Enjoy lots of pure fresh water from your own onboard system Issue 28 : Jan/Feb 2003 As we cruised across the Pacific between Mazatlan and New Zealand, one of the most frequent topics of discussion was...
Taming the lazarette and unplugging the drains Issue 31 : Jul/Aug 2003 During nine years spent sailing a 25-foot Yamaha sailboat in the waters of the Puget Sound, I have found space to be at a premium...
This technology means no holes in the hull or deck Issue 31 : Jul/Aug 2003 My solutions to the problems, concerns, and mandates about marine toilets had been to use a Porta Potti and a few jury-rigged...
How to shower without having a shower aboard Issue 32 : Sept/Oct 2003 A cruiser friend once said about her first trip up the Intracoastal Waterway, “We had to stop at a marina every few days for showe...
Issue 32 : Sept/Oct 2003 Paint this picture in your mind: You are at sea after dark, the waves are a bit more than you like, and the shaft packing is leaking. It’s not life-threatening. The automatic ...
More reach, more height in the galley sink Issue 36 : May/Jun 2004 I love the foot pumps in my galley. Not only do they provide precise control over water consumption, they allow the use of both hands...
How to put that water back outside where it belongs Issue 39 : Nov/Dec 2004 There is an enormous variety of bilge pumps on the market. Some are electric, some manual, and some are belt-driven from the...
Warm water without the usual hassle Issue 41 : Mar/Apr 2005 Here’s a shower idea I incorporated into the updating of our 1973 Bristol 30. Since I was building new galley counters, I installed a ...
Spray away and be the envy of the anchorage Issue 41 : Mar/Apr 2005 At the bow of our boat is a silver-dollar sized fitting with a screw-on cap that evokes envy from fellow sailors almost every time w...
How a naval architect shapes the boat’s bathroom Issue 42 : May/Jun 2005 As any sailor knows, the term of sailing ships when men were men and the crew’s rude toilet was a hole open to the seas, right ...
An automatic cycle counter for next-to-nothing Issue 47 : Mar/Apr 2006 Living in Colorado, with my Pearson 424 tied up in New Bern, North Carolina, I sometimes awaken in a cold sweat, wondering if my ...
Refining the boat’s most important plumbing system Issue 47 : Mar/Apr 2006 We have all had that experience: you complete a project, feel justifiably proud, but as you live with the results you realize...
Now it’s easy to get to the pump strainer Issue 51 : Nov/Dec 2006 On my 1973 Bristol 30, bilge access was not very good. When I purchased the boat, there was only a Whale Gusher 10 pump in the cockpit...
Simple solar-heated system is gravity-fed Issue 57 : Nov/Dec 2007 It’s known as the “Shower Dilemma.” Most pocket cruisers and older boats are not equipped with the luxury of a hot, freshw...
Know how much water you have — at a glance Issue 62 : Sept/Oct 2008 Water tanks are located in the nether regions of the boat and are covered by bunks, liner pans, access hatches, and all the stuff th...
Food-safe epoxy makes potable possible Issue 65 : Mar/Apr 2009 At the end of a two-year search for a fixer-upper cruising boat, I acquired a Pearson Vanguard, hull #142 built in 1964. I found her in a...
Captive bolts mean freedom from worry Issue 69 : Nov/Dec 2009 Like many boats from the early 1970s, my Hallberg-Rassy Mistral 33 was originally fitted with bronze gate valves. They were mounted direct...
The less costly route to water independence Issue 72 : May/Jun 2010 When we decided to transit the Panama Canal and head across the Pacific, we knew we would face a problem that had cropped up occasio...
Vegetable oil fixed one, the other remains Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 My usual motto, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” has served me well in many life experiences but has never been the best strategy t...
Installation, operation, and maintenance Issue 73 : Jul/Aug 2010 In the May/June issue of Good Old Boat, Randy Baker described how to build an inexpensive reverse-osmosis watermaker. In this second an...
A large PVC pipe eliminates odors Issue 74 : Sept/Oct 2010 During a recent trip to southern Florida, I spent two enjoyable afternoons walking the docks. I use these opportunities to chat with sailors ...
No more muddy souvenirs to foul the foredeck Issue 74 : Sept/Oct 2010 Nothing says you need a washdown system quite like hauling up an anchor and rode full of black goop that attaches itself to the an...
Faster discharge from flooding waves Issue 74 : Sept/Oct 2010 My boat’s original cockpit drains were adequate for a rain shower or a light wash-down but often became partially blocked with one thing o...
Storing life’s essential element Issue 78 : May/Jun 2011 Water is necessary for living aboard a boat. Since a gallon of water weighs 8.3 pounds, full water tanks can be very heavy and should be instal...
A homemade filter keeps the cabin sweet Issue 80 : Sept/Oct 2011 Boating equipment retailers offer dozens of chemicals to make your head smell fresh. We tried them all in our attempts to eliminate the...
A cruising family installs the Air Head Issue 80 : Sept/Oct 2011 While debating a return to the continent after nearly six years in the Caribbean, we tried to imagine the changes that would force us t...
Its irregular shape dictated DIY Issue 82 : Jan/Feb 2012 My 1986 Pearson 28-2 had a rubber-bladder waste tank that had seen its day. After being filled and emptied many times since it was installed, i...
Unsuspected chafe could have sunk him Issue 87 : Nov/Dec 2012 Sailors are well aware of the danger of chafe to sails, halyards, mooring lines, anchor rode, and various and sundry other pieces of equip...
A little elevation keeps the toilet base dry Issue 88 : Jan/Feb 2013 I have seen quite a few marine toilet installations where the presence of even a little amount of salt water has caused green stain...
