My Christmas present to me -

[cardude01]

Nice install. That must be a good feeling-- being self-reliant out on the water.

How many hours a day do you figure you will run it? Will you have to run the main while it's running or will the batteries keep it going?

Looking forward to hearing about the results when you flip the switch.

 

[Roamer Blue]

x2 on a pre-filter focus. Keeping the main unit as clean as possible extends its service life.

Get all the stuff out of the water cheaply before it gets there $$$.

RB

 

[MYTraveler]

Does it actually let you see in the dark, For example crab pot floats that always seem to get dropped in great numbers near nav marks and tight channels?

Or does it just show up warm objects?

My FLIR, and last I checked, all FLIRs, see in the dark by sensing only light in the infrared (ie, heat) spectrum and as such they depend on a thermal differential. But they are very sensitive so even a small difference will show up. Crab pots and most other stuff that is floating warms up and cools down faster than the surrounding sea water, so they usually show up pretty well. I suppose, theoretically, there is a point between warming up and cooling off that they are the same temp (and therefore invisible) as the surrounding sea water, but in practice it seems that one side will be hotter than the other, so they always show up. But they do show up best early in the evening, and progressively worse as sun rise approaches. Still, a very valuable tool.

 

[janice142]

How many hours a day do you figure you will run it? Will you have to run the main while it's running or will the batteries keep it going?

The solar panels and batteries will easily handle running this Katadyn. I anticipate running it several hours a day from ten a.m. until the tank is topped off. The first two hours will fill my 3 gallon solar shower so a long hot shower has been added to my list of wonderful things about life afloat.

I bought this one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000J2Q0SU/

My plan is to run Katy to fill the shower bag then test the water/switch over to my water tank. That way the water in the solar shower will have all day to get toasty warm.

As for duration of run, the Katadyn 40E puts out 1.5 gallons per hour. I don't know how much water I will use once I don't have to haul it to the boat. More than now for certain!

To be able to take a long shower is a luxury. My hair is long and it normally takes a gallon to wash it and me. I look forward to longer hot/warm showers without a care in the world.

A watermaker though costly offers me the opportunity to anchor in remote areas and not worry about having enough water. Even in not-so-remote spots knowing I had to haul water to the boat meant I didn't drink as much as I should have.

I really dreaded hauling water. It's hard work.

The tank fill is on my bow so I had to come up to the boat, lift the water jugs up to chest height, tilt/not spill the water into the pipe and then do it again for the next jug/bottle. Ugh.

Maybe a fellow who is a foot taller would not have the same physical constraints however for me, it was not so much fun. On the other hand, even while standing on Algae's middle seat (to get the height right) I never fell overboard so that's a good thing.

I have pretty good balance. Knock teak!

 

[FlyWright]

Janice, So glad to hear about your new upgrade! Sounds like you`ve really got SeaWeed `dialed in`. That`s a very interesting watermaker for use on a solar system. Paired with a LectraSan, you`re only limited by your provisions. I love it!

Like you, I enjoy anchoring in more private areas surrounded by nature and open spaces. Those upgrades sure allow you to chase your rainbow. Goodonya and Cheers!