Life On The Hard - Splashing

Getting her ready to lift - I hate this part

November 13th
We splashed today! We splashed today!  We are back in the water!!  Woo Hoo!

Tom painting the bottom of the keel with Pettit Trinidad Pro

Heading for the water

Almost there

And SPLASH!!

Backing up to let the captain hop aboard

In she goes

Update November 12th
Floating again feels SOooooo nice.  Natural.  We both sleep like rocks last night.

Life On The Hard - Shiny

Shiny

November 11th
Two guys showed up Saturday morning and worked polishing s/v Honey Ryder all day.  They also prepped (lightly sanded) the bottom for the new paint.

Like a mirror

Sink thru hull

They were back Monday morning to apply two coats of bottom paint.  Work rates are very reasonable here in Trinidad.....not cheap but good quality work for fair prices.  We opted to have the sides polished and bottom paint done professionally verses doing it ourselves.  On our previous boats, we have always done the work ourselves.  However this means buying a lot of equipment such as paint trays, roller handles and rollers, sander, sanding paper, polisher, cleaner, wax, etc.... and where to store all that mess until the next time we need it.  No, the extra we paid to have professionals do it, we saved by not buying all that.  Next time we may do it ourselves.  We'll just see.  And there was still plenty to keep us busy.

Special care to protect the new paint job

No more dead crabs in there

Tom putting the final touches on the newly cleaned prop

New zinc and cleaned up shaft

We did discover 1/2 of our line cutter is just gone.  It's a custom size so we will have to order one and have it shipped to us someplace here in the Caribbean.  This can be added while in the water but it remains to be seen just how easy that task will be.  Oh well.

Life On The Hard - Rudder Bolts and Black Gold

Front two bolts are corroded

November 7th
As Tom started working on the prop and rudder he did find a couple of surprises.  The first was a dead crab.  It had crawled into the space between the rudder and the keel.  We think it climbed in when it was little and then enjoyed the small barnacles in there.  However, after feasting on those, it grew big and couldn't get out.  Additionally and more concerning were that two of the four rudder bolts were very corroded.  These are stainless steel and should not have corroded.  Further investigation suggests stress corrosion.  Thanks John B for your insight on this.  Tom replaced all four with beefy new stainless steel.  Going forward we will keep a very close eye on these for wear.

New bolts

We continue to get questions about the awesome bottom paint that has lasted for 4 1/2 years.  Tom was able to call the Florida boatyard that put it on.  They have great records and showed it is Pettit Trinidad Pro. We promptly ordered the same again.  Bottom paint is very, very, very, very expensive.  It is important to get compatible or same paint to put back each time....hard bottom paint needs to be covered again with hard bottom paint or ablative paint back with ablative.  Mel at Majestic here in Coral Cove was able to procure some Pettit Trinidad Pro ($350 US dollars per gallon).  I know!  Pure gold!

Black Gold

All the stuff that marine creatures don't like

Turns out bottom paint in a very personal thing.  One boat will have a great experience with a particular bottom paint and the next will have a terrible experience with the same paint.  It seems prep is the key to making bottom paint work.  Additionally, conditions the boat is kept in make a huge different - salt vs fresh water, cold weather vs tropical and active use vs sitting for months on end in a slip or mooring.  Ultimately, this Pettit Trinidad Pro (our new gold standard) really seems to rock on our bottom.  Maybe I should be a rep for Pettit Trinidad Pro as I could have sold several gallons this past week given the excellent shape of our hull after 4 1/2 years in the water and number of cruisers that came by to take a look.  Hum?  

Life On The Hard - Yard Life

View of the yard from the cockpit

November 6th
Up the ladder, down the ladder.  Shoot!  Forgot the scraper.  Up the ladder, down the ladder.  And so on and so forth.  Most of this has been Tom.  As you saw from a previous post, I have been sick during all this.  I wasn't even proper deck fluff, just sickly, gross and fairly useless.  ugh!  FYI - for those of you that don't know that term Deck Fluff = a common boating term used to describe a woman or group of women who's sole purpose is to look good in a bikini on ones boat (deck).

Across to our neighbor

Our sun and rain covers in place

Jackstands and Spanish windlass

Tom put on a couple of Spanish windlass for added security

Life On The Hard

Tom getting everything set up

November 3rd
There is an understand among sailors for those On The Hard.   A kind of sympathy if you will.  Everyone has to go through it at some point.  We all know who is on the hard, who has just been hauled, those out a little longer, those that have been on the hard for an extended period, and those few who have been out for years and will probably be on the hard for a few more years.

