Winter Onboard in Annapolis

—Blogpost written by Bob 

This blogpost covers the last five days of 2020.  Along with almost everyone else, I'm glad to see the end of 2020!

Sunday, December 27

The outside temperature got down to 25 degrees F last night and we could tell inside the boat.  The reverse-cycle heater worked very hard to maintain the 72-degree temperature we had set.  I have a feeling that we will be able to use the reverse-cycle heater for only a few days longer.  Therefore, I set up the second shore power cord this morning so that we have plenty of capability for using the two oil-filled radiators at full blast. 

Both shore power cords were cold and
inflexible--very hard to coil nicely.

As I connected the second power cord, I smeared the electrical connections with dielectric silicone grease since we have had a couple recent situations where we momentarily lost electrical contact--of course, both of them were at night while I was in the v-berth trying to sleep.  The outside temperature was predicted to reach a whopping 40 degrees this afternoon!  It may have seemed like I was keenly focused on the cold weather--in fact, I was!

In the afternoon we watched some NFL games--we got the sound from our satellite radio and the pixelated intermittent picture from our TV.  It certainly wasn't the best football watching experience I've ever had.

Monday, December 28

Our main goal for the day was to meet with a potential buyer for our slip in Baltimore.  On the way back from Baltimore we stopped at PetsMart for what we call "princess food" for Lola.  We also bought a new shore power cord--a 25-foot long cord was all West Marina had in 30-amp.  (We usually use 50-foot long cords.)  The 25-foot/30-amp shore power cord worked fine for our slip here at the city dock.  I picked up a replacement connector for the one end of the old 50-foot shore power cord that no longer worked.  When we got back to the boat I replaced the faulty connection.

The black connection was all charred inside
the old shore power connector
that connects to the boat.

The black wire and its screw connection were completely charred, apparently from arcing.  I got a good look at the actually connection inside the plug and each one clamps onto the boat's connection through a sort of spring action.  It is difficult to understand how arcing could have occurred unless the connection was simply overloaded with all the heaters that we are using to keep warm.

Each time the cable failed it was during the compressor startup cycle for the A/C which could have occurred at the same time our battery charger was loaded by the fridge compressor or while battery conditioning was occurring.

While I had the old cable nearby I experimented with various cleaners on the dirty old cable--acetone seemed to work the best but I didn't take the time to clean the compete old cable (which will be a project for another day this week).  While acetone cleaned the best, it left the cable covering feeling sticky--the "stickiness" would have to be removed somehow.

The outside temperature was truly a balmy 53 degrees when we returned to the boat in the early afternoon!  Heaters were the furthest thing from our thoughts at that moment.  After the last several days of damp cold weather, I finally felt warm for a change.

Tuesday, December 29

The outside temperature was in the mid to upper 30’s this morning, quite a reprieve from a couple days ago when it was in the 20’s.  Still, everything we touch (like computers, iPads, cell phones, etc.) felt cold.  Cavities within the boat (like under the quarter berth, shelves in the pantry, etc.) were cold as well.  (This past weekend, my blood glucose meter was too cold to be operational and it was stored under a shelf in the navigation station.)

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The data cable between the fridge compressor and the fridge control panel failed (again) sometime during the night—I believe the problem was a loose connection on the circuit board that the data cable plus into.  (This was the second failure within three days!)  So, we had to pull apart the forward half of the quarter berth for access.  This time, I applied more dielectric grease and actually tied the cable to the circuit board using a black plastic zip tie.  (I realize that the use of a zip tie seems a little like a “Rube Goldberg” though I would like to think of it more as a “MacGuyver”.)

The black zip tie I added to hold the data
cable to the circuit board is shown
in the center of this image.

If the failure keeps happening, I will have to replace the circuit board.  The tiniest bit of movement of the compressor (when it starts or stops) causes the loss of electrical contact at the data cable.  Fortunately, it was cold enough outside that refrigeration was not completely necessary last night.  In any event, it was working after the "temporary fix."

We had New York strip steaks and salads
for lunch (our main meal of the day).

We had a little outing this afternoon, driving to Jo-Ann’s Fabrics and then Home Depot (for batteries).  We had intended to go to Trader Joe’s but there was a line outside almost a city block long because of allowing just a limited number of customers (maybe a couple dozen) in the store at any given time because of COVID-19.

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The temporary fix on the fridge data cable didn’t last very long—only a couple hours in fact.  (I think that the zip tie held it too tightly to the compressor.)  So on our second attempt to fix it today, I removed the zip ties I added earlier and applied electronics cleaner and a lot of dielectric silicone to the connection.  (I also contacted the local rep for SeaFrost to check if they have the replacement circuit board in stock.  I’m sure they are closed for the holidays.)  I could easily cause it to disconnect by gently touching the data cable—so, this repair was just temporary for sure.

