In the second part of the PBO project ship survey, we will learn about sea marks, gas installations, electrical, engines, sails, etc…
Last month, we asked Ben Sutcliffe-Davies, a marine surveyor, to take a look at the PBO project ship Maximus. Reader Daniel Kirtley provided us with the 43-year-old Maxi 84, but before we accept it, I want to know how much work is involved, because I — the magazine’s special editor — took on the project and became a first-time owner of the ship .
Considering a vessel survey? If so, please take a look at the video of ocean surveyor Ben Sutcliffe-Davies, because…
I never thought I would own a boat. I grew up around a yacht; cruised them, raced them, captained them occasionally, but now,…
So far, everything is fine: the hull is pleasantly dry, the deck is sturdy, and the rig-from its initial appearance-seems to be in good condition. However, the rigging and gas in operation need to be upgraded, and some other work can be expected, such as polishing the roof, applying anti-fouling paint, repairing leaking deck plugs, and upgrading deck fittings.
Ben has already condemned the DIY gas tank, so before entering the salon, he took out his gas detection stick. Although the gas has been turned off, for safety reasons, he needs to check whether there is gas trapped in the bilge.
“For £40, I think the gas detector stick is a great kit,” Ben said. “I mainly use it in narrow ship surveys because they are notorious for leaking lockers, but they are well worth having.”
Ben bought his from Screwfix, but also recommended a company called Nereus, which sells gas alarms with waterproof sensors that can be used in wet bilges.
Now is the time for the internal inspection of the hull. When Maximus was built in Sweden in 1978, she met good standards, using teak veneer marine plywood in the engine room, and fully enclosed plywood frames and stringers in the lockers and bilges. Ben touched the ground with his hands and knees, climbed across the boat, raised the bottom plate, tapped, listened to the hygrometer, and scribbled on the notepad.
He showed me the anchor points of the chain plates and assured me that they were strong and showed no signs of pressure or movement. The same is true for the front support and back support accessories.
“This is not a traditional arrangement,” Ben commented. Regarding the lower part, it is connected to the fixed point of the car through a cantilever arrangement. “Most yachts have them bolted to the sides of the hull. On this particular boat, they rely on the main bulkhead here, which looks like a 12mm deck.”
Nevertheless, he was very satisfied with this arrangement. “It all looks nice and dry. There are no corrosion streaks, the other side is similar.”
Ben could not reach several areas, including the area around the water tank and the lower bilge area of the salon. Most of the areas he inspected were clean and dry. However, the cushions and canopy of the rear navigator’s berth were damp, and the anode bolts of the hull in the locker corroded in the standing water several inches deep.
The foremast was also wet due to leaking deck studs and vents. Ben pulled the wet spinnaker out of the locker and found a few inches of water underneath. There are visible water droplets on the top of the head.
“Ah, what’s going on!” Ben exclaimed and found water stains near the chain plates. “Look, the water flowing from the loose deck sockets actually flows from the internal moldings here and out through various cork holes.”
Other flooding, this time through the gangway, damaged the boxing ring around the kitchen sink and completely rotted. In case I need proof, Ben kindly runs my finger through it to prove it.
Ben put the cushions next to them and opened all the lockers to let the air circulate. Repairing all these leaks must be a top priority.
On the bright side, the upholstery is in good condition. I especially like the curtains and the beautiful blue cockpit cushions. The beige pinstripe cushion looks new, and it is obvious that Daniel has been very careful to make Maximus feel like home. She has some lovely touches and a lot of sparkling teak. I like ships of this era.
The cushions need to be dry cleaned, a few need new zippers, and the fabric under the tear. Ben pointed out that they should be coated with flame retardant spray, because there is no label to confirm this.
“You can get some from Screwfix,” he suggested. “Spray all your soft decorations. If you have ever been on a boat, when it catches fire, the foam is terrible. It will smoke and smoke very badly.”
“Well, the gas hose is from 1984,” he said. “What’s more worrying is seeing the gas hose passing through behind the cooker like this.”
He pointed out the gap in the rubber cut in the metal shield of the hose. Anything with a universal joint should have a reinforced hose. Not only that, the cooker itself does not have a thermal cut-off device.
“A lot of people have these, but don’t realize that if you sail happily and the flame goes out, the gas will continue to flow without being cut off,” he said.
With the cost of replacing the cooking utensils, then the gas pipes, tidying up the gas tank and everything else, this suggestion may be cheaper to completely remove the gas and buy diesel or alcohol stoves.
