Installing a Garmin DST810

 Garmin DST810 Depth, Speed and water Temperature Transducer.

When our Garmin DST800 Depth, Speed and Water Temperature Transducer failed last month, I made the decision to replace it with a DST180 Transducer.

The new model has improved electronics and additional features. We do not have the electronics to use the additional features, but if we had to upgrade other equipment on the boat, those additional features might be useful. Of course, this assume that the new Transducer lasts longer than the previous 2 in less than 5 years.

Ok, so the installation consists of 3 parts. Sourcing the new Transducer, Installing it and Testing.

Sourcing the DST810 Transducer

Garmin (Airmar) DST801 Transducer Kit

    After extensive search web wide, I found that the best deal was actually from Garmin. The Transducer is an Airmar DST810 but is branded by many of the Marine Technology companies. West Marine does not have it on their website at present (February 2021) and West Marine does not provide Extended Warrantees on Transducers ( Somehow I was able to purchase a 2 year extension from West Marine when I purchased the previous replacement in 2019.)  So the only benefit from the various companies selling the Transducer would be their shipping charges and price. Garmin came out on top. I was able to verify that the DST810 was available to fit in the same thru-hull as was installed for the removed DST800. The DST800 was a standard length Transducer, but it was available in a Short version, so I asked Airmar to confirm the Part number of the suitable DST810 Transducer.

The new Transducer arrived on time from Garmin.

Installing Garmin DST810 Transducer.

    Because we had a DST800 Transducer installed, installing the DST810 Transducer should be easy.

• Connect the Transducer to the NMEA 2000 network and verify that the display shows Speed when the paddle wheel of the transducer is spun.
• With the transducer connected, establish a blue tooth connection to the Transponder from a Table or Smart Phone.
• Now that we know the transducer is working, disconnect it and route the transducer wiring into the boats looms.
• Before inserting the Transducer into the Thru Hull, it has to be painted with Bottom Paint and the O-rings have to be lubricated with the lubricant supplied with the Kit.
• Finally insert the Transducer into the Thru hull. Note. The thru hull is currently occupied by the Dummy Plug to keep the water out of the boat. So the 'insert' function has to be done pretty quickly, water pours in at somewhere around 1+ Gallons per second. Remove the 'Plug' that currently fills the Transducer thru hull and quickly insert the new Transducer. Before screwing down the securing ring of the Transducer, make sure that the Arrow on the top is facing forwards towards the Bow. Tighten down on the securing ring and use the locking wire to lock the securing ring from unscrewing by threading the wire between the hole in the top of the securing ring and the hold in the ring of the Thurhull.
• All of that went without a hitch. Plus I completed the wiring run using tywraps and tywrap wall ties to keep the run neat and tidy. I left enough slack where the Drop attaches to the NEMA 2000 Backbone to facilitate moving the hub of the backbone when I upgrade the DC Electrical Control Panel later next month.

Testing Garmin DST810 Transducer

    The pre-installation testing only tests the Speed and Bluetooth functions. Once installed we need to test the speed through the water, Depth and Water Temperature.

    Depth is pretty easy. With the boat electronics energized, the current depth at the dock should be displayed on the Chart Plotter.

    Water Temperature. This is Florida, the water temperature is an easy one to test, we'll just put a thermometer into the water near the Transducer and compare that to the temperature indicated on the Chartplotter.

    Speed - we need to be moving through the water. We can compare it to our GPS speed, but this requires that we are moving - time for a trip in the boat. We did a spin test of the Transducer before putting it into the Thru-Hull. 

Blue Tooth functions

    To be honest, I really didn't know which data will be available via Blue Tooth, but we already use our Blue tooth enabled phones and tablets to utilize the data from our Victron System (Solar Regulator and Battery Sensor). So this is going to be interesting. The Blue Tooth data is access via the Airmar Cast App.

    Well that worked out pretty well. With the Transducer already identified via Blue Tooth during the pre-install testing, we knew that we should be able to connect with it installed.

With the Install complete, we flashed up the Garmin GPS Chartplotter and confirmed that we were getting water temperature and depth. Using the Airmar CAST App on my phone we started the calibration setup.

Outcome:

    Installation complete, testing complete (except for Speed Calibration) all wiring secured and I'm ready to sign off on this project. Over the next few weeks we'll check the speed calibration.

