Querida y jim : fui con ustedes en este magnifico viaje a la montaña festejando vuestro 36 aniversario, y todo lo que compartes. arreglos del barco, cambio de paneles solares, etc y ese hermoso Pueblo musical.. todo muy hermoso.. los sigo con mucha expectativa,, gracias.
The achilles heel of saildrives and bulb keels is the risk of ripping a hole in the hull rather than solid skeg and shafts. I think a boat should be able to be beached without damage.
Hey Mark, certainly agree. Some Leopard models have 'sacrificial' keels that are designed to fail without breaching the hull. To some extent they protect the sail-drive but ultimately the sail-drive is the 'weakest link' in terms of risk.
Hello I'm a plumber I don't know what an accumulator is? To me this looks like a pressure vessel with an internal bladder can you help me out? What exactly is the purpose of it?
Hey Wayne, yes you're correct about the accumulator. Most yachts have a little 1 or 2 litre capacity accumulator to smooth out the outflow from the diaphragm pumps. Our vessel originally had an 8 litre capacity accumulator so we thought we would stick to the same specs. We're glad we did, the water flow now for showering especially is really consistent. Before (when we had the old accumulator that was faulty) we used to get water that was up and down in pressure and as a result either too hot or too cold. So I would either freeze or burn!! The Pumps cut in pressure is 20 psi and cut out pressure is 40 psi, so we set (as per the manufacturers recommendations) the accumulator pressure to 17psi (3 psi below the pump cut in pressure) and the system works well. Once the pump and accumulator were all good, Jim then had a problem with the suction side of the system. He finally traced the cause of that problem, it was just a nylon (or PVC?) elbow fitting with a crossed thread letting air in. Once that was replaced it all came together. It's funny how little things can bring the whole system down. Thanks for watching hope you enjoyed it. Cheers, Adriana
Contestant: I'll take geography for $1000, Alex. Alex: The citizens of Toowooba, Tibooburra, the musical-sounding Wallongong and the dog-friendly Wagga Wagga can be found here.Contestant: What are camping areas at a Boonnaroo Music Festival? 3:59
Hey Mark, nice to hear from you and thanks for your feedback. We did investigate a new type of pump called a V Flow pump (also made by Jabsco) that has a variable speed motor so that flow and pressure remain constant as taps are opened or closed throughout the vessel, eliminating the need for an accumulator tank. Unfortunately for whatever reason these pumps are not imported into Australia so we're back to re-installing a new Jabsco 8L accumulator which we expect to receive this week. At 8L it's a relatively large accumulator so we get about 3 to 4 litres flow before the pump kicks in. We've been running without the accumulator for a few weeks now and it's OK but the pump switches on and off constantly cycling on & off every 1.5s. Jabsco claims that the accumulators increase the pump life (it's a diagram pump) due to less cycling and that it also reduces the power (battery amps) consumed. I assume that the power draw is higher when it cycles constantly due to the higher start up current along with the inefficiency of stop/start operation (pressure & flow losses) . What I have observed also is that without the accumulator tank the water flow is more erratic, so we probably use a bit more water than necessary. Cheers, Jim
The accumulator is typically used to supply pressure before the pump turns on so you don't get a gush followed by couple seconds of drip drip drip before the pump is able to re-pressurize the line. They also absorb pressure spikes so the rest of the system doesn't get hammered hard (for instance, when the pump kicks on). If you're familiar with electronics, a good analogy is a capacitor.
Querida y jim : fui con ustedes en este magnifico viaje a la montaña festejando vuestro 36 aniversario, y todo lo que compartes. arreglos del barco, cambio de paneles solares, etc y ese hermoso Pueblo musical.. todo muy hermoso.. los sigo con mucha expectativa,, gracias.
Gracias Cristina amiga mia!!
well done... thanks
Thank you!! Cheers.
That's my biggest nightmare, I'm always checking the forecast for thunderstorms :( so uncontrollable and fierce!
Yes! People often ask me if I'm scared of sharks. I say thunderstorms are the sailors biggest fear! Cheers Adriana
The achilles heel of saildrives and bulb keels is the risk of ripping a hole in the hull rather than solid skeg and shafts. I think a boat should be able to be beached without damage.
Hey Mark, certainly agree. Some Leopard models have 'sacrificial' keels that are designed to fail without breaching the hull. To some extent they protect the sail-drive but ultimately the sail-drive is the 'weakest link' in terms of risk.
Never trust a public mooring if your expecting bad weather, always best to use your own ground tackle...
Hello I'm a plumber I don't know what an accumulator is? To me this looks like a pressure vessel with an internal bladder can you help me out? What exactly is the purpose of it?
Hey Wayne, yes you're correct about the accumulator. Most yachts have a little 1 or 2 litre capacity accumulator to smooth out the outflow from the diaphragm pumps. Our vessel originally had an 8 litre capacity accumulator so we thought we would stick to the same specs. We're glad we did, the water flow now for showering especially is really consistent. Before (when we had the old accumulator that was faulty) we used to get water that was up and down in pressure and as a result either too hot or too cold. So I would either freeze or burn!! The Pumps cut in pressure is 20 psi and cut out pressure is 40 psi, so we set (as per the manufacturers recommendations) the accumulator pressure to 17psi (3 psi below the pump cut in pressure) and the system works well. Once the pump and accumulator were all good, Jim then had a problem with the suction side of the system. He finally traced the cause of that problem, it was just a nylon (or PVC?) elbow fitting with a crossed thread letting air in. Once that was replaced it all came together. It's funny how little things can bring the whole system down. Thanks for watching hope you enjoyed it. Cheers, Adriana
Contestant: I'll take geography for $1000, Alex. Alex: The citizens of Toowooba, Tibooburra, the musical-sounding Wallongong and the dog-friendly Wagga Wagga can be found here.Contestant: What are camping areas at a Boonnaroo Music Festival? 3:59
Hahaha! Cheers Adriana
Why have an accumulator? basic boat/rv water pump will keep pressure wont it?
Hey Mark, nice to hear from you and thanks for your feedback. We did investigate a new type of pump called a V Flow pump (also made by Jabsco) that has a variable speed motor so that flow and pressure remain constant as taps are opened or closed throughout the vessel, eliminating the need for an accumulator tank. Unfortunately for whatever reason these pumps are not imported into Australia so we're back to re-installing a new Jabsco 8L accumulator which we expect to receive this week. At 8L it's a relatively large accumulator so we get about 3 to 4 litres flow before the pump kicks in. We've been running without the accumulator for a few weeks now and it's OK but the pump switches on and off constantly cycling on & off every 1.5s. Jabsco claims that the accumulators increase the pump life (it's a diagram pump) due to less cycling and that it also reduces the power (battery amps) consumed. I assume that the power draw is higher when it cycles constantly due to the higher start up current along with the inefficiency of stop/start operation (pressure & flow losses) . What I have observed also is that without the accumulator tank the water flow is more erratic, so we probably use a bit more water than necessary. Cheers, Jim
The accumulator is typically used to supply pressure before the pump turns on so you don't get a gush followed by couple seconds of drip drip drip before the pump is able to re-pressurize the line. They also absorb pressure spikes so the rest of the system doesn't get hammered hard (for instance, when the pump kicks on). If you're familiar with electronics, a good analogy is a capacitor.