What a pleasure to hear the dog is doing well......bless his heart! Dogs are such wonderful animals. Humans could learn a lot from dogs. Unconditional love, the world sure does need more of that. Godspeed and fair winds.....Johnny
Brett, once again a very informative, blog, loved everything, generator mods etc, plus the man jumping of the tower when you were filming, also nice to see old friends from Cuba, spent two weeks thier and travelled around, loved the old cars, and the people.Fair winds to you and Ana.
Thanks again Moz - never thought folks would enjoy us sharing the technical stuff, but hey, it is part of sailing and we are delighted that it has helped some sailors to sort out issues on their boats too ... after all ... that is how we also learn ... from others ... so nice to be able to share it on ... cheers and thanks for the wishes ... Brent
Thanx again for the nice video, vriend! Watching while having a view at the Atlantic. Your videos keep my longing to the sea alive and kicking. Safe sailing!
Thanks Martin - we enjoy your comments especially knowing you get the time to check the vids out between all those rugby matches man ... It's great for us to know we can share stuff some folks enjoy ... cheers - Brent
I am always impressed with your professional presentations....Great Job.....Quality content and explanation....refits.... to beautiful family and scenery....looking forward to my next SVIMPI fix....Thanks again for your time and consideration...Lee -n- Kelly
Thanks Lee n Kelly - awesome comment - we will try to keep our heads from swelling after this one :) Seriously though - it's a real blessing for us to be able to share stuff you refer to as the next 'SVIMPI fix ... Cheers Brent
Hallo I just discovered U and Anna today and am enjoying afew of your videos and your talking U are a poet with great explanations about the highs and lows and the plotter alarms terrific , im not up to date with the latest videos yet . I just saw july 2016 in the bay of islands . Im in Perth west australia. MARCEL. WELL TALK TO U SOON AGAIN . TOT ZIENS
Brent and Annamany thanks I have seen more of New Zealand through your videos than traveled in New Zealand , I was born and bred their yet it still amazes me how beautiful my Country is, thanks for showing me what I miss about home, I now live in Australia but as always am nostalgic heers guys...
Hi Brent and Ana. I have enjoyed watching your sailing videos over the past few days. I recently discovered your adventures on youtube.. The NZ video is especially interesting to me as my Wife and I were in the Bay of Islands way back in 1990..We loved our trip to NZ and hoped to go back one day but now the years have passed and we are old.. All the best to you folks as your sailing adventures around the World continue..Loved your video of SA as well, beautiful place mate..Cheers from the USA...
Oh man - would I have loved to see the Bay Of Islands in 1990. NZ is a special place - once visited it will always be in ones heart! I am not sure how old you are, but anchored along side us is an American single handing his boat in his late 70's. He sailed up from NZ and is touring New Caledonia now. Tomorrow we leave for the Loyalty Islands and then he sails on for Vanuatu. Cheers and thanks for the comment ... Brent
My Wife and I are approaching 70 years of age Brent and I am not in the best of health..Overseas traveling for us is over, plus we have two Dogs to care for and my elderly parents as well..If you ever sail the USA and come to North Carolina let us know as we are near the town of Beaufort NC..A bit of history here also around the Graveyard of the Atlantic..We would love to meet you guys one day if possible..My email address is, wa4ovm@ec.rr.com...Our best to both of you always...Wayne and Judy Parrish, Newport North Carolina..Cheers..
Thanks for the message. We are so sorry to hear you have health problems - I totally understand that sometimes we need to rest up and be happy being at home and around family. It would be really nice to see you in North Carolina - I have been there many years ago now but with my son now working in Florida we may well be visiting the USA more. Lets keep in contact and if ever you happen to be near Fort Lauderdale please look up Terry - now working at Just Catamarans. Cheers for now ... Brent and Ana
Thanks Brent for your message also. We would be delighted to keep in contact with you and Ana...Its nice to hear that you have been to our home state of NC...We lived in South Carolina all our working lives but when we retired we returned to NC...I had an Uncle who until recently lived in Boca Raton Florida near Ft. Lauderdale..Uncle has now moved to the Florida panhandle area.. Its good to hear you have a Son working down that way...Maybe one day we could meet you folks face to face before my journey on this Earth ends...Best regards to you both, cheers... Wayne..
Sorry for the delay in reply - we have been at sea the last 6 days from New Zealand to New Caledonia ! Great !!! Careful though - the older vids are not that good and the future vids may make you an addict - LOL Cheers for now Brent n Ana
OK. This is by far your finest video. Beautiful ladies, beautiful Lagoon 440, beautiful tech explanation of the gen work your doing and last but not least. . . . .cheers to the captain with a heart of gold. Now what the heck happened to your Cuban guests?
