Readers share their thoughts and opinions
Letters
Email [email protected]
or write to us at the address on page 5.
Photos are appreciated, letters may be edited.Cheated and
mistreated
Q I was attracted to buy
November’s PBO by the cover
feature ‘Astern with a Long
Keel’ as that’s a problem for me
on my Wing 25. Imagine my
surprise when I discovered the
article was all about a vessel
fi tted with a bow thruster!
What next? ‘How to
manoeuvre going forward in a
vessel fi tted with a rudder?’
Keith GibsonApologies – space is at a
premium on the cover but it’s
no excuse for not being clear.
We did deal with reversing in a
long-keeler without a
bow-thruster in the article
‘Handling a long-keeler in
astern’ (Dec14) but perhaps
should have signposted it
better – EdThe acid test
Q In PBO October Mr Epton
wrote about using oxalic acid
instead of hydrochloric acidfor descaling the toilet in his
heads: rest assured, that’s
absolutely fi ne. Oxalic acid is
much safer than hydrochloric
(muriatic) acid and will not
attack steel, iron, plastic or
gaskets. It’s also excellent for
de-furring kettles.
It’s easily and cheaply
available on the Internet in
crystal form: dissolve a
tablespoonful in a litre of
warm (not hot) water – the
concentration is not critical –
pump it into the toilet piping,
leave for 10 minutes or so,
then pump it out and rinse
through with sea water.
Oxalic acid is also good for
de-furring engines, where
hydrochloric acid should very
defi nitely not be used!
Remember O-level
chemistry? To generate
hydrogen, add hydrochloric
acid to iron fi lings and watch as
it fi zzes away enthusiastically.
Apply a fl ame and get a mini
pop of an explosion. What is
my engine made of? Iron! OK,
there may not be much iron
dissolved in the short time theThe face that launched
a thousand ships
Q Helen of Troy might be “the face that
launched a thousand ships,” but I wonder if
she had anything to do with this ancient and
unique method of slipping still in use today?
I stumbled on this launching method in a
town shipyard at Ayvalik, Turkey, in the
northern Aegean not far from Troy itself.
Who needs straddle cranes or even
winched cradles if you have enough winch
power and turning blocks to haul out?
The sled is shod with oak and though this
pictured version has enough steel to
submerge it, wood is largely used in its
construction – almost enough to build a
Trojan horse in fact!
I’m sure boulders
would have been the
ballast in Helen’s day
and the ready
availability of
manpower in the
form of slaves would
have provided all the
pulling power.
O MoorhouseTwo blokes
walk into a
boatyard...
Q Two sailors walk into a
boatyard and one says to
the other, ‘Look... there’s a
woman taking the headsail
off your yacht!’
‘Genoa?’ he asks.
‘Nope, never seen her
before in my life!’
Kurt JewsonCarbon
monoxide
warning
Q On a few occasions while
out in Greece on our monohull
yachts we have had the
misfortune of being tied up
beside large catamarans or
motor yachts with generators
which have air conditioning.
In Greece as you know,
harbours are rustic and may
or may not have shore power.
In addition, these larger
yachts seldom seem to have
the correct cables to connect
to shore power even when it
is provided.
The huge dangeracid is left inside, but why use
an acid that will dissolve any
of your engine at all?
When using any acid, be
sensible: wear eye protection,
avoid breathing fumes,
ventilate well and
secure it well away from
children.
Alan Wilson (retired
chemistry teacher)Steel-clad
runners on sledSled is simple
and effective for
hauling outQ Is it just me or is
there a strong family
resemblance between
Vercingetorix of Gaul
and the famous yachting
author and journalist
Tom Cunliffe?
Ian GarnerTom Cunliffe comments:
‘I lost this photo of my old
grandad 30 years ago. It must
have gone with a boat I sold.
So glad to have it back.
Thanks, mate!’Separated
at birth?Vercingetorix