Exhaust Wrap and Exhaust Leak (and Muffler)

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In early 2010, we knew we had an exhaust leak. Also, the shiny metallic coating on our exhaust wrap in the engine room was starting to disintegrate, regularly shedding small silver fragments all over the engine room.

Eric knew getting the exhaust wrap off to look for the leak would be be messy, since it was falling apart. Getting it back on would be difficult and even messier. We decided it was time to replace the wrap, and hired a professional to remove the old wrap, measure and fabricate new wrap, and install it. While the wrap was off, Eric could inspect the system and make the repair.

Rather than Continue reading →

November 2012 Update on Us

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Shelf Unbound Magazine featured our books in their October/November 2012 issue, which we were excited about. There is even an excerpt from Part 1.

We are also pleased to report that The Unexpected Circumnavigation Part 2 is now available at Amazon UK, Amazon France, Amazon Germany/Austria, Amazon Italy, and Amazon Spain, in addition to Amazon USA. Hopefully, Part 1 will be listed in the international stores soon, as well. (See the Buy Our Books page for a complete listing of where both books can be purchased). We’ll try to upload the books to Kindle soon.  

The new updated version of Voyaging Under Power by Denis Umstot has been delayed until late-December. Denis had asked us for some information that we believe he put into the book. We are very excited to be quoted in the “bible” of long range power boating!

On to personal news…Keith is now 8.5 months old, and developmentally speaking, he is doing great. He is either right on target or a little bit ahead of the curve in all areas. He seems to be able to do more and also understand more each day. It has been fun watching his range of skills and abilities grow. He is so proud of himself every time he accomplishes something new.

Right after we posted Keith’s six month update, he started making motions to indicate that he was getting ready to crawl. He still isn’t crawling yet, but he is on the verge. He gets on his hands and knees and tries to move forward, but just hasn’t quite figured out how yet.

He has been able to Continue reading →

Engine Mounts (and Main Bank Alternator)

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Last April (2011), we took Kosmos into a local boat yard, Driscoll, to have some work done. The two rear engine mounts had worn out, causing some vibration, the main house alternator was nearing the end of its life, and the a through-hull needed a new barb. Driscoll was supposed to replace the two back engine mounts, rebuild the alternator, and fix the through-hull. The work took two days. Christi was onboard all day both days, holed up in the pilot house working on The Unexpected Circumnavigation Part 2. Since the mechanics went in and out of the engine room through the hatch in the living room, they usually didn’t see her. But she heard them come and go, and heard every noise they made in the engine room, including their conversations. She noted exactly how many workers there were and how long they worked for. The labor hours totalled 11.

When the work was completed, Eric inspected it. The mechanics had forgotten to tighten one of the bolts on the engine mounts! And the alternator was not the same one they had taken to rebuild! The mechanics immediately tightened the bolt as Eric requested and apologized for the oversight, but both argued with Eric about the alternator, insisting it was indeed ours. For a good fifteen minutes, they swore up and down that Continue reading →

Moisture and Mold Issues

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When Kosmos was brand new, we were paranoid about developing a mold problem. After all, mold was a common issue on boats and we were traveling in the tropics, where the warm, moist air was a mold haven. But we made it all the way around the world without ever finding mold. (Well, there is one exception, when some sheets got wet and moldy after water got into a storage compartment located under a window).

Our first “real” experience with mold came in early 2010. In October of 2009, the weather turned especially cold and damp (by San Diego standards) and stayed that way through the spring. Around Thanksgiving, we started to notice occasional drops of water on the forward stateroom floor. Our immediate assumption was that the hatch was leaking. The next time we washed the boat we ran lots of water over the hatch, but it was water tight.

We paid more attention to where the water was coming from and noticed the drops were forming on the headliner. Oh no! Did we have a hull leak? Soon after, a storm blew in that brought heavy rain for a few days. We watched like a hawk, but there were no more drops of water during the rain as there were on days when there was no rain at all, so clearly it wasn’t a hull leak. We were baffled. If there was no leak, where were the drops of water coming from?

Eventually we realized that it was Continue reading →

Outfitting Kosmos For a Baby: Miscellaneous Useful Items

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A while back, we started a series on baby products for the boat. Since boats have limited space, one has to be choosy about what they bring aboard. Here is a list of fantastic baby products we wouldn’t want to live without:

Happiest Baby on the Block DVD by Dr. Harvey Karp – the techniques are for calming down screaming infants. They really worked for Keith, as long as there was not something physically wrong making him scream.

Halo Swaddle Sack – swaddling was wonderful for helping Keith to sleep for the first five months. We could never get it right with a regular blanket, but the swaddle sacks made swaddling easy. We chose the Halo brand because you can position the arms so they are in or out (or one in, one out) and change diapers without taking the sack off. Here is Keith at 4.5 weeks with his arms out.

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