Frostline Marine Refrigeration

 

It seems that we are always ready to complain when a business fails to meet our expectations in some way.  But then we are silent when things go perfectly...  well this is one of those perfect cases.

Over the years (23?...) since Eolian's last refrigeration service, things worked well...  until the last year or so, when the refrigeration compressor would start, run for a few seconds, shut off, and lather rinse repeat.  Eventually tho, it would come on and run until it reached the setpoint.  I guessed that the refrigerant level had become so low that when the compressor kicked on, it would rapidly pull the suction side of the system down to the cutout pressure, and that this would continue until the entire system became warm enough to raise the refrigerant temperature to the point where its vapor pressure was above the cutout pressure.  So, after all those years, it was time for a recharge.

I tried to find someone in the Anacortes area, but no one was willing to take on additional work.

Looking further afield, I contacted Frostline Marine Refrigeration in Bellingham.

What a pleasant surprise!

Mclean was courteous and scheduled an appointment at our convenience.

When he arrived, he was prompt, fully equipped, familiar with marine refrigeration systems (quite different from domestic or industrial systems - not least because marine systems are so often crammed into almost inaccessible spaces), working on boats (protect varnish surfaces!), and most importantly, knowledgeable of refrigeration in general (I have two degrees in Chemical Engineering - trust me, I know).

He pumped the system down, removing the remaining R-409a (which was the replacement for the old R-12 back 23 years ago) and refilled the system with the newest and greatest R-12 replacement: R-417c.  And he was gone in 45 minutes.

If you have marine refrigeration needs, I cannot recommend Mclean and Frostline highly enough.

Frostline Marine Refrigeration

Mooring Repair

While we were involuntarily moored in Friday Harbor, this unusual work boat (the aluminum one with the I-beam supported above the foredeck, not the white one behind it) dropped anchor near us.  On board were a diver, a man, and woman: the crew.  And two hefty gentlemen who did not participate in operations except to look over the side.   With nowhere to go, we speculated what they were up to...

As we watched, a diver went down with a heavy line.  When the diver returned to the surface, the woman used a heavy windlass (not visible below the bulwarks) and routing the line over a block on the bow she hoisted up...  a concrete block some 6 or 7 feet square and perhaps 18 - 24" thick.  Trust me, this was HEAVY - the bow of the boat dipped a lot.  Obviously a quite substantial mooring anchor.

With the concrete hanging from the bow, the man attached a brand new pennant line, looking like at least 1-1/2", to the anchor block (with a chafe guard of course!).  He then manoeuvred to a good spot and she lowered the anchor to the bottom.  He then attached a (very) used buoy to the pennant, and they all went home.

Conclusion?

The old mooring pennant had parted, releasing the buoy, which apparently fetched up on shore somewhere in Friday Harbor and was retrieved.  The action we witnessed was the reattachment of the buoy to the anchor on behalf of one or both of the observers, using a new pennant.

Conclusion #2?

That boat was ideally designed for mooring installation and maintenance.  We witnessed the maintenance part.  For a new installation, the new anchor would be placed in the bow, and then once transported to the desired location a hoist rolling along the I-beam would be used to retrieve it from the foredeck, roll it out forward above the water, and then lower it to the sea bottom.  Pretty clever design.

Mooring Repair

Permanent moorage in Friday Harbor

The red arrow shows our location

We dropped anchor in Friday Harbor on Tuesday, pretty much in the normal place.  Well, one of the two or three normal places - anchorage is pretty limited there due to the number of (mostly unoccupied) mooring balls.

Not long after, after the tide had changed, we noticed periodic rumbling from the anchor chain.  This is unusual; we thought that the chain was being dragged across something on the bottom.  So we decided to move.  Well, not so fast, there Pilgrim...  with 125 feet of chain still out, the windlass stalled.  Attempting to free the boat by motoring in various directions was fruitless.

So here we sit, now permanently at anchor in Friday Harbor.  At the moment, our chain is straight up and down, so we are directly over the obstruction.  Our location is (mark this on your chartplotters): 48° 32.137' N, 123° 0.483'W

This makes the third wreck that I know of on the floor of Friday Harbor.  I know that one of them has a buoy marking it, and I know now that one does not.  The third one?  Not sure - maybe one of those unused mooring buoys marks it too.

All I know is that it is going to be very difficult to convince me to anchor in Friday Harbor again until the Port of Friday harbor reports these wrecks to the DNR and gets them removed. 

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OK, here's the postmortem. 

