NautaBytes

 The electrical situation aboard Dulcinea was pretty sad.  it was one of those things that gradually got added to over the course 37 years. Very much like a house that gets modified over the course of many years.  It started out bad, then just got worse.  The FIRST problem was the location of the electrical panels....  This is the aft bulkhead, right next to the galley.  there weren't enough switches, so you had about 4 or 5 items on one switch in some cases. The Fuel gauge and engine hour meter?  see those round dials WAAAAAY to the right in this picture?  That's them!  the only way to read them was to get on your toes, bend over the top of the stove and use a flashlight.... Oh! and the AC breakers?  well, make that singular - Breaker!  all of the outlets, including the refrigerator were on the same breaker.... not good.  But I digress, I was talking about the location.... Why is it bad?  well, that is because of what is on the other side of that bulkhead.  Let's go s

 My forward port side port (the Nautical word for window) leaked like a sieve when it rained. And this is Washington State.... it rains a LOT here, so this was a BAD thing.   Here is what I collected after a couple of days of rain... And that was just the water that leaked into the cabin.... heaven only knows how much was leaking within the bulkhead (that's Nautical for wall).... So Saturday was one of the nicest days we have had on record here this year, and instead of going out for a sail, I figured it was the best time to tackle the leaky port issue.  I was really worried (as usual) about doing this, wondering if I was going to bite off more than I can chew, and (as usual) it turned out to not be as big a deal as I was making it out to be. After removing the screws holding on the interior trim ring and removing it, I had to cut through the (Gallons) of 4200 and clear Silicone sealant that was holding it in.  Fortunately, I had a paint scraper attachment for my Dremel