See you on the water - Soon !!! (Working on the new cabin cushions, the refinishing of the companionway hatch-boards.

Stay safe folks.

    

Garmin DST800 Failed

 Garmin Depth/Speed/Temperature (DST800) failed. 

We splashed Eximius at Playboy Marine Yesterday (January 28th 2021) without any issues and headed for Sunrise Bay (the lake just north of Sunrise Blvd Bridge). The good news - The newly painted bottom and propspeed on the prop and shaft made a significant improvement in boat speed. We normally have to pus the engine over 2100 rpm in order to nudge past 6 knots through the water. Today we attained 6 knots at 1700 rpm! WooHoo! We broke 7+ knots at 2000 rmp and 7.5knots at 2100. Awesome.

Another round of "Thanks" to Patagonia Services! Thanks Leandro & Luis.

The bad news, our Garmin Depth Speed Temp transducer failed. The data is delivered to the NEMA 2000 network, speed - good, depth - all over the place from 40' upto 240' and most of the time it's just reporting garbage. 

More good news though! We purchased the Protection plus coverage when we bought it 2 years ago, woohoo! It's covered! We'll take it back to West Marine in the morning and start the return process.

And even good news- because the transducer output is direct to the NEMA 2000 backbone, removing the transducer and disconnecting it is an easy task. Similarly, the replacement should be a snap too.

Let's see how long it takes to get the replacement, I'm betting March 1st. Comment with your estimate.

See you on the water.

Patagonia Services

Patagonia Services at Playboy Marina

It's been 3 years since Eximius was hauled out for bottom work, last time my neighbor and I sweated for days sanding the hull lightly and then painting, then compounding the hull and polishing - we never finished that and had to work on it some more at the dock later.

This year we hired Patagonia Services at Playboy Marina to do the hard work. There were dozens of mini blisters on the hull, not unusual, but also on the keel. There was also some fairing over bottom paint that was an issue. I decided to have Leandro from Patagonia Marine take the keel down to the metal and refinish it. They did a great job, really pleased.

Unlike at the last haulout, there was no Catalina Smile just the scar where we had the smile cleaned up and faired by salerno marine in Port St. Lucie 5 years ago.  No water intrusion so all was well.

They did a really nice job of priming with Primocon and faring the area between the keel stub and the keel.

I also had them repair a hole where I removed the old speed transducer that is no longer used (our new transducer is Port side aft of the keel and is a combined Depth/Speed/Temperature transducer)

Most of the work was done by Luis, he worked for days to get everything done.

Then they (Louise) completed the job by applying 2 coats of the same bottom paint we have used since owning the boat.

The result is handsome!

I'm really pleased with the work done by Patagonia Services. 

Leandro, owner of Patagonia Services, is a member of the Hillsboro Inlet Sailing Club, so he knows us, but I'm sure his standards are the same for anyone's work.

Thanks Leandro.

Looking good

 Eximius is looking good.

Old lettering removed, new applied with a hint of a smile. 

Thanks Ross & Astrid for the tip about the hull side polish, worked out really well.

Eximius: We get a lot of 'Why 'Eximius' ? 

The story is told in one of our first blog posts, but we still get that 'What?' enquiry when folks first see the boat name.

Just a bit of fun.

The boat detailer was able to compound both sides and the transom, but the years of Poliglow did not submit to his polishing attempts.

Ross & Astrid (Commotion) advised me about the polish they use on their 20year old boat. Eximius is 33 years old, but the polish did the job.

We splash tomorrow, Thursday, but the tides are not in our favor to return to our dock, so we're going to hang off the hook Thursday night and return to our dock on Friday.

Then it's time to finish of the new Cabin cushions, new backsplash for the galley counter and finish off the new table.

Making progress.

See you on the water!

Stowing the Hatch Boards

 Stowing the Companionway Hatch Boards

Over the years we have struggled to find a way to safely, securly stow the two hatch boards. At first, we stowed them under the Cabin Seats, secure, but uncomfortable. Then we stowed them on either side of the Companionway steps, that worked, easy to store from when lifting them out of the companionway and easy to lift them to replace in the companionway, but they fell out onto the cabin sole several times and finding a convenient way to secure them that was easy to stow and remove was a tough one.

