Rockville Marine (11 nights)

32 36 444 N
80 12 103 W
Monday January 13, 2014

Kylie and Mason came down to the boat to say goodbye. We were underway by 8:10 AM. The weather was cold - with ice on the deck - but sunny and clear, and it soon warmed up. The water was flat calm, we ran the boat from the Pilot House with the heater on. It was fun to be underway again. The trip to the boat yard was 42 NM, probably half that as the crow flies. We arrived at 2:30 and docked on a face dock in the creek. We will get hauled in the morning. We have 5 TV stations here!

Tuesday January 14, 2014

The evening was uneventful, although the power supply caused some issues so we switched over to the batteries for the night. Slack tide was conveniently timed at about 9 AM so positioning the boat was easy enough. The only hassle was the persistent rain.

Maybe if it stops raining we can go for a swim!

We discovered this AM that we are not allowed to sleep on the boat while it is "on the hill". But there is a B&B right next to the yard and so we will stay there for $40 a night! We popped over to have a look in the rain and meet the proprietor - she included use of her husband's truck so now we have wheels too. (So its really a "B & C")

The boat yard is a mess. The only saving grace seems to be that they have a pet goose called "AFLAC" (What else?) Aflac is pretty aggressive and seems to have Deidre fooled.

Aflac

Our digs

Wednesday January 15th, 2014

Nothing happened this morning. Apparently the electrician was feeling sick and we had not heard from the welder. Feeling a bit frustrated. I removed the aerials and peeled back the bimini roof in anticipation.

The welder and helper appeared at about 2 PM with the panels and the frame. They worked steadily until dark and the now frame is "tacked" in place. It looks fine. Before they started welding I got a bit paranoid and shut down all the electricity and disconnected all the electronics.

New shaft zincs

I entertained myself replacing zincs.

We found a really nice Italian restaurant about 12 miles away and had a delightful dinner. I do not say that very often!











Thursday, January 15th, 20114

Its bloody cold, close to freezing again. The electrician is still sick. The parts we need for the stabilizers were not ordered till yesterday and sent UPS ground.The welders said they would be here by 10 AM and arrived at 12:30 PM.  I am getting frustrated.

The "before"

Since we have the opportunity Deidre and I worked on the anti-fouling paint. The hull is in pretty decent shape but the running gear has lost a bit of paint. I sanded some spots on the hull where the paint had failed and wire brushed and sanded the running gear, and Deidre painted. It was sunny but so miserably cold.that the paint was stiff and work to apply. We were done by 4 PM and I feel at least some progress was made!

The welders arrived at 12:30 PM.  When they are here, they work hard but...... It is now about 6 PM and they have finished and I have paid them.
I was expecting them to help load the solar panels

The "after"

onto the frame but it was already dark and very cold, and I just wanted them gone. Deidre and I can put on the panels in daylight in the AM.

We are expecting another near freezing night. I was so stiff & cold when I got back to the house that I stood in a hot shower for 15 minutes to warm up.

The Admiral

Friday January 17, 2014

A good day that ended unhappily. Cold in the morning but warmed up as the day proceeded.

Panels resting in place.

We set to loading and securing the solar panels today. They are "only" 44 lbs each, but are awkward and we have to lift them vertically about 30'. So we carried them to the side of the boat, leant them against a 60" step ladder and put them in a sling on a rope that lead to the boat deck. I hauled from the top, Deidre lifted from the ground until the panel could "sit" on top of the step ladder. While I held the rope tightly, Deidre rushed up the steps onto the boat and the companionway. Then as I lifted again she grabbed the top of the panel as it passed. We both lifted until the panel could be rested on the side rail. Then Deidre rushed up to join me on the boat deck and we both hoisted and then lifted the panel onto the deck. This we did three times and had a cup of tea.

Next step was to get the panels up the last 15' onto the rack. We brought the step ladder onto the boat deck, lifted each panel on its end and rested it onto the top of the ladder. While I held it steady, Deidre climbed up onto the back of the seat in the flying bridge (my poor varnish!) and grabbed the leading edge as I lifted. Once the center of gravity passed onto the frame I joined her and scooted the frame into position. This we did three times.

Bolting on the panels

Next step was to bolt them down. The frame had moved a bit due to the welding heat but I only had to re-drill 6 connections (out of 30). By 4 PM I had them all bolted down. We tied a tarp over the panels so that they would not build up a charge.

