Oxalic acid

We had a problem with damp black staining on the washboards and bulkheads of Nighean Donn. Nothing too serious – no soft patches indicating rotted wood but at the same time it looked crap so started researching what we could do about it. A retired chemist, VicS, on Yachting Monthly forum was extrely helpful and suggested I try oxalic acid, which is an acid that occurs naturally in rhubarb. I first stripped off the old varnish using nitromors and then washed the bare wood with oxalic acid. (I had ordered a small tub on internet). The more often one washes the whiter the wood becomes. It is also important to wash off the oxalic acid after a short time as it will keep reacting.

Bulkhead before treatment

We were pleased with the results. Some staining can be quite deeply ingrained and it could be counterproductive to pare away too much of a thin veneer surace. Once the surface looked clean, we were happy enough to re-apply varnish and finish.

Bulkhead after ( with light shining on surface)

Air lock in diesel engine

This is basic but essential….

Couple of seasons ago, I had several instances of air lock problems with my Yanmar 2GM, resulting in the engine cutting out.  There is nothing quite like your engine cutting out to undermine the confidence of everyone on board! We try to do as much under sail as we can – picking up moorings and coming alongside when conditions suit – it is good practice for situations where you can not fire up the engine for whatever reason.
In every case of Mr Yanmar cutting out, the single cause was dirt in the fuel tank clogging the system. Every inboard engine should have a primary fuel filter located on the fuel inlet line from fuel tank to engine. The filter needs to be changed regularly – at least once a season and otherwise as required. When I changed the primary fuel filter in the situation described above, I noticed it was quite dirty. I also examined the secondary filter located on the engine block and found this less susceptible to dirt, possibly because the primary filter is effective. I gave the fuel tank a complete clean and spent a few bob on a good fuel funnel. The funnel I had prior to this had a coarse filter mesh and was pretty useless in removing contaminants. This one does the job properly.

Everything that goes into the fuel tank passess through this funnel at least once. Never had an airlock in the two seasons since. It is an eyeopener to see the amount of contaminants held on the filter. I have added a job to my winter mantenance list – drain down the fuel tank completely and give it a good clean out. Funnel stays in the stern locker and is available when fuel top up is required. And I try to carry a new fuel filter on board as a back-up.

Spiddal

Spiddal is called “Spiddle” on Chart 1984 and 3339. It is about 12.5 NM west of GBSC – it is usually a beat to get there! Takes us about 3 hours. Locations are shown on “Galway Bay on Google Earth” page of this blog.

There is a white/red/green light on the pier head which shows white on the approach, green inshore to the east and red inshore to the west. We have overnighted  en route to Inisheer but it is a drying pier with a sandy bottom so one has to do some tidal calcs. and approach near enough HW. Be prepared to dry out if over-nighting. The face of the quay is rough and is quite high if dried out. The alternative is to walk up the beach if tide is sufficiently low. The beach slopes quickly so the outer end of the pier is usually sought after. Pier is exposed to SE winds. Approach to the pier is straightforward if one approachs the end of the pier from a S to SE direction. Lovely sandy beach for the kids to play on, and a shortish walk to the village.

Here are some images of Spiddal Pier.
Spiddalinfo

Connacht Rugby

This is definitely a non sailing post!   (What we would call a bit of a divarsion – what harm!)

There are four provinces in Ireland. Three of them – Ulster Munster and Leinster have won the most prestigious european competion known as the Heineken Cup. The fourth province is our own Connacht. Sad to report we are trailing the others in the search for glory. We are also trailing everyone else in the Magniers league. We live in hope. However we are supporters loyal and true and we have recently come up with a plan. You might even call it a secret weapon. We have a carefully disguised wind turbine behind our own goal. When the opposing kicker tries to score at our end, see what happens……..clicky (just got to work on the referee a bit more…..)

Sailing with Kids

Off to Island Eddy for a barby!

Coming alongside at Morans of the Weir for lunch

We sail regularly with our three children, ages 1, 7, and 10. The normal routine is that the two older kids barricade themselves into the v berth forward and have a long wrestling match. Sometimes they will do something useful, if we succeed in making it interesting – keeping an eye out to leeward for a pot marker can be really useful sometimes! Laoise our eldest will helm and hold a compass course for a short period which is great if you want to pop down below for whatever reason. Most importantly they enjoy it, it gets them away from the TV, and we do things as a family where we put the emphasis on everyone being a good team player.
Ruairi our seven year old is great at depth watching on the speed depth log and will sing out whenever depth begins to shallow.
A general rule is that all children stay in the cockpit with lifejackets on. If they go down below, lifejackets can come off. They are not allowed stand at the stern or to go forward without permission. Often with another adult crew on board they will sit together on the coachroof and tell yarns and chit chat – enjoying themselves. They are well used to the motion of a boat and at this stage they really enjoy a brisk sail in say a F4 or F5 rather than a glide along without any heeling.
In bad weather, Louise will bring them below and get them colouring or reading in the main cabin. We say to ourselves we should keep the trips short so they will enjoy them, but honestly as long as a plannned sail is not conflicting with some other important social event on their calendar, (eg horse riding!) they don’t mind. As with any crew the skipper needs to display competence (most of the time!) so that they can relax and feel safe on board.

Kids just wanna have fun!

Sometimes we just take a spin out into the bay and go fishing for a few hours – often with a half dozen kids on board. They don’t need to go too far to enjoy themselves particularly if they are new to sailing and boats. Lots of eats and treats and it is almost as good as a birthday party!

Yachting Monthly have a discussion group on their site for people who sail with kids you can access it here

Going fishing July 08

Good Pals