Public Discussion Forum

Asa,

I spent the winter in the water in Malmo, Sweden two years ago and was just fine.

I went overboard and winterized everything which I regret!

I had so many challenges coming back to Sweden in March to get her ready to cruise to Norway.

It was high maintenance and low income.

I should have just left everything the way it was and turn on a small space heater in the engine room on low, then put a dehumidifier in the galley to drain into the kitchen sink, and a small fan midship outside the engine room door to circulate air. Close all the seacocks. Have someone look into the boat once a month to check the batteries, bilges, and run the engine and genset for 10 minutes, engage the transmission briefly forward and reverse, put a load on the genset by turning on the water heater and flush the water maker for the 2 minute flush. Flush the toilets. Run each fresh water Fawcett for 10 seconds. That should take 30 minutes once a month.

I’ll probably get some flack from some of my Selene brothers and sisters for sharing this with you, but In my experience, if your below 60 degrees latitude, Selene boats are bad ass and you don’t have to worry. Above 60 lat is another story.

Laughing my a…. Off reading this. Besides the new flip flops you might want to consider one of these tuxedo print t-shirts for the event. Even with that T I cant see you blending in :-) Love the picture of Terry and you on the trike. All the best getting Shangri-La ready and I can’t wait to follow your route. Suggestion: look into the SeaPeople app as an easy way to be able to follow you and create some sort of a logbook.

Mark, Where did you mount the unit?

Mike Cero

M/V Sea Rose (6605)

Well, all I can say is Thank God I am such a patient man. But please don’t take that statement too seriously.

Terry and I have been in Discovery Bay for three weeks today and moved aboard Shangri-La the Monday after spending the first couple nights ashore in a hotel. Then we were descended upon by movers delivering the stuff we packed in the 40’ container back home a few months ago, including tender, motorcycle, anchors, water maker, lots of fishing and dive gear, clothing, galley gear, toys (lots of them) and all the other things we couldn’t live without from 5388 that was accumulated over 15 years of cruising. Only the tender, cycle, water maker, anchors and fishing gear remain in storage. Selene sends a team of four guys (FRP, carpenter, varnisher and electrician) beginning Monday who will work on warranty items, final yard commissioning, some of my commissioning and getting the vessel ready for the Lantau Yacht Club Boat Show November 6-8. This is not your typical American boat show - think elite expats and “Crazy Rich Asians” in blazers and gowns being escorted by well groomed hosts and hostesses to the boats after enjoying local talented musicians, champagne and canapés on the lawn. Advertisers include Rolex, Omega, Rolls Royce, Ferrari, Dior, et al. - you get the picture. I am gonna break out a new pair of flip flops for this one!

Actually, we are having a ball, but working on the new boat every day to make her ours. The quality of the build is outstanding; The systems are laid out beautifully; SYA and Selene Yachts are supporting this pioneering effort nicely (they have a couple boats behind me so everyone is hoping we get ‘er done). This is a fun place here at DB, sort of what the town of Stepford might be if conjured up today.

But, the motorcycle will not see the roads in Hong Kong or China due to strict government regulations, registration fees, etc. Also, there are no private ICE vehicles permitted in DB anyway; everyone gets around by shuttle, bus, bicycle, on foot, or by club car (golf cart) and only 500 of those are permitted in the community of 25,000, hence the price tag of $300,000 USD for the permit when a slot opens up.

But Howard Chen promised we would ride motos in China together before I leave. Then, in a little over a month, I plan to be riding my Triumph 1200X Scrambler with Brian Calvert in the mountains of the Philippines. He has a Christmas toy drive ride lined up in Subic Bay that he has organized for several years and I brought my Santa outfit, so stay tuned.

Attached are a few photos from the first few weeks. The last two are highlights - sunrise at dawn over Hong Kong From Shangri-La and the new girl’s inaugural pump out. Good times!

Jack

Jack Burgess, Shangri-La 6047

You crack me up Jack.

I agree with the warmer climates but we have done this on our sailboat and now we want to use the comfort of the pilot hose to explore colder climates at least for a while.

