US Coast Guard Vessel Safety Check

You Should Get One of These

SV HideAway Passed

  It's free. It's educational and helpful.  Or to put it another way- Do you know where your flares are?  What about that first aid kit you may have put back on board after your camping trip? Have you blown your horn recently, or know where it is? How about that fire extingusher you have somewhere?

Your local US Coast Guard Auxiliary provides this service.  Sure they inspect things like Fire Extinguishers, Life Jackets, Navigation lights, Sound Producing Devices and the like.

  Things you never think about until something goes wrong.  

Like, maybe a pontoon boat suddenly turns and T-bones your boat, which sinks before your mayday is answered -Stuff like that.  (This accident happened last week on Boca Ciega Bay near Gulfport Fl when the pontoon boat operator dropped something and turned the boat as he bent down to pick up whatever he dropped - Care to guess if it was a cell phone?)

There is no risk.  The do not issue tickets if you're missing something.  And the inspector, usually a fellow boater, gives a good review of basic safe boating practices.    Your Coast Guard Auxiliary sponsers good boating classes to boot.  

Get Yours Today

Local sailing or boating clubs often host Vessel Safety Checks or  Click Here to Schedule a Safety Check

  

The Vanity and the Thru Hull

The Original Thru-Hull Access Hole

Thru-hulls always has long been the cause of notable anxiety on the HideAway, likely because one of the two in existence, the one the bilge pump is attached to, failed while sailing off shore.

Sailing HideAway Videos

It began innocently enough; the idea of having a sink and vanity in the forepeak next to the head.

The vanity sits on top of what was a storage access.  The fit is perfect with just enough room to accommodate the sink basin, tubing and electrical wires for the water pump.  Below the sink lurks the depth finder transducer, another large hole in the boat.  With two large holes in close proximity, the area has been declared off limits for storage of anything other than a wooden plug.

The Cure Leads To Another Problem.

While the vanity has been a welcome addition on cruises, the Capt. uses it more often to empty the  rain buckets  from under five of Hideaways’ six ports.   Always vigilant, the Capt. has been known to tear open the vanity top in search of excess humidity, not realizing he was causing the drain tube to crack on both ends. 

Sink Drain Repair Sailing HideAway

Obviously a better method of leak checking technology was necessary. Enter the thought of a small access just forward of the vanity.   

Join the HideAways as we cut yet another hole in the boat.

SMALL BOATS ROCK!