Tiverton, Rhode Island

    28 CommentsReading Time: 3 minutesFree
    Beware of Ocean Options, Tiverton, Rhode Island

    We just got ripped off. Here’s the story in the hopes that it will save someone else from the same fate. Some 25 years ago we bought a D8 Espar heater from Mike Bowden owner of Ocean Options of Tiverton, Rhode Island. And over the years that we owned the McCurdy and Rhodes 56, Eddie, […]

    Read more: Beware of Ocean Options, Tiverton, Rhode Island

  • Block Stand-Up Hack

    1 CommentReading Time: 2 minutesMembers
    Block Stand-Up Hack

    Our J/109, in common with most boats with spinnakers, has turning blocks for the sheets that must reorient to loads from different directions, depending on the point of sail, and therefore uses loose blocks on pad eyes. The problem with this is that spinnaker sheet blocks tend to bang on the deck with motion, in […]

    Read more: Block Stand-Up Hack

  • Great Source For Epoxy Use Tips

    1 CommentReading Time: < 1 minuteFree
    Great Source For Epoxy Use Tips

    While researching for a discussion we were having about epoxy shrinkage (or not), I came across a great site with a ton of information and tips on using epoxy resin to make repairs. I particularly liked their myth-busting post. Despite having used epoxy for over 40 years, including for a refit that turned into a […]

    Read more: Great Source For Epoxy Use Tips

  • RIP Good Old Boat Magazine

    30 CommentsReading Time: 2 minutesFree
    RIP Good Old Boat Magazine

    I have been a subscriber to Good Old Boat magazine ever since I had lunch with Mike, the then editor, while attending the 2019 Annapolis Sailboat Show. I signed up first because I liked Mike and felt that he was a genuine guy who had done real cruising and really wanted to help get other […]

    Read more: RIP Good Old Boat Magazine

  • WakeSpeed And Victron Get Even More Cuddly

    13 CommentsReading Time: 2 minutesMembers
    WakeSpeed And Victron Get Even More Cuddly

    I’m on the Beta test list for software Upgrades to the WakeSpeed WS 500 alternator regulator. Not because I like testing new software—only marginally more fun than having a root canal, in my view—but because I’m a huge fan of the regulator and firmly believe it’s currently by far the best option for charging most […]

    Read more: WakeSpeed And Victron Get Even More Cuddly

  • Cover The Negative Terminal On Batteries

    23 CommentsReading Time: < 1 minuteMembers
    Cover The Negative Terminal On Batteries

    One of the things I love about my job is that, despite having maintained and refitted boats for over 50 years, I’m still learning, often as the result of the discussions we have in the comments. This has certainly been the case here as I think about reducing short-out risk on batteries, particularly lithium. One […]

    Read more: Cover The Negative Terminal On Batteries

  • Another Danger With MRBF Fuses

    14 CommentsReading Time: 2 minutesMembers
    Another Danger With MRBF Fuses

    The great discussion on my recent article about proper battery fusing and particularly the potential danger of MRBF fuses failing closed, instead of opening the circuit in the event of a short circuit, reminded me about another big downside of these kinds of fuses that actually negates the supposed advantage of being able to install […]

    Read more: Another Danger With MRBF Fuses

  • Insurance Claim Denied

    8 CommentsReading Time: 2 minutesFree
    Insurance Claim Denied

    It’s possible that our insurance companies will deny a claim if anything on the boat is found to be not compliant with with the terms of the policy, even if the defect in question had nothing to do with the loss.

    Read more: Insurance Claim Denied

  • Site Improvements—Login

    8 CommentsReading Time: < 1 minuteFree
    Site Improvements—Login

    I have added a login form that appears on the article, so you can login without leaving, and as soon as you do the whole article appears.

    Read more: Site Improvements—Login

  • Under-Torquing Is Dangerous, Too

    7 CommentsReading Time: 2 minutesMembers
    Under-Torquing Is Dangerous, Too

    Here’s something that I only recently really wrapped my aging brain around: the danger of under torquing fastenings, other than the obvious one of them coming loose.

    Read more: Under-Torquing Is Dangerous, Too

  • Why We Need a Torque Screwdriver

    18 CommentsReading Time: < 1 minuteMembers
    Why We Need a Torque Screwdriver

    Stainless steel is not as strong as it looks. For example, the recommended torque on a 10-24 (~5mm) 316 SS machine screw is just 23.8 inch-pounds (2.68 newton-metres). Login to continue reading (scroll down) Learn About Membership Get to know us for FREE

    Read more: Why We Need a Torque Screwdriver

  • Lithium Start Batteries

    5 CommentsReading Time: 2 minutesMembers
    Lithium Start Batteries

    There are now battery vendors advertising drop-in lithium batteries rated for engine starting. If ever there was a solution looking for a problem, this has gotta be it. Login to continue reading (scroll down) Learn About Membership Get to know us for FREE

    Read more: Lithium Start Batteries

  • Getting The Most From AAC

    13 CommentsReading Time: < 1 minuteFree
    Getting The Most From AAC

    Having got the new site design built, installed, and pretty much debugged, I finally got to a project that has been on my todo list for ages: a video tour of AAC. I edited viciously to keep it down to 5 minutes. It’s mainly targeted at new members and those considering joining, but please have […]

    Read more: Getting The Most From AAC

  • Gales at Anchor Are Not That Scary

    25 CommentsReading Time: 2 minutesFree
    Gales at Anchor Are Not That Scary

    I don’t watch a lot of videos, in fact hardly any, but I was searching for something else when I stumbled on this video over at S/V Delos. Now, there is no question that hurricanes are scary. You don’t have to tell a guy from Bermuda, who cruised the western North Atlantic for over 50 […]

    Read more: Gales at Anchor Are Not That Scary

  • Is Boat Electric Drive Green or Greenwashing?

    60 CommentsReading Time: 2 minutesMembers
    Is Boat Electric Drive Green or Greenwashing?

    Here at AAC we are all over anything that will reduce carbon emissions, but we also don’t like the pretengineering so prevalent in the electric drive business. Login to continue reading (scroll down) Learn About Membership Get to know us for FREE

    Read more: Is Boat Electric Drive Green or Greenwashing?

  • Great Source: How Lithium Batteries Charge

    3 CommentsReading Time: 2 minutesMembers
    Great Source: How Lithium Batteries Charge

    I have been deep into researching lithium batteries, and particularly how they charge, while writing new buyer’s guide chapters for our Electrical Systems Online Book. One of the best sources I have read is a post by Eric Bretscher, over at Nordkyn Design. Before you go read it, a few thoughts: Login to continue reading […]

    Read more: Great Source: How Lithium Batteries Charge

  • Get Sticky and Go Home

    6 CommentsReading Time: < 1 minuteMembers
    Get Sticky and Go Home

    I will clean this up…tomorrow. While we are on the subject of fun you can have with epoxy—see the last Tip—here’s another. Login to continue reading (scroll down) Learn About Membership Get to know us for FREE

    Read more: Get Sticky and Go Home