Boatowner’s Mechanical and Electrical Manual By Nigel Calder Third Edition

Boatowner’s Mechanical and Electrical Manual By Nigel Calder Third Edition

Contents:

CHAPTER 1. Establishing a Balanced Battery-Powered Electrical System

CHAPTER 2. Electrical Systems for Energy-Intensive Boats

CHAPTER 3. Maintaining and Troubleshooting a Battery Powered Electrical System

CHAPTER 4. Understanding and Troubleshooting Electrical Circuits

CHAPTER 5. Corrosion, Bonding, Lightning Protection, and Grounding

CHAPTER 6. Battery Chargers, Inverters, Wind and Water Generators, and Solar Panels

CHAPTER 7. AC Generators, DC Generators, Electric Motors (DC and AC), and Electric Lights

CHAPTER 8. Marine Electronics: Antennas and Radio Grounds, Electromagnetic and Radio Frequency Interference, and Saving Soaked Equipment

CHAPTER 9. Diesel Engines: Operation and Maintenance, Troubleshooting, and Winter Layup

CHAPTER 10. From Transmission to Propeller

CHAPTER 11. Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning

CHAPTER 12. Tanks, Plumbing, Toilets, and Through-Hull Fittings

CHAPTER 13. Pumps and Watermakers

CHAPTER 14. Steering Systems, Autopilots, and Wind Vanes

CHAPTER 15. Stoves, Cabin Heaters, Gas-Powered Water Heaters, and Lanterns

CHAPTER 16. Blocks, Winches, Windlasses, and Bow Thrusters

CHAPTER 17. Spars, Standing Rigging, and Roller Reefing

Preface:

Over time, the audience for this book has evolved. The first edition was written for hard-core cruising sailors. It paid scant attention to such things as the voluntary boatbuilding standards promulgated by the American Boat and Yacht Council (ABYC) in the United States, and none whatsoever to the legally enforceable standards then being developed by the International Standards Organization (ISO) in Europe. But then I found that in addition to cruisers, the book was being used by a significant number of marine professionals— surveyors, designers, and boatbuilders. So, for the second edition I not only added a considerable amount of new material, but I also “cleaned up” the book from a standards-compliance perspective. Ten years later I find the book is now widely used by marine professionals all over the world. At the same time, the ISO has substantially expanded the scope of its standards. Meanwhile, much of my original audience of cruising sailors has become far better educated and sophisticated with respect to technical matters, and is capable of acting upon considerably more-complex information. At the other end of the spectrum, a new generation of sailors, many with minimal experience and limited technical knowledge, has taken up cruising. Powerboaters of all stripes have begun to use the book. As a backdrop to these developments, the systems found on almost all boats have become increasingly sophisticated. These changes have created a major challenge in terms of defining the audience for this third edition and in determining the level of detail and complexity that should be included. One thing, however, has not changed—the

primary objective of meeting the needs of cruising sailors, both those with considerable experience as well as neophytes. Within this general framework, I have also sought to meet the needs of industry professionals. In order to satisfy these somewhat divergent objectives, I have retained most of the structure of the original book, because it has seemed to work so well over the years and is already familiar to hundreds of thousands of readers. However, I have added considerably more detail than in previous editions, and slotted in numerous new sections (e.g., a whole new chapter on boats with more-complex electrical systems requirements, and new sections on lighting technologies, airconditioning, watermakers, and bow thrusters). Overall, the book has expanded by about 40%. In places, the level of detail will get a little overwhelming for the beginning reader (especially some of the electrical stuff), but I encourage perseverance; if your boat has the kinds of systems discussed in this book, you need to grapple with the issues and subjects I cover. For the professionals (and for the rest of us, because the world we live in becomes ever more legalistic), I have added many

more explicit references to ABYC and ISO standards. Finally, given that all of this book, except for the sections dealing with spars, standing rigging, and sail reefing devices, is as applicable to most powerboats as it is to sailboats, I have made some minor reorganization of the last chapters, relegating the few specifically sailboat subjects to the last chapter. At the end of the day, the overall goal remains the same as ever, which is to provide the reader, whoever he or she may be, with information that will enable the systems on a boat to be designed, installed, and maintained in a manner that will minimize aggravation and maximize the enjoyment of boating. In addition to the literally hundreds of individuals and companies who have aided me with earlier editions (see the Preface to the Second Edition), with this edition I have once again received assistance from a large number of people. In particular, I would like to thank: Ewen Thomson, Richard Cohen, Gregory Dash, and Abdel Mousa for their input on lightning; the folks at Xantrex (battery chargers, inverters, and systems monitors), Bill Montgomery of Balmar (alternators and DC generators), and Thane Lanz of Analytic Systems (DC-to DC converters); Bill Owra (Everfair Enterprises) and Andy Kruse (Southwest Windpower) for wind generator feedback; Craig Whitworth of the Electrical Apparatus Service Association; Mark Matousec and his successors at Taylorbrite, Kinder Woodcock (Imtra), James Creveling (Nichia), and Ken James (Deep Creek Enterprises) for their help on lighting, especially LEDs; Ben Landis (Volvo) and Greg Eck (Yanmar); Kevin Woody (PYI), Michael Adler (VariProp), Chuck Angle (Flex-O-Fold), and Doug Rose (Volvo Penta) for input on propellers, and Ken Nigel (Shaft Lok) on shaft locks; Rob Warren (Frigoboat), Bengt Stenvinkel (Isotherm), and Kevin Alston (Glacier Bay) for a great deal of technical input on refrigeration; Steve Rollins (Sea Recovery) and Bill Edinger (Spectra) for help with watermakers; John Curry (Hydrovane) and Hans Bernwall (Scanmar) for updating me on wind vanes; Steve Loutrel (Navtec) for information on rod rigging; and Tony Jones (Lewmar) for feedback on the sections on winches and windlasses.