When we anchored, I avoided the wreck marked on the chart, known locally as "the old fishing boat that had been permanently anchored there for years, and finally sank". But when our chain started 'grumbling' as the boat swung to the tides, I thought maybe the position marked on the chart was off. We tried to raise anchor, but stalled the windlass with 125' of chain still out. Thought for about a beer, and then contacted Jill and Brent who live aboard s/v Ambition at the marina for a diver reference; they recommended Kurt Schwalbe. He came out yesterday afternoon at slack water (currents in Friday Harbor can be very strong - trying to do work down there while fighting the current would be terrible). Kurt deserved the stellar reputation he has. He is friendly, professional, deliberate, and a problem solver. Before going into the water, he discussed his plan with us, in detail.

It turned out that this was NOT the fishing boat, but yet another wreck on the bottom of Friday Harbor - a 21' skiff. And our chain had not only sawed partly thru the fiberglass wreck, but had it wrapped up like a Christmas present. Kurt untangled everything, but was not able to pull the chain out from under the wreck, where one turn had wedged itself. So we put Eolian's Perkins 4-236 diesel to work. After 3 or 4 mighty tugs, we were FREE!!!

Kurt enjoying a well-deserved IPA after the dive

I have marked the position of this wreck on our Navionics charts as a community edit, so if you use Navionics, you already have its location. If you don't, here are its coordinates:
48° 32.137' N, 123° 0.483'W

Permanent moorage in Friday Harbor

Liveaboard mail

Recently I was asked how people who live on boats get mail.  "Does the marina accept mail for you?" they asked.  The simple answer to that is "No."

So what do we do?

Well, for a number of years, we kept a Post Office Box (contact your local US Post Office).  This worked OK - it was close to my work.  But there were problems with the PO Box solution.  It was ideal for receiving packages...  as long as they were shipped by USPS.  But if the shipper used FedEx, UPS, DHL, truck freight - any method other than USPS - it most certainly did not work.    And there are certain types of correspondence for which a PO Box is just not acceptable - for which a street address is required.

And then the ideal solution presented itself:  Angela, aboard s/v Ghost across the dock from us, started up a mailing service business.  Dockside Solutions has a street address, accepts (and signs for!) packages from FedEx, UPS, DHL, truck freight...  and USPS.  Angela maintains mailboxes distributed throughout the mile-long marina, and even sends us email when we have mail or a package waiting (You've got mail!).  Bonus:  Dockside Solutions' address (and therefore our address) is listed as a business address, which means a reduction in some shipping costs.

Dockside Solutions is the perfect answer for our situation, but we use only a portion of the services that Angela offers.  Because she is a liveaboard herself, Angela understands the services boaters and cruisers need.  Here's a partial list that Dockside Solutions provides:

• Mail forwarding.  If you like, she will also aggregate your mail and bulk ship it  (excluding "junk" mail, as you define it).
• Electronic mailbox:  She will open your mail, scan it, and deposit it at a secure online dropbox site.  This, of course eliminates a lot of delay, especially if you are in a remote location.
• Bill paying
• Check deposits
• ...And more

In fact, she provides just about any service that someone living aboard could want, whether they be anchored in Seattle, San Diego, Greneda, Mazatlan, or Nuka Hiva.  Because of this, she now has customers all over the world (she keeps a world map in the office with a pin representing each of her customers).

I guess this sounds like a plug.  And well, it is.  Angela is a wonderful person, and her business reflects this.  For us, Dockside Solutions is the perfect answer to the question, "How do boaters get their mail?"

Liveaboard mail

(not) Marine stores: Ballard Hardware

A while ago, I needed a street el.

No, this is not some kind of elevated train, you folks in Chicago.  A street el is a standard pipe elbow, but with one difference:  one side is male and one side is female.  You'd use one of these in order to eliminate a fitting, and to shorten up the completed assembly.  They are not as common as the common umm..  el.  But in a good hardware store you can usually find one.  Possibly even in the size you need.

But now it becomes difficult:  I needed a stainless steel street el, in order to hook up the water discharge from our new stainless steel exhaust manifold.

Where to go to find one?

I love living in Ballard!  Before it becomes completely gentrified, you can find just about anything marine-related you want (except not swaged wires or LeFiell mast fittings any more - University Swaging is now gone).

