How to live on a catamaran sailboat when it’s 24 degrees outside?
First off- find a marina slip and plug in to its dock power. Then be sure to have winterized all your systems well before the winter arrives. Have at least one large water jug on board- ‘cause the dock water supply will be shut down. Have a spare propane tank on board. Wear layers of clothes. And then sit in front of a ceramic heater to keep your feet warm.
The bridge deck on our Gemini catamaran is, of course, above the water. Cold air blows under the bridge deck floor and in doing so sucks heat. Though we had planned to temporarily carpet the salon floor before winter, we just didn’t prioritize doing so. The transfer of heat into the floor is so strong that even two layers of wool hiking socks don’t totally prevent heat loss from your feet.
A scrap piece of blue foam insulates my feet from the cold floor!
So, I run the heater positioned to partially trap its warm air under the salon table…. while warming my feet.
Somehow, or another, my warm feet raise the boat salon’s interior temperature by about thirty five degrees. Most boater’s preference is to be much further south during the winter………which brings me to my favorite whine.
“Take me to MY Yammmm EEE!”
The story / blog of Yacht A Fun, a Gemini catamaran sailboat, traveling the ICW and east coast with insights to the extended cruising life. spending winter on a boat