LOL - awesome comment by the way - thanks - but as for the 'Cuban guests' who are actually UK folks we met sailing in Cuba, well, I think we had such a great time together I forgot to film it. Mark and Sue are back at their boat which is in Auckland - I think they should be there for another year or so - they love NZ. Cheers for now ... Brent
Hi Scott and welcome onboard - thank you for the compliment and we hope we can add value to you - we love interacting and hope our channel can help those who want to make a life at sea easier to achieve - let us know if there is anything we can help you with. Cheers for now ... Brent
Hello Impi, Just a little F.Y.I. .. I was just viewing a video from "Gone with the Wynns" and who's smiling mug do I see, non-other then your son Terry...Jason and Nikki Wynn used to be land loving boon docking travelers, but they sold it all and bought a catamaran..So now their learning to sail...And Terry is helping them out in this video...Stay Safe and Fair Winds Impi...
Sorry for the delay in reply - we have been at sea the last 6 days from New Zealand to New Caledonia ! Hi JIM ... LOL - you can run but you can't hide - they say!! Gone With The Wynns are awesome people - we are subscribed to their channel. My cousin was the agent (Kent) who sold them the boat too! I have not seen the one with Terry - wonder why it does not show when I look at their channel? Anyway, thanks for the 'heads up' - watching Gone With The Wynns and hoping their dream of sailing exceeds their best expectations ... Cheers for now Brent n Ana
doing some bing watching ,I have been a subscriber for a while. But I just want to be sure I didn't miss any videos. thanks for sharing. happy -safe sailing.
Hi T Lowe - happy to have you here with us - you have commented before :) I hope you don[t miss any - look at the PLAYLIST to be sure. Cheers my friend Brent
Hi Ted, yes can one believe it ! Terry now works for Just Catamarans (owned by my cousin who features in their other videos) - kinda spooky to see the lad there :) Terry is 'sailing mad' - he loves the sea and it's nice to see him getting some salt air after moving to the USA only a month or two ago now. Tanks for the 'heads up' - I guess a bit of the old man has rubbed off on him then! Cheers
Wow - we love 'Gone with the Wynns'. My cousin Kent sold them the boat and my son Terry sailed with them for a while and did some video work. He says they are really nice folks and were generous to him as a newbie to living in America, so yeah - rock on with Gone with the Wynns ... Thanks for the comment Maria - cheers for now - Brent n Ana
We have not seen the video since we have been sailing from NZ to New Caledonia, but will look it up ! Go Terry Go 'Gone With The Wynns - awesome folks huh! Cheers M - keep in touch and thanks for letting us know Brent n Ana
+Catamaran Impi yea been following them for a long time. Great people! And Terry seems like a great guy and son. Looking forward to your adventures! Cheers Safe Sails
M Gar - I just watched it - such awesome folks huh! and so nice of them to have Terry along - he has just arrived in the USA so it is nice for Dad to see his son enjoying 'the US life' ... Cheers
@@mikephillips9311 I just saw your message and really appreciate the kind words so much . We still publish updates on FB and Instagram and just felt there are so many amazing publishers on TH-cam that it takes too much time for us to share stuff as the older generation 😊 - but - we’re on our second circumnavigation and currently in Ilha Dos Lençois which was where we put out one of our first TH-cam videos . Back then it was really tough to have the right editing tools, access to music etc etc - it’s a different world now 😊 Perhaps I’ll get around to sharing some more videos about cruising the world when I’m not so busy sailing 😂 The channel Catamaran Javerne just published a video on their French channel interviewing us so you can take a look there 😊 Thanks again and we do love the interaction of everyone - thank you 🙏 🤗
@@CatamaranImpi You guys had one of the very best sailing channels ever. Your approach to challenges & problems was ever so intuitive & informative, you had sensible solutions. You are the "man's man" and your wife added the beauty & classy feminine touch. I'll never understand why your channel never took off more. My wife & I sailed over 30k miles over 5 years, survived 5 hurricanes and never took any serious damage. We shunned the large groups and stuck mostly to uninhabited islands in far off rarely visited places. Pre GPS & pre internet so I know of what I speak. Your videos exhibited a depth of heroic character, determination & honesty that is rare now. Thank you for taking the time for your response, it just shows the depth of character of you both. May God shower you two with innumerable blessings of joy & protection during your travels. Mike & Karla.
I hope not. The last one I saw was you with that camera police trap. Was there another in between that one and this one? Hope you are both well. Thanks again for sharing :)
Terry - yes, this is a very good point you make - thanks mate. And to think it was sold as Stainless. Interesting thing is that in years it has yet to show any form of corrosion, but then again, stainless can corrode from the inside - clamp changed :) Thanks
hi. interesting video onboard catamaran. nice video on diy maintenance onboard. such a nice boat. big like a house. hope to hear from you. cheers azhar lumut malaysia
Hi Azhar - thank you for the comment - always once to hear from folks from all over the world. We should be in Malaysia either next year or the year following ... hope to see you there :)
Another wonderful video, thank you for sharing! One question I did have for you is did you have much sailing experience beyond childhood prior to purchasing Impi and setting off to see the world. I remember from a previous video you had family heritage in sailing which included memories as a younger boy. You and Anna certainly seem very capable with the mechanics and inner workings of keeping Impi ticking along in fine condition. Appreciate the multiple aspects covered in the videos as always and hope the weather finds you well.
