Making Our Seawind 1600 Catamaran a Home - Spectra Watermaker, Wi-Fi + More | Harbors Unknown Ep. 5
There are a number of things we did to tailor our #Seawind 1600 #Catamaran to suit our needs as #liveaboards. Those creature comforts you don’t give a second thought to when living in a house on land. Maintaining a comfortable temperature inside the boat, reliable internet access, a mattress to our preference and the ability to make water are the key aspects of comfortable living for us.
For the times when we are on anchor for long weekends or vacations we want to be able to make water so we got our #SpectraWaterMaker up and running when we spent a week down in Biscayne Bay. To say that we are not experts is putting it mildly but with a bit of help from JT at Halden Marine Service, even a couple of clowns like us got it working. Check out JT's site for his services https://haldenmarineservice.com/. Oh, and if you're wondering, we have the Spectra Watermaker 330 Cape Horn Extreme https://spectrawatermakers.com/us/us/11125-cape-horn-extreme-330.
We received the boat at the end of July in South Florida. That means extreme heat. Since Fabio is still working we are keeping the boat at a dock so the air flow and temperature isn’t what it would be on anchor. We realized quickly we needed to have exterior window shades made to block as much of the UV rays and heat coming into the cockpit as possible. Without exterior shades the window glass temperature got as high as 130 degrees F. Rodney from Rodney’s Marine Canvas saved my sanity. He provided a quality product at a reasonable price, quickly. The fabric used for the window shades is called Soltis96. It has a very tight weave and blocks 96% of the sunlight while preserving the level of natural light transmitted, plus it’s waterproof. It’s installed with self adhering snaps called snads so there’s no drilling in the boat. They adhere with a high bond glue made by 3m. It makes a huge difference on the temperature inside of the boat and there’s still plenty of light. Learn more about Soltis96 here: https://www.sergeferrari.com/us-en/products/soltis-range/soltis-proof-w96
High on our priority list was installing a system to ensure we had internet access. This was the first project we tackled ourselves. We installed the Redport Halo WiFi Extender System which includes an optimizer (similar to a router) and an antennae so we have Wi-Fi on the boat. It works by taking a weak Wi-Fi signal and boosting it. A video detailing the full installation will be coming soon. Learn more about the boat Wi-Fi system here https://www.redportglobal.com/marine-satellite-internet-firewall-routers/halo-wifi-extender-system/.
The mattress that came with the boat was very firm and we prefer a soft mattress so we shopped around and ordered a custom mattress from Handcraft Mattress Company that was made right here in Ft. Lauderdale. We couldn’t be happier with the service and the quality of the mattress. We’ve been having sweet dreams ever since we received it. :) Learn more about the manufacturer here https://www.boatbeds.com/.
#Boatlife has made me recognize what my basic needs are. 1. Sleep 2. Food 3. Comfortable temperature. Many people are able to do without one or all of these but I realize I’m pretty cranky without these three necessities. Now that we’re able to maintain a comfortable temperature, have pretty reliable internet, a mattress to our preference, and the ability to make water when we’re on anchor, life is pretty sweet.
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Timestamps if you're looking for something specific.
00:00 Intro
00:42 Current Update
02:22 Spectra Watermaker Setup
13:03 Exterior Window Shade Info + Install
15:13 Redport Halo WiFi Extender Install
17:37 Customized Mattress Info
Our Gear:
Main camera: https://amzn.to/3ik0LSu
Main Lens: https://amzn.to/2LByP0j
Gimbal: https://amzn.to/3igBFDI
Microphone: https://amzn.to/3bHOvd3
Action Cam: https://amzn.to/39F6TAR
Drone: https://amzn.to/2LSZ5TE
Light: https://amzn.to/3bIPNog
Computer: https://amzn.to/2XKfJYo
Monitor: https://amzn.to/3nOpKOT
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