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And thus the work proceeds;
the two tackles hoisting and lowering simultaneously;
both whale and windlass heaving, the heavers singing,
the blubber-room gentlemen coiling, the mates scarfing,
the ship straining, and all hands swearing occasionally,
by way of assuaging the general friction. —Herman Melville

Ahoy,

We had thought about adding this posting to the one about the deck. After all, the cabin is really a deckhouse of sorts, but a separate posting about the cabin itself just seemed more appropriate. After you see some of the disgusting photos, you will see why.

We rough cut the opening for the sliding hatch. Hopefully, that should help keep the cabin cooler. Next, we taped and glassed the seams at the panel joints and filled all screw holes. The cabin roof needs a lot of work—



It's blistering hot today, a reminder that we need to find a way to keep the cabin cool. I know Jimmy Buffett sings a line or two about having cabin fever, but in the song he shoots a few holes in the cabin. We would like to have some ventilation, but without the holes in the hull.


Boat Drinks
This morning I shot six holes in my freezer.
I think I got cabin fever.
Somebody sound the alarm.
I'd like to go where the pace or life's slow.

Cabin fever is something you want to avoid even if you do not live under a blistering Arizona sun. Angie Wilson mentioned using reflective insulation. It's thin (and on a boat, thin is in); it's reflective of the sun's damaging rays; and it's relatively inexpensive.

But will it work? This type of insulation requires a dead air space for maximum efficiency. However, we would need to use the insulation as a core between two plywood panels. Using the insulation in such a manner might not work, but on the other hand, it might be much better than having no insulation at all. So, we set about laying the reflective insulation on top of the cabin.



Not too bad. Not too appealing. Indeed, as you can see the camera- hungry mooring bitt seems to have distanced himself from the project.

Here's our plan, though— temporarily apply the insulation, and then during the peak of the day when the temperatures are wildly hot, check the interior of the cabin roof. A cool suface means the insulation is working. A hot surface means don't waste any more of your time on this project.

If the insulation is a success, we would repeat the test but with the insulation as a sandwich core between two plywood layers. A cool interior cabin roof means all systems go. A heated cabin roof means remove the insulation and remove this posting. (Sometimes you need to save face, you know.)

In the meantime, here is another picture of the fearless seadog, Sheba Girl, once again shaking her head in disbelief and maybe disgust. Admittedly, the boat does look worse now than it did a few days ago. Indeed, it would seem the more we work on the boat, the more the boat seems to deteriorate. I just keep thinking of cabin fever and shooting holes in the hull while at sea. Not a good idea. Not a good idea at all.

It seems to me that adding anything to the cabin top will decrease the temp of the bottom layer simply because it wont have the sun shining a 1/2" above it. On the other hand the thicker material will hold the heat more than the thinner material. On my boat I can feel the stem with my hand when the sun is on it and it feels very hot, I can then feel the sides of the boat and the temp is much less. I would think also that if you decide to use the foil you would need to place it on the cabins sides and deck for it to really benifit if indeed it does work. Make sure you have opening portholes and maybe a windscoop for the forward hatch. My cabin stayed cooler than Scotts on his Mac26. Mine is a smaller space and percentage wise it has more openings than his which I believe makes the difference. With the open portholes and the hatches wide open it is pretty airy down there.

Keep us posted

Keith

Ahoy Keith,

Thanks for the encouraging words. A cabin can sometimes turn into a suana. Add a little humidity, and you have the environment for a possible heat stroke.

Portly portholes
Our portholes open, but honestly I do not know how such should open. By that I mean, should the portholes open upward toward the ceiling, downward toward the sole, or sideways toward the cabin sides? We installed ours so that the swing is toward the ceiling (cabin roof). Is there some hardware (a chain, perhaps) that secures the porthole open?

There is a reason why non-opening portholes are sometimes called deadlights.

Down the hatch
Our hatch can likewise be opened. In fact, we will install a hinge-arm so that the hatch can be propped opened while under sail. (I suppose you could just swing open the hatch and hold it open with a stick. Yes, that does seem like a good possibility, and certainly is practical. However, we went with a brass friction hinge that would do the same thing for more money.) Our forepeak bulkhead has two cut-outs, each fitted with a cane door, so that air can flow freely through the cabin. (At least, that's our theory. What actually happens while under sail and under attack from BYYB pirates and other ne'er-do-wells is another thing.)

