WABI”’ winter projects.

I was talking about finding a heater for my Hunter Liberty recently and then had to set that project aside when i used that money for a different and more important long term project (self steering).  I had just about got to the point where i had decided which heater i was going to fit but then dropped the project mainly due to cost.  Then one of my  readers asked me a question about heaters and i thought it best to respond by starting a post about what i had worked out so far so what i thought i would do is a general post about the jobs i am going to do this winter.

Yesterday we made a quick day-trip to go and check out WABI”’ in her mud berth, catch up with boss-man Mark and show Jax around Topsham a bit.  WABI”’ is still nice and snug in her inside berth and Mark is going to move her onto a more accessible berth for me this week.  All i really had to do this week is give her a quick air through with the hatches open while we went off for a walk.  I did take the new tillerpilot with me and the measurements for where the deck socket and tiller pin needed to go but i found that the work had already been done by a previous owner : all i need to do is fit and wire the new power socket, about half a days work.

So : my winter jobs are.

1.Quick haul-out , power wash, wet-sand and apply one coat of antifoul as and when Mark has a spot to lift me out and put me on the hardstanding for a couple of tides.

2.Fit the tillerpilot and wire up the new socket.

3. Start the cabin roof project which is to organise and lead-aft all the reef lines and control lines such that everything is in a logical space. I think i will fit a different halyard winch and new jammers as both of us dislike the gibb self-tailer that came off the centreboard line.  What i really want to do is have all the lines on the small section of coachroof next to the main hatch but not encroach on the cabin bulkhead and leave an area free for project 4 which is the cabin heater job.

4.Fit a permanent cabin heater.  My plan is to research, find and fit a small heater inside the boat and the one place that i think i can use is the forward (cabin) face of the heads bulkhead where on many boats the galley is placed : note that i took that off soon after i bought the boat and now use my galley as below.

The proposed heater and flue position would be here (lower down)

I don’t have a picture of this part of the boat in total but liberty owners will know where i mean (in a while i will go acquire one from the net)….the obvious problem is that i have gone and put my electrical panel exactly where the flue needs to go vertically up to the coachroof .

Which heater ?

I have 2 heaters in mind, both of a similar size but using 2 differenr fuel systems so :

A. Dickinson ‘Newport’ solid fuel stove as seen here .

The plan would be to mount this as low as possible on that bulkhead and as near the centreline of the boat as possible to keep it away from the port berth.  It does need a 3″ flue which needs to be as vertical as possible but which might need a couple of angles to get it to the right place through the coachroof.  Cost of the stove would be around £450 + another couple of hundred for the flue, angles and deck flange/cowl.  The advantage is that i produce a lot of small dry firewood and can carry some of that easily on the boat and it doesn’t need a fuel tank of any kind.

B.This one : 

This is a small propane fuelled heater , slightly smaller than the Dickinson solid fuel heater but also now made by the same company.  I haven’t so far been able to track one of these down in the Uk but the US price seems to be around $460, obviously on top of that i would have to pay postage which would be around $75 and then pay our rapacious tax system for the pleasure of importing one.  After that it would still need a flue but only 1″ pipe which coule be bent around a bit to fit but would also need a professional gas installation and a small propane tank probably mounted in the back of the cockpit.

Anyway here is the question that prompted the post.

Richard Grummitt wrote :