Haul out specific questions

[boatsisboats]

Hey all.
I am hauling for the first time with a new (to me) Hallberg Rassy at Clarkes Court in Grenada.
I have a general checklist of what to do's, but have some specific questions for people with experience.
To complicate things, I may be back in Mid-March to put her in OR December 1.

1) do I change the oil in the Volvo and Generator each with only 40 hours on them? Or would you leave them?

2) the yard only has 50hz power, so we cannot plug in (need 60hz). Do I leave my solar 'floating' and charging the 12v and 24v banks? or shut them down. If shut down, how to I not let them run down to 0? Just disconnect them?

3) do you like a dehumidifier (not sure this is available)? or will crystals suffice? DO you like a dogged hatch?

4) would you put up the boat cover considering, you might have to pay to have it removed for hurricane season?

Thanks very much!

[S/V Illusion]

Originally Posted by boatsisboats

Hey all.
I am hauling for the first time with a new (to me) Hallberg Rassy at Clarkes Court in Grenada.
I have a general checklist of what to do's, but have some specific questions for people with experience.
To complicate things, I may be back in Mid-March to put her in OR December 1.

1) do I change the oil in the Volvo and Generator each with only 40 hours on them? Or would you leave them?

2) the yard only has 50hz power, so we cannot plug in (need 60hz). Do I leave my solar 'floating' and charging the 12v and 24v banks? or shut them down. If shut down, how to I not let them run down to 0? Just disconnect them?

3) do you like a dehumidifier (not sure this is available)? or will crystals suffice? DO you like a dogged hatch?

4) would you put up the boat cover considering, you might have to pay to have it removed for hurricane season?

Thanks very much!

In reverse order, ask the yard if they will remove a cover if a hurricane goes through.
Ventilation is the only reliable way to minimize moisture inside.

Don’t know how you would install solar panels over a cover. Just disconnect the batteries.

It’s not worth changing the oil after only 40 hours. Any acid will be minimal.

We’ve left our boat in Antigua over a season - not a problem. Just choose a good yard.

[LittleWing77]

Originally Posted by S/V Illusion

It’s not worth changing the oil after only 40 hours. Any acid will be minimal.

Nice boat!

Funny how preference and opinion will govern, eh?

While I was reading, I thought, "well, the recommendation is oil change every 50 hours, so might as well do it while on the hard..."

I suppose the owner would also know when the last oil change was, so depending on how long ago that last filter/oil change was - that would provide the best reference, I suppose.

That said, as the boat will be sitting on the hard for a time, I would change the oil and filters just before splashing if it were me.

Fair winds,
LittleWing77

Oh yeah - and disconnect the batteries.

[dougweibel]

LOL - as LittleWing says, preferences.

If you think you may be off the boat for near a year I'd do it before leaving the boat. My mechanic has always advocated storing with fresh oil as old oil may have moisture and contaminants in it you'd rather not have sitting in the engine.

On the solar panels, assuming you are not planning to remove them and the boat cover does not cover them then leave them connected. We live half time aboard and leave our boat for 2-5 month periods and I have always left the solar connected. My batteries stay happily topped up in my absence. If the yard requires solar panels to be removed in case of hurricane then that may negate this.

We have used crystals and they help, but will be spent long before a year. If you have access to plug a dehumidifier in to shore power and can pick up an inexpensive unit, go for it. Rig it to drain into a sink and be sure to leave the sink seacock open.

[garychurch]

Do not assume you cannot use 50hz. Check with an electrician.

IMO the problem with 50hz versus 60hz is the motors will run slower and may heat more as a result.

If it doesn’t have a motor I wouldn’t be concerned.

You may want to check with Budget Marine or Island Water World in Grenada and see if you can find a converter that changes 50 to 60 and plug in what you need to run with 60hz.

Good luck.

[stormalong]

Originally Posted by garychurch

Do not assume you cannot use 50hz. Check with an electrician.

IMO the problem with 50hz versus 60hz is the motors will run slower and may heat more as a result.

If it doesn’t have a motor I wouldn’t be concerned.

You may want to check with Budget Marine or Island Water World in Grenada and see if you can find a converter that changes 50 to 60 and plug in what you need to run with 60hz.

