Summer in Baltimore
August 26 thru August 29
—Blogpost written by Bob
Monday, August 26
Right out of the gate this morning, the temperature was nice and cool, like those I remember as a kid walking to the school bus stop in southeastern Pennsylvania.
After getting yet another coat of varnish on the companionway (the fifth coat!), we drove to Annapolis this morning. We got one of our propane tanks refilled and stopped at Fawcetts for a few more boat supplies. Later we stopped at True Value Hardware and bought some more 2" wide foam brushes--this time for $1.67 each, less than half of West Marine's price!
We had lunch at Caliente Grill on Bay Ridge Road, near Fawcetts. The Mexican and Salvadorian food was good but not as spicy as I like.
I brought my drill press back to the boat (from our storage unit) so that I could drill two 1-inch diameter holes in the panel light trim for the new panel lights. Using a hole saw, this worked out perfectly and the job was completed within a half hour.
I finished up my day by beveling the edges of the new white rubber treads for the companionway stairs. I beveled the edges by hand with 80-grit sandpaper. I will be mounting these on the stairs two days from now. (That's right, I decided to add just one more coat of varnish tomorrow, making a total of six coats.)
In the evening we attended a small get together of neighboring boaters--it was held at the pool area on C Dock.
Today was another overcast and cool day, an unusual weather pattern for this time of year. As I waited for Maggie to get our of the v-berth, I cut up whole sheets of 320-grit and 400-grit sandpaper to quarter size sheets. I store each grit size in sandwich size plastic bags to keep them from getting wet.
This morning I looked at the companionway stairs while they were still in the cockpit and decided that five coats of varnish was enough. (I didn't think that adding one or two more coats would have made a significant difference.) We put the treads on the steps in the cockpit being very careful to align them. (The adhesive was very sticky!) Then, I assembled the hardware and installed the steps back on the boat.
Late in the afternoon, we pulled the dinghy out of the water for bottom painting. We cleaned the bottom simply using a brush and the fresh water hose and allowed it to dry overnight.
The sky was overcast in the morning and the chances of rain today are currently 20%. The rain clouds were gathering to our west. As the day progressed, the overcast sky thinned out and we saw some sunshine but it remained relatively cool (low 80's).
Again, I cleaned the dinghy bottom this morning using a environmentally friendly cleanser (Simple Green) and a stiff brush. I also used Spray Away (which is not so environmentally friendly) in spots that I couldn't otherwise clean. For some reason the old paint was pealing off in blotches.
I'm not sure what is causing this condition but the last time the bottom was painted was in Charleston and I know we allowed sufficient time for the paint to dry before launching. (The atmosphere was always very humid in Charleston--maybe this was the cause.) However, I'm thinking that it must be an incompatibility in the bottom paints. Unfortunately, I already purchased the bottom paint (AQUAGUARD--the same as I used in the Spring in Charleston) for this season. It HAS done a good job of keeping marine growth at bay.
An afternoon thunderstorm is expected--so, we will cover the upside down dinghy with a tarp to prevent water exposure before if is fully dried (about 15 hours at 80 degrees F per the instructions). Since we are leaving for places south in about six weeks, we will keep the dinghy in the water until we leave but we won't launch it until tomorrow afternoon (after 18 hours of drying time).
I'm starting to feel the pressure of getting everything ready for us to leave in six weeks.
We drove to Annapolis this morning. I had to have a blood test done and we had to drop some things (my drill press and portable work bench) off at our storage unit. We ate both breakfast and lunch in Annapolis.
We decided to postpone the launch of our dinghy until tomorrow to give the bottom paint additional drying time since it has been cool in the evenings and during the night. (The curing time of the bottom paint is a function of temperature--the lower the temperature, the longer the cure time.)
In the afternoon I pulled out the (Ethernet) cable that was intended to connect our two chart plotters. For some reason, it never worked. I've decided to keep the two chart plotters completely independent and I bought another (identical) map chip for the chart plotter in the navigation station. (Right now, I'm having difficulty getting the secondary chart plotter to recognize the new chart data.)
More on our last minute projects next time...
Thanks for following our blog!
----------
After getting yet another coat of varnish on the companionway (the fifth coat!), we drove to Annapolis this morning. We got one of our propane tanks refilled and stopped at Fawcetts for a few more boat supplies. Later we stopped at True Value Hardware and bought some more 2" wide foam brushes--this time for $1.67 each, less than half of West Marine's price!