Curses, foiled again
Keith, I checked the McMaster-Carr handbook on the properties of the foil insulation. (Yes, I did this after I had bought and installed the installation. I am always getting things a bit backwards.) At any rate, the insulation is identified as foil faced polyethylene with a R-Value ranging between 8.3 to 17 (depending, I suppose on the surrounding environment, on how the insulation is actually used, whether or not there is a dead air space, etc.)—

Quote:Insulation stops approximately 97% of radiant heat and blocks most vapor. Aluminum foil bonded to both sides reflects radiant heat while the interior air bubble sheet with its stationary air reduces conduction. Thickness is approximately 5/16.

The supplier Angie mentioned apparently is selling the insulation to go with a cabin or bimini liner. This approach would probably offer the maximum efficiency since some semblance of a dead air space could be created. However, the supplier also charges 3 times the actual cost of the insulation. On our boat, the ceiling boards are part of the traditional look, so we really cannot use a liner. However, if we later have a bimini, we could attach the insulation to the underside and cover everything with an liner.

(Yes, you are right. How can a traditional Friendship Sloop have a bimini? I just wish you would not ask questions like that. Sometimes you just have to go for the comfort and ignore tradition.)


What's the plan, Stan?
The proof of the pudding is in the eating, and the proof of the insulation is in the temperature range. So, what were the results of our less than scientific test? Does the insulation work?

It does. Indeed, when I felt the interior cabin ceiling, the temperature was considerably cooler over those areas that had the insulation. For a comparison, I also rubbed my hand along the interior sides of the cabin. I was surprised at how hot the cabin sides had become. Indeed, the temperature was high enough almost to burn the hand. At any rate, you would not want to keep your hand on the cabin wall.

The boat, of course, was not in direct sunlight, having a canopy overhead, but as we said before, the temperatures in Arizona are high, and the sun can be intense, very intense.

Our plan, then, is to give the insulation a try, at least on the roof. As you said Keith, even as an enclosed core, the foil insulation has to offer some protection. All systems are go, then.

By the way, we also installed open-cell insulation underneath the deck to help with flotation. After I had installed the open-cell insulation, I later learned that closed-cell offers far better flotation properties. Open-cell can indeed become water-logged in time. No, I did not rip everthing apart and remove the open-cell insulation. The insulation does not immediately become water-logged and the nice blue vapor shield looks clean, not that anyone will ever see it but at least, it's there and can be easily removed in the transom locker and forepeak locker if necessary. Along the interior sides of the hull, we used closed-cell insulation for flotation.

We have enough insulation on this boat that if a whale should suddenly charge us and take a big bite out of our hull, we would still stay afloat. In fact, almost according to Paul Riccelli, our boat would pop to the surface like a cork. Paul did not quite say that, but he almost did.

Well, such as it is. I need to go work on the boat, now that it is early morning and I have a day or two off from work.

Ahoy,

This posting is not about the cabin proper, but it does talk about insulation and flotation. We're working on the cockpit as the cabin dries. After coating the interior hull with a thin layer of epoxy, we painted the surface, just to be certain that all the wood cells were filled. We want to keep out as much moisture as we can.



I've seen better paint jobs, but this one is good enough for who it is for. Nothing difficult here. Just smear the paint and wait for it to dry. Once the surface is ready, we will glue the closed-cell foam to the hull.

What? What is this? Oh, yes— I nearly forgot. The mooring bitt now has its first coat of varnish and has asked for another photo session. I agreed to one picture, but no more—



Not too bad. Not too bad. The mooring bitt may yet achieve some sense of status before the boat is finished. Even so, here is what we have in mind for the hull. Miss Pat said she liked the choice of color and texture.



This whole notion may not work, at least the way things are now. The hull is far too curved for large segments of foam to adhere properly. We may just have to abandon ship on this project. What you don't want is the sound of foam against the hull while the boat moves through the water under sail. Such a noise would be absolutely irritating.

Our fearless seadog, Sheba Girl, barks out orders as we work on the cockpit. She, too, is unconvinced that our idea of glue and foam is a good idea.



We could, I suppose, secure the foam with ceiling boards. We did use ceiling boards in the cabin interior, but here ceiling boards are a viable option we would like to dismiss for a number of reasons, none of which we will disclose. Actually, if we cannot find a simple solution, we will simply avoid the project and go on to something else.