If you haven't tried it, you need to:  Ballard Hardware.  It's kind of like a regular hardware store, except they know marine stuff, and its on steroids.  Two examples:

Example 1:  The previous owner of Eolian set up a snubber for the anchor chain - a length of 3/4" line attached to the hull where the bobstay attaches, with a 3/8" chain grab hook on the other end to hook on the anchor chain.  When you hook it up and let out the rode until the snubber is taking the strain, the chain hangs slack at the bowsprit, a wonderful thing for peace and quiet at nite when your are trying to sleep down below at anchor in a blow.

But I digress.

The grab hook the original owner installed was galvanized, and was, by the time we took over caring for Eolian, severely corroded.  I looked high and low, trying to find a stainless version of the grab hook.  And then on a whim, I tried Ballard Hardware.  Sure they had one.  $15.  If West Marine sold them (and they don't), it would be for $65.95.  Wow.  I was an immediate convert.

Example 2:  Not being a slow learner, when I needed that stainless street elbow, I went straight to Ballard Hardware.  "Sure, no problem, " said the counter man.  And he took me back to the rabbit warren (yeah, it's still there, even tho there is a fancy new front end).  "What alloy do you want?"

Huh?

Not only was I going to be able to get a street el, in the size that I wanted, in stainless, but I was presented with a choice of alloys!

Yeah.  Ballard Hardware.

(not) Marine stores: Ballard Hardware

Funkiness in Friday Harbor

Are you mourning the loss of the Front Street Ale House in Friday Harbor?

Sadly, I cannot report that another brewpub has opened.  But if you are looking for some of the best BBQ you can find this side of Alabama, you only need to walk up the street a half a block.  There you will see this sign...  You will want to follow the arrow to the BBQ Shack.

The first thing I noticed in the place was the unusual ceiling fan.  Be sure to look up when you come in.

Now, when at a BBQ joint we always do the pulled pork, and you should too.  But here it was offered with an unusual side: smoked macaroni & cheese.  It turns out that this is a wonderful, rich combination!  Aside from the BBQ sauce that was a part of the pulled pork, the table was graced with a bucket full of unusual BBQ sauces that you could use to augment.  My favorite was the Gold Rush, and Jane's was the blackberry-based one. 

And tho this is not a brewpub, I can heartily recommend the beer selection.  We chose "The Gubna", an imperial IPA - really imperial (10.5%).  It was so rich and thick you could cut it with a knife - and that is a good thing.  It was the perfect companion to the BBQ.

You should stop in.  And when you do, please say "Hi!" to Kurt for us - he runs a great place!

Funkiness in Friday Harbor

(not) Marine stores: Online Metals

Another of my favorite (non) marine stores is Online Metals. One of the coolest things about this outfit is that they specialize in shipping small quantities of materials to you, although I have not made use of this service since they are (so very fortunately!) local - just off Nickerson, across the Ballard Bridge.

Although their name is "Online Metals", it is important to note that they also sell plastics.  I ordered a 12" x 24" x 1/2" sheet of UHMW polyethylene for making Ray's permanent home from them, but I have also bought brass rod for making sea rails, and other things.

Since they apparently deliver world-wide, this outfit may be of interest to the world-wide collection of folks who read this blog.  If you use Online Metals and are located outside the United States, please add a comment telling of the service they provided.

(not) Marine stores: Online Metals

You want authentic Ballard?

For good or for ill, Ballard is being gentrified. The Seattle city fathers have decided: Ballard is to be the new high-density housing area.  And so the Ballard skyline is littered with construction cranes. The sleepy, blue collar marine community is disappearing to make way for hi-rise apartments and condos.

The newcomers are attracted in part to that sleepy, working man atmosphere - an atmosphere which is slowly but surely being over-layed by their future.  In consequence there is a palpable desire to seek out and experience the authentic "Old Ballard", before it goes the way of Fremont.

The Lockspot
Authentic Ballard

Tho there are a lot of places laying claim, there is probably no place more authentic Ballard than the Lockspot Cafe.  It's been there at the Chittenden Locks for more than 90 years - it certainly has the whiskers for being authentic.

There's a story behind the antlers

No, this is not a fancy restaurant, nor is it a fern bar.  This is an honest to goodness pub.  A classic American seaside pub.  Wood paneling, marine kitsch, and a fireplace with a huge moose rack above it (yes, those are champaign corks protecting the patrons from the points).

The Lockspot is not a place to go to "be seen".  Seattle has plenty of those - if that's what you want, you should go to one of them.  If instead, you want the best fish n' chips to be had in Seattle in a comfortable, laid-back, homey environment, this is the place for you.  And as you might expect from a neighborhood establishment, families and kids are frequent patrons.

