Ask Sail

“Our Hunter 34 has a 25-gallon fuel tank. We’d like to add a 20-gallon tank so we won’t have to carry jerry cans on deck. I estimate the two tanks will be about a foot apart. What is the best way to hook up the second tank so air can’t get in the fuel line? I’d like to avoid having to pump fuel from the new tank into the old one when it gets low. Unfortunately, there isn’t enough room to install

“I’m rewiring my Cal 2-27 and have reviewed the advice given by Don Casey in his Sailboat Maintenance Manual. He mentions grounding the green wire of an AC system to the engine’s ground terminal, but I’m not sure where to put the green wire on my engine, an outboard with an electric starter and a 6-amp alternator. Do I even need one if I install ground-fault circuit interrupter (GFCI)

“The 20-horsepower Yanmar in my Orion 27 has low hours, but last summer it began to stop about a minute after it started. When I tried a restart, it was clear to me that it was being starved for fuel. I bled the fuel line, and, when I saw air bubbles coming out at the secondary filter, I thought I’d fixed the problem. But when I let the engine sit unused for a couple of days, the start/stop

“I’m about to install an antenna farm on the horizontal arch behind my boat’s cockpit and am wondering whether the antennas need to be placed on the arch in a particular way. Are there guidelines for proper antenna location?”– Dave Richardson , Winnetka, IllinoisGordon West replies: You should do several things. First, if possible mount the radar antenna

“Many experts recommend that cruisers carry extra shrouds and stays. To save space, I’m thinking about carrying Spectra line as a backup. Does the idea have any merit?” — Kim Barr , San Francisco, California Win Fowler replies: In theory, Spectra or Dyneema line—both are high-modulus polyethylene—will work fine as standing rigging in terms of breaking

Betsy waves me over as I jump off the stern of La Mouette, our chartered Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 453, into the warm waters of Cooper Island’s Manchioneel Bay. My mask and fins are already on. Betsy has found an octopus hiding against a rock shelf; it pulls an empty conch shell over itself when I get too close. I follow a couple of stingrays over to a reef where I spy a school of sergeant majors,

The rapid evolution of communications technology in the last decade has meant that more of us are able to keep in range of a regular cell phone. We asked many of the entrants in the 2006 ARC transatlantic rally how they planned to stay in contact with those back home and received a variety of answers. Here we describe what systems were chosen and why, and explain some of the

By Charles MasonBefore you do anything else, compile a detailed list of all the projects that need to be done before the boat goes back in the water next year. Detail each item as carefully as possible and take photos and measurements of the project area so you can use them when ordering materials and in planning work sessions. Make this list when the boat either is still in

By Leah WelchI am a novice sailor. I took one sailing course in college and earned an Ohio Division of Watercraft license (the equivalent of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary’s America’s Boating Course). It was only recently that I decided to make sailing my lifestyle and began researching ASA (American Sailing Association) and U.S. Sailing schools. Like most working Joes, I had

People with disabilities are leaving their limitations at the dock. Organizations like Newport, Rhode Island’s Shake-A-Leg, the first to offer adaptive sailing, are helping them access sailing. You don’t need sailing experience, gear, or even money. All you need is a desire to sail. For an interview with John Ross-Duggan, click here