S4#13. Difficult Yachting Decisions - the wrong one may destroy your boat!

As we run for cover from a 40-50 knot southerly storm in Crete, we are faced with difficult decisions about where to hide from the storm - in a craggy exposed harbour wall, anchor in the middle of the port or motor out into the bay and take cover behind cliffs to protect from the force of the wind. We discuss our counter intuitive decision as it has important implications for all sailors....
Then come with us as we live through the full day of 35 - 50 knot winds - but live to tell the tale!
We also share the up to date Portofino 52 build progress photos and Rtaffaele Rognoni discusses how he has worked with the air con makers to improve the function and reduce the power consumption so we will be able to save 100kg in weight, $$$ and reduce our lithium bank from 8 to 6 batteries (40-30KW) while still operating our ACs in the whole boat for 10 hours overnight!
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[@fountainvalley100]

One of the most interesting air conditioning systems I’ve seen on a boat didn’t use sea water cooling. It was an aluminum boat. The boat used some of its double bottom space was as a heat exchanger. The pump pulled and returned fresh water to the tank after going through the chiller. The aluminum hull just radiated the heat out into the ocean. It eliminated two openings in the hull and all the maintenance related to cleaning marine growth.

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Yes that is a very interesting way to go. Portofino were going to use the hulls to cool the DC generators but that has been overcome in other ways now, I understand. That is one of the other advantages of Aluminium!

[@ahminmabed5166]

Cheers guys. Still a long way to go on the build.

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Thanks for the support Ahmin and yes, still lots of work to be done....

[@JibeTalking]

Great video guys, excellent decision making process. Thanks for sharing!

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Thanks for watching!

[@MsHappy-u5o]

I love it.... the cost is "different" !!!

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

But you need to say it while waving your arms about a bit! :) He does go on to say "not that much different"....

[@ianh2674]

Great video folks, situation was explained well and right decision made

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Thanks Ian!

[@constantinealexandrakis]

I learned something today!

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

That's always a bonus - glad to hear it was useful, Constantine!

[@chrisstephen4563]

Well done you guys

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Thanks Chris

[@juergenzenner4219]

Love the explanation, even think straight forward for carrying a spare pump! Thanks Christmas time schedule get very tight, when we see how far they are now. Fingers crossed

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Glad you liked it, Juergen and there does seem to be a lot of work to do before Christmas....

[@thomasotth3205]

Hi Eli and John, As usual, your video is super interesting and very informative. It's invaluable to share experiences like this, as it helps all of us to progress. A big thank you, and I hope you're doing well. Best wishes from Switzerland, Thomas

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Our pleasure, Thomas and glad it is useful! We do like to share our knowledge so others can benefit.

[@MK-gr9qz]

Really nice, thanks for sharing🏅

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

It's a pleasure, MK!

[@mangowalter8239]

Both your knowledge and expertise kept you both safe during the storm! Very well done and I’m proud of you both for remaining calm and working as a team. 👏👏👍 There is no doubt that circumstances change quickly when out on the water but you both apply great skills and teach us “couch” sailors the proper way to sail safely! Thank you both 😊 Your Portofino continues to impress and I’m so anxious to see her splash. She will keep you both comfortable and safe. I love this catamaran and look forward to forward to the completion! Stay safe my friends 🤗

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Thanks Mango for your regular comments and ongoing support!

[@waltervanderboor]

Great decision to face the storm. All decisions around any boat are a matter of preference and not saying it does not work. We have less great experience with one pump feeding two airconditioners, The others have ther own pump and thats a better set up. Yes it uses more energy but the pumps are smaller (less than 1/4 of the big one0 hence would not do that again, having a spare pump is just a must when you cruise warmer areas. My choice would be the pumps as near to the unit as possible to have easy maintenance from barnacles and good inlet siphons. taking out lithium? Its a choice, one that we won't make. The boat seems to progress nicely, will be a very stiff boat, Looks a much better build than some others we follow.

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Glad yo usan see the quality of the build with Portofino compared to the "others". We will see if the single pump system works well but Raffaele has already done systems like this himself with great effect even in Dubai so I trust his experience in this...

[@OnTheFlipSide]

Nice anchor tracking, looked like a great storm, well done. Why is there No footage of Eli's leap?? We had a nice storm in Antalya Turkey today, cooling everything nicely.

[@gbsailing9436]

Perhaps she didn't make it first go and Eli revoked her permission to use that footage...🤣🤣🤣

[@OnTheFlipSide]

@@gbsailing9436 Hahaha I can see that

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

HI Amanda, We had no free hands to flip Eli and it was quite a tricky process. She did make it first go though!!! Glad it rained - it was very hot for a few days - like you were. standing in a hair dryer... Just last week we were sleeping under duvets! See you soon!

[@gbsailing9436]

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 WHAT!?!?! Is something going on here we should know about John?

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Amanda was the Patreon that joined us in the Med...

[@BonnieVolkle]

I’m happy y’all are safe & sound😊

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Thanks for watching and the comment PE!

[@davidlevitz3119]

SUPER GREAT VIDEO WITH DIFFICULT DECISIONS THAT NEEDED TO BE MADE ! A GREAT LEARNING TOOL ! EXPERIENCE GOES A LONG WAY ! THANKYOU !

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Glad it was helpful, David!

[@christophrenner7941]

The man makes a very nice impression and also seems to be very competent. If he were a boat, I would feel safe. I'm sure you'll have a lot of fun when the time comes.