Hi Goete, thanks for the comment and we enjoy the sharing :) To answer your question honestly, I must admit our sailing experience was rather limited to coastal sailing and not open passages or remote destinations. We have learnt 100 fold more by actually getting out and doing it and I do advise folks who want to go from zero to hero, to engage in sailing races at the local yacht club, to do courses and to sail their boat for a year close to home before setting out. I think my biggest challenge has been 'weather' and trying to get enough knowledge to understand its complexity. We really have made it our business to understand weather as much as possible and we have a long way to go yet - it is very intricate by nature and we find many of the weather guru's themselves get it wrong. I would really encourage folks to do a course in this if possible before setting out - especially to try and gain an understanding of how weather in the upper layers affect weather at the oceans surface since weather models do not take this into account. We now look closely at the 500hpa layer along with the surface layers and are trying to understand the correlation between these. Thanks for the 'well wishes' and of course your interest Cheers for now Brent
Thank you so much, Bent special thanks about the pumps, And nice work, I should not be surprised that you can do this your self, I know a few guys from south Africa, Great people, And like you lots of know how, I do have a question, how much weiight can the davit arms support? Up here is Canada small jet boats are being build and I would have that for a dinky, T
Hi Terry - Any time mate! The davits take 1/2 ton happily. We usually pull the dinghy back and up against the stern of the boat and position straps around the tops when crossing oceans. Yeah - often thought a jet ski would be awesome on the boat - especially the ones the convert into 4 wheelers ... www.gizmag.com/go/5682/
Hey Captain and first mate aboard IMPI. My first time with one of your videos. Nice !! How do you like your catamaran? Looks like a Lagoon, yet there are no links in the description. My bride and I will be beginning our adventure by years end and have not solidified boat choice yet. Thanks. Richard.
Hi Richard and thanks for commenting. Nice to have you checking out our vids and for engaging with us. This is our second brand of catamaran and this one seriously has impressed us, especially for its ability to sail close hauled (close to the wind), for its safety aspect with the nacelle which is a kind suspended middle hull / bullnose reaching into the trampoline area ... this is fantastic feature when dropping down wave faces in rough following seas since as the bows drop this part engages with the sea and floats the bows to the surface. The fly bridge and coach roof are designed in such a way that the added space on a 45 foot catamaran is incredible ... beds that are queen size with room around the sides and plenty of height to the ceiling - the folks at LAGOON know what they are doing for sure. In the end we all choose boats for different reasons but I would encourage you to consider Lagoon in your choice. We hope your bride and you are going to have terrific adventures and excitement in living life - I can assure you that if you choose the proper boat, set it up well and do preventative maintenance schedules that you will get years and years of sheer pleasure cruising the oceans :)
A simple header tank with low input and high exit point fitted higher than the original pump on the geni would extend the life of the rubber impeller greatly. I am thinking it's the dry running before water is down into the pump that is causing early failure. You would need to install a non return flow valve on pump intake also. That probably wouldn't last as long as the March pump though.
Yes, I see your thinking and agree with the impeller running dry in spite of us having a non return valve at the sea cock. The March Pump has been a fairly easy fix - can't remember the exact cost as we fitted it years ago now, but from what I recall it was not overly expensive and touch wood (here is me now holding my head) it has lasted well :) Cheers and thanks for the contribution Brent
March pump is a stroke of genius! Impellers can be such a pain, nice work. The new mains sets nicely too. Btw, if money was no object, I've had an eye on the Outreamer 5X and wonder what you think of that boat?
