Understanding all the systems and details

"It's the little details that are vital.  Little things make big things happen."

~John Wooden

On a boat, your systems are largely self-contained.  Your source of water is onboard, your "water treatment plant" is onboard, your electrical system is onboard, etc.  Since I am living on the boat, I decided it was important to understand all of these systems.

First on my list was the blackwater system (the head, holding tank, and all of the pipes and lines that connect them).  The goal was to identify the source and destination of every water line, hose, etc. in the system, as well as the direction of flow. Gregg and I opened all of the hatches and followed every hose to determine how the system worked from start to finish. We started at the head, and followed the system through each step in the process.  This idea came from a blog I follow:  The Boat Galley.

We labeled every hose with 3 pieces of information:

• Direction the contents travel (with arrows),
• From where the contents are coming,
• Where the contents are going.

We also walked around the outside of the boat to be sure we understood the purpose of each through-hull.

We did the same exercise with the fresh water system--but on a different day.

It's nice to know that if something goes wrong (or even while everything is going right), I understand how things are supposed to work and what each component does.  Here is a simple diagram I found online that helped me picture the fresh water system in its entirety before I looked at each component:

Click here for the source of the diagram

See if you can name each component in the diagram!  Some of them are a little tricky.

I presented this information to some women in the Four Seasons Yacht Club in this year's "Women in Boating" event.  We also shared tips and tricks in boating.  Jo Baehr shared how they use PINALEN in their black water system to keep everything clean and smelling fresh:

I asked Bill and Jo Baehr to explain how they use PINALEN on their boat, Dancing Baehr:  Add 1/2 gallon of PINALEN diluted with 1/2 gallon of water directly into the holding tank after each pump out.  They also put about 1/2 ounce into the head each day.   Warning: if you are putting this directly into your head, be aware that full strength pine oil causes slight swelling of polymers such as rubber impellers.  Since flushing it through your toilets will dilute it with water from the flush, this should not be a problem.  It will clean your head and your pipes, as well as deodorizing your tank.  

Pinalen can also be added to any standing water in the bilge.  This will eliminate odors (and kill bacteria), and it should not cause problems with bilge pumps because they have plastic impellers.  It can be dumped down any drain (showers, sump pump, etc.) to kill bacteria and stop odor.

I haven't tried this yet, but I plan to.  I'll let you know what I think.

In our area, you can find PINALEN at the Family Dollar store.  If you can't find it in your area, it is also sold on Amazon.com.  On Amazon, a pack of 15 (28 oz) bottles is $59.83.

It is a good feeling to know your boat inside and out--all of the big things as well as the little details!  Next blog--we started an engine!  More on that soon!