I took a note to get quotes for both and investigate the advantages and disadvantages of gasoline versus diesel and spirits.
Although Ben expressed his joy with the old Sailor radio—”We used to have such a radio on our fishing boat a few years ago!”—we couldn’t actually test it. The battery is dead, so we can’t test the engine either.
“The voltage of that one is less than 2V, and our voltage is only 8V, that’s why we can’t work anything!” Ben said, putting away his voltmeter.
“From an investigative point of view, it is always worthwhile to ensure that the battery is charged. Surveyors usually switch to test everything to make sure it is working properly. We are currently blind to all of this.”
The two batteries installed under the sidewalk steps need to be replaced. They have no physical protection and no terminal cover.
“Obviously, we are not connected to shore power, but when you have water flowing on top of shore power like here, it’s not very smart,” Ben said, pointing to the leaking electronic equipment on the gangway, “and I really don’t like it. The idea of a metal back box because it will always vibrate.”
Maximus has an indirectly cooled 3-cylinder Volvo 2020MD engine. Although he couldn’t start, he did a good check on it.
He was dissatisfied with the corrosion on the frame and support due to a leak in the gangway.
“All of this needs to be cleaned up,” he suggested. “You can see all this water ingress, it really doesn’t help. Look at the corrosion of the flywheel on the pulley here. The first time the corrosion starts, the belt will tear quickly. So you will lose your communication. Generator and internal water pump.”
“One of the great advantages of Volvo is that they use Perkins basic engines. It is always worth getting this information, because anywhere in the world, if you need spare parts, it’s the same as Perkins.”
The engine is driven by Volvo Saildrive gearbox. Ben inspected the legs and saw no obvious corrosion, and the outer rubber socks were intact. The oil is clean and fortunately there is no sign of water pollution.
The device has a large rubber gasket seal and needs to be replaced every seven years. When it was last completed-in 2015-it cost about £1,500, so along with the drilling rig, it needs to be budgeted in the near future.
“The engine mount usually needs to be replaced when you make the donuts on the sail drive. If you don’t have a sail drive and you have a normal shaft, do it every 10 years,” Ben said. He shook the engine and invited me to listen.
“Can you hear that turning sound?” Well, at least you know it was not caught in two and a half years, which is a good sign. ”
“When it comes to engines and a boat that has been on hold for several years, the last thing you want to do is to put the boat directly into the water,” Ben said. “You need to be very religious about fuel management. Empty the fuel tank, flush it, replace the fuel line, fuel filter, turn it over and see if the engine is running on the shore with water. Don’t just throw it into the water. Inside, and then hope!”
Ben cannot determine the capacity of the fuel tank or the condition of the fuel. However, he did notice that the filling seal was slightly damaged and needed to be replaced.
“They are not windows,” Ben corrected. “If they are fixed, they are portholes, if they are open, they are portholes.”
During the investigation, the weather was clear and there was no sign that the acrylic portholes were leaking (although it will happen on the next visit!). Having said that, Ben points out that it is very common for moisture to enter due to the internally sealed abutment.
Maximus has a Jabsco sea toilet that drains directly into the sea. The intake pipes need to be replaced (see seacocks), but Ben also pointed out that the water inlet and outlet should have a higher gooseneck, preferably with an anti-siphon valve.
“The air intake should extend almost to the bottom of the deck,” he said. “It is also wise to replace the hoses. Obviously, they have been used for more than five years, so they will become porous, and when you start using them, they will become very smelly.”
“Look at those tail pipes,” Ben exclaimed when he saw the sea faucet assembly for the head and sink. “It makes me laugh; we talk about double clamps, but the clamps are not actually at the end of the hose tail. It makes no sense at all.”
The ball valve sea faucet has obviously been used for more than five years, and the corrosion is serious. Although sea chicken is a substitute, it seems that they use original skin accessories.
“This is really useful,” Ben said, holding the handle, “but I will replace them all. Throw them away and start over.”
Ben suggested that bronze has a much longer service life than DZR, but now many people are using composite materials; brands such as Tru Design or Marelon.
Ben also looked around for sea chickens to find the kitchen sink. He had recognized the exit hole on the outside of the hull, but it took him a while to find the sea chicken. After opening the locker and taking out the pan, he found the drain hose, but it was not until he removed the bottom drawer under the stove that he really found it-an old gate valve that was completely stuck and needed to be replaced.
There is a stainless steel water tank on the Maximus, which is installed under the front cockpit bunks. Ben was able to pump the system manually and got very contaminated water from two years ago!
Post time: Nov-01-2021