----------
We had lunch at Caliente Grill on Bay Ridge Road, near Fawcetts. The Mexican and Salvadorian food was good but not as spicy as I like.
 |
| Steak quesadillas at Caliente Grill in Annapolis. |
I brought my drill press back to the boat (from our storage unit) so that I could drill two 1-inch diameter holes in the panel light trim for the new panel lights. Using a hole saw, this worked out perfectly and the job was completed within a half hour.
I finished up my day by beveling the edges of the new white rubber treads for the companionway stairs. I beveled the edges by hand with 80-grit sandpaper. I will be mounting these on the stairs two days from now. (That's right, I decided to add just one more coat of varnish tomorrow, making a total of six coats.)
----------
In the evening we attended a small get together of neighboring boaters--it was held at the pool area on C Dock.
Tuesday, August 27
Today was another overcast and cool day, an unusual weather pattern for this time of year. As I waited for Maggie to get our of the v-berth, I cut up whole sheets of 320-grit and 400-grit sandpaper to quarter size sheets. I store each grit size in sandwich size plastic bags to keep them from getting wet.
 |
| I cut up full sheets of sandpaper to quarter-size sheets and store them in sandwich size plastic bags. I keep a supply handy for 80-grit through 400-grit sandpaper. |
This morning I looked at the companionway stairs while they were still in the cockpit and decided that five coats of varnish was enough. (I didn't think that adding one or two more coats would have made a significant difference.) We put the treads on the steps in the cockpit being very careful to align them. (The adhesive was very sticky!) Then, I assembled the hardware and installed the steps back on the boat.
 |
| The newly refinished companionway stairs in place. |
 |
| A close up view of the treads on the steps. |
Late in the afternoon, we pulled the dinghy out of the water for bottom painting. We cleaned the bottom simply using a brush and the fresh water hose and allowed it to dry overnight.
Wednesday, August 28
The sky was overcast in the morning and the chances of rain today are currently 20%. The rain clouds were gathering to our west. As the day progressed, the overcast sky thinned out and we saw some sunshine but it remained relatively cool (low 80's).
 |
| This morning's coat of varnish (the second) on the teak trim for the new panel lights and two teak electrical outlet plates. (The unevenness is due to the fact that I'm using up varnish from the bottom of the can.) |
Again, I cleaned the dinghy bottom this morning using a environmentally friendly cleanser (Simple Green) and a stiff brush. I also used Spray Away (which is not so environmentally friendly) in spots that I couldn't otherwise clean. For some reason the old paint was pealing off in blotches.
 |
| The previous coat of bottom paint was peeling off in blotches. |
I'm not sure what is causing this condition but the last time the bottom was painted was in Charleston and I know we allowed sufficient time for the paint to dry before launching. (The atmosphere was always very humid in Charleston--maybe this was the cause.) However, I'm thinking that it must be an incompatibility in the bottom paints. Unfortunately, I already purchased the bottom paint (AQUAGUARD--the same as I used in the Spring in Charleston) for this season. It HAS done a good job of keeping marine growth at bay.
 |
| We painted the dinghy bottom today and applied 2+ coats. We used one quart of AQUAGUARD bottom paint. |
An afternoon thunderstorm is expected--so, we will cover the upside down dinghy with a tarp to prevent water exposure before if is fully dried (about 15 hours at 80 degrees F per the instructions). Since we are leaving for places south in about six weeks, we will keep the dinghy in the water until we leave but we won't launch it until tomorrow afternoon (after 18 hours of drying time).
----------
I'm starting to feel the pressure of getting everything ready for us to leave in six weeks.
Thursday, August 29
We drove to Annapolis this morning. I had to have a blood test done and we had to drop some things (my drill press and portable work bench) off at our storage unit. We ate both breakfast and lunch in Annapolis.
----------
We decided to postpone the launch of our dinghy until tomorrow to give the bottom paint additional drying time since it has been cool in the evenings and during the night. (The curing time of the bottom paint is a function of temperature--the lower the temperature, the longer the cure time.)
----------
In the afternoon I pulled out the (Ethernet) cable that was intended to connect our two chart plotters. For some reason, it never worked. I've decided to keep the two chart plotters completely independent and I bought another (identical) map chip for the chart plotter in the navigation station. (Right now, I'm having difficulty getting the secondary chart plotter to recognize the new chart data.)
----------
More on our last minute projects next time...
Thanks for following our blog!
No comments:
Post a Comment