I know this is a sailing forum but...

Mar 28, 2017
48
American Tug 395 Newport
...I’m bored so.
Tom rewired his boats electrical system this year and now I’ve done some wiring too (and some plumbing and ...)
The project here was the installation of a hydronic heating system.
Somehow I’ve spent some 3 plus weeks on this. It all works perfectly though and the heater is so nice and quiet!
82B26145-8209-45DF-9854-426704CC4967.jpeg
 
Oct 19, 2017
7,733
O'Day 19 Littleton, NH
That looks so nice and clean. What is the material on the walls? Is that sound or heat insulation?

-Will (Dragonfly)
 
Mar 28, 2017
48
American Tug 395 Newport
That looks so nice and clean. What is the material on the walls? Is that sound or heat insulation?

-Will (Dragonfly)
That is 2” Soundown noise insulation. The entire engine room is blanketed in it.
The white solid surfaces are King Starboard that the manufacturer uses to mount things to. I copied their lead and made what I needed for my installation.
 
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Hagar

.
Jan 22, 2008
45
Catalina 42 Olympia Washington
Thanks for the link to the write-up. In the fall of 2016 I installed a fully hydronic system in our 3-cabin Catalina 42. The original forced air Ardic (circa 1990) had never been enough to heat more than the main saloon and was becoming impossible to repair. Like you I suffer of ODIYD (Obsessive DIY Disorder) and had to do it all myself. I rather envy you the engine room space you have on your new boat! I found a new-in-the-box but shelf-worn 15kw (48,000 BTU) Espar boiler on Ebay for $500 and built up the rest of the system myself. Each cabin has it's own radiator coil with two 5 inch PC rack fans. Zone control is by valves that can be shut to the 2 aft cabins that are mostly unused. Because of the limited spaces on a sailboat each fan-coil unit was custom made from 1/4" birch plywood to fit the space. For the coils themselves I found car heater units for 1960's vintage cars. Two different sizes were good for all the units. Also added a circulation pump and heat exchanger to heat the domestic water. The control system was also DIY and is set up so if the engine is running the Espar is turned off the the circulation loop is heated by the engine coolant through another heat exchanger. The whole thing works great! We cruise pretty much year around in the Pacific Northwest. Our main head is in the bow and used to be the coldest part of the boat. Now it is the warmest. My wife loves that!
 
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Mar 28, 2017
48
American Tug 395 Newport
Thanks for the link to the write-up. In the fall of 2016 I installed a fully hydronic system in our 3-cabin Catalina 42. The original forced air Ardic (circa 1990) had never been enough to heat more than the main saloon and was becoming impossible to repair. Like you I suffer of ODIYD (Obsessive DIY Disorder) and had to do it all myself. I rather envy you the engine room space you have on your new boat! I found a new-in-the-box but shelf-worn 15kw (48,000 BTU) Espar boiler on Ebay for $500 and built up the rest of the system myself. Each cabin has it's own radiator coil with two 5 inch PC rack fans. Zone control is by valves that can be shut to the 2 aft cabins that are mostly unused. Because of the limited spaces on a sailboat each fan-coil unit was custom made from 1/4" birch plywood to fit the space. For the coils themselves I found car heater units for 1960's vintage cars. Two different sizes were good for all the units. Also added a circulation pump and heat exchanger to heat the domestic water. The control system was also DIY and is set up so if the engine is running the Espar is turned off the the circulation loop is heated by the engine coolant through another heat exchanger. The whole thing works great! We cruise pretty much year around in the Pacific Northwest. Our main head is in the bow and used to be the coldest part of the boat. Now it is the warmest. My wife loves that!
Now that is impressive!
I was happy enough simply fussing over the installation of pieces and parts that were designed to work together. I marvel at those of you who go the extra distance and design something like this on the fly...
We spent a cold couple of days in Block Island after getting the system in and like you, love the heat. There is nothing like being warm and comfy on a boat in bad weather!
Bruce
 
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