We are in the middle of our shake down cruise. We’re testing what works, what needs work, and coming up with a list of things to buy. We left Shilshole Marina in Seattle a few days ago, stayed one night in Parks Bay on the west side of Shaw Island, then crossed the border into Canada. We’ve been enjoying the very calm and protected Bedwell Harbour nestled between North Pender and South Pender Islands.
Our rigid solar panels are wired in. It took us about a half day to run all the wires from the panels into the boat, through tiny holes under the floors and walls, but we got it done. The result is amazing. Even in this Pacific Northwest overcast weather, we’re regularly pulling in 200 watts. The highest we’ve seen so far was 830 watts with the sun mostly overhead. During the day, 200 watts is enough to cover our general electric uses like the refrigerator, electronic navigation systems, and Starlink. We’ve also charged our electric dinghy motor battery, as well as run the water heater, the microwave, the dehumidifier, and our little electric heater (yes, its cold enough at night to still use the heater a little) all off of our battery bank. Then we’ve watched our solar panels re-charge the battery bank. All in all, the newly installed electric system, lithium batteries, and solar panels are working great! I can’t wait to install our remaining 4 flexible solar panels to see how quickly we can re-charge our battery bank. Mark will be making a post in the next couple of weeks detailing the full electrical redesign project and some practical use metrics.
We have finally completed organizing all of our storage spaces and things. Great news – all our stuff fits! This includes all our dive gear for all kinds of water temperatures. We have 4 pairs of fins, 5 wetsuits, 2 skins, and 2 drysuits stowed away, just to mention a few things.
As for the watermaker repair project – 2 steps forward, 1 step back. We replaced the boost pump with the newest version that should be less maintenance and longer life, and retrofitted the plumbing to the manufacturer’s (CruiseRO) latest design. It works great, but we now have uncovered the next problem. The membranes are shot, and appear to be completely clogged with salt/scale. After some phone calls and troubleshooting with CruiseRO, we have new membranes shipped out and additional retrofit pieces to update our setup to the latest design. Typical boat project…
We’re spending a few more days up here cruising in the Gulf Islands (Canada) and San Juan Islands (US), then we’ll be back at Shilshole to continue working on projects! Even though we’re working during this shake down cruise, we’re also finding time for fun and exploration. Today we hiked to the top of Mt. Norman (800 feet elevation) in the Beaumont Marine Park on South Pender Island. The park is part of the Gulf Islands National Park Reserve. The views were spectacular!
Thanks for following us along, more to come soon about our final departure from Seattle!
Lovely update! Pics look amazing, enjoy it!
Yay! Good to see you out there, enjoy!
This is awesome! Can’t wait to see Mark’s electrical update. We have been talking about going solar as well, but have been overwhelmed with options and it’s been hard to tell what really works.
Wishing you a safe shakedown voyage!
Glad to read there’s a “shake down” cruising trip – both of you are thinking of everything possible. Those solar panels are doing a great job! Great work installing those!! And I love those seals -so inquisitive!!