I'm not sure how, but The Lockspot survived its contact with fame essentially untouched...  it was featured in the "Deadliest Catch" TV series, but the only real evidence of this is that you can buy "Deadliest Bar" T-shirts there.  And a poster signed by the crew of the boats in the series (yes, they are real boats) hangs by the cash register.  As you might expect from a Ballard staple, fame did not go to its head.

Pam & Adolph

We've been coming in for over 15 years - since before we moved to Seattle from Spokane.  For us, this is Ballard's version of Cheers - where everybody knows your name.  Recently, when Jane's cousin's daughter (does that make her a second niece?) Amy won first place in the 10K Olympic Finals, we mentioned this to Adolph, our usual and familiar waiter, because he was paying attention to Olympic track & field events on the TV.  That started a long conversation, which eventually grew to include Pam (the Lockspot's owner) as well.  It's that kind of place.

If you go, tell Pam & Adolph that Bob & Jane say, "Hi!"

You want authentic Ballard?

Boat jewelry

Remember this little exercise with the exhaust manifold that happened this past spring?  Well now it has come full circle.

Boat Jewelry

A little internet research turned up Marine Exhaust Systems of Alabama.  Amazingly, they were able to fabricate a replacement exhaust manifold from heavy 316 stainless plate and deliver it to Seattle for about half the delivered cost of a cast iron one from Perkins.

So, what exactly is this exhaust manifold thing?  On an auto engine, the exhaust ports of the engine are connected to a cast iron manifold that collects the exhaust and conveys it to the muffler.  And on a car, that manifold runs almost red hot.  On a car, that is not a problem because of all the air flowing thru the engine compartment.  But on a boat, that is too much heat to safely have trapped below the floorboards.  So, marine engines have water-cooled exhaust manifolds.

There it is!

So, there is ours, lurking just below the intake manifold (the intake has the yellow warning sticker on it).  The cooling water inlet is on the right (hose clamp shining brightly), and the water discharge is the hose connection on the left.  The exhaust elbow, which conveys the exhaust to the water-lift muffler is also on the left, below the water discharge, but you can't see it in the picture.

Out with the old...

Last Friday, we stayed at the dock, and I tackled the task of pulling out the old cast iron manifold and replacing it with the beautiful new stainless one.  I won't bore you with the blow-by-blow details of wedging my body into the space and turning nuts that are not quite completely inaccessible.  Instead, you can just imagine me cursing the British engineers who designed things that way.  Repeatedly cursing.

And in with the new!

Now, there's always some trepidation when using non-factory parts, as to whether they will actually fit.  And right up to the point where I trial-fitted the new manifold, I had the fear that after going thru all the steps of disassembly, that I would have to reassemble with the old manifold because the new one didn't fit in some way.  And that was a real possibility, since the clearances are so tight.

I needn't have worried.  The new manifold slipped right into place, perfectly.  Kudos to Marine Exhaust of Alabama!

I inspected the old cast iron manifold; there is no evidence of water leakage into the exhaust gas side.  So, I guess it could have stayed in there, for a while yet.

But you know what?  I am going to sleep better.

Boat jewelry

Got licorice?

When we are anchored in Liberty Bay, one of the places we visit in Poulsbo is the Marina Market.  In fact our visits are more in the nature of pilgrimages.  You see, I am one of those weird people who actually seek out the black jelly beans - I love licorice...  I confess, I am a licoricista.

And the Marina Mart is kind of like a Mecca for me  - because they actually have a Licorice Shrine.  No, really!

The Shrine

Hundreds and hundreds of different kinds of licorice.  (Jane is reminding me about chocolate.  OK, if you are one of those strange chocolate people, they do that too.)

The biggest problem I face when I visit the Marina Mart is that I can't buy one of everything.  And sadly, our visits seem to be far enough apart (and I am old enough) that I cannot remember what I sampled at the last visit.  Or what I thought of it.  But like the movie "Groundhog Day", that means every visit is a new and wonderful experience!

Andrea is the owner - she is the one behind all this.  And I for one thank her.

(Oh by the way, if you are in Poulsbo for the fireworks celebrating the birth of our Nation on July 3 - yes they do it a day early in Poulsbo - be sure to stop in.  And say that Bob & Jane sent you.)

Got licorice?

On one rainy day in Poulsbo...

