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Saturday, August 30th

A New Head

A major project was completed this week. We have chosen to replace the toilet and holding tank systems with what is called a composting toilet. There are a number to choose from, each with their advantages and disadvantages. We decided on the AirHead toilet.

The project involved removing the toilet and lowering the platform, all of the plumbing and the holding tank. The holding tank was a 40 gallon rubber bladder under the salon floor. The toilet comes with a vent hose and fan. I chose to extend the vent hose run to the back of the boat and use an existing vent rather then cut a new opening. This meant adding more hose and fabricating another fan and fan housing to accommodate the extra distance.

The new toilet is taller then the old which is why I removed the built-up platform making it the same height. It is also narrower without having the pump mechanism. We gained a lot of storage space in the area under the salon floor and the top of the keel.

Will keep you posted on how it is working out.
Dale on 08.30.14 @ 09:46 PM EDT [link]

Wednesday, August 13th

Upgrades

We made some major upgrades to our electronics this spring. We had a Standard Horizon 150 chart plotter. We replaces that with a Raymarine e125 Multifunction Display. This display interfaces our new electronics and our existing Raymarine ST60+ instruments. We also added the Raymarine AIS650 transceiver with a dedicated antenna on top of the mizzen mast. Also on the mizzen mast we replaces the older radar dome with a Raymarine 18 inch HD Radome which interfaces with the multifunction display. All of the parts network together and, surprising to me, worked the first time I turned them on. I added a RAM mount attached to the mizzen mast to allow the display to swivel and be seen from a wide area of the cockpit. We did keep the Standard Horizon chartplotter mounted in the nav station as a backup. More upgrades are being planned.
Dale on 08.13.14 @ 11:14 PM EDT [link]