Harvey Eastwood 37

[floydraser]

I'll be looking next time I'm over. There's a vent and an outlet on the port side: the vent is the breather for the fuel tank (inline with the filler on the deck), and just forward of it is what looks like a drain. There is a similar drain on the other side suspiciously near to the freshwater filler.....

I've tried to upload a pic but it's not having it.

Thanks for the replies, it's given me a bit to look for.

[ZimbiIV]

We have two water tanks on the starboard side, I could not understand why until I looked at the diesel tank on the port side ( a big boy) a quick measure and I understood when both are full the boat is level.

When 1 is nearly empty and the other full, the drawers either open or close depending which one is full.

The fuel tank is 150 litres the 2 water tanks 145 litres.

The waste tank runs along the keel line of the boat in the middle, forward to aft, so it's level does not effect the balance of the boat at all. It is about 150 litre capacity so pump outs are usually every 2 to 3 weeks. Remember pump outs are pricy so the bigger the tank = savings.

Tek-tanks are very good and will advise freely.

paul

 

[floydraser]

And the winner is: .......dramatic pause just like the telly....and just as corny......grendel!

Everyone else is voted off the show. Or not.

I nipped over on Tuesday for three things: to see why the bilge pump didn't work, make the cover fit without making a swimming pool with every rainfall, and investigate the mystery tank.

All that was overshadowed by the appearance of mould everywhere! In the short term I've hoovered and cleaned the upholstery and treated everything else with mould remover/killer. Then installed a crystal dehumidfier from the local hardware store.

The bilge pump switch has three positions: auto, off and manual. When switched to manual, there was no sound or action from the pump but there was quite a load registering on the ammeter, which has always bothered me. The actual bilge pump seemed to work perfectly, but independant of it's switch, then it packed up between my visits. Yesterday I went after the wiring. My circuit diagram showed a white wire and white/black wire to the pump but present were black and red. I traced them back to the supply for the freshwater pump. So having drained the water tank(s!) for winter, I had to switch off the freshwater pump/pressure sensor and hence, no bilge pump. I put "rewire bilge pump" on the list of jobs for next time. That would mean going into the spaghetti behind the dash!

I had put an old pallet which I had "upholstered" over the Houdini hatch at the front to help stop condensation but I still wasn't happy about the cover. I added a double folding step to the pallet so the cover could be higher than the rail and fit better all round. It would also keep more of the deck drier for longer enabling work to continue underneath. Did that, knackered myself crawling around under the bloody thing for an hour then found a hole in it! Thank God for kneepads but damn that anchor locker Houdini right at the bow, with a broken handle which I reckon made the hole.

Nothing is ever straightforward is it? Just lift the correct floorboard and the mystery tank should be underneath right? The floorboard in question is about 6ft by 2ft and held captive by the engine hatch. The engine hatch is most of the saloon floor and lifts to just beyond vertical. The heavy, 6 person table has to be moved first and the only space is on the 6ft by 2ft floorboard. I turned it over onto the seating and just managed to get it clear. I lifted the engine hatch and tried to lift the big board, but it would only slide a bit as it was still held captive by the woodwork for the non-existent log burner! I gave up and lifted the smaller board under the helm seat. I found a pipe which came from under the tank and headed accross the boat and although I couldn't see for sure, I assumed it was connected to the tank. I also found more of the intact cable/pulley system for the canopy, then put everything back. The pipe went under the kitchen stairs so these came out followed by the floorboard below them. BINGO! Pipes and taps to balance two freshwater tanks as foretold on this forum! See pic (taken from video)

Will those yellow topped things be NR valves? And to the rear of the left one is the biggest surprise of the day: the original bilge pump! Well not quite the original but it does have the correct wiring and it must be jammed because it gets current when switched to manual. The other pump is further forward under the kitchen and it's main job is to take away water from the shower tray which drains there. The wiring diagram only shows one pump.

So unless someone has a better suggestion I think the way forward is to replace the "main" pump and drop the shower pump into a plastic sump because: nothing is going to get pumped overboard for a while as there is oil everywhere!

