I agree for the most part,Wayne,And the Johnson incident was really
more to illustrate the hazards near shore....I live about 4 or 5
hundred yards from where they went aground, and I have been awakened by
helicopters trying to save people in the same location,and I've seen
surfers paddling back to the beach with lifeless bodies on their
boards,not to mention untold #s of boats on the beach....and many of
them got to that point from loss of primary power. Truth be told,the
power boats outnumber the sailboats in that predicament 3 or 4 to 1,
but a number of those incidents could possibly been avoided,yet vessel
assist would not have been able to deploy fast enough to be anything
more than a salvage assistant. I have a full draft salboat,but in this
area there is not an optional "anchor out" area to ride out weather by
default, and when its blowing straight down the mouth of the
harbor,sailing is not often a viable get home solution; therefore I
still like having that 15 horse OB on the transom...Granted on a larger
boat it would be ineffective, but on my little 27 footer it does just
fine...Luckily the prevailing winds here are favorable most of the time
and I can sail practically to my slip (and have once or twice) But
I know that it's those times that deviate from the norm that can cause
the biggest problems for someone less than prepared....I like having a
plan B... If you can afford it,Why not?....Also,as I said before,much
of the Channel Islands system is 20 or more miles from assistance...
regards,
markvictor

Twin engine setups do not provide the reundancy they often appear to
provide. Most are supplied with fuel from a single tank and a single
battery bank. If you want true redundancy with twins your fuel tankage and
starting batteries should also be redundant. Stock boats seldom provide
that sort of setup.

Seems to me another necessary item for transiting dangerous entrances is a
stout anchor and rode that can be deployed from the stern by simply cutting
a thin cord to release the anchor. Deprnding upon the situation the rode
can be cleated from a forward or after cleat during transit.

Attempting to get an aux engine running in an emergency can take much longer
than imagined.

Butch
"markvictor" wrote in message
ups.com...

That reminds me of a funny story ...I had a customer call me after an
incident on his boat..he had been drift fishing most of the
day(w/stereo,lights radar,chart etc. all left on, and the battery
switch in the "all" position. As they got close to shore the attempts
to start the motor on dead batteries proved fruitless(go figure)...THe
VHF did no good on 9 volts so in a panic he called the coast guard and
was yelling at them to hurry because he was heading towards the
rocks...after the usual questions (immediate danger,name of vessel
,people on board, PFD's,etc) the person on the line said "sir, have you
deployed your anchor"...The customer answered with an indignant "of
course I did" (as he bent over and loosens the chain wheel) Yhe next
question from the coast guard was..."Sir, is that your anchor chain I
hear in the background?".......Oops!...busted....but I guess he learned
a valuable lesson...
regards,
mark victor

"markvictor" wrote in message
ups.com...
That reminds me of a funny story ...I had a customer call me after an
incident on his boat..he had been drift fishing most of the
day(w/stereo,lights radar,chart etc. all left on, and the battery
switch in the "all" position. As they got close to shore the attempts
to start the motor on dead batteries proved fruitless(go figure)...THe
VHF did no good on 9 volts so in a panic he called the coast guard and
was yelling at them to hurry because he was heading towards the
rocks...after the usual questions (immediate danger,name of vessel
,people on board, PFD's,etc) the person on the line said "sir, have you
deployed your anchor"...The customer answered with an indignant "of
course I did" (as he bent over and loosens the chain wheel) Yhe next
question from the coast guard was..."Sir, is that your anchor chain I
hear in the background?".......Oops!...busted....but I guess he learned
a valuable lesson...
regards,
mark victor


I have only one battery on my modest 20 footer but also have modest
electrical demands. Rather than going to the expense of putting in a
second battery and wiring in an A/B switch I plan to purchase a portable
rechargeable 12 v charger/battery starter in case of emergencies similar to
this: http://store.yahoo.com/sports-imports/pore12poposu.html

Speaking of portable rechargeable 12 v battery chargers............any
recommendations from the group on one that has worked well for them?