Yesterday I was talking with Claudia of s/v Inti.  She was giddy with anticipation of splashing today after two months on the hard.  While I was nervously excited to get hauled out.  Several times today we exchanged knowing glances and encouraging smiles.

Tom quickly set up a proper workbench

Others in the yard have already started stopping by to officially meet and welcome us to "the yard".  We are now part of the clan living on the hard.  However, chats are brief.  Long conversations are a big no no.  Everyone has work to be done on their own boat.  The sooner the work gets done, the sooner we can all be floating again.   Everyone is encouraging about being on the hard, the projects, the progress, the setbacks, the struggles and such.  When you get splashed (put back in the water) everyone celebrates with you.  

s/v Honey Ryder and neighbors s/v Out of Africa

As in the water, cruisers on the hard help one and other.  It might be a special drill bit or tool or something as simple as helping secure a ladder or assistance with lifting something up into the boat or down from the boat.  

Hauling Out

Waiting in the haul out slip

October 27, 2014
We are now on the boat yard schedule to get hauled out of the water for a bottom paint job and full polish of her top sides.  While out of the water we will be livingaboard or "on the hard" as it called. Sailors do not like living on the hard.  It's...well....hard.  Actually, pain in the arse would probably be a better term.  We will have to climb a ladder each time we want to get on or off the boat.  We will be limited on the use of our water and more importantly the thru hulls that allow grey water to drain.  Our heads are salt water flush into a holding tank so we will be using the bathhouse exclusively.  Some people get hotel rooms while their boat is on the hard.  This time around we plan to stay aboard so we can keep an eye on everything and monitor....everything.  Additionally we will be working on projects while we get the bottom painted.  Imagine that!  Make no mistake, boats are designed to be in the water and sailors are designed to live on boats in the water.  Anything else is unnatural and just plain weird feeling.

Stay tuned for updates from Life On The Hard.

Travel lift moving into position

Update Monday November 3rd.  

Early this morning we maneuvered carefully out of our slip and the short distance into the haul out slip where Tom expertly backed us in and then we waited.  Sometime after 9:30 the yard fired up the travel lift and adjusted the lifting straps for s/v Honey Ryder.  The Travel lift operator came down and asked Tom the specifics of our keel and rudder.  Soon the lift was backing into place around s/v Honey Ryder and the straps were moved into place.  Uh-oh - the normal diver was no where to be seen.  Never fear, the lift operator himself stripped down to his skivvies, grabbed a snorkel mask and jumped into the water to check the placement of the straps himself!  In the process he spent twice as much time as I've seen the diver spend.  Satisfied that things were in place, he climbed out of the water and took his position driving the lift - still soaking wet in his skivvies.  How is that for customer service!  Thanks Blair.  Slowly s/v Honey Ryder rose out of the water.  Gulp.  Picture your home up in the air in a big sling being maneuvered around.  Double gulp!  It may have looked cool in the movie The Hunt For Red October when Big D - the submarine Dallas flew out of the water but NO boat owner digs having their boat out of the water!

Straps in place

OMG - please be careful

Despite being the water for 4 1/2 years, the bottom didn't look too terribly bad.  Whew!  No surprises. Ok, the prop, shaft and strut were all pretty crusty but the overall hull was in really good shape.  (4 1/2 years on the same bottom paint people!)  So much so that other sailors keep asking what type of paint we have on there because it's lasted so long.  Problem is, we don't know.  We never got that info from the yard that did the bottom 4 1/2 years ago.   The yard guy did a quick scrape down with a drywall spatula, easily removing the small barnacles hanging on.  Tom couldn't stand it and joined in on the scraping fun.  Then the yard guy did a super power wash.  Finally we were ready to move to our new home On The Hard.  7 jack stands later we are set.  Let the fun begin.
 

Looking great after 4 1/2 years on the same paint

 

Minor small barnacles

Ok -crusty

Ahhhh - nice power shower....who doesn't like that

Tonight Tom is climbing up and down the ladder cooking dinner.  He is grilling hot dogs on our little boat grill on the ground.  Next door and all around the yard we see the glow of lights on inside various boats as people try to carry on livingaboard while On The Hard.

Our temporary home On The Hard

Solidly set