There'll be nowhere to hide if I produce an oil slick on the still waters of Brundall Gardens!

After I've got as much out by soaking rags there'll still be traces of oil to flush out so any tips would be most welcome. I have at my disposal an old homebrew bucket, 240 volt sump pump and of course, 12v pumps. I also have a 12v sump oil pump, the sort for sucking engine oil up via the dip stick hole.

Video soon.

[grendel]

cat litter is a good (and cheap) absorbent for getting the last residues up, of course you then need to get the cat litter up.

[Cal]

The only way to stop the mould growth is to provide lots of ventilation. Ventilation keeps the air moving which reduces condensation which in turn prevents the moisture build up that the mould needs to grow.

[floydraser]

22 minutes ago, Cal said:

The only way to stop the mould growth is to provide lots of ventilation. Ventilation keeps the air moving which reduces condensation which in turn prevents the moisture build up that the mould needs to grow.

Actually I had thought about leaving a couple of windows open as everything is covered anyway, I just wasn't brave enough to because of spiders and hibernating hornets.

I'll put more crystal dehumidifiers in next visit, open windows with net covers and consider an electric dehumidifier.

[ExSurveyor]

Your best option would be an electric dehumidifier on a timerwith a tube heater on a plug in thermostat.

The electric supply is very stable at BGM.

If you use a dehumidifier or crystals,  close all the windows and open cupboard doors.

 

[floydraser]

35 minutes ago, psychicsurveyor said:

Your best option would be an electric dehumidifier on a timerwith a tube heater on a plug in thermostat.

The electric supply is very stable at BGM.

If you use a dehumidifier or crystals,  close all the windows and open cupboard doors.

 

Thanks Mark,

I also discovered the free wi-fi on Tuesday and wondered if the technology to use remote control has come down in price to a worthwhile level.

[Guest]

If you were to get an electric dehumidifier get one with a drain to drain into a sink or basin otherwise you are always going to the boat to  empty  it. From experience I would keep the crystals going as well. We also had the water tank conundrum except we had four tanks three potable and one for a header tank, it took a while to get to grips with it all.   

[LondonRascal]

I think I have nailed the 'mould' issue with Trixie. You can go a number of ways, some cost more than others - what I have done is to buy a small dehumidifier that operates on a Peltier principle. It does not consume much wattage, has no moving parts (other than a computer fan) and is ideal for a small space.

The issue I have found is the element that gets cold (to condense the moisture in the air) freezing up - so it is now on a timer to run on and off with enough time off to cause any icing to defrost. It has a permanent drain to the galley sink.  All windows are closed and vents blocked so as little damp outside air as possible can get in.

Mould becomes an issue at relative humidity over 60% - you can keep humidity down or try and kill mould spores - far easier to keep the humidity down. Small 'crystal' moisture traps remove such tiny amounts of moisture from the air that they are only really effective for very small spaces - cupboards, drawers etc where they really do work very well. I have them in every cupboard and wardrobe on Independence and clothing and items stored are damp free - replace the units once a month in this sort of weather, but in slightly warmer weather they may last up to three months.

I also use tube heaters - leaving one of these on in the forward cabin has kept damp at bay, no smells or issues - but does consume 80w of electricity 24hrs a day, I also have another in the engine bay on a thermostat simply to help provide frost protection to the engine area.

I've been checking on the boat every week, and the results have been very pleasing and because there is no growth, and any 'damp smells' the cost of electricity used (mainly for the tube heater) I think has been worth it. Now on a larger boat you would need a larger dehumidifier, or more than one, and more than one tube heater too but the overall result could be achieved. Naturally the cost of electricity would increase though.

 

 

[floydraser]

Thanks London Rascal.

There was an 80W tube heater already in the engine bay of Denham Owl, and Consort Frost Fighter next to the water and black waste tanks. I have replaced the tube for one with a thermostat and put a 40W version under the galley floor where there's an inlet I can't isolate. I have oil heaters but don't have them on.