Finally figured out a solution that met several requirements

• Easy to stow after removing them from the companionway
• Easy to retrieve to replace them in the companionway
• Secure stowage to prevent them falling
• Stowage does not scratch the freshly varnished boards.

Solution: Hatchboard Baggies

The 'Baggies' are Sunbrella, shaped to fit the hatch boards with a piece of foam along the lower edge in the hope of preventing wearing through as the boards are frequently lowered into them.

The Tabs (shown on the right side in the pic) are double layered Sunbrella and will have Snap buttons applied.

Next time down at the boat we'll position them and add Snap Studs screwed into the wooden bulkhead on either side of the Companionway steps.

The boards have handles on the same side as their stowage bags, so the panel with the handle on the port side will be stowed in the Port side baggie.

When stowed, the handles should be within reach to enable easy pickup of the boards. 

Easy to make and I used left over fabric from another project.

I'll update this post with a pic of the boards in their baggies. The reason for using snaps to hold them in place is simple: If I need to access the engine, I would have to remove the boards, this way they are pretty well protected from damage when temporarily stowed elsewhere.  Right now there is a temporary, single, hatchboard securing the cabin.

Stay safe out there folks.

See you on the water.

Paul

Date and Fennel Whole Wheat Bread

Christmas came early (again) and some new baking tools arrived: Brotform, Lame, Dough Whisk and I just had to use them

Found a recipe for Date and Fennel Bread but it was basically a white bread and we really appreciate a good whole wheat bread, so tweaked the recipe and this is the result. The dark spots on the surface are where the dates got a bit crispy. We have to wait for 3 hours before our first slice and that's way to long to wait! So we'll see if we can hold out for a couple of hours.

This is a two part dough, starter and dough.

Starter (Make the day before)

1 Cup of bread flour

1 Cup of warm water

1/8th Teaspoon of Yeast

Mix all of the starter ingredients into about a 4 cup bowl that has a lid, stir them up, pop the lid on and leave till the next day, at least 6 hours, but up to 24.

Next Day:

Complete the Starter

• 1 Cup of room temperature water - add to the Starter let it stand.
• 1/2 Cup of Wheat Germ - add to the starter and mix with a whisk.

Dough (Make this before lunchtime so that you're not baking at night.)

Prep:

• 1 Tablespoon of Fennel Seed - toast in a skillet for 3 or 4 minutes, don't let them burn and empty skillet onto a cool plate to stop them cooking further.
• 1 Cup of Pitted Dates - cut them crosswise slices about 1/8 of an inch thick.
• Oil a rising bowl with lid, about 7 quarts so there's room to double the dough

In a Stand mixer's bowl:-

• 1 Cup of Bread Flour
• 1 Cup of Whole Wheat Flour
• 1 1/2 Teaspoons of Yeast
• Whisk them up to evenly distribute in the bowl

With the mixer running on slow, pour the starter mixture and mix for 3 minutes, if the dough does not start to combine, repeatedly add a teaspoon more of bread flour with about 30 seconds in between, the dough just needs to start to make strings of gluten. 

Continue to mix the dough and gradually add the cooled fennel seed, about a teaspoon at a time to make sure it's not in a lump.

Continue to mix adding the salt.

Continue to mix and very gradually add the dates, same rate, about 1 teaspoon at a time, they should evenly distribute into the dough

Now continue to mix the dough for a total of about 10 minutes, it will be sticky but might start to pull off of the sides of the mixing bowl.

Scrape the mixture out of the mixing bowl into the rising bowl,

Rise #1: Cover and let stand for 30 minutes

Rise #2: Using fingers or an oiled scraper, fold the edge of the dough to the center, turn the bowl a qtr tern and repeat for a total of 8 folds. Cover and let stand for 30 minutes

Rise #3: Do #2 again

Rise #4: Do #2 again

That's a total of 2 hours rising and folding.

Prepare the Brotform: Spray with water, dry with a kitchen towel, sprinkle Rice Flour on the inner surface and turn the Brotform on its side, rotating it so that the flour rolls into the grooves of the form all the way around. Don't use regular flour. No rice flour? Just use some fine cornmeal instead.

At the end of the two hours of rising and folding the dough should be about doubled in size from when it came out of the mixing bowl. Gently deflate it and turn onto a lightly floured surface.

Fold the far edge towards you to about the center of the dough and press it into the dough beneath it.

