Roger that!

Now that the Kubota runs, all the "accessories" can now be installed.  The refrigeration lines were installed as of the last posting, but the refrigeration system was leak tested and given an initial charge.  All seems to be working properly and the final system charge will be adjusted soon.

The last of the old (dark red) formica is gone.  It was on top of the forward cabinet, next to the head.  It was above our eyesight, but since we wanted to take all the formica off the boat, it was finished and cleaned up. 

Currently Mike is installing a carbon filter in the water system.  And over the next couple of months (no real hurry since we won't be making water while the boat is sitting in the slip) we'll be installing the watermaker (powered by Frankengen).

The ICOM M802 marine SSB radio has given us a little bit of a pain in the wallet.  It has been sent away for repairs a couple of times.  The first was for a firmware upgrade (to ICOM in Washington state), the second for a software change so we could program an MMSI number and user-selectable voice compression (to a company in FL), a third trip (to ICOM again) because we started developing some transmitter problems.  The evaluation showed a bad filter board and because it was open, they found that there was corrosion on the top and the bottom of the case.  With that all replaced, the radio came back and reception was great!  However, after a couple of days, we developed a problem while transmitting.  We called ICOM and their technician said his experience with that problem was usually located in the power source.  So Mike did some troubleshooting/testing and located the problem.  A web search pinpointed the culprit and the required IC chip (that controls the precision voltage regulator) was the problem.  Solved -- for $1.50!  (Note that we're testing the radio in the basement, so the power supply at the house is not the same power supply on the boat.)

Bad power supply chip

We will not be around for a few weeks.  We have volunteered to crew for someone who needs to bring their "new" Swan 46 up from Jacksonville, FL.  So for the next couple of weeks we will be driving to Florida, making preps for an offshore trip, and sailing north to the Chesapeake Bay.  You can watch our progress (if you're interested) on http://www.winlink.org/dotnet/maps/PositionreportsDetail.aspx?callsign=k3mcd
 (We're using Mike's callsign for this trip:  K3MCD.)

Frankengen Is Alive!

Frankengen is alive and running ... and this time on purpose.  We say this because the other day when Mike was hooking up the controller, Frankengen started up and ran for about 15 seconds before he got it shut off.  But we digress ... let's back up and bring you up-to-date.

Briefly, with a few accompanying pictures, these tasks were completed:

• finished the installation of the 3 new house batteries
• mounted and secured the new house batteries (3 of them) under the companionway steps
• installed the battery monitor  
• built a cabinet to cover and contain the batteries
• cleaned out the items that were stored in the forward head and painted the remaining (unpainted) lockers
• re-installed the mainsail on the boom
• installed the OGM tricolor/anchor switch in the electrical panel
• cleaned up wiring in the electrical panel (shortened some, bundled wiring, and removed unused wiring)
• completed building the shelf behind the stove
• dressed (cleaned up) Ford-Lehman engine control wiring
• re-located the battery charger on the engine room bulkhead in order to make room for the Kubota voltage regulator
• found used Ford-Lehman heat exchangers and had the worthwhile ones serviced for spares
• installed the battery switch for the Kubota

House batteries installed and secured

Battery monitor for house batteries

Cabinet enclosure for house batteries

Shelf behind stove

 And, the Kubota has been installed and taken for a test run.  Getting it fully installed involved:

• installing the exhaust system:
• venting the exhaust (cutting a hole through the hull just above the waterline and inserting an exhaust through-hull)
• installing elbows
• installing the water-lift muffler
• configuring bleed and fuel lines
• fabricating new refrigeration hoses
• installing and aligning the belts (had been pre-assembled and alignments marked)
• installing the fuel pump
• installing the solonoid valve
• configuring water injection for wet exhaust
• installing plumbing hose for raw water cooling system
•  from the sea cock -> pump -> refrigeration heat exchanger -> Kubota heat exchanger -> vented overboard
• installing plumbing and circulation pump for coolant (closed-loop anti-freeze)
• hose from the circulation pump -> Kubota -> heat exchanger -> circulation pump
• integrating the electronic engine controller

Here is the 200 amp alternator after it was installed.  And the second picture shows some of the finished work.  The two parallel black hoses are the refrigeration hoses.  The "T" in the upper left connects the "clear" hose to the ball valve and into the exhaust (which is the wet exhaust) and provides the cooling for the exhaust system.

Kubota 200 amp alternator

Kubota exhaust system water injection

The Frankengen truly is alive now.  It has a brain (the engine controller) which will control the starting and stopping and many safety features to ensure that the engine will not "burn up" or "run away".  This engine controller is sort of like the computer brains for a smart house.  All it takes to turn it on is a toggle switch.  Everything else is done by the controller and does not need monitoring.

Engine controller for Kubota ("da brains")