As we have wi-fi at BGM I am considering getting a desiccant dehumidifier and operating it via a smart plug. A couple of my neighbours there have Ecoair models but there doesn't seem to be much between them and the Meaco DD8, so it's down to the January sales!

[floydraser]

Three latest Denham Owl vids:

 

Part 3: 

 

Part 4: 

 

Part 5: 

 

Nothing much doing in the January sales and I ended up with an Ecoair Simple. Next trip over will involve experimenting with a Sonoff TH16 with temperature/humidity sensor to control it. It works here at a distance of 3 feet via my home broadband; just need to add 142 miles....

[annv]

Hi Floyd Why don't you get a aluminum scaffold pole for a ridge pole to make a tent with the edges tied down with cut bands from a inner tube to tension and give plenty of ventilation open ends, along with good water run off this is what i did for all my boats, it work well with no mold and kept the outside clean and protected. John

[floydraser]

 

44 minutes ago, annv said:

Hi Floyd Why don't you get a aluminum scaffold pole for a ridge pole to make a tent with the edges tied down with cut bands from a inner tube to tension and give plenty of ventilation open ends, along with good water run off this is what i did for all my boats, it work well with no mold and kept the outside clean and protected. John

Thanks John.

I may have to try something like that if the latest rig fails. 

[floydraser]

Hi everyone,

I nipped over on 13th Jan, cleaned the oil from the forward bilge and fitted the new bilge pump.

I also took over the new Ecoair dehumidifier which is being controlled via a Sonoff switch and eWelink app. The switch also has the temperature/humidity probe. The Ecoair drains into the bilge where the new pump can hoof it over the side if necessary.

At one point while over at the boat and with the Ecoair off, the app showed 6 degrees C and 90%! After a couple of days it dropped to 60% and stayed there for a while, but now it's down to the mid-fifties. The temperature has stayed above freezing up until now but if it drops below 1 degree I'll switch it off.

But what about the mystery tank I hear you cry?

Well, I freed up the offending floorboard and all became clear: there's a chuffing great galvanised tank down there! It's 6ft long, 15" deep and 27" wide, with a slight chamfer for the hull shape. As it's mate is GRP I think I'll assume the original set up was a pair of galvanised tanks. The metal tank also explains the brown water I got from the taps after the move south by lorry, and the eternity taken to drain the tanks.

So for the sake of the future of the boat I think a WRAS standard new tank is called for, but as I'm a bit short on boaty experience could anyone suggest a more practical size to go for? 

I'm thinking about a quick emptying system too if there is such a thing? To help keep the water replenished.

Thanks in anticipation.

Floyd.

 

[floydraser]

Hi Everyone,

It's been a long time and a lot of water has passed under a lot of bridges. A bit of a health scare didn't help progress.

I've been unable to change the mystery tank so it's been cleaned and lined with epoxy. So having flushed it through and got pressure into the system once more the latest problem minifested itself in the form of a jittery pump. At the same time the flow control on the water heater has become jammed. My first thought is that because I must have been the first person in years to winterise the water system, it's dried out and chunks of limescale have come loose and moved around the pipework. Investigating it is the first job, next visit.

Main priorities have changed since the Mrs Raser and I visited the Owl on Easter Saturday. We went over to see what we need to do to make the boat habitable for a couple nights stay. There doesn't seem to be much to do but having chosen a design with large windows for the greenhouse effect, we were cooking in there! I was leaving the renovation of the sliding canopy until after the deck was sorted but we really need to have the front windows opening for the Summer. The trouble is: the windscreens need to open before the side windows can open, but the windscreens won't open until the canopy has opened!

So to this end I could really do with making contact with any owner of another HE37. A while ago someone here said Seraphina was berthed down at Potter Heigham, does anyone know if that is still the case? I'll stick a note on the main forum too I think.

Thanks again in anticipation.

I hope you all enjoyed a great Easter; it was certainly busy on the water!

Floyd.

 

[Lulu]

Always like the restoration threads. :) Looking forward seeing the cover come off! 

