OH YES! My wife and I will be bring our 326 home this Tusday. ok ok On with it! 1.We live the Pacific North West and will need cabin heat. Any good heaters that any of you have used? Propane only! 2.Radar is good here for it's foggy all the time. Any Ideas? mast or ped mount they said they can do it either way. will inmast furling make my mind up for me? 3.We plan on cruising the Columbia river for starters then moving toward a little more offshore weekend trips. Anyway to lock down the sole plates on a 326 that will not be freakin' UGLY? Any help would be great.
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Scott Narum
You Dog!!
I'm looking at your model plus the 306, myself! Anyway, on the cabin heating, I recommend you look at a diesel-fueled forced air system that would feed off your fuel tank and the system mounts aft out of the cabin. That gets rid of any potential smell, plus is probably safer than propane and will have a bigger reservoir to draw from. Schooner Creek, who does your commisioning, can probably install it for you. I can't comment on your other questions. Fair Winds!...and good luck staying dry in our beautiful Northwest! Scott
I'm looking at your model plus the 306, myself! Anyway, on the cabin heating, I recommend you look at a diesel-fueled forced air system that would feed off your fuel tank and the system mounts aft out of the cabin. That gets rid of any potential smell, plus is probably safer than propane and will have a bigger reservoir to draw from. Schooner Creek, who does your commisioning, can probably install it for you. I can't comment on your other questions. Fair Winds!...and good luck staying dry in our beautiful Northwest! Scott
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Tim Leighton
SOME SUGGESTIONS
FSC: I rarely disagree with Steve (partly because he's usually right on!) but this time I do. Diesel heat would certainly work, but is potentially an expensive and smelly proposition. A few years ago we decided to do a bit more cold weather sailing so I dug into my camping bag and pulled out a couple of Coleman "Black Max" propane heaters. They use the same propane tanks I use on my Magma grill, and are certified safe for indoor use. Of course, we still leave a couple hatches cracked whenever they are in use, but they do a great job of keeping the cabin toasty warm. Best of all, they are CHEAP!!!! As for your radar question, I've done a bit of research recently in preparation of radar instillation on my new boat. Without making this into a novel, here is the condensed version: Not using mast mounted dome. No matter how hard you try, you are still going to get your jib hung up on the dome on occasion. In addition, you would probably have to drop your mast to install the mount and run wiring, increasing the cost factor. Finally, you can't level the dome when heeled.(can be very important, especially if you are heeled way over and trying to track a target on the "high" side). Two other choices; stern pole or backstay. Still pondering this one, both have good points. Both allow the radar to be leveled to the horizon The radar pole can double as a mounting for GPS antennae, outboard motor hoist, etc. A backstay mount keeps the antennae well above the cockpit (for those of you who are worried about trons infecting your brains) and is easiest to set up for automatic leveling. I'm probably going to go for the stern pole mount w/ leveling feature since I want to use the pole for an outboard hoist. There are any number of companies that manufacture mounting systems. Here are a few I found on the web: Scanstrut, Questos, Forespar, Edson, Garhauer (has a very interesting one w/ lifting arm included), and Yacht Specialities. I got to all of them through GOOGLE.COM. As an east coast sailor, I can't help you on your last question, but I hope the info I've added helps. Good luck and smooth sailing! Tim Leighton
FSC: I rarely disagree with Steve (partly because he's usually right on!) but this time I do. Diesel heat would certainly work, but is potentially an expensive and smelly proposition. A few years ago we decided to do a bit more cold weather sailing so I dug into my camping bag and pulled out a couple of Coleman "Black Max" propane heaters. They use the same propane tanks I use on my Magma grill, and are certified safe for indoor use. Of course, we still leave a couple hatches cracked whenever they are in use, but they do a great job of keeping the cabin toasty warm. Best of all, they are CHEAP!!!! As for your radar question, I've done a bit of research recently in preparation of radar instillation on my new boat. Without making this into a novel, here is the condensed version: Not using mast mounted dome. No matter how hard you try, you are still going to get your jib hung up on the dome on occasion. In addition, you would probably have to drop your mast to install the mount and run wiring, increasing the cost factor. Finally, you can't level the dome when heeled.(can be very important, especially if you are heeled way over and trying to track a target on the "high" side). Two other choices; stern pole or backstay. Still pondering this one, both have good points. Both allow the radar to be leveled to the horizon The radar pole can double as a mounting for GPS antennae, outboard motor hoist, etc. A backstay mount keeps the antennae well above the cockpit (for those of you who are worried about trons infecting your brains) and is easiest to set up for automatic leveling. I'm probably going to go for the stern pole mount w/ leveling feature since I want to use the pole for an outboard hoist. There are any number of companies that manufacture mounting systems. Here are a few I found on the web: Scanstrut, Questos, Forespar, Edson, Garhauer (has a very interesting one w/ lifting arm included), and Yacht Specialities. I got to all of them through GOOGLE.COM. As an east coast sailor, I can't help you on your last question, but I hope the info I've added helps. Good luck and smooth sailing! Tim Leighton
Damn it, I am not alway right!
