Why is it that every time I start a job on the to-do list, it turns into 3 more and I don’t end up finishing the original one either? We’ve been living on the boat now for 2.5 weeks and are settled into a bit of a rhythm. We know where the best grocery store is, we know where the best hardware store is, we know for the most part where our essential belongings are stored, and every day we learn more about what parts of the boat need to be fixed / upgraded / replaced. The frustrating part is setting out to tackle one job, then getting side tracked by noticing something else that doesn’t seem quite right, then realizing that something else is a whole other job, then running out of time before the kids need their next feeding and realizing the only thing that got accomplished was adding another item to the list.

So this is what’s been consuming my time for the past week and a half. Here’s the current snapshot of where things stand, in no particular order other than how we happened to write them down:

TO DO

1. Sell old dinghy - the boat came with a very well used dinghy for which we’ve already purchased a replacement, so we need to sell the original or else drop it in the parking lot with a “free” sign attached

2. Buy Tohatsu Outboard Spares (filters, oil, etc) - will come in useful if we ever manage to get the dinghy out from in front of the bow

3. Replace aft head exit valve - there’s a ball valve that directs waste from the head either toward the holding tank or allows it to exit to the great blue. When we moved aboard it was totally seized and needless to say it’s pretty important for it to be functioning correctly. Because this is a European-built boat, standard North American plumbing fittings won’t work, so we’re in a back-and-forth with Hallberg-Rassy parts sorting out exactly what we need for a replacement.

4. Iridium Go - our system for email, phone, weather, while we’re out of cell phone range. Just need to order and install the new antenna and Iridium Go unit at the nav table.

5. InReach - our back-up to Iridium Go, we have a Garmin InReach that needs to be activated and set up. Our plan is to incorporate its position tracking into our website so anyone who cares can see where we’re at (oh, that’s another to-do item I should add to the list…)

6. Add Location Page to www.harriscrew.ca - see #5

7. Dinghy Davits - after a few days onboard we decided adding davits to hoist the dinghy off the stern of the boat will be pretty critical to our quality of life, so we’ve priced out what we need and the next step is to take the measurements and make the order. Installation will follow, but right now it’s just too hot to consider tackling this one.

8. Solar - really dependant on #6 getting done since we’d prefer to mount at least some solar on the davit frame. 

9. Hydro Generator - need to get out sailing to test operation (hopefully this works without any issues)

10. Re-fibreglass base of Windgen Pole - while cleaning out and reorganizing the stern locker I noticed the fibreglass around the base of pole mounting our wind generator has started peeling away from the underlying wood. Should be a fairly easy fix once it’s not 45C and I can survive in the stern locker for an hour to get it done.

11. Buy and Mount Life Raft - we’re upsizing to an 8 person life-raft to accommodate the 5 of us plus 2-3 additional adult crew should s&*t hit the fan while offshore.

12. Caribbean 1500 Signup - multiple people we’ve met have highly recommended joining this sailing rally where 50-60 boats leave the US together bound for Tortola. We’ve requested the information package which apparently is the first step to getting registered.

13. Cabin Fans - on our first night here, both Megan and Kyle found the fans in our aft cabin too noisy for sleeping. We also found one in the salon wasn’t working and I traced it down to a badly corroded switch after taking the whole thing apart (not worth fixing). As a result I ordered and installed 2 new ones in the aft cabin which proved to be a major upgrade and we now just need to decide whether it’s worth the cost to replace the rest.

14. Port Lights - so we screwed up a bit here and didn’t insist on really testing out whether the port lights / windows had any leaking in a downpour. Needless to say we found out pretty quick that we have 3-4 spots where a slow drip of water seeps in when it’s raining really hard. We think it’s all fixable with a good cleaning and lube of the gaskets and lenses.

15. Cabinet Latches - not a critical problem, but annoying as f*#k when the latches on our cabinet doors stick and either don’t open when you think they’re unlatched or don’t stay closed when you think they are latched. Another clean and lube job is in order, but may need to replace a couple that look to have been damaged at some point.

16. Freezer - this one is pretty critical as our freezer has refused to work since we moved on board. The compressor is running but the evaporator (the cooling element inside the freezer) just isn’t getting cold. After some research I found a great trouble shooting guide and eventually isolated a refrigerant leak - time to call in a professional on Monday.

17. Fridge - while the fridge has been working fine for the most part, for some reason the fridge compressor cut out the other night when we let the battery run down to about 75%. Initial guess is a power supply issue (maybe a loose connection?). Hopefully nothing me and my trusty multi-meter can’t track down.

18. Carpet - all Hallberg-Rassy’s originally come with carpet installed on the cabin floor, making them easier to keep clean and generally more quiet inside. Matriarch’s original carpets had been discarded at some point in the past, but the cabin floor is still equipped with the snaps originally used to hold it in place. After getting some ridiculously high quotes for installing new carpets, for a small fraction of the cost we instead decided to purchase a 16’x12’ swath of the high quality indoor/outdoor carpet we saw on my parent’s deck and do the fitting and edge binding ourselves (another use for our Sail-Rite). The carpet is on its way with Mom & Dad when they come to visit at some point in the next month.

