It’s been a few days since our last update but we are still here working. We are plugging along, working almost every day, making progress. We are still working on thru hulls, moving some, eliminating others. Bob started working on the autopilot, the rudder reference unit and compass are installed. We removed the autopilot drive motor, rewired it and reinstalled. We installed ventilation in the generator and engine areas. Tanya has been working on the instruments, among other things. We’re making progress with the fridge. We had the muffler welded to fit the generator. We are also rebuilding our expensive LED interior lights which have started to fail after seven months of intermittent use. And as always…refinishing the wood…

Still working on thru hulls:

Thanks Sis:

Dad grinding on the hull:

Repositioned cockpit bilge pump outlets from way down on the stern to upper outboard area:

Opening up the autopilot motor, most of the wiring was old, unused and disconnected:

Rewired and ready for installation:

Generator ventilation. This fan will pull hot air out of the compartment:

This fan will bring fresh air into the generator compartment for the diesel engine intake and the actual generator intake. Once we install the chain plates and finish up in there, we will install the ventilation ducting:

These two fans will do the same for the engine compartment. Fresh air in, hot air out. We are waiting until all work is done in there before we install the duct work:

Tanya has been hard at work mounting the instruments:

Fantastic job:

Looks great!

Chart plotter:

Simrad NSE 8:

Still plugging away at the fridge. The fridge project is turning out to be overwhelming, I really underestimated the amount of time and effort required for this project. It’s coming along. Dividing wall is in, freezer on left, fridge on right:

Two part epoxy primer, I’ll paint it white tomorrow:

We opted for a Frigoboat keel cooled system. We have been working with Mark of Great Water Inc. in Brunswick ME. Here is our custom bent evaporator plate that Mark made up for us this morning. I dropped it in as soon as we got back, it fits perfectly! Thanks Mark!

We decided to reuse our old engine muffler for the generator but it was 1/4 inch to large. We took the muffler to a local shop and had the intake downsized and re-angled to better fit the generator. It came out perfect:

We have been trying to decide what to do with our interior lights. We bought some nice LED red/white lights and they worked well but only for a short time. After about seven months of intermittent use they all started to fail. Instead of replacing the lights we are gutting them and installing sockets and LED bulbs for a fraction of the cost. We are also changing from red to blue for night lighting. More on this when our parts arrive:

Don’t go away, more later!