Hi Orange Whip - thanks for the comment. Regarding the Outremer 5x - yues, a very nice boat - my cousin is actually agent for them in US Florida - but as you say, 'If money were no object'. We sailed extensively with a couple who owned a 5X and recently sold it as they concluded their sailing journey ... SV Moana (Johan and Christine with son Kim). The boat is INCREDIBLY fast and on long passages they would get in a week ahead of the rest of us. Of course there are trade offs - such as loading up the vessel. These boats are designed light and fast and not to be heavily loaded so one needs to take this into consideration. Speaking with Johan there was no way he would attempt to put all the home comforts on-board which we have on Impi since this would defeat the 'nature' of the 5X, so one needs to adjust oneself to keeping the boat as light as possible and perhaps sacrificing some of the additional weight like dive compressors and so on. Still, I must say the Outremer 5X is one serious boat and certainly has the advantage on passages of accelerating around storms a lot easier than we can - and that is one big plus factor! We know the man from Outremer and he is an awesome guy - Xavier - we like his integrity. I spoke to him about building one that is designed to take more weight for extended cruising but he says the philosophy around the boat is different - he wants to keep the vessel as one with terrific performance and speed with the 'necessary gear to be comfortable enough' but not like most cats suitable to heavier loading. So in the end I think one needs to look at what it is you want from your cruising experience, but yeah, The Outremer 5X overall kicks butt :) Cheers for now
excellent points. Keep it light, don't over load it with too many toys. I like the concept of light, when pacific squalls hit, reef early, and still go 9-12 kts, any faster and the boat and people get beat up. I've been following a new Outreamer 5X owner, Wilding, and he mentions that Moana is up for sale again, the recent owner Urs has done some nice upgrades, including a dive compressor. I'm amazed at over 1800 watts solar, watermaker can run on solar, no genset, etc. two fridges and one freezer. Wilding has a cool website with some interesting insights to these boats; sailwildling.com/ Here is Moana for sale info, amazing boat: moana.rothacher.us/
Yes, we actually know Urs very well - a great guy and his wife who used to live in South Africa. We saw Moana up for sale on a poster here in Oupua at the marina.Thanks for the links - will check them out! We had hoped to hook up with Urs in New Cal this year - will drop a line to him and find out what he plans to do ... cheers and thanks for the info
Catamaran Impi Hi Brent, yeah been on the road the last two months....North Carolina, New York, Las Vegas, Abu Dhabi, Bangalore India, U.K.....All work...I'm looking forward to binge watching your channel to see what you've been up to! Take care, Scott.
Hi Brent and Ana, been enjoying your videos so thank you very much. Love your boat and your travels. regarding the March pumps you use, could you tell me what model and how many gallons per min it needs to be to keep the generator cool? I'd really like to take your advice and do the same thing. We have a 6.5kva genny.
Hi Dave - pleased you enjoying them my friend - been a bit ill recently so slow getting the next one out but busy with it right now. The March Pumps that are Marine Air-conditioning pumps - such as www.marchpump.com/pumps/series-3/lc-3cp-md/ but do be careful to look at your specifications (RAW WATER FLOW RATE FOR YOUR GENERATOR) and try to match that flow for height. Also - make sure to wire the unit to the output of the generator otherwise you risk flooding the engine with sea water - could result in bent conrods, broken crankshafts or worse. Depending on the head / feed height you could go over slightly but please be careful about that. It is also important to make sure that the mixing elbow is clean and the exhaust system has a nice flow. I must say that we never think about impellers anymore - it's awesome. For bleeding your Raw Water System - put in a T with a valve after the vented loop syphon valve (which is mounted as the highest point of your Raw Water System. If the non return valve gets a bit of weed in it or something this makes it quick an easy to bleed the air and get the water flowing again. Cheers for now Brent
another great video, kudos to y'all. i'm really surprised that ONAN would use a cheapo chinese fuel pump as original equipment. i needed a transfer pump for diesel on my pick up truck, i have the identical one, it only cost me 11 bucks on ebay. one silly question, are the mechanical and plumbing fittings metric or american? or are they all mixed up? one more silly question, do you have a set of line wrenches for the fittings or do you simply use open ended wrenches? i am always overjoyed to log in to youtube and see a new video from you guys. bon voyage.
Hi Michael - wow - well it goes to show I did not do my homework well enough on the purchase of the fuel pump - wish I knew I could get that for 11 bucks man. Thanks for sharing. The fittings on our Onan are metric - not sure if they are as a standard world wide though ... I use standard open end wrenches. We are have more tools than many boats we come across yet feel to be fairly limited on tools since they add a lot of weight to a sailing vessel - we see so many nice tools the world over and we just can't load the boat with more I'm afraid to say. We are pleased you enjoy the shares and hope we can keep it up Michael .... cheers for now ... Brent
Great Video...great detail on the gen. maintenance. I think you could have a career in "how to" videos, if you weren't having such a good time sailing!
Pleased you enjoyed that TJ - and yes, we should look at publishing some 'How to' movies. If our countries currency keeps divinbg the way it is we may have to resort to something like that :)
Ahhh Douglas - you may be right - we South Africans tend to call everything with long feelers 'crayfish' ... Thanks for that and yes, I have been corrected before on this score. Cheers
Is there a video where you talk about the boat? Length, why you chose cat over mono, systems you'd like to add, things you really don't need, etc..? Thanks
Sorry for the delay in reply - we have been at sea the last 6 days from New Zealand to New Caledonia ! Hi Ed, Actually I have not done a video around this but it is one I should do! In the end we as individuals know what best works for us and we choose accordingly - perhaps I can use your comment as a reason to make a video around my choices ... cheers
Beautiful seats Stupid Question ? Do you ever feel Impi is to large or small ? If money was no issue and buying today. would you get the L440 or the new42 or some other boat ?