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Thanks Christoph for the vote of confidence! He is a sailor of 50 years and I feel very safe as his first mate. Eli

[@gbsailing9436]

Thanks for providing the feed back this week John and Eli. On further thought about MY solution, I wish to update it so in future if you like my idea, you may actually consider it as I think it is worthwhile. So my idea is this: instead of the line from the dock I would have run out a second anchor chain affixed to the dock with say 10m of line coming back to the boat so you could adjust the tension if needed. All of this is on top of normal anchoring in the harbour and running rear lines to help stability, etc. The beauty of this new method is the chain stays on the bottom (in case boats chose to leave the harbour) and yet as the blows starts if there is any drag the anchor chain lifts and acts as a shock absorber and ultimate distance LIMITER. I totally understand your decision of course. As always your experience John wins out! I was not quite sure what Rafaele was getting at with the design, except that he is able to tailor it to what you need on a daily basis, which is great. I was thinking that they maybe designing a water exchange unit that runs water up against the hull plates in a thin hidden reservoir low in the hulls that uses the lower temperature of the sea water to cool a sealed fresh water (system -low/no maintenance) needed for the air conditioners. Of course this would need a slightly different back up system for the tropics, but for most cruising locations it would be adequate cooling. This would also allow a normal air conditioning pump system to be used less as the natural freshwater heat exchange system would be used most of the time. it all comes at a cost and complexity of course, so you have to weight those considerations into the final choices. I'd certainly love to experience the final boat in operation to see just how well it all works in reality. I'm very envious of you both. LOL 😝 I know you'll really love your new boat. Till next week, Fair 💨's and following 🌊's.

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Hi Garth, your idea is certainly got merit if the blow comes from only one direction so would be a great idea. If the wind changes through 120* like this one, the chain is likely to drag across other boats and there was not any free harbour area that had space to have an anchor with some rotation ability... Although it sounded complicated, the key is that the system automatically changes the power used as more units are turned on and there is no DC -AC inversion which loses a lot of power too... And yes, like you, we are very interested to see how well the systems work but it is likely that this system will be copied and made more common if it saves that much power!

[@gbsailing9436]

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 Yes I totally understand, which is why I praised your ultimate decision - based on your extensive experience. I didn't think/see that the wind would change it's direction, not knowing the area, but that eventuality should always be taken into account which I thought could be handled by stern lines and engines on at the ready. I liked that you recorded you anchor track which bears out your choice. Thanks for replying so quickly. I'm glad that you're both safe of course. I eagerly await next weeks episode! Fair winds...

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

:)

[@camiesteiner8939]

Love seeing your adventures, positivity and learning from your videos both in sailing experience and the build process! Great content. What AC unit did you decide for this system; does it also heat and dehumidify?

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Awesome, thank you, Camie! I will need to find out that info for you and who the company is that doing this modification.

[@dc1544]

is he making it easy to run barnacle buster through system say every year or 2? That will keep AC system running smoothly.

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

I trust he is but will check, DC.

[@JCKR-yv4gy]

Dodging the storm - interesting. Was any of the boats which stayed in the harbour, damaged?

[@gbsailing9436]

Yes good to know...

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Hi JC, The boats inside the harbour seemed to all be there when we returned so no serious damage but some did have scuffs from the wall. Remember that there was no inside spaces for us and where the regular boats had moored had proper bollards and large rubber strips to protect the boats from the wall. neither were there where we could tie up.

[@JRTurgeon13]

You don't have 'fender boards' (2" x 8") for those rough walls or 'harbour quays (sheet pile walls)'?

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

HI JR, no we don't as they are needed so infrequently in the Med. We had them when we sailed though the French canals and they are needed where pole morning are common (US and Bahamas) but here in the Med a passarelle is much more valuable as it is mostly stern to morning. Fender boards would not have changed our decision here either...

[@KirkThomson]

I didn't want to add my opinion to the brain trust so it did adversely affect the bell curve.

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

LOL! But I'm sure that would not be the case, Kirk....

[@nikolaimariaromanov8384]

❤❤❤

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Nice to hear from you guys!!!

[@carlospereira9838]

The boat build is coming along very nicely the build quality is top notch you cannot beat aluminum for its strength to weight ratio….well maybe carbon fiber but it’s to dam expensive. As for your battery situation 30kw is not enough that’s only 24kw per cycle. Take my advise and add the extra 100 kilos and go for 50kw which is 40kw per cycle. Trust me having that extra power per cycle will really help. That along with 2 X high output alternators you can’t go wrong and will have enough power for all your needs.

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Thanks again Carlos, carbon may be tough in some directions but cracks with sharp impact so AL is still much safer in a collision with hard objects.... We would be happy with 30KW if AC was the only high power draw we had but if we decide to venture into the electric motor / hybrid, that would need more power for sure.... The 10KW DC generators are already planned for each side...

[@carlospereira9838]

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 Exactly having 2X 10kw alternators makes more sense to go with 50KW vs 30KW. Having that extra power is really going to come in handy and we are not talking about any hybrids. Your boat so it’s your choice.

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Yes and the cost is also a consideration -0 will we get value of use for money eg hybrids.. Still struggling with that one!

[@gkw6008]

Love your videos, but please lose the background music when conversations/taking happening!

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Glad you like the videos and we will take that on board, thanks!

[@johnphillips8088]

👍🏼❤

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Thanks John!

[@jimmydaniel8752]

He got that idea from dauntless watch his videos he's already done that

[@barefootdoctorssailing8567]

Hi Jimmy. Glad to hear that Dauntless has done it too but Raffaele does not watch KZbin (no Time) and as a marine engineer, he has been doing AC systems for over 20 years. What is surprising is why if both of them have had this idea, why has no commercially available AC manufacturer done it before now!!!