Turn the dough clockwise 90º and repeat the fold.

Do that so that there's now a rectangle of dough.

Turn the dough over so that the seams are on the underside.

Shape the dough into a large ball keeping the seams underside

Transfer the dough into the Brotform with the seam side uppermost.

Cover with a kitchen towel and let it rest for about an hour, it should rise above the top of a medium sized Brotform

While it's rising: Setup the oven with two shelves, a baking or pizza stone on the middle shelf and a tray of rocks on the lower shelf, heat the oven to 450ºF

When the oven is at temperature and the dough has risen in the Brotform, pour a half cup of water into the tray of rocks and close the door, that will add some steam to the oven. Let it sit for a minute.

Place a piece of Parchment paper onto a pizza paddle and turn the risen dough onto the paper. Now is the time to slash the bread with the lame, if you want. 

Add a second 1/2 cup of water to the tray

Slide the Parchment paper and dough off of the paddle onto the hot stone and close the oven

Set a timer for 35 minutes

Check the dough internal temperature after 35 minutes and every 5 minutes until it registers 200ºF Max of 45 minutes. 

Then pull the Bread out and remove the paper. Cool the bread before slicing it should look really good.

Hope you enjoy.

Cabin Cushions Update

 Updating the Cabin Cushions

I'm pretty sure that the boat cabin cushions are all original, that means they are 33 years old. Some of them even have the original markings on the back from the Catalina factory in 1987. The V-berth cushions are in good shape, compared to the saloon cushions, they are hardly used. Same goes for the Aft berth cushions. The cushions are also a dark blue with a grey dot pattern and buttons to create a surface shape that is not particularly effective.  Time for an update.

The original cushions were used even though the raised starboard cabin seats were a slightly different shape. The cushions are very worn and have little support, it's a bit like sitting on a plank of wood.

This picture of the starboard fore seat shows that there is no seat back, so the occupant (it's Peggy's seat for meals) has to suffer leaning against the hard wood bulkhead.

That also makes the cabin dark, off of that dark blue and the, seemingly, large bulkhead at the front end of the main cabin.

So, as usual, it takes a bit of planning.

To figure out the amount of cushion foam I would need, I used Google Draw.

The process was pretty simple:- Start a new Draw project, set the page to a Custom size the same as the size of a sheet of foam. I chose National Foam Products with is 10 minutes away from our house. No shipping charges and they have everything I would need for the foam in stock.

So now I have a google draw that has a page dimension of 82x55 

Next I created a rectangle for each cushion piece measured to the nearest inch and moved that round the page. With all of the pieces displayed and maneuvered on the page to fit, some were left over and I simply copied them onto a second draw page. I ended up with 4 google draw pages.

#1 Cabin Seat Foam 4"

#2 Cabin Seat Foam 4"

#3 Cabin Seat Foam 2"

#3 Cabin Seat Foam 1"

This method worked so well that I decided to use the same technique to determine how much material I would need.

I created a new Google draw page 54 x 288 (that's 54 to match the material width and 288 was my initial guess of 8 yards (8 * 36)

Same process, I calculated the size of the seat top plates then added a rectangle to the page to scale, repeated that for all of the cushions. Then did the same for the cushion end plates (or boxing) and it turns out the best fit was 8 yards - good guesstimate.

I have plenty of Phifertex to use for the seat backing and the 'stretchers' used to create the Knee Risers at the front edge of each cushion.

Then it was time to place the orders:

Eversoft Vinyl Fabric Cushion Cover Material

8 Yards of Silver (it's a shade of grey) EverSoft textured vinyl from Sailrite, they really do have the best choices.

Then High Density Polyurethane Foam from National Foam Products in Pompano Beach Florida.

2 82 x 55 sheets of 4"  

1 82 x 55 sheet of 2" 

1 82 x 55 sheet of 1" 

and a couple of cans of Foam Glue, they were cheaper at Sailrite, but no shipping from NFP.

Total cost for the 9 pieces (seats and backs) is less than $800, just imagine how much it would cost to have them made! And that includes getting glue and a foam cutter.

Fabric is on it's way, Foam company confirmed the price of that part too. Should have everything to start in about 10 days. Making progress 👍

Of course, if the weather & tides allow us to go sailing, then perhaps we'll see you on the water.