My Whitby 42 Blog

Plumbing manifold

January 14, 2013

My son and I created the "Decopus".  A 10 legged monster that was annoying to make, but should make life pretty nice.  The 2 valvues are 5 way valves.  There are 4 lines in, with one out. (or 4 out and one in).  This will be where we control our water distribution on the boat.  The top one will be the "in".  One line from each tank (3), plus an extra that can be put into a bucket, or anti freeze, or a 5 gallon water bag for a short weekend trip, etc...  This will lead to the pump, then the filters, then back to the other valve.  This will then have one line out to each tank, and one to the "Boat".  When it is on "Boat", the boat will be operating as normal, with water out to all the taps, etc...  But if I want to move water from one tank to another I can.  And with the added bonus of going through the filter in the process.  Or if I just want to equalize the tanks, I can.


 

Posted by Bryan. Posted In : Fresh water plumbing 

 

Electrical switches

January 14, 2013
A home made electrical switch panel.  Controls the 3 lights in the galley area (over sink, over stove, over fridge Plus the Galley Fan).   I plan on putting these in the aft area for fans and lights as well.  Each switch has a little LED indicator light  The plug in the upeper right is a direct AC plug.  It will not take power from the inverter, but only directly from shore or the generator.  So you don't have to worry about draining batteries if using this plug.

Posted by Bryan. Posted In : Electrical 

 

New Cushion Covers

January 14, 2013
I have been making new cushion covers for all of the cushions in the boat. In the V birth and the Aft Cabin, the thinking was that the cushions will be covered with bedding 100% of the time. So, cost of material out ranked looks when purchasing fabric for the cushions.  What you see is from the discount bin at $6 /yard.  An upholstery fabric.  The back of the cushions is a water resistant nylon that is thin for breath ability. The sides are a different colour.....because we bought all the material there was and needed a bit more
 .

Posted by Bryan. Posted In : Cushions 

 

Electrical connections

January 14, 2013
I have been spending a lot of time going over the electrical system on paper.  Lots of revisions and fixes.  Starting from almost scratch.  The previous owner had some brand new electrical products (Xantrex 2000), pumps, lights, etc...  Most that would only work on 12 volt, so I am sticking with that.  However, next time around, I would think about the 24 volt.  Save a lot on wires.  Still not 100% sure of all things that are getting connected, but have started with the sure things.  The system will involve a generator, solar panels, shore connection, and the inverter charger at the heart of it all.  What you are looking at here is what will be behind the electrical panel. (more later on that).
The tupperware box in the top right corner is a great idea I read somewhere.  It is a locking container to house all the AC connections to keep them save.  Put a few holes in the sides to get the wires in.

In the bottom right corner is another area that will be covered with a panel with a door that opens.  I have various fuses, the shunt for inverter battery monitor and the solar power connection.  Under the nav seat will be the inverter charger and battery fuses.

 

Posted by Bryan. Posted In : Electrical 

 

Screens on hatch.

November 20, 2012
I had to install a hatch screen, in order to attach a different piece.  Looks great.
Notice the build up around the window.  I replaced all the old wood, but then leveled things out and built up the area with epoxy in an attempt to make it look like it was meant to be that way.  Again....looks great from far away.


Posted by Bryan. Posted In : Hatches 

 

New Counter Tops

November 20, 2012
We cut and finished the new counter tops.  Almost done.  Need to attach the railing.  

Found a business going out of business and were selling off all their counter tops.  Our are not the Corian brand, but same material. (I just call them Corian because I can't remember the other name.  And I was afraid of the police showing up at any moment when I was buying the stuff so I just payed and got out of there.  A bit of a shady deal going on...I think.).   I cut it with all wood working tools.  Table saw, router, random orbital sander, drill,  etc...  It goes slower than wood, but cuts just fine.  I used west system epoxy for bonding joints.  I mixed sawdust from the cuttings to thicken the epoxy and give it a colour that closer matched the material.  All in all, it is hard to see any joints unless you look.  Some disappeared!  Surfaces that needed sanding were done with 220 power sanding to remove excess epoxy, then wet/hand sanded 400, then 600, then buffed with car buffing material, fine grit.  Brought back all the gloss like new.

Hardest part for my skill, was cutting out the sink and counter top hatch.  I wanted to keep the piece cut out as tight as possible.  There is evidence of where I started the holes with a drill bit, but it cuts slow enough that you can usually follow the line.  Patience is key.

First picture is the original look of the kitchen.  Notice the bulkhead between the galley and main cabin.
 

Shows new shelf (made by previous owner in between original owner and me).  Also in the back ground you can see the port cabin wood is all in.
  