Good luck.

Frequency change is not easy. Check your battery charger - many modern chargers can take 50 or 60 Hz and 110 or 220 volts input. And will the yard allow it to be plugged in while you are away?

Buy a dehumidifier locally but only if you are sure the yard will keep it plugged in. Will the yard check your boat periodically? How will you handle the condensate? Can you set it up to drain into a sink or will it have to be pumped overboard?

Just drain the oil. Be sure to replace it before start-up. Hang your keys on the dipstick. Put a big note on the generator start button.

Take your sails and boat canvass down. Reduced windage in case of a hurricane and keep the canvass out of the sun while you are away.

[LittleWing77]

Originally Posted by dougweibel

LOL - as LittleWing says, preferences.

If you think you may be off the boat for near a year I'd do it before leaving the boat. My mechanic has always advocated storing with fresh oil as old oil may have moisture and contaminants in it you'd rather not have sitting in the engine.

Thanks for that, Doug!

Hadn't considered that perspective. I was thinking, 'well, the old oil is just going to drain to the bottom of the engine and sit there for however many months... might as well change everything out just before the engine is actually about to to be used.

But of course, any moisture and/or contaminants could contribute to internal corrosion - especially in the heat of the tropics....

Great tip - tanks! +1

(Oh, and thanks to your mechanic.)

[Exctyengr]

I have not had the experience of laying my boat up for an extended period. However, I am an aircraft mechanic and would never even think about leaving an engine for any period of time without oil, especially in a tropical climate. Get ahold of Dennison Berwick's book Marine Diesel Basics (basically diesel engines 101) he gives a step by step instruction on page 122 on how to lay up your diesel (change oil & filters, change transmission fluid, slacken belt tensions, etc.)(BTW the book is $13.00 at Amazon).
One of the dangers in laying a boat up for an extended period in another country is that you really don't know for absolute certainty when or even if you will get back. Pandemics, political unrest or your own health may interfere. So, take my advice and take Berwick's recommendations.

[boatsisboats]

Thanks all, I really appreciate your thoughts!

While at Clarkes, we do not need to remove solar panels, but I do believe that they require removal of canvas covers for the hurricane season.

We can buy or rent a dehumidifier from Island Dreams. And they will do guardianage for the boat. That's once per month - to check everything.

I have asked around and everyone looks stupified when I ask about a converter from 50Hz up to 60Hz 110v. Will need to look into this. Can't imagine that a lower cycle will hurt AGM batteries, but I'm no electrician.

The Volvo and Westerbeke books want an oil change every 100 hours. We are at 40. I may leave it for now and have Palm Tree change it if we cannot make it back this Spring. I do agree that old oil is bad to leave in, but I can't understand why no oil is also bad?? I will buy the Dennisen Berwick book now!

Thanks all.

[flyingfin]

Never change the oil after you haul the vessel, you need a few hours on the new oil to circulate within a hot engine. And if you are leaving it for more than 4 months, make sure you fog the engine just before it gets hauled out. And stuff all places insects can enter your vessel with rags or fiberglass insulation. And stick a sock over the engine air intake. Wasps love to build nests inside your boat.

[hpeer]

We have left our boat in a yard in Florida one season and Grenada 3 seasons, not Clarks Court but I hear they are all about the same. So my comments aee about a different yard in Grenada.

1) do I change the oil in the Volvo and Generator each with only 40 hours on them? Or would you leave them?

NO OPINION.

2) the yard only has 50hz power, so we cannot plug in (need 60hz). Do I leave my solar 'floating' and charging the 12v and 24v banks? or shut them down. If shut down, how to I not let them run down to 0? Just disconnect them?

AS NOTED MAY WORK ON 50HZ, ADAPTORS JUST CHANGE VOLTAGE, NOT FREQ. I DOUBT YARD WILL LET UOU LEAVE POWER ON ANYWAY.

3) do you like a dehumidifier (not sure this is available)? or will crystals suffice? DO you like a dogged hatch?

STEEL BOAT, I LEQVE FLOOR BOARDS UP, NO COVER, NO PROBLEM WITH HUMIDITY. PRETTY DRY IN GRENADA.