Actually for 2 people the 440 is a great boat. I would probably go for the 560 if money was no option - only because I want a reclining lazy boy in the lounge - you know - those nice big wide leather ones :) Impi is an awesome size boat - it fits our needs well and I think we chose incredibly well for the things we find important for ourselves on a boat. Of course all people have different things that make them happy so its nice to have the variety of models out there. Cheers for now
Hi Brent. Another great video. How many hours on your gen set ? What is your main use ? Do you use your aircon often ? I saw on your last video you have a PE100 dive compressor. Electric model. I have just ordered one for my Leopard but have gone with a petrol version. Do you use this often ? Some time forward it will be nice to touch base with you on immigration issues and traveling on a RSA passport
Hi Mike, we are just under 5000 hrs now - we replaced the pump around 600 hrs or so after Onan sent us a new raw water pump thinking there was an issue with that. Afterwards they said it had to be the installation by the factory but in all honesty I really think the issue lies somewhere in-between. The folks at Onan have been honourable in many respects where we have asked them to be ... they have replaced most items we suggested should not have failed so I give them their due for that, however, I don't think that pump of theirs is up to doing the trick bringing ocean water up to the unit. Perhaps if the unit was installed at or below sea level it would not be an issue. As mentioned in the video we have never had an issue since we replaced the March Pump and have had it operate for roughly 4000 hrs this way. A mate of mine sailing on a vessel Sv Jardean, wrote to say his cat is still under warranty and he is getting no more than 100 hrs to an impeller. We found the hours on impeller replacements became less with the increase in generator hours, so I conclude from this that the efficiency loss through internal wear plays a role here. With a new pump the tolerances seem to meet the requirement but only just it seems, and with the slightest wear on the faceplate and / or 'moon landing' the tolerance falls out of the bracket for the head feed rate required . The annoying thing is not only the replacement of the impeller each time, it is more about the fact that the broken rubber blades end up in the cooler and one needs to strip the cooler down each time to remove these . Not doing so limits the raw water flow and causes overheating, or in the case of this Onan set a sensor shuts the unit down on 'lack of raw water flow' (a great safety mechanism). Our main use for the generator is Battery charge - it powers two Victron Inverter chargers which delivers a charge rate of 220 Amps , at the same time we use the washing /drier machine, run air conditioning (dries out the boat and prevents mould) and /or in the case in New Zealand the heaters. Fortunately our air con units double up as amazing heaters so we use those a lot. We also make water although our water maker is a 12v unit - we run it automatically if the genset or engines are delivering charge to the house banks. Ironically, it is our alternators that produce the most charge rated at 150a each so through a centerfielder both engines running combine to deliver 300a (theoretically). Use the air con often? Yes - in the tropics we use them a lot (as said it also keeps the boat dry internally which is our big excuse to run them). The dive compressor - yes Mike - use it very often in warm climates - I am a dive master and love diving. The petrol units are great too - as you know one just needs to keep the intake away from the exhaust. Even with the electrical unit, we use the generator and I have a series of those swimming pool tubes which interlock - I connect them to the intake and take that upwind of the exhaust fumes. Ok Mike - no worries - you can contact us anytime - most folks reach us through face book and leave messages there. Cheers for now Brent
Where are you...Well I know where Impi is according to vessel finder but what about the wonderful crew. Miss you vids greatly, hope you and your family are well
Hey Pete - this is so kind of you ! Yes, so sorry for the lack of videos but to be honest we are finding time flies so quickly here in Australia. We have so many people showing us a good time, many couples visiting to chat about their dream to sail full time and it's almost like 'engaging with people in real life' is taking over our ability to keep making videos. I promised some folks recently I would record some of the preventative maintenance projects we are busy with so I will try get one out on the Windlass soonest and of course need to get my final episode of Sailing Tasmania out too. My daughter, Jenna seen in the video thumb here has just settled in New Zealand so we have managed to see our kids finally out of South Africa which has also been a huge amount of planning and expense together with the adjustment - so phew - been tough to make those videos between. Thanks again for the nice comment mate - with all the beautiful videos being produced these days we never thought we would be missed ... Cheers for now Brent
How did you come up with Impi as the name for your catamaran ? Do you only have 220 volt for on board power ? Do you have a dish washer , washer n dryer on board and do you make your own drinking water & for baths n showers also ? How many heads does Impi have on board ? Was the Sky Tower in Auckland , New Zealand or some other city there ? Is Cummkngs Onan the only brand of on board generator made for boats and motor homes ? On Impi Is there only one on board generator ?
