Odds and Ends

15 March 2021 – Odds and Ends

We have been suffering with an erratic tachometer for nearly 20 years. I know these things are expensive, but I asked the local Volvo dealer to give me a price on a replacement one. It was going to be 450 euros. Now, to put that in perspective, when I bought the engine in February 1993, it cost me $10K CDN, plus taxes. I cannot bear to spend 450 euros ($671 CDN) or nearly 7% of the purchase price of my engine on a single tachometer. Alternatively, I bought one from an online company, parts4engines.com and they supplied a generic substitute (which works just fine) for about 75 euros. I had to install and program it myself, but it meets the requirement.

Diane and I have been working on refinishing our cabin sole (the floor) for nearly a month. The original floor is a laminate, made by Pergo, that I bought in Home Depot and installed circa 2001. Over time, the floor has been chipped, scratched and dented and it has become increasingly difficult to cover this up.

The solution we came up with was a four stage effort: 1. crack filling; 2. sanding; 3. staining; and sealing. For the first stage, crack filling, I chose to use a two-part polyester putty, made in Turkey and commonly used for automotive work.

This seemed to be a good product to use, easily sand-able and stuck well inside the cracks and dents in the floor.

The next step, staining, was Diane’s responsibility. She used a foam brush, and this water-based light coloured stain commonly used for decks and outdoor wood. She brushed on two coats of this stain, with 24 hours between each coat.

This photo is of the forward cabin, after two coats of stain on the “removable hatches” and one coat on the remainder of the floor.

We realized that the best way to do this project while actually living on the boat, was to first coat the removable hatches, put them back in place and then cover the remainder of the floor. This way, we could get around from one end of the boat to the next, while stepping on the hatch panels. It made life a little awkward for a few weeks, but it was a good project to undertake while COVID-19 restrictions were in place. This is the Turkish made glossy urethane that we used.

This is the hallway by the engine room after staining, and then after urethane finish – to show the difference with the original floor.

We are closing in on the last portion of this project, and are just painting the last remaining area now – the aft cabin floor. In this case, we decided to make a ramp (using one of our existing fender boards) so that we could walk in and out of the aft cabin – even with a wet floor.

We are very pleased with our floor renovation, and once the carpets are down – it looks super.

On another topic, last week we went for a short road trip to Antalya to visit our friends Wayne and Christine, and their “boat under construction” MÖBIUS. MÖBIUS is an aluminum motor yacht, 78 foot LOA, being built in the Antalya Free Zone by Naval Yachts. It is quite the vessel and well worth exploring their website to learn more about the yacht and they myriad of systems that are involved.

Also, I would be remiss if I did not mention that Diane made us a “key lime pie” for Valentines Day. It was clearly the best key lime pie I’ve had in years! She did a great job using local products, including fresh limes.

We go to the fresh market every Friday morning, and I thought this photo of Diane sampling cheese (we both did) was noteworthy. Masks have to be lowered to taste!

We have all sampled “Turkish Delight” at various times, but last week at the market – we bought 2 kg of absolutely fresh Turkish Delight. Wow it tastes so good, and fresh. It was not the “filling remover” sticky-gooey candy we have had in the past. It was rather like a blend of marshmallows and a crunchy bar – with dozens of different flavours. To me, it looks odd, perhaps “unappealing” – but it is very, very fresh and tasty.

Another project that has come and gone is new ZINCS. We have 7 zinc anodes on JOANA, to protect the hull from galvanic corrosion. One of these anodes is on the rudder, and rarely need to be changed. The other 6 need to be changed every 12-24 months, depending on the circumstances. When we left Canada 12 years ago, I had a supply of these custom anodes, but had more made in Pangkor Malaysia 3 years ago. Now, looking forward into time, I envisioned even more required, so I had 24 made through the local chandlery. Kemal arranged to have these cast at a foundry in Izmir Turkey (Turkey has almost 1500 foundries) at a price of 320TL (even cheaper than in Malaysia) and notably less than the 690TL we were quoted in Antalya. It pays to shop around.

A final item of interest is the Turkish truckers. I frequently see them stopped by the side of the road having lunch. I’ve never noticed this kind of behaviour amongst European or North American truckers. They seem to eat fresh, every day.