Re: [Cal_Boats] Thru-hull Question (probably not my last!)

I took Cal 20 hull #471 in a Cal 20 "exchange". She had been left for more than 5 years in the west basin SF Marina. She had 8 inches of water covering the cabin sole. A rodent had taken up residence for quite some time. He left the sails alone. He ate the sleeping bag. In my quest to see if Argo had SS keel bolts and if they were still secure, I wiped across the channel and discovered that I had disturbed 4 screw holes that a former owner had drilled into the floor pan to secure the keel bolt channel cover. Water started coming in so I took sheet metal self tappers and stopped the leaks till I could haul her and marine tex 8 holes. A gallon of bleach and a lot of soap removed the rodent evidence. I varnished and painted below so the smell of fresh paint greeted me as I opened her hatch. Her keel had been well coated in FG so she did not show the rust that some other Cal 20's in similar neglect show. Nearly everything else went into the dumpster, berth cushions, boat tools,pfds, etc. Now on the hard in Berkeley she will be back in the water soon with her new rigging, cleaned up hull and deck, Her hull was not molested or painted and it came back well, her deck cleaned up with lots of work to remove 15 years of bird guano. the cockpit area may requirs some paint to restore the deteriorated gell coat. This is the 7th Cal 20 I have owned and each gets easier to restore! My Best, Mike --- On Fri, 7/17/09, Chris Campbell <cl… [at] charterinternet.com> wrote: From: Chris Campbell <cl… [at] charterinternet.com> Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] Thru-hull Question (probably not my last!) To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Date: Friday, July 17, 2009, 6:33 AM mike farrell wrote: I agree with your conclusion, A sea cock is a problem. It is old tec. Use good hoses and clamps and have plugs on board. I sailes a Hinckley Pilot for 17 years and I never closed the engine seacock for the reason you alluded to. I will at some time forget and starve the coolind system. On our local schooner, the engine starting key is kept on the cooling-water intake seacock when the boat is not operating, for the reason you cite. I share your appreciation for human frailty--almost every dumb thing that I've worried about doing, I have done in a moment of inadvertence, and then kicked myself for foreseeing it. But this system on the schooner has worked for almost 20 years, and we usually have about 5 captains sailing the boat. On that boat, all the thru-hulls have seacocks. One time to boat almost sank. A muskrat entered the exhaust outlet and chewed through the rubber hose. The engine happily dumped its cooling water into the bilge. The exhaust outlet now has a muskrat screen over it. Then a couple years back a mink took up housekeeping in the bilge over the winter. We now have mink screens over the companionways in the winter. Chris Campbell

--- In Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com, mike farrell <vectormenow@...> wrote: > > > I took Cal 20 hull #471 in a Cal 20 "exchange". She had been left for more than 5 years in the west basin SF Marina. She had 8 inches of water covering the cabin sole. A rodent had taken up residence for quite some time. He left the sails alone. He ate the sleeping bag. This behavior (the previous owner's, not the rodent's) always puzzles me. I view sailing as a sort of joint venture between me and the boat. I depend upon my boat to protect me in the hostile marine environment to which humans are not naturally adapted. It generates a sort of gratitude to my boat for keeping me alive and happy. I just cannot imagine abandoning a vessel. Boats are not like old tin cans or pop bottles, for goodness' sake. There will undoubtedly come a time when I cannot care for my boat properly or sail safely. At that point, my goal will be to place the vessel in good hands. It's part of the reciprocal obligation. Boat takes care of me; I take care of boat. Simple. Chris Campbell

You, good sir, are a hero. From: mike farrell <ve… [at] yahoo.com> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Friday, July 17, 2009 7:05:41 AM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] Thru-hull Question (probably not my last!) I took Cal 20 hull #471 in a Cal 20 "exchange". She had been left for more than 5 years in the west basin SF Marina. She had 8 inches of water covering the cabin sole. A rodent had taken up residence for quite some time. He left the sails alone. He ate the sleeping bag. In my quest to see if Argo had SS keel bolts and if they were still secure, I wiped across the channel and discovered that I had disturbed 4 screw holes that a former owner had drilled into the floor pan to secure the keel bolt channel cover. Water started coming in so I took sheet metal self tappers and stopped the leaks till I could haul her and marine tex 8 holes. A gallon of bleach and a lot of soap removed the rodent evidence. I varnished and painted below so the smell of fresh paint greeted me as I opened her hatch. Her keel had been well coated in FG so she did not show the rust that some other Cal 20's in similar neglect show. Nearly everything else went into the dumpster, berth cushions, boat tools,pfds, etc. Now on the hard in Berkeley she will be back in the water soon with her new rigging, cleaned up hull and deck, Her hull was not molested or painted and it came back well, her deck cleaned up with lots of work to remove 15 years of bird guano. the cockpit area may requirs some paint to restore the deteriorated gell coat. This is the 7th Cal 20 I have owned and each gets easier to restore! My Best, Mike --- On Fri, 7/17/09, Chris Campbell <clcampbell@charteri nternet.com> wrote: >From: Chris Campbell <clcampbell@charteri nternet.com> >Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] Thru-hull Question (probably not my last!) >To: Cal_Boats@yahoogrou ps.com >Date: Friday, July 17, 2009, 6:33 AM > > > > >mike farrell wrote: > > >>I agree with your conclusion, A sea cock is a problem. It is old tec. Use good hoses and clamps and have plugs on board. I sailes a Hinckley Pilot for 17 years and I never closed the engine seacock for the reason you alluded to. I will at some time forget and starve the coolind system. > > > > >On our local schooner, the engine starting key is kept on the cooling-water intake seacock when the boat is not operating, for the reason you cite. I share your appreciation for human frailty--almost every dumb thing that I've worried about doing, I have done in a moment of inadvertence, and then kicked myself for foreseeing it. But this system on the schooner has worked for almost 20 years, and we usually have about 5 captains sailing the boat. > >On that boat, all the thru-hulls have seacocks. One time to boat almost sank. A muskrat entered the exhaust > outlet and chewed through the rubber hose. The engine happily dumped its cooling water into the bilge. The exhaust outlet now has a muskrat screen over it. Then a couple years back a mink took up housekeeping in the bilge over the winter. We now have mink screens over the companionways in the winter. > >Chris Campbell > > >> > > >