Holding Tank Monitor And Major Service On Our Ford Lehman

We posted our holding tank installation several months back and one of the unfinished parts of that project was to install a tank monitor. We did a lot of research on the different types and manufacturers and finally decided on the Solo Tank Monitor made by New Providence Marine/Ferriello Sales LLC. The decision was based on lots of positive feedback from current owners and a recommendation from Miss Peggy Hall, known throughout the boat industry as the "Head Mistress." Peggy has a couple of excellent books on marine sanitation. The installation could not have been more straightforward or easier.

 We first needed to decide where to mount the display. It needed to be easy to see and have good access to run the wires from the power source to the tank. A convenient spot on the bulkhead directly behind the head was perfect for us. It began with cutting a hole for the panel. We posted our procedure for doing this in an earlier post, so I won't repeat it again. The power connection was run from our main DC panel and the monitor has its own breaker switch.
  

Even though it's connected to a breaker, we also installed an in-line fuse per the manufacturer's instructions. All of the in-line fuses on Beach House have a spare fuse taped to the fuse holder, so if it blows, there is no hunting for a replacement and hoping we have the right size. This has made the replacement process quick and easy.

With the panel in place and the power wire run and connected, the next step is to install the sensors on the outside of the tank. We chose the external, non-contact sensor. There is no need to drill holes in the tank, no moving parts to care for or any sensor in the tank that would need cleaning. With our custom made "plastic" tank, this kind of sensor is ideal. The installation of the sensor is extremely easy and only took a few minutes.

The sensor module is wired to the display panel, two self-stick strips of aluminum are attached to the outside of the tank, the self-stick copper patches attached to the module are stuck over the aluminum strips and the module is secured between them via a piece of self-stick tape. And that is all there is to it.

There is one more additional step and that is calibrating the tank both empty and full. This allows the sensor to read and display how much fluid is in the tank. Our tank is opaque and you can see the fluid levels if the drawer next to it is removed. But we prefer a bit easier and more precise way to tell when the tank needs to be pumped out BEFORE it is over full. The first part of the calibration is to pump the tank as empty as possible. Most tanks will still have a small amount in the bottom, but that is okay and preferred during the calibration process. Once empty, the buttons are manipulated according to the installation manual.

We then filled the tank with our water hose, being careful to stop at about two inches above the top of the tank. This would give us a little cushion when the monitor reads full and we would still have a couple of flushes to carry us through if we needed them. Once the tank was full, again, a simple manipulation of the buttons on the display calibrated the monitor for a full tank. The entire installation took very little time and was one of the easier installs we have done. We highly recommend this unit.

Oh yes, I did mention some major service for our Ford Lehman 120. The engine has performed flawlessly since we have owned the boat. But it has had a minor problem with oil weeping from where the head bolts on to the top of the engine, near the rear of the head and engine. I re-torqued the head bolts when we were in Reedville, Virginia and it slowed the problem down a bit, but did not stop it. So we decided to pull the head, have it checked and machined if necessary, and at the same time, replace the injectors, new valves and seats, a new head gasket and exhaust manifold gasket and do a valve adjustment. Our plans to do the Great Loop will mean thousands of miles that we will have to motor so we want the motor to be in tip-top condition. The top of the pistons and the cylinder walls all looked excellent and even the valves were in good shape, but since we had everything apart, it only made sense put new valves in since they are very inexpensive. We'll let you know how it all turns out.

Trawler Flybridge Makeover

A major project that has been on my to-do list for a very long time is the renovation of the flybridge. I knew this was going to be a lot of work, and other more pressing projects have kept this on the back burner. But at some point, it really needed to be done and a few weeks ago, I reached that point. The "You Have To Do It Now" list is blank for the time being, and I have found the extra time away from the work stuff to get it done. But it was not one of my more pleasant projects.

The built in fiberglass seats were looking really bad and had to be completely removed. They leaked every time it rained and the gelcoat was in bad condition. We considered painting them and making new cushions, but in the end decided they had to go. Removing the teak baseboards made it easy to just pull them out. They are only fastened to the deck by a handful of screws attached to three glassed-in frames on the inside.