4) would you put up the boat cover considering, you might have to pay to have it removed for hurricane season?

I WOULD NOT, iMPEDES VENTILATION.

Thanks very much!

Make sure you know where they will place you. If the soil is not rock hard the damn crabs make caves. More importantly if you see crab holes the soil is not stiff enough to hold your boat in a big rain.

Yard space is at a premium. So they will probably lift you with a travel lift but then transfer you to a trailer. That is how they shoe horn the boats in so bloody close. I can frequently hop from boat to boat.

Even then I have had them move my boat and put in in a spot where the stands sank and were picking up my rudder. AARRRGGG!!!

I was used to leaving the solar on. Last season I got back the batteries were stone dry. Ruined.

Don’t expect them to do anything they say they will do without you standing over them with a mallet. I saw a guy pissed off because they billed him for checking his batteries on a regular basis but when he got there they had not been maintained and were ruined.

I know one gentleman who is offering “guardianage” services and I would NOT trust him, he is a BS artist.

In general the consensus of opinion was that while they CAN do good work it is bloody hell getting it done. You need to be prepared to assert yourself (throw a fit). It seems I need at least one fit per layup.

RATS, we got infested with rats. Make sure they can not get into the boat. With me they dropped in the through the hawse pipe, then multiplied. The “exterminators” did almost as much damage as the rats. NOT womething you want to come back to. What a damn mess!!!!!

Feel free to ask specific questions.

[boatsisboats]

Hey @flyingfin What does 'fog' the engine mean?

@hpeer Thanks for all of the real talk. I like it! Will watch where they put her, yes they also use a trailer after haul. Still looking for a decent battery solution. Seems the crux of this whole thing! Don't have a lot of confidence in guardianage, but don't know an alternative.
My 2000 HR doesn't have a hawse pipe in the traditional sense. Do you mean where the chain goes down into the anchor locker? Maybe a high mounted electrical hole? All food will be removed!

Thanks very much!

[hpeer]

Yes, down through the chain hole. I had taken the chain out in prep of doing some work when I got back. I think they got in through that hole.

But they can squeeze in through remarkably small spaces.

There were rat droppings all over other boats but ours was the only one inhabited.

If nothing else they will climb up the tie downs. So there is no keeping them off the boat. Keeping them OUT is the goal.

As to batteries... it is a tough one. I have never had this problem before with the exact same set up. I don't blame the yard for my problems. Perhaps the best thing to do is use inexpensive GC batteries and budget to replace them. Then if they survive you are ahead.

I revived my 4 GC batteries only to have them die 3 months later in Guadeloupe. It was surprisingly hard to find GC batteries and they cost $220 each. Not including the car rental to go get them and then return the old cores. A full day PITA.

But in the grand scheme of things not a biggie. We are in paradise (or were).

[boatsisboats]

@hpeer
Thinking about rats on the hard. What about dorades? We have 8. Wondering if that is a real concern.
On the batteries. They are all AGM and would not do well without a trickle over a possible 8 months. Don't know what to do about that. Especially considering the lower Hz.

Thanks again!

[hpeer]

I think it depends upon the dorade. My GUESS is my rats dropped through an open hole about 3 feet into the boat. So I think dorades are a vulnerability.

I would assume air holes in traditional dorades would be small enough to keep them out, unless they gnaw through. Then they have the screens. We have Vetus mushrooms type dorades and they have SS bits to gnaw through. But we leave the dorades open for ventilation.

BUT, just in talking about boat storage in general....... we had squirrels build nest in our mainsail one summer and put some damn big holes in it. No clue how to guard against THAT!!! Nor have I heard anyone else complain of a similar problem.

But the critters are everywhere. We have a hunting cabin: mice and squirrels. BUT also BEARS. Bears adore RV antifreeze. And during dry summer months they will get into any water storage we have. And for years they would climb the power pole and blow the fuses. I wrapped electric service feed with fiberglass insulation, the he nasty itchy stuff, but the GROUND HOGS just munched right through it.

When buying underground electric and communication cables you can specify Gopher Proof Cables that have a layer of steel wrap. Does not always work.

Mostly it is a rare problem, but I mention it in connection with Grenada because we just experienced it there.