Some questions for an older H33 Cherubini

[inquiztr]

I have bought an 78 Cherubini 33' sailboat last august that I have been living on. I am getting it ready for the new season but I have a few questions.

I had to move the batteries out from under the cockpit ladder due to the survey. It was sitting under the charger and that apparently is a no-no.. I have moved them to the starboard cockpit locker. It seems my boat is leaning that way now.. could my batteries be causing that. Where are your batteries kept? I would like to keep the locker clear for lifejackets etc.

The propane tank container in the back is too small for the fittings I would like in there (new gauges, solenoid). How is your propane lockers setup. I dont know if my locker is aftermarket or stock.. but it is on the port side of the lazarette on the stern. There is a drop in container mounted in place.

I am sure I will have more questions soon.
Any help is appreciated.

 

[Steve Dion]

Your batteries probably weigh in at about 60# each or so. It is not uncommon for most of these production boats to have a list due to different loading. It is not a big deal, but you may want to check around the boat and see if your can counter balance the load. Quite often we have "crap" stowed that is "out-of-site-out-of-mind" and these items can be removed or relocated to correct the problem.

I am not sure that you boat came with propane or not. If you check out Seward Products, they have LP lockers that may incorporate what you are looking for in a sweet setup.

http://www.seawardproducts.com/

 

[Ed Schenck]

There a lot of Cherubini owners aboard and several have the H33. But to answer your questions requires more detail I think. I do not understand the battery issue. You say they were under the cockpit ladder? Where exactly is that? And you had to move them because the were under the charger? I have four batteries in my starboard locker along with the charger. Bigger boat(H37C) but the lockers are not much larger. It has been that way since 1979.

No Cherubini ever came with propane. Most of us do not have it yet. There is just no convenient way to install a proper locker. I wonder how your boat had room for a safe locker installation? Sorry, more questions than answers.

 

[Seattle Scott]

Ed you don't need a proper locker if you don't use a locker at all. I have two tanks hanging of the struts that are part of custom stern seats. Before that I had one tank on a bracket attached to the stern rail.

 

[Seattle Scott]

Ed you don't need a proper locker if you don't use a locker at all. I have two tanks hanging of the struts that are part of custom stern seats. Before that I had one tank on a bracket attached to the stern rail.

Here is the proof.

 

[Ed Schenck]

Yep, have seen that many times Scott. And Rainbow Chaser made two custom lockers mounted to the stern. Then there was an H37C with a big tank mounted crosswises in front of the mast behind the staysail traveler. But never from the factory.

 

[inquiztr]

When I had bought the boat, 2 batteries were kept in the compartment under the ladder. They sat in the cavity below the electronics panel, just front of the engine. The charger was mounted on the wall above the batteries. It was a tight fit in there, and I have since moved the batteries to the starboard locker.

As to the question about the propane, so that explains it.. the previous owner must have put in the propane locker. He had a locker flush on the flat area on the port side of the lazarette seat. That small area where the aft cleat is. It looks like the cleat was moved a bit and the locker just barely fit there. It is a cylinder with room for a propane bottle about 10" wide (but not much else).
Thank you for the link to seaward products. Could I drop in a premade propane locker into the lazarette. It looks like I have about 13" in width to fiddle with but I believe technically speaking having a propane locker "inside" another locker(the lazarette) is not allowed, even with all the proper drainage installed.
I will try to post some photos tomorrow.

 

[n624ma]

Propane Locker

Check here: http://hunter.sailboatowners.com/in...7&cat_id=28&aid=7375&page=article&mn=33_77-83 and see if yours looks like this.

I have an 81 H-33 and this setup is fully compliant if done properly, contact me if you want more info about the locker or other mods.

 

[inquiztr]

Wow thanks for that. Exactly what I wanted to see. I have a very similar setup. There is in place already a hole in that precise spot position with a sealed cap except the prev owner also placed inside a cylinder that fits a 10# tank. Unfortunately its too small to also fit the solenoid/gauge in as well. The prev owner also had placed a huge hole and didnt seal that to run the copper piping through. Originally I was going to seal that hole but since I can't fit the solenoid in that small cylinder, I also wanted to glass up new bulkheads and make that whole cavity down there a big propane locker but I gave up on that idea since of the awkwardness of reaching down in there to seal the bulkheads.. My new idea is to prefabricate a new container that I could graft to the side of the existing locker, built just for the the solenoid. That is where I am now.