[JanetAnne]

It's not Seraphina at Potter... sorry, that may have been me.

The HE at Potter is an earlier all wood Caterina version. 

[floydraser]

55 minutes ago, JanetAnne said:

It's not Seraphina at Potter... sorry, that may have been me.

The HE at Potter is an earlier all wood Caterina version. 

Hey that's fine; as long as it's a 37 and still there it may be worth my while to nip down and take a look. I'm pretty sure the canopy mechanisms would all have been similar.

[JanetAnne]

Use the footpath from the pilots office heading away from the bridge and, if she is still there, you will see her in one of the bungalows moorings. 

[floydraser]

11 hours ago, JanetAnne said:

Use the footpath from the pilots office heading away from the bridge and, if she is still there, you will see her in one of the bungalows moorings. 

That's lovely thank you. Could have saved me ages of searching!

[BrundallNavy]

Any further updates 

[KaptinKev]

I haven't watched the video, but even if it's low voltage, the installation of the sonoff switch looks worrying!

[floydraser]

4 hours ago, brundallNavy said:

Any further updates 

Hi,

Yep, DO.8 is on it's way! I've been over a couple of times but I've also been busy with Volvo brakes, a caravan holiday and an air pistol.

I've just watched DO.7 again to remind myself how far I am behind and I still haven't sorted my waterworks, but thanks to this forum I'm pretty sure I know what the solution is. To get the water hot enough to qualify for being called "hot" I have to turn the flow control down to a point where it upsets the pump which then pulsates. Searching the forum revealed the need to fit an accumulator for which I am currently waiting to be delivered for fitting this coming weekend. I'll also be looking around to see if there is one fitted somewhere in the boat already!

There is now a decent bed so staying over is now a pleasure. New curtains have brightened up the saloon and the wardrobe doors have gone, to be replaced by more practical drapes.

The big news though, is the progress on restoring the mechanism to retract the canopy. Thanks to expilot and the owner of Bonnie, another HE37, I now know what to go looking for and where to go looking for it! The front wheels of the mechanism run on a steel bar supported by timber. Water gets in easily - goodbye timber - canopy drops and stays put. This weekend's main job is to take a panel off the outside to see how bad it is and make some drawings etc. The restoration involves creating a system to manage the rainwater through the boat rather than trying to keep it out all together. Terry, the owner of Bonnie, has done a great job by having stainless steel channel custom made for the job.

I'll post here when DO.8 premieres!

Thanks for asking.

[JanetAnne]

On 02/07/2019 at 22:32, floydraser said:

Hi,

Yep, DO.8 is on it's way! I've been over a couple of times but I've also been busy with Volvo brakes, a caravan holiday and an air pistol.

I've just watched DO.7 again to remind myself how far I am behind and I still haven't sorted my waterworks, but thanks to this forum I'm pretty sure I know what the solution is. To get the water hot enough to qualify for being called "hot" I have to turn the flow control down to a point where it upsets the pump which then pulsates. Searching the forum revealed the need to fit an accumulator for which I am currently waiting to be delivered for fitting this coming weekend. I'll also be looking around to see if there is one fitted somewhere in the boat already!

There is now a decent bed so staying over is now a pleasure. New curtains have brightened up the saloon and the wardrobe doors have gone, to be replaced by more practical drapes.

The big news though, is the progress on restoring the mechanism to retract the canopy. Thanks to expilot and the owner of Bonnie, another HE37, I now know what to go looking for and where to go looking for it! The front wheels of the mechanism run on a steel bar supported by timber. Water gets in easily - goodbye timber - canopy drops and stays put. This weekend's main job is to take a panel off the outside to see how bad it is and make some drawings etc. The restoration involves creating a system to manage the rainwater through the boat rather than trying to keep it out all together. Terry, the owner of Bonnie, has done a great job by having stainless steel channel custom made for the job.

I'll post here when DO.8 premieres!

Thanks for asking.

I have contact details for Seraphina. They would love to meet you, show you around etc.

I have PM'd you