Pearl Lee, Author at SV Pearl Lee

Frugal Boater: The Cost of Living on a Boat

Pearl Lee — Sat, 03 Feb 2018 17:54:54 +0000

What does it cost to live on a boat?

People are often curious about what it costs to live on a boat. As a Frugal Boater I’d love to give them the clear answer they seek, but asking what it costs to live on a boat is no different than asking what it costs to live in a house. Really! It varies that much because we’re all different. So first, let’s have a look at the major expenses of living.

Frugal Boater: Sail Cover Boat Name

Pearl Lee — Sun, 15 Oct 2017 17:17:05 +0000

Adding your boat name to your sail cover

I have always liked the look of boats with a sail cover boat name. Since our sails and sail covers were off, it seemed like a good time to do something I had wanted to do for a while. Of course being a Frugal Boater I had to find a way to do it myself. Although the process was a little slow, it was fairly straight forward and simple.

Read more at Frugal-Boater.com

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Frugal Boater: Hurricane Preparation and Aftermath, Hurricane Irma

Pearl Lee — Sun, 24 Sep 2017 17:56:59 +0000

Forgive me for making such a long blog post this time. I have a lot to say about our hurricane preparation for Hurricane Irma. ~ Tom

Hurricane preparation in the mangroves

We live on our Endeavour 43 sailboat, Pearl Lee, so we keep a close eye on tropical weather systems. In the summer of 2017 we were moored in Boot Key Harbor, Marathon, Florida. Watching Hurricane Irma since well before she was a hurricane was almost a hobby for us. As she strengthened we became more concerned.

Read more at Frugal-Boater.com

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Frugal Boater: Keeping it Cool

Pearl Lee — Tue, 25 Jul 2017 22:26:39 +0000

Although we have air conditioning on Pearl Lee, being a Frugal Boater, we don’t often go to marinas and don’t want to run the generator and air conditioner 24×7. Any HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning) professional worth his salt will tell you that three factors effect our comfort. Air temperature, humidity and velocity. Without running the air conditioner we can’t control the first two, so let’s work on the third, velocity.

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Frugal Boater: Pearl Lee Solar Power 2.0

Pearl Lee — Wed, 05 Jul 2017 17:51:41 +0000

Davit mounted panels

On Pearl Lee we make our own electricity, mostly from solar power. Occasionally, after Pearl Lee Solar Power 1.0, we found ourselves falling a bit short of our needs and supplementing our solar power with a generator. This was mainly during the short days of winter, but also during periods of high use. We don’t have an “electricity budget” as many cruisers do. My goal is to have enough solar power without any worries. Hence, Pearl Lee Solar (PLS) 2.0.

Our PLS 1.0 configuration consisted of two Hyundai 280 watt solar panels wired in series and mounted on our dinghy davits (hanging over the back of the boat). Power from these went through a Midnite Solar Classic 150 controller which charged our eight golf cart batteries with nearly 900 amp hour capacity.

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Frugal Boater: Solar Charge Controller Basics

Pearl Lee — Wed, 05 Jul 2017 17:51:16 +0000

You’ll need a charge controller with all but the smallest of solar panels. A charge controller goes between the solar panels and the batteries. It’s job is to limit, or control, the power your panels put into your batteries. This keeps you from destroying expensive batteries by overcharging. There are two types charge controllers.

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Frugal Boater: Solar Panel Basics

Pearl Lee — Wed, 05 Jul 2017 17:50:53 +0000

A solar panel converts solar energy to electricity. Solar panels are made up of a collection of silicon wafers called “cells”, wired internally to get the required power and voltage. Ideally, every solar panel in your system should be exactly the same. In our case they are not, but they’re “close enough” since our old and new panels are all 280 watt, 60 cell panels. If you’re in Florida, I recommend shopping for your solar panels at Sun Electronics in Miami for great prices and selection.

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Frugal Boater: Becoming a Lock Expert

Pearl Lee — Tue, 06 Jun 2017 20:15:18 +0000

Lock entrances look foreboding

We started our trip from Racine, Wisconsin to Mobile, Alabama with some trepidation about going through locks. After a lot of reading, we still had some lock anxiety. All that melted away after a few, and now we think we have a pretty good idea what we’re doing.

After going through more than 20 locks as high as 57 feet, we think we have it down. I hope this helps ease your anxiety.

Tom keeping the bow off the wall

Step One: Call the Lock Master. Never assume he knows your intentions. It’s best to call as far ahead as possible. If he’s busy with barge traffic, he’ll let you know and you can slow down or stop for lunch. Sometimes he’ll say “come on ahead, I’ll have it ready for you”. Either way you save time and fuel. Important: All crew on deck must wear personal flotation devices (PFD’s). I also recommend a Cubs hat.

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Seaplane Visit at Lorelei, Islamorada, FL

Pearl Lee — Sun, 28 May 2017 13:19:42 +0000

While anchored a half mile from Lorelei we got a cool visit from a seaplane. They found a clear area and landed, then taxied into Lorelei’s cove. We were ready when they came out and shot a video of the takeoff.

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Frugal Boater: Batteries Replacement Day

Pearl Lee — Sun, 14 May 2017 04:10:24 +0000

Today, we replaced our “house” batteries. These batteries are to us, what the electric company is to “normal” folks. They store all the power from our solar panels, and supply ALL of our electricity for lights, information, entertainment, and even cold beer.

What does this picture represent?

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