Cruising gadgets, knowledge, and ideas for the cruising sailor
Essential boat items like a siphon hose, a bucket, screen material, and so forth.
I believe the ideal situation is to have a red LED light on the cockpit bulkhead that comes on anytime your bilge pump activates. Until you can get that done here is a solution that will carry you through. Install a “water alarm” in your bilge. These are very loud alarms that are made to warn you if you washing
» Read moreNo matter where you cruise you should make sure that you have a dive mask aboard in the event that something gets wrapped around the prop or rudder. I’ve had seaweed on my prop shaft that was like rope. It was about a quarter of an inch thick and four feet long. It cut our forward speed by half. Recently
» Read moreThis is a way for you to check your battery voltage straight from a 12 volt cigarette lighter accessory plug. It is more accurate than an analog volt meter. I’ve used this in my camper, my car, and my boats. It also lets you check the voltage at various plug around your boat to make sure you are getting the
» Read moreThis is a handy little devise used to start your diesel engine from down in the engine compartment. It can be used to bypass the solenoid on the starter, the starter button up in the cockpit and the ignition key. I’ve had each of these fail on different boats at different times. To use the starter button simply clip the
» Read moreI was at a recent Seven Seas Cruising Association GAM and I overheard a few ladies saying that they do not wear their wedding rings on their boats while cruising. I understand this because neither do I. Perhaps they don’t wear theirs because they don’t want to lose a diamond or damage their rings. I don’t wear mine because I
» Read moreNot long ago I had a few friends aboard and I had asked them if they could replace the plastic mounting handle on the outboard motor. This required that they drill a blank piece of plastic that I had brought for this. “Do you have a cordless drill?” was the next thing asked. I thought about it, smiled, and said
» Read moreTo store those small green propane bottles that you use for your grill, buy a 4″ PVC pipe, add a grating cap on the bottom, and a removable cap on top. You can get everything you need at the local hardware store. The bottom piece is a standard drain accessory for the 4″ PVC. The top piece is a 4″
» Read moreSunglasses Gadget There are many options when it comes to sunglasses. I now wear glasses that have some distance correction and are magnifiers for reading. Buying a pair of standard clear lenses and an additional pair of prescription sunglasses can be costly. The solution for me has been a pair of “clip on” sunglasses. I bought a pair to fit
» Read moreI think this would make a great gift for someone you know that is headed out on their boat cruising. It’s called “Garden in a Can”. It’s a self contained garden, all set to use. It’s a can (tin), soil, and seeds. It has a pop top lid. You open it, plant the seeds in the soil, water it and
» Read moreThis is perhaps less of a gadget and more of a “backup spare to carry aboard”. It’s a 3/8 inch Flare Both Ends union for propane fittings. This can replace your solenoid should it go bad while you are out cruising. My solenoid recently died on me. Fortunately, it happened just before a two month trip to the Bahamas. Had
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