Hey Jim,
from the picture It looks to be identical to 1 I picked up a year or
two ago (same switch,guage, cord and clamp stowage, peak rating etc.)
with the exception of color... I have had pretty good luck with it...If
the primary battery is really low it helps to connect it a couple of
minutes before attempting to start, but other than that it'as been a
handy thing to have...It makes a good 12 volt power supply as well...

ref-"called the coast guard"...on a cell phone..

On Mon, 19 Dec 2005 14:40:00 GMT, "Butch Davis"
wrote:

Twin engine setups do not provide the reundancy they often appear to
provide. Most are supplied with fuel from a single tank and a single
battery bank. If you want true redundancy with twins your fuel tankage and
starting batteries should also be redundant. Stock boats seldom provide
that sort of setup.

==========================

I've seen quite a few twins with separate starting batteries, and the
better ones have a parallel solenoid that can be kicked in if one side
is weak. My old Bertram even had a separate parallell solenoid for
the generator in case that battery was low. Are you talking about
twin outboards or inboards?

Wayne,

I was talking about twin inboards but my comments apply to either. I don't
intend to brag but I know a bit about power reliability due to my background
in enhancing power reliability in critical DOD C and C facilities.

The ability to switch between and/or parallel battery banks is extremely
useful. But, two banks are required for redundancy. As I'm a belt and
suspenders kind of guy I run twin Optimas for my small outboard and carry a
12 volt jumper package for additional backup.

Twin tanks are required for true redundancy, also. The best arrangement is
to be able to run both or either engine from either tank using ball valves.
An arrangement drawing is very useful when mounted adjacent to the valve
rail. I also recommend redundant fuel filters for each tank with the
ability to switch between them while the engine is running. With that
arrangement it's possible to continue to a destination in the event you get
a load of bad fuel. Quality filters/separators are the way to go.

Don't for get to carry a spare prop. A couple of weeks ago a fishing buddy
spun a hub shortly after launching. Fortunately we were able to idle back
to the ramp, recover the boat and change the prop.

Bertram, being a very high quality boat, IMO, is constructed in a very high
quality manner with the proper systems for safe offshore use.

Butch
"Wayne.B" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 19 Dec 2005 14:40:00 GMT, "Butch Davis"
wrote:

Twin engine setups do not provide the reundancy they often appear to
provide. Most are supplied with fuel from a single tank and a single
battery bank. If you want true redundancy with twins your fuel tankage
and
starting batteries should also be redundant. Stock boats seldom provide
that sort of setup.

==========================

I've seen quite a few twins with separate starting batteries, and the
better ones have a parallel solenoid that can be kicked in if one side
is weak. My old Bertram even had a separate parallell solenoid for
the generator in case that battery was low. Are you talking about
twin outboards or inboards?

And on a diesel rig the same plumbing is necessary on the fuel return
system as well to prevent overfilling any one tank and pumping fuel
overboard via a tank vent. In fact some fuel injected gas applications
return fuel to the tank(this is the exception),although most reciculate
fuel at the engine,it is worth verifying before doing any plumbing,,,,
Hey Butch,what do you think of those optimas? I've had good luck with
them myself...
regards,
markvictor

Mark,

Excellent points on the diesel fuel return lines, thanks.

So far so good on the optimas. I've had them for less than a year but my
expectations are high.

Butch
"markvictor" wrote in message
oups.com...
And on a diesel rig the same plumbing is necessary on the fuel return
system as well to prevent overfilling any one tank and pumping fuel
overboard via a tank vent. In fact some fuel injected gas applications
return fuel to the tank(this is the exception),although most reciculate
fuel at the engine,it is worth verifying before doing any plumbing,,,,
Hey Butch,what do you think of those optimas? I've had good luck with
them myself...
regards,
markvictor