Hi Again Bob ... sorry for the delay in reply - been sailing overnight from The Loyalty Islands' in sporty conditions and was very tired. The name - IMPI ? It's a very well known South African term for the 'warriors' from Shaka Zulu's time. They against all odds won many battles. Ana heard the song 'Impi' by Johnny Clegg playing at my brothers home and she loved the vibe of the song. She and my brother said we should call the boat 'Impi'. Ana felt it was fitting since we had overcome so many obstacles in life (health wise too) to reach this dream. So, we are the Impi's doing our thing even against the odds of keeping the dream alive. POWER: yes, 220v. We have a huge 12v battery bank (1800AH) which delivers 220v through 2 x Inverter chargers. The inverters are rated together at 6KVA and the charger side delivers 220A charge when running the generator or on shore power. We also have 2 x balmar alternators at 150A each and together 300 through a centre fielder. The Solar panels deliver up to 50A but generally average out in the 40's. DISH WASHER, DRYING MACHINE etc. - We do not have a dish washer (takes too much room) and yes, we have a 6kg Washing / drying machine in the closet you see on the patio (so outdoors). We make water with our desalinator which is a Spectra Newport 400 MK 11 - it makes about 55 - 60 litters per hour on 12v supply and draws roughly 18A. We have water tanks storing 900 litters. We live at anchor and not marinas so our water maker works hard and delivers way more than we need. We even wash Impi down almost daily with desalinated water. HEADS: We have heads and shower for each cabin and since we have an 'Owner Version' (3 Cabin) Lagoon 440 we have 3 heads. Sky Tower was in Auckland New Zealand - a beautiful country with even more beautiful people! Cummins Generator: No, there are many brands. We liked the Northern Lights generator but the physical dimensions for the output we wanted did not fit into the area allocated for the generator, so went ahead with Lagoons standard - the Onan. I must say though, the Onan has been great and the Cummins people have been VERY FAIR with us. Only one generator? Yes, we have just one generator. The thing is that our battery banks will deliver 220V power through the inverters and we have two of those so if one fails we have a back up system. The nice thing is that the two can be combined to deliver double outputs, however if one develops a problem with one of the units we can use the other in stand alone (3KVA as opposed to 6KVA which is more than one wants to draw from a battery. If the Generator goes down on us, we have the balamar alternators to supply power and again, one on each engine at 150A which when combined with both engines running deliver 300A. The solar panels are more for 'back up power'. We put a lot of thought into this - kind like - if one thing develops a problem then lets have 'back ups'. The thing with charging systems to one battery bank though - is that sometimes they 'conflict' which is very particular to the Balmars. If they feel another device charging they get jealous and cam off entirely so we fitted a relay switch and diodes to the solar panel MPPT controller to disconnect the power at the solar panels when we turn the engine keys to 'on'. That way the blamers do not see the solar panels and they relive fully. Cheers for now
I applaude your outside of the box thinking on the generator saltwater pump solution. I find it surprising that as many marine engines depend on these rubber splined pumps as they do since what they universally do is fail. Perhaps your solution should be more universally applied...like to your new yanmars!
Cheers for that tazman ! Yes, I do believe this should be a more universal approach to marine styled generators. The impeller in the March pumps is teflon and spins magnetically so will not break easily. The rubber impellers seem to have good results on units installed at or below water level. For unoits like generators which on cats which generally sit higher out of the water, they are not as good. At least with the March Pump we can install it separate of the generator and below water level - it really works well ... cheers and thanks for the comment
Brett/Ana, Hope you don't mind...but I emailed MOOSE to expect your arrival forthwith. He said he's been losing weight and some sailors even refer to him in his slimmer profile as I-LEAN. Regards to you two and the woofster Moose. (You obviously MUST post pics/video of him). RW
Nice video, very informative. How do you like the SD60 sail drives? I have a Voyage440 and am thinking of swapping to those as well. The SD50's are 11 years old now. Any advice would be helpful. Thanks Rob
Hi Rob, Thanks - pleased it worked out that way. The SD 60's are still new of course, but so far so good. We seem to be getting an extra knot (give or take) for the revs so it feels we have a more positive drive. Youn have done well for 11 years on the SD 50's - of course it depends on the hours. So far we are thrilled to have upgraded to the SD 60's but we have a while to go before we can give conclusive feedback. Sorry I can't be of more help at this stage ... Cheers for now - happy sailing :) Brent
Thanks for the reply, I am waiting for a quote fro the SD60 drives now, should I be scared when I get the quote? Could I ask the ball park replacement cost? Just rough estimate so I know what to expect? Thanks so much. Happy sailing.
