A Keel Cooler Retrofit
July 23, 2012
Usually associated with long distance passagemaking, keel cooling remains a viable alternative for reliable diesel engine operation. Rather than pumping raw water into your boat
Usually associated with long distance passagemaking, keel cooling remains a viable alternative for reliable diesel engine operation. Rather than pumping raw water into your boat
Cavitation erosion (and the related erosion or impingement corrosion) is an infrequently discussed yet frequently misunderstood phenomenon that can lead to metal damage and failure. It can afflict everything from engines and generators to plumbing systems and propellers. Cavitation is the formation of voids or bubbles in a liquid that are a result of forces that act upon the liquid. Its important, however, to distinguish these voids from common bubbles as the latter contain a gas, often air, while the former contain nothing. That is, they are vacuum bubbles. Interestingly, the formation of the cavitation void is tantamount to boiling because the boiling point of a liquid drops as the pressure drops. (Its why mountaineers use pressure cookers; at a high altitude and therefore lower atmospheric pressure, water boils at a temperature lower than 212°F.) Thus, cavitation bubbles are essentially a result of low temperature boiling induced by low pressure. Cavitation may occur as liquid moves swiftly around constrictions and through orifices, particularly when such orifices change shape from small to large, as in water moving past a gate valve, or worse, through a partially opened valve. These conditions create a Venturi effect and the rapid change in pressure is conducive to the formation of cavitation bubbles.
Few boat accessories reveal past maintenance failures more than clear vinyl enclosures.
Smarter steering means frequent, but only short, glances at the chartplotter.
In an emergency, a properly maintained, easy-to-launch life raft can make all the difference.
Why we chose to build our dream version of a Selene 60 from the keel up.
Exploring the Utrechtse Vecht on the redesigned Elling E4.
Two decades after their first circumnavigation, Don and Anja Richards are crossing oceans again to help their son, Keith, kickstart his own cruising dream.
We caught up to the liveaboards at their winter roost in Southwest Alaska to chat about following your dreams and living a life less ordinary.
The gig is more workaday than champagne and caviar, and sometimes the harbor patrol saves our bacon.
How I learned to love the solitude and adventure of cruising with my canine companions.
A veteran sailor brings celestial navigation skills to a motoryacht’s transatlantic passage.
