Edited By Mark Corke
Better Water-Tank Vent
Jim Hancock sends us this idea from New Zealand, where he and his wife, Eleanor, cruise aboard their Freya 39, Solstice. Solstice’s freshwater tank vented into the bilge, so when the boat heeled, water from the tank would siphon into the bilge. Jim’s solution was to buy an inexpensive off-the-shelf dishwasher air gap—a device that directs discharge water from a dishwasher into a sink drain. Hancock installed the air gap behind his galley sink and plumbed it into the sink drain. Now any excess water from the tank goes harmlessly into the sink drain pipe.
Super scrub
Derk Akerson sent this tip from San Diego, where he sails his Coronado 23 along the Southern California coast. His two-piece brush handle separated during vigorous scrubbing, so he added a paint-roller extension handle (available at any home-improvement store) to it to make a one-piece brush handle. Now he saves time and energy while cleaning his boat.
Easier outboard
To avoid having to reach over the rear stanchions of his Catalina 25 to raise and lower his outboard into the water, Arthur Ginolfi devised a simple and effective solution. He used a few plumbing fittings and pieces of copper pipe to make an extension handle that fits onto the top of the existing motor mount. The handle, which costs no more than $9, allows Ginolfi to ship and unship the motor with little effort.
Poop scoop
John Jacobs sails his MacGregor 26, Mustard, from his slip in Oriental, North Carolina, where seabirds constantly make a mess on the deck and furled sails. Bird droppings can be cleaned up easily if you do it immediately, but if you leave them for a few days they can be hard to remove.
Jacobs discovered that Lime Away, made for cleaning up hard calcified deposits in the bathroom, is perfect for cleaning the deck. You just spray the affected areas, leave it for about a minute, and rinse off with plenty of water. Most fouling comes right off without any scrubbing.