Rob - top tip - write to Wayne De Kock at Seascape Marin in Cape Town - ask him for a quote. He is the most reasonably priced I have found. SA pays no import duty for yachting supplies so you are not paying extra for that. If you are foreign he will let you know how not to pay GST. Even with the freight costs they were cheaper than other countries and places I tried ... as in the price for one in NZ was the price for 2 in SA. cheers wdekock@seascapemarine.co.za
I don't know how much tv you and Anna watch, but, this started tonight in the uk and may be worth your watching initially to see if you would wish to follow the series, www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b07lp34l/new-zealand-earths-mythical-islands-1-cast-adrift Hope this finds you both well. Cheers, Mark
Brent.. after your years at sea....just wondering if you have put a pencil to your average monthly financial obligations to keep your beautiful Impi on the go...understand ALL the variables are different...new diesels, moorings, fuel and even water etc...but ....just an idea or even a hope of what you expect on a monthly live aboard...Rand's or Dollars.....understand if this is too personal....just trying to cross all my t's and dot my i's....haven't spent extended time (2yrs) on a boat since the 80's.....so...To the ship that goes and the wind that blows and the lass who loves a sailor...may your departures continue to equal your landfalls...Lee-n-Kelly
Hi Lee n Kelly - no worries with the question - it's a very relevant one. We work on the principle that most do and that is to budget for 10% of the value of the boat annually as an ALL INCLUSIVE amount. Of course this leaves us with a lot of spare change in the kitty but we also know that as the boat matures it will call for it so one should be mindful of this. Having said that, of course costs are up and down and vary from one boat to another - ignoring the 10% rule - i you are able to repair things yourself, have a good dinghy so you can anchor out as opposed to marinas ec. etc. - then - we feel a budget of around US$3500 per month could work - but - there will be sudden' big' expenses, and if one is not prepared for that it could become costly. Costs compound when you are unable to afford repairs ... We see many boats hauled for months because they can't afford the repair, and then are caught by having monthly boat yard expenses and the situation compounds from bad to worse - it really breaks our hearts to see this. We tried to help a sailor who has sailed for so long he called himself an 'old timer'. He had been stuck forever in a boat yard and was spending every dime of his pension keeping the boat there. When I suggested to him that he should just launch and live off the hook (do repairs in an anchorage), he said he could not afford to fix the dinghy. I climbed on-board and tried to fix the things I could - we managed to get the boat 'water ready but not cruise ready' - but it soon became evident that he had not maintained the boat in so many years, that it was a helpless cause. Not wanting to crush his dream but also encourage him to see the reality of his situation was difficult - I hinted toward a sale of the boat and then to look for a smaller neater vessel and am not sure how far that advice sunk in. It's a very hard pill to swallow when we see guys in this position - feels so helpless! So - I really do encourage people who make this their lives to keep the standard of the boat up - this way it takes 'little by little / money on the bleed' - but at least one knows the boat is good and how much is left in the kitty. It's not a very straight answer I know, but it varies massively from one boat owner to the next - especially for those who are not skilled in doing the repairs themselves - they get fleeced! Nice last statement in your comment there - thanks !
Hi u 2 have been watching your videos for ages now seen every one so just in case you've not seen it your son isn't camera shy after all lol th-cam.com/video/N5s8ovN3saE/w-d-xo.html please enjoy and hope to meet you out there in the coming years. 2 years to go and selling everything. Possibly buying the new Lagoon 42 off to Cannes this September to look at it again. Keep safe and don't rush in. Raych & Andy
Thanks Andrew and Raych - Terry coming out of his 'camera shell there' I believe - LOL! Yes guys - really hope to meet you out in the big pool someday ... please let us know when you launch - we so love seeing the dream materialise for folks we have been engaged with ... cheers for now ... Brent
What a pleasure to hear the dog is doing well......bless his heart! Dogs are such wonderful animals. Humans could learn a lot from dogs. Unconditional love, the world sure does need more of that. Godspeed and fair winds.....Johnny
Agreed Johnny - nice comment !
Brett, once again a very informative, blog, loved everything, generator mods etc, plus the man jumping of the tower when you were filming, also nice to see old friends from Cuba, spent two weeks thier and travelled around, loved the old cars, and the people.Fair winds to you and Ana.
Hey John - thanks for the comment - really appreciated. Cuba is magical huh !!!
Thanks for the wishes
Cheers for now
Brent
another fascinating insight brent - always a real pleasure to view your vlogs, best to you both and safe passage, moz
Thanks again Moz - never thought folks would enjoy us sharing the technical stuff, but hey, it is part of sailing and we are delighted that it has helped some sailors to sort out issues on their boats too ... after all ... that is how we also learn ... from others ... so nice to be able to share it on ... cheers and thanks for the wishes ... Brent
nice tour of auckland and as always clear explanation on how you fixed the generator.
Thanks Ariel !!!
Thanx again for the nice video, vriend! Watching while having a view at the Atlantic. Your videos keep my longing to the sea alive and kicking. Safe sailing!
Thanks for the awesome comment - hope to see you guys hit the water again, but no doubt, you will be adventuring on land too ... cheers
Nice work on the March pump. I had not considered an external pump. Gotta love the magnetic impeller on it too! Thanks!
Anytime Tony - works a charm!
Sometimes with your videos, I want to like them more than once
Thanks Martin - we enjoy your comments especially knowing you get the time to check the vids out between all those rugby matches man ...
It's great for us to know we can share stuff some folks enjoy ... cheers - Brent
perfect timing, I get this message just before the Blues and Brumbies kick off :) LOL timing is everything, fair winds on your trip north
LOL - I figured you would be checking out some team at play :)
Always love catching up with the Catamaran Impi.
