Sailing
One of the arguments for switching to Dyneema chainplates has been cost. Today we got a more concrete idea of the costs of replacing roughly like for like. So Cherry Ripe a Rival 38 (but aft cockpit cutter) (see Sailing Beyond Borders) has had to have custom replacement chainplates made
Plans
Last night we decided to make some plans for where we want to cruise when we start living aboard after retirement in a few years time, after all that was the goal right from the beginning of this journey with Vida and Sustainable Sailing. I will be writing those dreams
Plans
So this follows on from our thoughts about Scandinavia since we have been inspired by the YouTube channels who have been there, including the need to burn diesel to stay warm, despite our aims of being at, or close to Zero Carbon footprint sailing. It takes into account the restrictions
Appliances
In Our Scandinavian challenges part 1 I covered the time/permission complications of getting to spend time in the fantastically beautiful (and remote) parts of Scandinavia and the Baltic given the impact of Brexit. I ended with "In part 2 I’ll look at the other key challenges these
Environmental
For a while now we have been watching YouTube Videos that have made us want to sail the Norwegian Atlantic coast and visit some of the thousands of islands and Fjords, we have also long fancied visiting the Baltic. Particularly: * Juho with Alluring Arctic has spent two years spent entirely
Environmental
Following our post Transforming waste with DIY Plastic recycling we have made some progress. Our son is going to build-up the machines we need and get the processes for shredding and injection moulding sorted for us. That will include getting some products built for sale with Sustainable Sailing branding. The
Environmental
We watch a lot of Sailing channels on YouTube, watch boat reviews and boats for sale as well as reading lots of articles. So as we look at so many different boats the questions comes to mind: Do we feel Boat Envy? Or if we were choosing again would we
Generation
From the beginning we have been planning Solar panels fitted to the guardrails. We have seen lots of boats with Solar Panels attached to the guardrails. However, as we are wanting to have zero fossil fuels we need more solar than most. We have gone for Victron 175 watt panels
Plans
Today I have had a couple of really helpful and thoughtful comments from Jacob. So much that I think it worth responding with a post. In Dyneema Termination and Chainplate update Jacob wrote: Having extras in the case of the DIY tangs, is a good idea. I do not mean
Appliances
While we wrote Going 100% electric: the “house” after Going 100% electric: the Motor we had in fact made most of the decisions around the house electrical system before we made the decision that we would go straight to an electric motor instead of the diesel. Now we are thinking
Environmental
I recently found this product: The AnchorRescue II which looks like an excellent option for being able to trip your anchor if needed without all the problems of using a traditional trip-line to a buoy (tangles, other people picking it up etc). It is good that it is a 2nd
Environmental
In a number of my Dyneema rigging posts I've referred to using HDPE to reduce friction and chafe where dyneema comes into contact with the mast or the deck. I'd found a straightforward supply of HDPE as rods and sheets at Direct Plastics. However, we have