Last Saturday, while anchored in Poulsbo on one of those cold, blustery days with intermittent rain, Jane and I decided to seek out a brewery whose wares we had sampled at the Winter Brewfest here in Seattle.

The Valhöll brewery is located at the very, very, very end of Liberty Bay.  It is within walking distance for old duffers, although most of the walk is uphill for some reason.  And it is a little hard to find, when you reach the location.  You'll have to go up behind the fancy building on the corner - it's there, trust me.  And it's worth the hike*.

When we arrived, the tasting room was closed because Jeff, owner and brewmeister, was about to make a delivery. But he welcomed us in anyway.  And while he did the paperwork for the delivery, he served us some of his tasty products and we had a rousing great conversation covering a host of subjects, not least of which was beer styles and brewing in general.

By the time our beers were gone, the rains had (not surprisingly) returned.  But Jeff came to our rescue and offered us a ride back into town, which we gratefully accepted.  See, he still had to make that delivery.

Now the last bit of serendipity was that the delivery was a special cask of Valhöll's Whiskey Barrel Stout, which was being delivered to Tizley's for a cask tasting party.  Everyone was invited, and of course we stuck around for it.  Arriving at the same time as the guest of honor and the beer got us great seats, by the window.

Tho this was a public event, there were lots of close friends and relatives. And Jeff, gregarious soul that he is, introduced us to all of them.

And the beer.

Oh. 

My. 

Gosh. 

It was heaven in a glass.  Trust me - you never want to miss an opportunity to sample Valhöll's Whiskey Barrel Stout.  Or an opportunity to spend time with Jeff, for that matter.

It was a wonderful adventure, on a day which wouldn't seem to have much promise if we had spent it sitting and moping on the boat.


* Valhöll is in the process of moving their brewery.  Tho it is well worth the hike, soon that will be unnecessary, because their new location will be almost directly behind Tizley's.  Now you have no excuse whatsoever.

On one rainy day in Poulsbo...

(not) Marine stores: Tacoma Screw

One of my favorite marine stores is not a marine store at all.

But if you ever need any kind of stainless fastener, there is an excellent chance that Tacoma Screw will have it, no matter how weird or strange it might be.

I stopped in to their Frellard (between Fremont and Ballard) store Monday morning to get the parts I needed to hook up Ray's rudder transducer properly.

Here they are - Marty was able to find everything off the shelf:

• 1" x 1/8" aluminum angle
• M6 stainless all thread
• 2 M6 stainless nuts
• 2 M6 stainless washers
• 2 5/16-18 stainless nuts
• 2 1" 1/4-20 stainless bolts
• 2 1/4-20 stainless nylock nuts
• 2 1/4 stainless fender washers

(For things other than fasteners, Ballard Hardware is my first stop.  But that's a story for another time...)

(not) Marine stores: Tacoma Screw

Customer service: *this* is how it is done

Remember my water pump impeller problems?  As I mentioned, I ordered a SpeedSeal replacement cover plate as the solution to my eroded one.

Have you ever gone to the SpeedSeal website with an intent to order?  If not, you're in for an unexpected treat.  You will find that, in order to assure that the correct product is shipped, each order is a very custom experience.  SpeedSeal expects and wants to interact with you.

I made my order on 3/8.  And here it is 4/4 (when I am writing this post).  And nothing had arrived.  So I emailed my original contact at SpeedSeal (yes, you will have one), asking for a tracking number or something.  Alex called me back (an 8 hour time difference means that he called at 21:17 his time) to explain what he thought had happened.  It seems that a certain three-lettered government agency that has been in the news a lot lately may have detoured the shipment as possibly a threat (??!?).  And apparently this has been a not-uncommon occurrence lately (your tax dollars hard at work).

So, in order to minimize my inconvenience, Alex offered to make a second shipment, at no charge.  At which point, of course, SpeedSeal would then be losing money on this order.

Now THAT'S the way customer service is done.  Listen up all you fly-by-nighters out there on eBay:  I am willing to pay for customer service.  (Not that selling on eBay is, per se, a reflection of poor customer service - I have gotten some of the best service from vendors on eBay - but also some of the worst).

I am happy to report that not very long after my international call with Alex, the afternoon post delivered the package, and that, tho it had been opened, everything was in there.  No second shipment was necessary.

I am looking forward to the install.

Thank you, SpeedSeal, for the extraordinary customer service!

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you may notice that each mention of SpeedSeal in this post is a link to their website - that is because I think they are deserving of your business

Customer service: *this* is how it is done