Sure enough, the first time the compressor went off (probably because of reaching its set point), the data cable disconnected—it was within 10 minutes.  After several attempts, I couldn’t get the plug to work unless I held pressure against it.  Finally, I tied a very small zip tie around the cable and another (longer) interlaced one to pull it down against the circuit board.  This was the only way I got it working again.  (We’ll see how long this temporary fix lasts.)

Lola inspect the forward section of the
quarter berth before re-assembly.

Even though I just recently swore off alcohol, I had a (skinny) margarita to celebrate our successful fridge repair.  (What I call a "skinny" margarita is one made with Baja Bob's sugar-free margarita mix.  It still contains tequila and triple sec though.)

Wednesday, December 30

As I woke up this morning, I felt unusually warm because it was already somewhat warm outside (34 degrees F at 7 AM)—it’s all relative.  A weather system was on its way from the south, bringing with it rain and warmer temperatures for Thursday and Friday.   It was just beginning to get light outside and the morning’s sunrise was absolutely gorgeous, with pink and purple hues.

The outside water temperature was 40.3 this morning--it's getting pretty close to that magical 40 degrees where we won't be able to use our reverse-cycle heat!

I made myself a cup of green tea in my new thermally insulated mug (I bought it yesterday at West Marine while I was getting a new shore power cable.) as I waited for Maggie to wake up.

My morning cup of tea in
my new cup.

On our agenda for the morning was grocery shopping so that we avoid a more crowded situation at the grocery store tomorrow.  Also on our agenda was retiring our reverse-cycle heater for the season in favor of two oil-filled radiators.

We decided to postpone retiring our reverse-cycle heater for the season based on a discussion I had with our boat neighbor today.  He has a temperature sensor mounted on his water intake seacock that was reading 43 degrees while the nearby weather buoy (located at the mouth of the Severn River) was reading just below 40 degrees.  We attributed the difference to the shallower water in Ego Alley.

Regardless of the plan for the reverse-cycle heater, I increased our electrical needs by adding another 30-amp service with the harbormaster's office (an additional $120 per month cost) since this change had to be made on a monthly basis.

While we were out and about today, we refilled one of our propane tanks.  We are keeping three 10-pound propane tanks on board during the winter while normally we carry only two.  A ten pound propane tank last us just short of a month but if we use the propane fireplace, we burn through it at a much faster pace.  The reason for the three propane tanks is that if we lose electrical service (power outage due to snowfall or burn up a another shore power cord in the middle of the night) we would have to use our propane fireplace for heat.

Thursday, December 31 (Last Day of the Year)

The outside temperature was an unbelievable 50 degrees F at 7 AM.  We were using one oil-filled radiator on the medium setting and our reverse-cycle heater set at 72 degrees but the reverse-cycle didn’t even come on during the night.  (Our boat is naturally warmer than most due to the balsa-cored construction of the decks and hull.)

One of the very small projects I decided to undertake today was replacing the rubber (I think they are constructed from neoprene) o-rings for the three water fill connection caps.  I ordered the o-rings (PERKO part number 0513DP8) a couple days ago on Amazon.  

New o-ring in place in port water
tank fill cap.

The o-rings on all three caps were simply old and not vey elastic any longer.  I have never replaced them previously in the 34+ years I’ve owned the boat

I made measurements for the o-rings before installation so that next time I replace them (in another 34 years?) I wouldn’t have to pay a premium price for them.  The inside diameter of the groove the o-ring must fit into is 1.765 inches while the diameter of the rubber o-ring itself was measured at 0.100 inches.

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I was able to top off our fresh water tanks today since the Harbormaster’s office will probably be closed for the upcoming holiday weekend starting tomorrow.  Since we have been doing a lot of cooking (and dish washing) on board, we seem to be using more fresh water than normal.

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One of the projects that I never got around to accomplishing this past summer (adding insulation under the v-berth) I now wish was accomplished.  The area under the v-berth is cool and moist (from condensation) which probably adds to our onboard moisture problem.  I should learn from this experience and not postpone my efforts simply because it would take a long time to realize the benefits.

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I got involved in a project I didn't plan for today--repairing our little vacuum cleaner.  After disassembly I determined that the shaft was bent on the little motor that drives the rotary brush.  When the motor came around to a point the belt, the motor drive would spin and not move the drive belt.  At this point I determined that I would need a new little motor, a new belt, and several  other new parts. 

 

This image was captured from a YouTube video
since I couldn't take a photo of myself
with the vacuum apart.

This vacuum is currently not available from the manufacturer, though some parts can still be obtained.  After searching online, I found an identical used unit on eBay for $80--I bought it since the parts I needed for the repair would cost about the same amount.

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COVID-19 has been with us for one year to the day, as we again reach daily records for death tolls.  Yesterday, the daily death toll due to COVID-19 in the U.S. was a staggering 3,740 people.  As we close out this year, the daily death toll will probably increase substantially before the vaccine's distribution is wide enough to curtail the virus.  Hang in there and stay healthy!  Happy New Year!

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