How is the prep going? Is the motorcycle on board yet? When are you leaving for the Philippines?

Cheers

Stephan

Mark,

Thank you so much. This makes perfect sense. I need to check if we have a forced air diesel heater or hydronic. I really like your setup which would perfectly work for what we need.

Thanks for the clarifications.

Cheers

Stephan

lol. Always the bard!
Sent from my iPhone

I have another recommendation for you. It is a boat - sail towards the equator for the cold months and you will not have to face such problems. There is a reason the polar regions are not heavily populated. Save money on that expensive heating equipment and let the sun keep you warm.

Of course, if you are stuck or prefer life in the PNW like Mark on Koinonia, you have to deal with the climate there. Those folks love their gray skies and rain and it does get cold in the winter. I suppose the great fishing, occasional beautiful days and grand vistas are some minor consolation. Corey is languishing in Washington, D.C. during the winter months, where the Potomac River freezes up, boats become immovable and docks morph into slippery death traps. But Corey is no Sergeant Preston of the Yukon by any means - He would rather go south and stay warm in the winter, but poor guy still has a day job. He does get to watch the nonstop political comedy occurring right up the street from where he and Tracy keep Leizu, but I can see that from the Philippines on CNN, where Terry and I will be sunning ourselves on Shangri-La this next cruising season. Brian Calvert stopped there for a minute 15 years ago and never left. We are following in his wake.

Jack (Tongue firmly planted in cheek and at present commissioning Shangri-La 6047 at the beautiful Lantau Yacht Club in Discovery Bay, Hong Kong)

Jack Burgess, Shangri-La 6047

Basically Mark just described a custom version of what I purchased off the shelf. I have an itr diesel furnace. They have multiple models. I have a Hurricane 2L which has a built in 240v heating element. They also sell one with two elements. The diesel burner can be turned off and leave only the electric on - rest works same as with burner on. All diesel heating systems work similar to oil burning home units. I wish my unit had two elements. With only one it does an ok job of heating engine room loop if freezing cold but I have multiple loops and if too cold, it can’t keep up with only the one element.

Corey
Sent from my iPhone

Mark,

we are just building 4948 and I’m really interested what electric backup heater you use. We live in NYC and want to use the boat year round and I’m trying to not have to winterize the systems. is yours one of the USCG approved heaters? Where did you install it?

Thanks a million

Cheers

Stephan & Corinne

Selene 4948 AMANI

Hi Asa:

We own a Selene 59/60 in Puget Sound, Washington State--about 48 degrees north latitude. I suspect our climate is a bit more moderate than yours, but it does get cool and wet for about 1/2 the year. We are just now in the transition from our wonderful late summer/early fall weather (it was about 21 C yesterday) into the later fall/winter weather. Average low winter temperature for us is about 3 degrees C and average high in the winter months is about 9. We get roughly 140mm of rain per month in the winter.

Our boat has a diesel-fired hydronic furnace with an electric "backup" system (see: https://rixens.com/products/4-5-gal-comfort-hot-w-fill-cap-120-volt_c11-200). When we are NOT on board, we keep the thermostats set for approximately 10 and run the electric backup only--we shut off the boiler, but the rest of the system, including the circulation pump, fans, and thermostats run normally).

If we're on board, we typically will use the diesel furnace, just because it can heat the boat more effectively and quicker. However, both for safety reasons, and because--at least in our region--the electric heat is much more cost efficient, we use the electric backup when we're at our home moorage.

We have almost no issue with condensation or mildew because we keep the boat warm enough, and thus dry enough, that it doesn't seem to be an issue. We've had our boat for 18 years. We took delivery from the shipyard in 2008.

I hope that helps!

Capt. Mark Tilden

Selene 60 "Koinonia"

Hi everyone,

My partner and I are looking into buying a Selene 45 or 47 for year-round use in Sweden.

Since winters here are cold, we are a bit concerned about insulation and condensation on a Selene.

For those of you operating in cold climates:

• How severe is the condensation, and how do you mitigate it?
• What heating and dehumidifier setup do you use to stay comfortable?

Any insights or advice would be greatly appreciated!

Best regards,

Asa