19. Boat Lettering - since we renamed the boat Matriarch and re-flagged her as Canadian, we haven’t gotten around to applying the new name and port of registry. Big thanks to Liz for custom designing the font for the name, now we’re just waiting on proofs from the print shop so we can approve and get them printed. Might sound silly, but I’m really looking forward to having this done as I’ve been holding off flying our big Canadian flag off the stern until it is. Oh and we also get to have a naming ceremony for which I’ve been saving a very special bottle of Irish whiskey.

20. Dinghy Lettering - same as above but for the dinghy. A little more complicated since the Ontario license number and name (yes we named the dinghy) need to be applied on top of our canvas dinghy chaps. Plan is to stencil on some white canvas and sew onto the chaps.

21. Dinghy Chaps Finishing - I’ve been waiting to test out the chaps on the water before putting on the final touches. The snaps I originally applied in our garage didn’t stick well so they need to be replaced and the draw string needs a more permanent attachment to the dinghy’s stern.

22. Replace Propane Regulator - the current regulator is significantly corroded, so I ordered a new one from Amazon which will be here next week. Hopefully a simple job to swap out old for new.

23. Get New Flares - everything on the boat right now is expired. Easy peasy, just need to do it before we go sailing.

24. Depth and Speedo - the paddlewheel for measuring boat speed needs to be inserted through the bottom of the boat, but I don’t want to do it before we’re ready to start sailing regularly because as soon as it’s down there the marine growth will start on it. Our depth transducer is inserted; however, it always reads 0.0 or 0.1 making me think the marina crew applied our bottom paint over top of it. Only way to tell is to take it out and take a look.

25. UV Water Purification - we really don’t want to worry about picking up an intestinal bug by drinking water directly from the tanks (with 3 kids we’ve got enough poop and vomit to deal with already), so in addition to the carbon filter we attach to the hose, we ordered an Acuva UV Eco 1.5 Water Purifier and are just waiting on delivery.

26. Inverter Upgrade - all the 110V outlets run off the current 1kW inverter. It’s big enough to handle the toaster, laptops and phone charging, but not the kettle which is a major problem for making coffee. We probably won’t get to this one until we tackle #8 since I don’t want to get into making changes to the electrical system more than once if I can help it.

27. Mount New Anchor - the current 75lb CQR anchor has to go. We definitely want to sleep soundly while at anchor so we’ve got a 77lb Spade (major upgrade) in storage that we need to lug down the dock and attach to our anchor chain.

28. LED Light Replacements - we inherited a mixed bag of halogen and various tones of LED lighting. All the halogens have to go and I can’t deal with a mix of daylight and warm white, so we ordered some replacements from Amazon to test them. After a successful test, we’ve now ordered the rest and will get them installed next week.

29. SUP holder - we’re going to hang the paddle board off the stanchions to save a lot of space. Also, if we don’t inflate it / see it, we will likely never use it. The rack is ordered from Amazon and should be here next week. Once this is done the deck will finally be clear!

30. VHF GPS Link - all newer VHF radios have the ability to accept a GPS position input and broadcast it automatically with a distress call. From what I can tell, the previous owner never configured this ability so getting it working likely requires some additional wiring and set-up.

31. Cockpit Chart Plotter - we have one chart plotter located at the nav station and a second located in the cockpit. While the plotter at the nav station is working perfectly, for some reason the plotter in the cockpit is not receiving inputs from any of the instrumentation (gps, radar, speed, depth, ais, or autopilot). This one is perplexing and I really want to get it solved before we start sailing regularly.

32. AIS Programming - ‘AIS’ is a system that broadcasts a vessel’s identification, location, course, and speed to any other vessels equipped to receive the signal. AIS signals from all equipped vessels can also be seen publicly via websites/apps such as Marine Traffic. Because we re-flagged the vessel as Canadian, we also have to re-program our AIS transponder with the new vessel identification number. Doing so is going to involve either taking the unit into a dealer to have it done or finding a way to do it ourselves (preferable but takes some how-to research).

33. Cruising Permit - we need a US cruising permit to sail our Canadian vessel in US waters. For this we need to drive an hour to downtown Baltimore and apply in person. Attempt #1 was foiled by network and printer issues at the port office. Attempt #2 is hopefully scheduled for early next week.

34. Reprogram EPIRB for Canada - when activated, our Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon sends vessel, crew, and location information to search and rescue. Because we have a Canadian flagged vessel, Canadian Coast Guard SAR would coordinate activities to come get us in the unlikely event the EPIRB was ever triggered. A very critical piece of equipment that came with the boat and needs to be re-programmed with our Canadian information.

35. Install Smoke/co2 Detectors - easy, just need to do it.

36. Replace Fridge and Freezer Gaskets - easy, just need to do it.

37. More to be come…