Sheba Girl has suggested that we kerf the foam panels first, and then use water-base contact cement as an adhesive. That dog has good looks and good sense. Maybe her suggestion will work.

Score the side facing the planking in a grid pattern, say 2" squares in the more curvaceous spots. Use a utility knife and cut 3/4's the way through, this will push into concave surfaces better.

Ahoy,

We're almost finished fiberglassing our deck. While the epoxy dries, we have a chance to work on something else. That's not bad. With the boat finally turned upright, there's a lot you can do here, and if you can't work here, you can always work there. You might say that for the moment we are working on this and that, here and there.

Paul Riccelli came close to bad-mouthing our meager bilge. We do have a bilge pump. I mean, like microballoons, bilge pumps are necessary aboard ship. In our case, the bilge is the lowest sector of the sole; here water will naturally tend to gather, and here we naturally decided to place a bilge pump. If you look closely, you might be able to make out the floor bolt. We will build our athwartship floor next week.

Our anchor locker even has a dedicated line feeding the bilge. That way we can wash the anchor locker and have the mud, grime, and water flow to the bilge and ultimately back into the sea from whence it came.




Granted, it is not much of a pump but 500 GPH is nothing to dismiss either. The pump, of course, will be housed within a bridgedeck. As you can see from the photo, the pump also has an automatic float. We wired our bilge with a 3-way switch. That way we can turn our bilge on or off at will, or set the bilge for automatic. If it should rain, and we are away on shore perhaps at some romantic seafood restaurant, "Let it rain, let it rain, let it rain." Here is a close-up of the bilge pump—



Bilge water, of course, needs to go somewhere. We drilled a hole in our hull, and inserted a true bronze nautical fitting. Now whenever we are at dock and just before we launch and sail away, we can impress our friends. We simply test our bilge pump by emptying a bucket of water into the cockpit, turn on the bilge, and watch the water spurt out from the side of hull. If we are fortunate, we might even get an unsuspecting friend good and wet. Here is a photo of the hull fitting—



A close-up photo of our bronze fitting would only be fitting. So, here is a closer look at the fitting. I suppose it would be prudent to have a check valve. After all, you don't want raw seawater coming into your boat.
That could be embarrassing. That could also sink a boat.



Tomorrow morning we will finish the deck, and begin work on the cabin exterior. We also hope to finish installing our insulation foam along the hull. Such as it is. The idea of the bilge pump/anchor locker is another idea I shamelessly copied from Chris Gerkin.

A few tips about bilge pumps: toss out the stock hose and use smooth vinyl tubing, rather then the corrugated stuff, which restricts flow and decreases the amount of lift the pump is capable of. Most float switches require the float to lift around two inches, before they close the circuit to the pump (turn it on). Most pumps need at least an inch of standing water before it can draw it up into the impeller. What this means is you'll have some standing water at the low spot all the time because the pump can't suck it up or the switch isn't high enough to kick in the pump.

I'll try to post a photo of what can be done about this. It's a common problem in "V" bottom craft, where the pump can't fit into the deepest part of the bilge. You can modify the strainer cap to draw water in odd shaped or shallow locations, still retaining the straining function, which protects the impeller.

Your pump looks to be a Rule model 25D or 26D (12 or 24 volt) rated at 500 GPH. This is the perfect world rating, with no hoses attached and no lift asked of it. The real world rating will be considerably less if there is much lift required and corrugated hose used, maybe as much as a 50% reduction. The use of vinyl tubing helps a lot, but 500 GPH isn't much power really only 8.33 GPM in the perfect world arrangement. A sailor with a single gallon bucket can move about 30 GPM and over 40 if they're scared. Now imagine if this was the normal 2 gallon bucket and a truly scared crew was humping 80 plus GPM. Now that's a pump baby.

I've been using half and one gallon water jugs with the tops cut off, down to the handle for many years as bailers. They fit into places easily because they can distort and you pick up large hunks of water with each swipe. It takes a little less then 10 seconds for a 500 GPH pump to move a single gallon over board. Bend over, scoop and toss over the side, takes much less time, though is more effort then flipping a switch.