With the sink lids off.  Notice double sink!!  And the sinks are one with the counter top.  If water gets between the sink and the corian....even after I caulk in the crack...it will not matter.  I got the double sink for $25 used.  Then sanded with 2,000 grit.!! 
  

This is actually 4 pieces.  One long one down the front and 3 fingers sticking out.  All epoxied onto a 1/2 inch plywood cut out.  The entire thing was then glued down onto the counter.  Couldn't screw it in, unless you went through the 4 inches of foam I put in the lid.  There is foam all the way down to the the lip you see in the freezer and fridge.
 

Now I just have to attach the railings (Waiting for all glue to set first), and attache the tops to the actual freezer door tops.

Posted by Bryan. Posted In : Galley 

 

Chain Plates finished

November 20, 2012
 Chain plates have all been fixed up.  I replaced 7 of the 14 chain plates.  The 2 larger main mast plates, plus some smaller ones that showed pitting.  The rest were in good condition.

I also moved 2 chain plates.  All the chain plates on the Whitby 42 have great access.....except one (on each side).  It is buried inside of the wood.  So I moved the chain plate that was inside the wood 1/2 inch out to the other side of the bulkhead it was on.  This now allows easy access for inspection.  I was able to fill the existing void with the Bullet board and about 15 layers of fiberglass and epoxy completely reinforcing the entire area.

Here are some pictures of the process: 
 (it was done on both side, although my pictures seem to alternate back and forth between the two sides.)
  
First picture shows where the bolts, but no chain plate was located.  It was on the other side of this piece of wood.
Second picture shows the rotten wood removed plus the void that was in the middle from the chain plate.  Sandwiched between the bulkhead and the filler space.  These chain plates were in the worst condition.


  
First picture above shows the rebuild of the port side, aft side.  Second picture is the head side.  The entire piece was taken out and redone.  Water gets inside and caused rotting.
  
These show the area repainted, then new varnish along with the chain plate in the new location.  Easy access!
And moved 1/2 inch aft.

 
  
The Head side of the other picture painted.     Second picture is the main cabin port side.  You can also see the FRP (Fiberglass reinforced Plastic) that I am using in place of the peg board. More on that later.

Posted by Bryan. Posted In : Chain plates 

 

Back To Work

November 20, 2012
Football Season has ended.  Took my team to the championship game and came up a little short.  Used a 100 year old single wing offense, adapted to Canadian football play.  A fun wild ride, but exhausting. 

Some short articles:
Banting revives old fashion football.
 
Banting falls short in finals

I have been working, although slow and when I get a chance.  So I have a bunch of things that have been updated.

Varnishing is getting close to being able to say we are close to being done (???  it seems to go on forever).

installing wood back into the boat.  A puzzle.  I often install a single piece 3 to 5 times...as I realize I should have put piece B on before D, etc....  Or I find piece F, which I didn't even know about until Piece G goes on, but F should have gone on first!!!  So it is slower than I thought it would take.  Remember, I didn't take the boat apart.

And I ventured into the realm of corian counter tops.  From a distance, they look flawless!! (A distance....)
 

Posted by Bryan. Posted In : Rant 

 

More Deck Hardware

September 4, 2012
Installed more deck hardware:

Posted by Bryan. Posted In : deck hardware 

 

Back to School

September 4, 2012
Tomorrow is the first day of school around here.  So that means, I get some time off.....from boat work.

 Back to teaching science....and one cooking course.
That, along with coaching football, will seriously cut into my boat working time.  However, I have the boat at a good place. It is water proof and all major jobs are now complete. Major systems are ready for smaller work.  I can spend time connecting wires and pipes and getting the boat back together.

Devon and I found a great way to cut and drill aluminum.  After watching "How it is Made" we noticed that the machine drilling aluminum had water washing over it to keep the drill bit cool.  So we tried the same idea with all the aluminum and it worked great.  He would spray the hose and I would do the cutting or drilling.  

Posted by Bryan. Posted In : Rant 

 
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Bryan Haas


Please feel free to contact me! I grew up on the waters of the Chesapeake sailing and fishing. I was paid to work, sail, race, and sometimes live on a 51' Hinkley (they didn't really need to pay me but they offered!). I am a high school science teacher who likes to learn by doing. Used to teach at "The Sound School" in New Haven Ct. Check it out, the most amazing on- the- water school there is. I have rebuilt smaller boats from scratch, but nothing on this scale. This is an adventure. All help is greatly appreciated.

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Bahama's Weather

Just as a reminder to my self why I am doing all of this.  There is nice weather at the end of the tunnel.

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