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Project Log:  Friday, March 14, 2014

In the head, I decided to install the large waste pump, seeing no reason not to get it out of the way.  Installation was straightforward since I'd already laid out and prepared all the holes required.  I used 1/4" machine screws with fender washers on the outside, since operation of this pump would stress the bulkhead and the pump's fastenings.  Access to the pump through the nearby access opening was excellent.


Included with the kit was a rubber bellows and trim piece, which I installed over the pump handle from outside.

    

To get a sense of the finished space, and also to temporarily "store" the unit till final installation, I dry-installed the plastic access hatch in the panel with a couple screws.  I chose the latch-down orientation because I thought it would be the most water-resistant, with the hinges facing up.  To hold the hatch open, later I'd add some means of securing it to the bulkhead above.


Other than seam caulk, paint, and final plumbing installation, the head compartment was complete, and for the moment I moved on to other tasks, starting with some hardware installation on the foredeck.

To service the forward water tank, located beneath the v-berth, I needed a tank fill nearby.  Much earlier, I'd purchased one that shared its appearance with those back in the pilothouse, though for this one I planned a separate (internal) tank vent rather than the integral vents like those used back in the pilothouse. 

To locate the fill, I started belowdecks, and drilled a small pilot hole through the center of the old tank fill's location, which I'd patched during early stages of the project.  Back on deck, I found that the pilot hole wasn't quite where I wanted the fitting to be centered, so I adjusted slightly as needed before drilling the large hole required, centered in the V shape of the nonskid pattern.  The pilot hole worked out well as one of the three fastener holes required.


Next, in the usual way, I marked and overbored the three fastener locations, removing core from these areas, and also removed the coring from around the large hole before masking around the opening and the mounting flange of the tank fill itself.

         

To service the eventual saltwater washdown pump, I found an interesting flush fitting for the purpose, which incorporated a spring-loaded mechanism and a special hose adapter.  To use the fitting, and access water, one simply pushed the adapter into the fitting, compressing the spring and allowing water flow.  Removing the adapter would stop the flow.  No taps needed, and the fitting had a clean profile.


I located the hole for this fitting just aft of the water tank fill, and in line with it according to the outboard edge of the nonskid pattern.  I prepared the mounting hole the same way, removing core from the areas directly surrounding the opening and the fasteners.

         

One of the reasons I selected an older Ideal Windlass for my first personal foray into the world of windlasses was stuff like this:  these hefty bronze housings that protected the wiring for the foot switches.  Things like this exude good design and engender high confidence.  These would mount to the switches from belowdecks, allowing future access if needed.  Because their bolt patterns and mounting flanges were the same as the switch plates themselves, I used these for layout purposes since they were more convenient to work with than the switches and their mounting plates themselves.

    

Belowdecks, I made a measurement from the water tank fill to the chain locker bulkhead, so I could transfer the bulkhead's position to the deck.  I wanted the foot switches to come through in the chain locker, where the wiring would be hidden and protected.  Allowing plenty of extra room, I determined 10" to the bulkhead, and made a mark on deck.


Striking a perpendicular line to the centerline of the boat, approximated off the raised center portion of the foredeck, I determined the positions for the two foot switches.  Once happy with the position, I marked the centers of the holes with a pencil.

    

With a hole saw, I cut out the holes as needed, then prepared them as with the other openings, removing core and preparing the fastener locations before outlining the mounting flanges with tape.

         

With all the openings prepared, I masked over the holes from belowdecks (only the large holes went all the way through the decks; the drilled openings at the fastener locations only went as far as the inner skin), and installed a thickened epoxy mixture in the fastener holes and around the perimeters of the through-deck holes, protecting the core beyond from water intrusion.


I thought it would make life easier if I pre-wired the foot switches on the bench before installation.  While there'd be decent access inside the boat, dealing with small terminal screws overhead in an awkward space was something best avoided whenever possible.  So I installed wire pairs to each of the two switches.  My first go-round, with sheathed 2-conductor cable, proved that it was too hard to snake the flat cable through the bronze nut at the bottom of the housing, so I switched to individual wires, leaving enough slack for eventual routing to the windlass solenoid that I'd later mount nearby.

The first photo shows how the housings and switches eventually work together, with the deck in between, and the second photos shows all the components ready for final installation.

    

We wanted some sort of sturdy, permanent boarding ladder, as the overall design of the boat, with her high bulwarks and coamings, made ingress and egress to a dinghy more challenging than on some boats.  Over the years, I'd determined (probably) that the best bet was going to be a permanent ladder mounted to the transom, but how exactly to configure this--and then have it built--required a mockup.  I thought maybe I could build a "ladder" out of plastic pipe to serve as a realistic template for the final thing.

To start, I made some basic measurements to determine a ladder width and tread spacing that worked, both with the shape of the canoe stern and with the eventual landing points on the caprail.  It looked like about 16" between vertical rail centers would be good, with a 12" tread spacing, so I prepared various pieces of pipe to the appropriate dimensions, using T connectors to put them all together into a 4' long starting section. 

         

    

This was the easy part.  The hard part would be determining the design of the top section, and how to mock it up (if it was even possible), and how and where to land hull supports for the lower section of the ladder.  I played around with my little ladder section for a while, attempting to visualize the next steps that I'd continue soon, but for now the day was done.
 

Total Time Today:  6 hours

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