Tim: My understanding of these diesel units are that they can be noisy or realitvely quite depending on the brand. They should not have any odor and they put out a lot of heat. They can be set on a thermostat and consume only about .3 - .8 gals/hour when they are running. Some of them can be setup to give you hot water/radiant heat and it will also heat your hot water tank too. I would think that this would be idea for a permanent installation. We had oil heat in our home for years (no odor in the house). I do not see why these units would be any different if installed properly. I have seen several posts on these Coleman units that you are speaking about. I am somewhat suspect that they are really safe to burn if the boat is closed up, but I have also heard that they are safe. My question is how can this be. They need O2 to burn, so how can you be sure?
Tim: My understanding of these diesel units are that they can be noisy or realitvely quite depending on the brand. They should not have any odor and they put out a lot of heat. They can be set on a thermostat and consume only about .3 - .8 gals/hour when they are running. Some of them can be setup to give you hot water/radiant heat and it will also heat your hot water tank too. I would think that this would be idea for a permanent installation. We had oil heat in our home for years (no odor in the house). I do not see why these units would be any different if installed properly. I have seen several posts on these Coleman units that you are speaking about. I am somewhat suspect that they are really safe to burn if the boat is closed up, but I have also heard that they are safe. My question is how can this be. They need O2 to burn, so how can you be sure?
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FSC
Buying a Hunter in Portland
Scott, Are you looking at Hunters here at The Sailing Life? If so Karen Trusty has been wounderful to work with.
Scott, Are you looking at Hunters here at The Sailing Life? If so Karen Trusty has been wounderful to work with.
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Scott Narum
Yes, The Sailing Life
Yes, I have spoken with Karen. They are getting a 326 for stock besides your boat and I am also looking at a 306 simply because it costs less. Of course, what I REALLY want is a 356... Scott
Yes, I have spoken with Karen. They are getting a 326 for stock besides your boat and I am also looking at a 306 simply because it costs less. Of course, what I REALLY want is a 356... Scott
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Scott Narum
Unvented combustion heaters
First, if anyone uses an alcohol or propane heater in a boat that exhausts into the boat, you'd better ventilate...a lot. Not only does it consume O2, but it produces carbon monoxide, which can kill you. I like the diesel heaters that mount outside the cabin and use a blower to force warmed air (NOT exhaust) into the cabin.
First, if anyone uses an alcohol or propane heater in a boat that exhausts into the boat, you'd better ventilate...a lot. Not only does it consume O2, but it produces carbon monoxide, which can kill you. I like the diesel heaters that mount outside the cabin and use a blower to force warmed air (NOT exhaust) into the cabin.