Once the seats were out, I glassed in the flybridge gunnels to the deck, eliminating any possible water intrusion. Many traditionalists will have a fit about this, since now the flybridge can never be removed. But we see no future plans that would require the removal, and this eliminated an ongoing problem for us. The space where they meet was filled in with thickened epoxy, and a two-inch strip of fiberglass cloth was applied over that. Epoxy with fairing compound thickener was the final coat, and once the epoxy kicked off, it was sanded to a rounded corner.

With the edges glassed in place, the inner frames that held the seats in place had to be cut off flush with the deck. A reciprocating saw with a long blade did most of the work. Then there was a lot of grinding to get it level. Once everything was satisfactory, the cut off area was covered with a layer of one-inch wide cloth and epoxy to cover and reinforce the deck.

Once the starboard side was done, the entire process had to be done on the port side. Did I mention that this was really messy and no fun at all? Eventually all of the glass work was done and it took lots of sanding, starting with 80 grit and moving up to 125, until all of the surfaces were smooth enough to think about painting.

Of course, with any project, there are those unforeseeable little details that drive you crazy. The new seats were going to be in a different position and they were slightly larger than the old ones. That meant the speakers would have to be moved about 3 inches aft so they were not behind the new seat backs. The old holes had to be glassed in and faired so the sides could be painted.

Now that ALL of the fiberglassing was done, the surfaces smooth and sanded to 125 grit and the surrounding areas taped off, the first of 3 coats of white AwlGrip 545 primer was applied. Each coat was sanded with 220 grit before the next was applied.

After the primer, 3 coats of AwlGrip Cloud White was applied, also sanded between coats with 220 grit. Awlgrip recommends at least 300 grit, but I have had better luck with the 220 and the paint looks just as good. The tube sticking out of the deck leads to the exhaust in the galley and will have a fan attached later. At this point, we have not done anything with the decks except sanding.

 

For some time now we have had two 36-inch bench seats on the flybridge and these were always meant to be the replacement for the old seats. They were installed back to back, caulked along the bottom and securely fastened to the deck on the starboard side. These seats have lots of storage space in the base. They are vinyl covered with high density foam and plastic bases.

There is not enough space to put 36-inch seats on both the port and starboard side, so we put two 27-inch wide seats on the port side. They are very comfortable and so much more attractive than the old fiberglass seats. Once all of the seats were installed, the decks had to be re-done. Our plan was to coat all of the decks with the same Tuff Coat non-skid material we used on our previous boat.

We have posted the details on doing our non-skids on our sailboat here, and this process would be exactly the same. The preparations take much, much more time than the actual application. First, all of the edges have to be carefully taped and any surfaces covered over that will not be coated.

Once the edges are taped, I like to apply the provided primer with a small roller, being careful not to get the primer on other surfaces. The primer dries completely clear and should sit for 24 hours before the non-skid coating is applied.

The non-skid is tenacious and will stick to anything it comes in contact with. It is nearly impossible to remove once it dries. To keep the spatter off everything, we use a 9-inch wide painters tape around everything.

The secret to getting the texture even is to make sure the material is thoroughly mixed, and a mixing paddle and drill will do this just fine. The material also needs to be stirred even in the paint pan while working.

The corners and edges where the roller does not quite reach needs to be done with a brush. The trick here is to "dab" the materials and not to brush it like paint. I use the brush to stir the coating in the paint pan also.

The non-skid coating is applied with the roller provided by the manufacturer. I like to roll about a 2'X2' section, first in one direction and then the opposite direction. It take a short time to develop a technique that leaves an even pattern in the coating.

Two coats are needed, and as soon as the first coat is dry to the touch, the second coat should be applied. The material dries very quickly. The person applying the material should be covered, too, since getting it off skin after it dries can be painful.

Another very important step is to get the paper and tape off IMMEDIATELY. If left on too long, it will pull the edges up as the tape is removed. The material can be walked on, but shoes should be discouraged.

The results are astounding and we really love this material. It is truly non-skid no matter how wet the surface gets and no matter what kind of footwear you have on. We have found it to be very durable no matter how much we abuse it, and it is easy to clean.

The finished flybridge looks absolutely amazing and we are so pleased at how it all turned out. It surpassed all of our expectations and makes this one of our favorite spots on the boat now.

The final steps are to re-bed and re-install any hardware that was removed. The aft deck cabin top was the third section done this time.

The only problem now is, we will need to get some new deck furniture to go in our new flybridge. The walk around section of the deck has not been done yet. We want to wait to finish a few other things first so we don't mess up the new surface.

On to the next project.