You can paint your decks, replace
your rigging, do your internal woodwork
and painting, re-bed toerails and deck
fittings, service your engine: all at
anchor. Yes, you have to think carefully
about how you will dispose of your waste,
but it can all be done, by you, without the
added cost of dusty hardstands.
Darren once even fitted a sea-cock
while in the water. He took the boat up
a creek, moved all his gear over to the
opposite side of the boat to help lay her
over enough, then changed the sea cock
out. Brilliant!AVOID MARINAS
Sarean has not seen the inside of a
marina in over five years. Did I hear
some of you gasping?
Wonderful places to meet people, eat,
drink, be merry. Easy to get on and off
your vessel and great that someone will
come and catch your lines for you. Someeven deliver a daily paper! However, be
mindful, marinas also charge a premium
for fuel, so we prefer to find diesel and
petrol at a local supplier.
A marina berth for us is about $75 per
night. For a cat of our length it is $130.
No wonder people who spend a good
deal of time in and out of marinas find
cruising expensive.
Now this marina avoidance business
can vary depending on where you are
cruising: what is the coastline like, for
example. It may not be hospitable to
anchor out.
Luckily, because of the onboard setup
we have even if we did go into a marina
we probably would not even plug in.DO YOUR WASHING ON BOARD
We have been doing some big messy
boat projects, so in the past few weeks
I have been taking our washing to a
laundromat. Two loads of washingand drying has been costing around $26.
On a regular basis those costs would add
up. Also remember, as a cruiser, you may
not come across a laundromat for weeks
even months.
I used to shove my washing into a
lidded bucket, tie it to the deck and
go for a sail. Things would generally
have had a good old wash by the time
I got to my destination. Then I would
go through the process of rinsing and
wringing them all out. It was a ritual I
used to enjoy.
We have recently purchased a twin tub.
We like this as we can re-use the water
and it has a spin cycle. Bonus all round.
There are tons of options out there
and you can run them off a good
inverter. Watch your water and power
requirements when purchasing.USE LESS GAS IN COOKING
So this is a good tip, especially prior
to passages: I cook in batches.
We use a pressure cooker a lot as it
cooks quicker, therefore saving on gas.
I then freeze down the remainders or
use them up during the following weeks.
You can also get thermal cookers,
Wonder bags and solar ovens that will
slow cook your meal during the day.
I have a solar oven on my wish list, I just
do not know where I will store it as yet.AIR CON: DO YOU REALLY NEED IT?
So running an air-conditioning unit can
be really hard on your batteries, almost
impossible. Consider also the cost, noise
and smell in running a generator.
So some secrets we have found to
living without air-con is to create airf low
in other ways: install 12V fans; sew or
purchase windsocks they push through
a surprising amount of air; create shade,
I have sewn shade sail triangles which
we suspend over the deck.
We also have an awning that rolls out
of the side of the stack pack on the boom.
These two things reduce the heat through
the deck considerably.
Think about insulation. We are in the
last stages of putting insulation in behind
our headlinings, under the decks and
along the ceilings. Also thick curtains
and shade curtains on your windows
and hatches help keep heat out.64
Cruising Helmsman July 2018PRACTICAL
MAINTENANCE