The day on board our Gemini catamaran needed to be a bit work focused, for the start. There’s always something that needs cleaning, or fixing if you own a boat.
Having noted a small amount of water, in the bottom of the sail locker, after a small rain, I decided to remove the hinges and re-bed that hardware. What I found (while picking the silicone caulk in the screw holes) was that the screws had let water into the deck’s balsa sandwich and so the wet material needed to be removed, first.
Balsa core was wet. Discovered while picking out silicone caulk.
Dental picks are excellent boat tools. It wasn’t long before I realized that I’d have to enlarge the holes to fully remove the wet deteriorated balsa. Fortunately a half-inch drill bit did the trick. I confirmed that running the bit in reverse keeps the action from chipping the gel coat.
Color tells the moisture story
Setting up shop in the cockpit of our Gemini catamaran
Mildew and gasket
I was concerned that I didn’t have enough West System Six-10 epoxy in a caulk tube to fill the volume removed and so we decided to tape the holes (rain preventive issue) and head to Walmart and West Marine.
Taking the #249 to Coconut Grove station we boarded a #27 to Coral Way and then a #24 to Walmart. It took a little over an hour to get there. West Marine would not fit the schedule for us, I was sure.
We bought vinegar for mildew removal and prevention; syrup for on board carbonated soft drinks creation; chocolate cake; assorted groceries; and an 18 pack of beer.
Grocery transport
We returned to the Starbucks intersection to transfer off the #24 onto the #27.
Corner of 27th and 24th
A bus snafu occurred in that both Diann and I were reading our iPads when the bus rolled up. By the time we jumped up and started for the door, the driver pulled off. My guess is that the sidewall of the bus stop bench prevented him from seeing us frantically trying to get in motion for the sidewalk and bus door. That snafu cost us 20 minutes while we waited for the next bus.
Total time on the buses as we returned from Walmart to Dinner Key- one hour and thirty minutes. And of course, it was dark.