My point is, two crew members, handling a jug bailer in each hand can empty a completely swamped boat, in just a few minutes. A small bilge pump make take an hour to perform the same task. A swamped Vacationer will probably hold at least 200 gallons, maybe 300 if the cockpit side decks are close to the water.

Ahoy Paul,

Two scared men bailing with a plastic milk jug in each hand. That sounds more like autobiographical fact than theory. Are we talking about a past memory here, Paul?

Yes, send us a sketch on the modified strainer cap.

Yes, I've bailed my brains out more then once and those milk jugs work great. I've always thought of it as kicking bilge pump butt.

I've got a pump here I modified last year. The keel on this powerboat, divides the bilge in half and the deadrise in this area is quite steep, so it couldn't get to the bottom, leaving several inches of standing water. I didn't modify the strainer as I usually do, but cut a hole in it and used a section of 3/4" PVC pipe, welded (chemically) to the impeller inlet housing, which happened to be a very nice fit for the pipe I had. I reinforced the joint with 8 oz. cloth, but used PVC glue rather then epoxy to bond the cloth. It worked very well being strong and leak free. I slash cut the end of the pipe to match the deadrise of the planking. The inlet now rides an 1/8" off the bottom of the boat, removing all but a few ounces of water in the bilge. The pipe has a piece of stainless screen inside to keep the impeller clear of debris. The boat is in for a tune up and I'll snatch the pump out and get a picture of it.

Most pump bodies are PVC or ABS, both will glue with PVC glue (check the label for ABS) so they can be cut, twisted and generally hacked up or cobbled together from bits and pieces of PVC pipe. In a flat bottomed boat I would make the pump draw through the bottom of the strainer only, by plugging the strainer sides. Many of the smaller pumps require the whole of the strainer be under water, or they'll suck air around the joint between the strainer and pump body. I fix this with an "O" ring or other form of gasket, between the body and strainer basket.

Pull the strainer (blue part on a rule) off the pump. You'll see a small inlet hole about 5/8" around and the impeller lives on the other side of this. This inlet must be submerged or a passageway (tube, pipe, etc.) must be submerged or the pump will lose prime and suck air. I usually remove the impeller housing (white part on a rule) make my modifications then reassemble.

Ahoy,

For those who care, and for those who could care less, here is an update on where we are and what we are trying to do. Let me warn you, this posting is all about insulation. Indeed, you may well want to insulate yourself from such a posting as this.

We were able to complete the cockpit insulation. In fact, scoring the closed cell foam in two directions resulted in a contour fit. Paul Riccelli had assured us that such an approach would work. Everything is shipshaped and ready to go. Our foam is now a full 2 inches thick—



Bill Olney came by, kindly offering us the use of his glue gun. "It's the same as Gorilla Glue," he said. We did glue some of our panel with the hot glue, but our best results came from scoring and contact cement. The fit is a good one. We still have some more panels of closed-cell insulation, and I might just later add them to what you see here. That would give us a full 3 inches of closed-cell insulation.

Our main focus, however, has been the cabin. Now that the deck has been fiberglassed, we would like to complete the cabin exterior as well. First, though, was the question of reflective insulation. Angie Wilson had mentioned this awhile back, and I'm so glad she did.

We first cleaned our cabin roof, and then coated the exterior with contact cement. "What is that critter?" you ask. Actually, the green creature belongs to Sheba Girl. It's a squeeky toy, and one of her favorites.



We supported the foil segments and coated each segment with contact cement. For this project we used water based cement, fearing that an oil based variety might chemically dissolve the insulation.



The temperature may look cool and inviting, but it's blistering hot, even at an early morning hour. The sun is beginning to burn away some of the humidity, and that helps, I suppose, but it's hot, very hot.

Next we began applying the foil to the cabin roof. Everything went without incident. Usually that does not happen when I use contact cement. More often than not, I glue the wrong segment to the wrong area, but today I managed to do everything right. Even our seams came out straight and tight.



The roof looks good, good enough for who it is for. The insulation does make a noticeable difference. The interior of the roof is cool, but the cabin walls are hot, even at this early morning hour. I suppose we could put the insulation on the cabin walls as well, but I doubt that I will do that. In the meantime, our cabin exterior looks good and appropriately cool—



We have the day off, so I will be looking at lumber for our deck. Hopefully, this week we will be able to fiberglass the cabin. If not this week, then certainly next.