 

[n624ma]

Propane locker

Putting in the bulkheads isn't too bad, I made cardboard templates and 1/4 ply with a fiberglass skin pre-installed on the locker side and used thickened epoxy to fillet the edges. It took a weekend to do the first one and one Saturday to do the second. I closed off the area from the Lazerette hatch to the forward end of the Lazerette Sole. This leaves plenty of room for the plumbing and solenoid and a 1 gal gas can for the dingy.

 

[Ed Schenck]

How are you all venting your lockers? The locker is to be vented out the bottom and out of the boat. My 37-footer does not have enough depth(height) in the stern unless I were to vent at or below the waterline. I guess your tanks/lockers must be smaller than they look.

 

[n624ma]

Venting

Ed, the locker is just deeper than a 10 lb tank, mine vents at locker floor level on the inboard side, which puts it above the waterline even heeled. Just a happy accident in the design.

 

[ish]

Might it not be easier to move the charger than the batteries? I had no idea that mounting them that way was such a bad idea; ours are installed exactly as you originally described. I would have a much easier time mounting the charger somewhere aft of the engine than moving the batteries, however.

If move the batteries you must, though, how about beneath the quarter-berth? I added a third battery for my starting circuit there a couple years ago and it didn't appreciably alter the balance of the boat.

I'd be nervous about putting them in the cockpit locker, anyway... a lot of stuff gets tossed in and out of there (and sometimes shifts around!) during the average sailling day and I would worry about accidently damaging or soaking the wiring.

 

[inquiztr]

I thought about moving the charger instead of the batteries.. however, I thought having the batteries by the engine like that was a bad idea due to the heat. Its a pretty tight fit as well, and if you wanted larger batteries, I don't see how you could manage to put them in there.

Putting it under the aft quarter berth is an idea.. however, I don't know how safe. Would it not be unsafe to have that area collecting the gasses from the battery. How would you vent from there.. I sleep in that berth and I don't know if that would be a health issue as well.

 

[Ed Schenck]

Do you just have the two batteries? And, if so, are they isolated, one for starter and one for house? It would make it easy to separate them if they are not in parallel. Then maybe you could balance them out somehow. I don't understand why 120# in the starboard locker would cause a list. And if it does wouldn't you have the same problem to port if they were in the q-berth? I guess the advantage is freeing up locker space.

How old are the batteries? Maybe you could hang on until their lives are up. Then put a couple of AGMs under the q-berth and not worry about checking or hazards. My four gels lived for eight years in that starboard locker covered with all kinds of canvas, lines, and other crap. Never checked them or had to remove them.

 

[ish]

Putting it under the aft quarter berth is an idea.. however, I don't know how safe. Would it not be unsafe to have that area collecting the gasses from the battery. How would you vent from there.. I sleep in that berth and I don't know if that would be a health issue as well.

I believe there is an existing opening between the quarter-berth locker and the engine compartment for hoses and wiring (I may have enlarged mine when I put the battery there, don't recall at the moment) which should serve to vent any gasses back into the engine compartment where they would have been in the original configuration, anyway.

I've never had any heat problems with the batteries in the stock location near the engine.

Speaking to Ed's point about the balance, I think the quarter-berth locker puts them both lower and closer to the centerline than they would be in the starboard locker, but I haven't actually measured it out. Space is limited in there, however, no question about it.

 

[Paul F]

Battery Location

Just installed two 6 volt batteries in the shower sump. Thought you might be interested. Attached are a series of pictures of the installation. 1st, Battery boxes fitted into the sump. 2ed, holding framework to secure the batteries and provide a base for another battery platform. 3rd, starter battery secured on the original sump/battery base. 4th, added a 1" extension to the engine housing to allow for group 27 batteries to be stored. In the future the battery bank may be expanded to four 6 volt batteries. They are not needed at this time.

 

[n624ma]

Question for Paul F.

Paul I have an 81 H-33 with two CG-4 6 volts in the shower sump and a group 24 start battery above. I am a little puzzled about photo 4 and the Group 27 storage, could you elaborate? ( I'm always looking for ideas to steal )

 

[Paul F]

Engine compartment push out

The reason for adding the extra length in the engine compartment was to allow room for two group 27 batteries atop the shower sump in the "normal, original" battery location. by pushing out the forward panel enough space was gained to place the batteries over the shower sump. Then a smaller group 24 starting battery was placed over the two group 27's. When the group 27's gave out they were replaced with two GC 6 volt batteries which are located inside the shower sump lower in the boat with the same starting battery above them. The extended room in the engine compartment is not required now. The change was described in the thread to show another way to modify the location for storage.

 

[ish]

Paul-
I don't want to drag the thread off-topic, but what did you do with the shower drainage? Do you not use the shower or did you re-route it to the bilge somehow?