I then turned my attention to getting the canvas top back on the Fly Bridge (under the panels) It needs to be laced on with nylon cord (that Deidre had driven to a not so local vendor to acquire). And that is when IT struck me. The welders had welded the solar panel frame to the wrong part of the "roof" structure. I must admit I could hardly believe it. I had given them drawings, and we had discussed the connection points, but had not actually supervised the work. Shit!

I immediately called the welder boss. When I told him he went silent and then as "the pennies dropped" he agreed a mistake had been made and took responsibility. They say they are coming Saturday to make the changes. Oh dear.

Dinner with friends visiting Charleston on a trawler and I had a couple of beers. On the way home a big thunderstorm rolled thru and beat the boat and panels with hail. That seemed to sum it all up.

Tomorrow I will have to take the panels off to protect them from the grinding and welding.


Saturday January 18, 2014

Too cold to work outside. I have decided to wait at least until the temp gets up to 40 degrees before I climb into the FB. The welders eventually arrived at about Noon. They worked till about 5:30 PM and got one connection replaced. Four to go!

We have been "evicted" from our "B & C" - the lady had a reservation for the long weekend. But she said we could keep the car! So we drove to Kylie and Ryans for the night - 36 miles each way. The welders promised to return at 11 AM Sunday.

Sunday January 19, 2014

Welders on the roof

Warmed up a bit this morning. I was a bit late, did not arrive till 11:10 AM. I was a bit concerned that I was late and would be holding them up.. No problem - they turned up at 1:30 PM! But they worked hard and cut out and replaced the remaining 4 supports, finishing just after dark. I was back at Kylie's by 7 PM and Deidre had dinner on the table. Long cold day.






Monday January 20, 2014

Back to the boat by 10 AM. First job was to put the panels back in place, followed by re-installing the 30 bolts, washes and nuts that hold them in place. I then put a meter on each of them to make sure no damage was done and was rewarded with about 35 Volts a panel.  Then I connected the three panels in series resulting in about 105 Volts. So far so good.

Its still cold!

Next step was to re-stretch the bimini top under the new solar rack, preliminary to re-lacing. This involved jacking up the solar rack and weighing down the bimini frame. This went well also.

The management advised that the electrician would be back at work Tuesday. We had endured some long cold days and so decided to take the rest of the day off.






Tuesday January 21, 2014

We were back at the boat by 8 AM (out of bed at 6:15 AM!) and both the mechanic and the electrician were on the job. By mid morning the boat was in an even bigger mess.

We had to get under the bed.....

The mechanics changed the stabilizer seals but discovered an oil leak. (I knew there was a leak somewhere as I have needed to top up the reservoir occasionally, but I was hoping the external seals would resolve the issue). The bad news was that a seal accessed inside the boat needs to be changed - and to get access the mechanics will need to remove a lot of "stuff".

I worked with the electrician and made decent progress.

We are back at the "B & C" for the night. The forecast calls for rain, wind and cold tonight.

Wednesday January 22, 2014

We were "splashed" back into the water today. The rest of the work can be done in the water, and it is a lot cleaner and more comfortable for us. It stormed last night - wind and rain. This morning our decks were covered in dead leaves frozen to the deck. As the sun warmed the boat Deidre spent an our getting the ice, leaves and dirt of the decks.

The big news is that we turned on the solar panels, and they worked. It is a cold (still in the 30's) but sunny day with a bit of haze. We are still a good way north and close to the winter solstice, so the sun is low in sky. Bottom line is that we are getting about 480 watts off the panels. The max potential is 750 watts. We will get more as the sun gets higher in the sky.

Some really shocking news today from Phoenix - a business acquaintance of mine died from a heart attack on Monday, aged 48!

The electrician was on the boat the rest of the day but did not get much done. I am looking forward to sleeping on the boat tonight.

Thursday January 23, 2014

TV Antenna

We are leaving tomorrow! This morning we decided that it would be more logical to have the stabilizer oil leak looked at in Florida. This morning the electrician finished running the co-ax cable for the sat TV aerial. Of course, it did not work so we will have that looked at in Florida also.

Deidre has taken the marina truck and is getting her hair cut, as well as grocery shopping, visiting the Post Office and the hardware store. I am busy watching the solar panels work!

This morning we watched a couple of full sized porpoises "herding fish" and ending up almost totally out of the water on the bank of the marsh opposite Tide Hiker - then wiggling off.

It will be cold tomorrow, but at least we will be moving.