Tag Archives: Bimini

Solar Panels – Part III

Our latest and hopefully final approach to installing our flexible solar panels is a  semi-permanent mounting on the bimini.  We didn't want a permanent installation to the bimini and tried several alternative options (see Part I and  Part II). The Captain bought two additional flexible panels this summer, so there are six 100 watt  panels on three canvas backs.  I redid the canvas backings on the old two panels and made a new backing for the third. The canvas backs have grommets with plastic screws and washers holding the panels to the canvas.   Now the panels are on the bimini and tied down to the enclosure safety handles (which I think are one of the best improvements we made to our enclosure). With the boom pulled to the Read more [...]

Boat Enclosures–Extend the Life of Your Outdoor Room

The Seven Seas Cruising Association (SSCA) 2014 Gam has come and gone.  It marked the end of our first year of cruising on Magnolia full time.  This was our fourth SSCA gathering at Camp Letts on the Rhode River in Maryland.  We love the Rhode River so this gathering feels like home for us.  Good folks and good information sharing.  Some new info, some info that confirms my understanding of different things and some that I already knew (that experience itself is new as I used to feel that I knew zip!) This year there was a session on caring for boat enclosures.  Our enclosed cockpit is our outdoor “great room” where we spend a good bit of our time. I previously wrote about it here.  There were two speakers during this session.  Read more [...]

Solar Panels–You Light Up My Life

While in George Town, Exuma the Captain attended a beach seminar on batteries and energy power for the boat.  A lot of cruisers attended and the seminar created a lot of buzz.  By the time we arrived George Town we hadn’t been in a marina for several weeks.  Not a big deal,  saved us money and no docking “events.”  You get the drill, but not being in a marina also means our battery bank had not been “topped up” via shore power – ugh.  So the discussion at the seminar was all about how to “love” on your batteries.  Maintaining them is important.  Not that I can technically explain it, but over time you need to fully charge the batteries and the last percentage is the hardest to add.  The Captain came back from the beach Read more [...]
New enclosure 2013

The Perfect Cockpit Enclosure – At Least for Magnolia

Would you make or have you made a bimini, enclosure and dodger?  Now, that's a big project!  My sincere respect goes to those Seamless Sailors who tackle The Enclosure.  Since we didn't know the age of Magnolia's enclosure; the plastic panels were getting cracks in the glass no matter how much Plexus we used; and on top of all that, the canvas leaked no matter how much waterproofing we went through.  It was time to bite the bullet and make the investment.  The cockpit is our sunroom after all.  We planned the job for over the winter while the boat was out and a fabricator might have more time for  a big job.  I admit that I did not take on this project myself.   We decided it was worth having it done by someone with experience to Read more [...]

Five Tips Every Seamless Sailor Should Know About Canvas On Her Boat!

Originally appeared as a guest post for Women and Cruising Blog - October 18, 2012 Anyone else have canvas on her boat? Yes?! I do.  Lots of it. Big and small.  Canvas is important protective covering for your boat. It saves you money and time by protecting teak from the sun, keeping dirt out of your winches and instruments, and keeping you cool at anchor. Can you guess how many different canvas items you have on board? Quick without looking.  I counted 20+ unique items with some items having multiples in use at any given time on our Morgan sailboat, Magnolia.  That doesn't count functional and decorative fabrics below.  And I have plans to add more canvas on my growing sewing projects list! How many unique canvas items can you Read more [...]