Getting the Boat Ready for Big Blue – Part II

Two Simple Rules

October 1, 2022

Every avocation seems to have lists of things that cause you to cringe just a little when you hear them, but at the same time nod in agreement because you know they are absolutely true. One such list from my former life is the three most useless things in aviation: the runway behind you, the altitude above you, and the fuel you left behind. My favorite such quip that applies to our upcoming adventure offshore is “the two simple rules of sailing”, keep the sailor on the boat and water out of the boat. Two thoughts that seem simple and direct enough but actually command quite a bit of forward thinking and preparation to successfully execute on in potentially threatening circumstances. Case in point, if you spring a leak somewhere can you stop or slow the flow quickly enough. And just as importantly, do you have the capacity to get enough of it out to keep you on the water rather than in it? 

I discovered a Navy study on a snowy day last winter that outlined the rate of flooding from a 1 ½ inch hole 3 ½  feet below the waterline. I’ll spare you the math of how they got to the rate, but the result was startling to me. The flooding rate for a hole that size, which is the almost exact size and position of our knot log mentioned in an earlier post, is 82.4 gallons per minute. Seawater weighs 8.6 pounds per gallon, so in just ten minutes at that rate of flooding, you’ll add 7,000 pounds of weight to the boat. Not good Mav! So getting the boat ready – part II is all about pump capacity (getting water out) and damage control (keeping water out) or at least slowing the flow.

Rejoice came equipped with two bilge pumps when she was new and that is what she still had when we bought her. One is an electric Jabsco 10.8 gallon per minute pump that is meant to keep up with the minor drips and small leaks that are part of every boat and a manual Whale Gusher 30 pump with a capacity of 31 gallons per minute (if operated by a motivated crew member) positioned at the helm. All in, we had 42 gallons per minute of dewatering capacity, and only 11 if stuck below. We needed more and a manual pump capability belowdecks if forced there by weather and had no power to run an electric pump. We added a PATAY SD 90 Bosun pump below the forward cabin sole hatch by the head that added an additional 21 gallon per minute manual pumping capacity below and a portable 12 volt submersible sump pump with alligator clips that we could quickly connect to our starting battery to add additional passive pumping capacity of 23 gallons per minute. We now have a total capacity with two crew and two electric pumps pumping of 85.8 gallons per minute – better.

Clearly the message of the Navy study though was that, at those rates of flooding, you need to find the hole pretty quickly and plug it, then pump out what you can when you can. Enter damage control. We spent a great deal of time studying the most probable ways that water might get into the boat and established procedures and fixes for dealing with each. The result was a thru-hole diagram that we post in several places in the boat for immediate reference and very complete damage control kit that has everything in it from underwater epoxy, plugs, hose wraps, to pre-cut and drilled plywood patches. If you’d like to know more about the specifics of the kit or plan, drop me a note and I’ll get them to you, but the Storm Trysail Foundation and a company named SeaKits who sell well prepared damage control kits are two great places to start.

Lastly, we installed a high water alarm that sends out a piercing signal if the Jabsco bilge pump isn’t keeping up and we have a bigger and faster water intrusion problem that we need to deal with. With two crew sleeping and one at the helm, we might not notice there is a problem till the floorboards are awash. We’d like to know sooner.  This alarm’s sensing unit is mounted just a bit above the bilge pump activation switch which will let us know if we have rising waters early in the flooding evolution and in a very dramatic way. There will be no sleeping through this alarm! 

So there we have it. There have been a year’s worth of other things, but you get the picture. The mission has been to prudently prepare the vessel for sea and be able to, as best we can, independently deal with what may come. With preparation comes confidence, but I like the edge a certain level of thoughtful uneasiness brings. My life training reminds me that, “Nobody who gets too damned relaxed builds up much flying time”(Fate is the Hunter, Earnest K. Gann).

 I’m officially underway and posting this from my first stop in Rockland, Maine. Though I already miss family and friends it is really nice to be done with never ending lists and preparations. its nice to be on the move! See you again once a little farther down the coast. Cheers!