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Tim Leighton
PROPANE HEATERS
I agree with Steve, (et al) that any heater which uses O2 for combustion is a potential problem in an enclosed, un-vented space. Of course, a very good argument could be made that most boats (other than submarines and other Naval warships!) are pretty well vented even when totally closed up! Having said that, even though I've used my Coleman propane heater for a couple seasons, I NEVER use it without cracking a hatch. This on a boat which has a powered vent in one of the overhead hatches. Of course, you could always buy a couple parakeets and use them like they did years ago in coal mines! Steve, BTW,I also agree that a permanent diesel heating system can be a good choice, but I suspect only for those who are planning a lot of cold weather sailing/living aboard. For those of us who only venture out occasionally during the winter months, I think a lower cost option might be better...and leave more $$ for boat toys! Tim Leighton
I agree with Steve, (et al) that any heater which uses O2 for combustion is a potential problem in an enclosed, un-vented space. Of course, a very good argument could be made that most boats (other than submarines and other Naval warships!) are pretty well vented even when totally closed up! Having said that, even though I've used my Coleman propane heater for a couple seasons, I NEVER use it without cracking a hatch. This on a boat which has a powered vent in one of the overhead hatches. Of course, you could always buy a couple parakeets and use them like they did years ago in coal mines! Steve, BTW,I also agree that a permanent diesel heating system can be a good choice, but I suspect only for those who are planning a lot of cold weather sailing/living aboard. For those of us who only venture out occasionally during the winter months, I think a lower cost option might be better...and leave more $$ for boat toys! Tim Leighton
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Scott
danger danger Will Robinson....
I can't think of something right now that causes me concern than a coleman heater on the boat. If it were a last resort and I were freezing to death that would be another story. Aside from the CO2 issue what about the fact that it's not secured and is a fire hazard? Now I suppose you could rig a mounting system on some flat space somewhere, but we never seem to have enough flat space already. I hate carrying those little bottles of propane for which they get way too much money! Nothing cheap about those! If your going for any time at all more than a few days you'll need too many of those little cans. The ships propane is adequate fro about 2 weeks of serious cooking/cruising. That was our experience over 3 years of summer cruising. My vote would be for a permanently installed diesel heater which is much more efficient and has a ready source of tankage. CO can be monitored for either type of install. RADAR I also disagree with earlier posts about the rear mount. First unless you have an older hunter you have no backstay and second you limit the forward look of the radar if it's mounted too low. The rear mount also brings it right into the cockpit especially on a smaller boat. I don't think the radar array is that nice looking so I like it up out of the way on the mast. True in very very light wind mine has become an obstacle for the jib, but that was no big deal! I would recomend some sort of gimbal mount. I recently saw an article in one of the mags regarding this it had a great graphic showing how much you scan area is cut down by heeling. Due to a large part of the array being pointed skyward and the other half pointed at the water! Hope that helps to keep you going... Scott S/Y Rantum Scoot
I can't think of something right now that causes me concern than a coleman heater on the boat. If it were a last resort and I were freezing to death that would be another story. Aside from the CO2 issue what about the fact that it's not secured and is a fire hazard? Now I suppose you could rig a mounting system on some flat space somewhere, but we never seem to have enough flat space already. I hate carrying those little bottles of propane for which they get way too much money! Nothing cheap about those! If your going for any time at all more than a few days you'll need too many of those little cans. The ships propane is adequate fro about 2 weeks of serious cooking/cruising. That was our experience over 3 years of summer cruising. My vote would be for a permanently installed diesel heater which is much more efficient and has a ready source of tankage. CO can be monitored for either type of install. RADAR I also disagree with earlier posts about the rear mount. First unless you have an older hunter you have no backstay and second you limit the forward look of the radar if it's mounted too low. The rear mount also brings it right into the cockpit especially on a smaller boat. I don't think the radar array is that nice looking so I like it up out of the way on the mast. True in very very light wind mine has become an obstacle for the jib, but that was no big deal! I would recomend some sort of gimbal mount. I recently saw an article in one of the mags regarding this it had a great graphic showing how much you scan area is cut down by heeling. Due to a large part of the array being pointed skyward and the other half pointed at the water! Hope that helps to keep you going... Scott S/Y Rantum Scoot
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Greg Ketley
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