Boat Maintenance

Exterior Wood Finish Update at 2 Years

Boxed and stored as PS went through three office moves in a short time frame, the wood samples we varnished in late 2015 finally...

Additives Fight Urine Odor

Some will claim urine is sterile and doesn’t smell. Horse hockey. No matter how careful you are, urine is loaded with nitrogen (urea) and...

DIY Desiccating Head Options

No standard dry toilet, even the CHead Shorty, would fit the available space on our Corsair F-24, so we decided to build our own....

Get a Survey, Set Priorities

Here we go again. Apparently enough time (32 years) has passed since I last bought a 50-plus-year-old boat and began restoring it that I’ve...

Packing Extraction Tool Tested

The packing material encircling your shaft and tucked out of sight inside the packing nut is truly your boat’s Achilles heel. Installed improperly it...

Making Underwater Hull Repairs

In our recent test of waterproof epoxies for making underwater repairs, we also looked into making underwater patches. Obviously, your success in this effort...

Remote Inspection Cameras

The most valuable inspection tool will always be 20/20 eyesight combined with experience. But there are times when you can’t lay eyes on the...

Revisiting Odor & Tank Treatments

Sodium percarbonate (Na2H3CO6 ) is a hydrate formed between sodium carbonate and hydrogen peroxide, and is more properly written 2 Na2CO3 + 3 H2O2...

Substitutes for Just in Case

We get a lot of chemistry questions, and a common thread lately seems to be the use of replacement solvents and green alternatives. While...

Products and Tips to Stop Wood Rot

Wood has lot going for it. It is strong and stiff per unit weight, easy to work with, attractive, and economical. Teak decks provide...

What’s the Best Sailboats for Beginners?

Are you interested in learning how to sail? What is the best sailboat to learn to sail on? Which boat should you buy first?...

Latest Sailboat Review

Ericson 41 Used Boat Review

Sailing the Salish Sea on Canada’s west coast is the dream of many a sailor. With a lifetime of sailing dinghies and messing about...