I’m exhausted. It’s been a sweaty hot day in the boatyard that turned incredibly windy and rainy later, and I’ve been up and down the boatyard ladder to Trilleen’s deck more times than I can count.
I try to ration the number of climbs I do because, with my disability its the most tiring part of boatyard work, but today I was testing mast electrics and lights and there was a problem, cue much poking with a multimeter, climbing down the ladder and having a look, climbing back up to poke some different things and repeating until I was sick and tired. Almost everything I ran up the mast has survived the mast stepping. VHF, Annenometer, masthead (steaming) light, deck flood and the anchor light all work beautifully. The Tricolour light (three nav lights in one unit) at the mast head not so much.
I’m a bit perplexed about this failure because all the lights were functionally tested and worked before the mast was stepped. I suspect that something has been shifted during the mast stepping or the many (necessary but unwelcome) trundling moves the mast went on round the yard. I need to go up the mast anyway as soon as Trilleen’s splashed back into the water to set the zero heading index for the Anemometer that’s newly mounted. Because clever Anemometers are prohibitive expensive I’ve got a relatively thick one that needs a manual indication as to where the boat’s bow is programmed into the control box.
Despite the disappointment with the Tricolour lamp, it’s been a good day and suddenly progress towards splashing is happening in leaps and bounds. The long project to sand, and fill and sand and fill, and sand and fill the shower tray and base round the heads has moved to the paint stage. I’m using International Interdeck which is a rubberised paint that is both grippy and soft on the feet. It’s a bit weird to apply and I thought it would be a bit more peaky when rolled on, but some hours later the first coat is touch dry and it looks ok, but it will need at least one more coat.