Awesome - hope we can keep sharing and nice to know folks enjoy it ... cheers
I am always impressed with your professional presentations....Great Job.....Quality content and explanation....refits.... to beautiful family and scenery....looking forward to my next SVIMPI fix....Thanks again for your time and consideration...Lee -n- Kelly
Thanks Lee n Kelly - awesome comment - we will try to keep our heads from swelling after this one :)
Seriously though - it's a real blessing for us to be able to share stuff you refer to as the next 'SVIMPI fix ...
Cheers
Brent
Hallo I just discovered U and Anna today and am enjoying afew of your videos and your talking U are a poet with great explanations about the highs and lows and the plotter alarms terrific , im not up to date with the latest videos yet . I just saw july 2016 in the bay of islands . Im in Perth west australia. MARCEL. WELL TALK TO U SOON AGAIN . TOT ZIENS
Thank you Marcel - look forward to engaging with you and hoping you are having an awesome holiday season in beautiful Australia :)
Cheers mate :)
Thank you for the awesome video. Your journey is very inspiring!
A pleasure for us Luiz - pleased you enjoy it
Brent and Annamany thanks I have seen more of New Zealand through your videos than traveled in New Zealand , I was born and bred their yet it still amazes me how beautiful my Country is, thanks for showing me what I miss about home, I now live in Australia but as always am nostalgic heers guys...
It is a beautiful country to be sure - and the people - oh man !!!
Always enjoy your videos! Very nice job! Safe acrossing and God bless!
Thanks U Shine - awesome comment :)
Hi Brent and Ana. I have enjoyed watching your sailing videos over the past few days. I recently discovered your adventures on youtube.. The NZ video is especially interesting to me as my Wife and I were in the Bay of Islands way back in 1990..We loved our trip to NZ and hoped to go back one day but now the years have passed and we are old..
All the best to you folks as your sailing adventures around the World continue..Loved your video of SA as well, beautiful place mate..Cheers from the USA...
Oh man - would I have loved to see the Bay Of Islands in 1990. NZ is a special place - once visited it will always be in ones heart! I am not sure how old you are, but anchored along side us is an American single handing his boat in his late 70's. He sailed up from NZ and is touring New Caledonia now. Tomorrow we leave for the Loyalty Islands and then he sails on for Vanuatu.
Cheers and thanks for the comment ... Brent
My Wife and I are approaching 70 years of age Brent and I am not in the best of health..Overseas traveling for us is over, plus we have two Dogs to care for and my elderly parents as well..If you ever sail the USA and come to North Carolina let us know as we are near the town of Beaufort NC..A bit of history here also around the Graveyard of the Atlantic..We would love to meet you guys one day if possible..My email address is, wa4ovm@ec.rr.com...Our best to both of you always...Wayne and Judy Parrish, Newport North Carolina..Cheers..
Thanks for the message. We are so sorry to hear you have health problems - I totally understand that sometimes we need to rest up and be happy being at home and around family.
It would be really nice to see you in North Carolina - I have been there many years ago now but with my son now working in Florida we may well be visiting the USA more.
Lets keep in contact and if ever you happen to be near Fort Lauderdale please look up Terry - now working at Just Catamarans. Cheers for now ... Brent and Ana
Thanks Brent for your message also. We would be delighted to keep in contact with you and Ana...Its nice to hear that you have been to our home state of NC...We lived in South Carolina all our working lives but when we retired we returned to NC...I had an Uncle who until recently lived in Boca Raton Florida near Ft. Lauderdale..Uncle has now moved to the Florida panhandle area.. Its good to hear you have a Son working down that way...Maybe one day we could meet you folks face to face before my journey on this Earth ends...Best regards to you both, cheers... Wayne..
nice gray color upholstery. the dinghy looks new. good video
Thanks - we hope the grey holds up in the sun and so forth - Ana really likes the colour change . The beige upholstery held for 5 years - not bad :)
Okay, looked at a few of your videos and subscribed. Very nice! Looks like I have more than a few videos to catch up on.
Sorry for the delay in reply - we have been at sea the last 6 days from New Zealand to New Caledonia !
Great !!! Careful though - the older vids are not that good and the future vids may make you an addict - LOL
Cheers for now
Brent n Ana
Catamaran Impi I can't think of a better reason for a late reply. You're forgiven.
Fair winds, friends.
***** - he he !
OK. This is by far your finest video. Beautiful ladies, beautiful Lagoon 440, beautiful tech explanation of the gen work your doing and last but not least. . . . .cheers to the captain with a heart of gold. Now what the heck happened to your Cuban guests?
LOL - awesome comment by the way - thanks - but as for the 'Cuban guests' who are actually UK folks we met sailing in Cuba, well, I think we had such a great time together I forgot to film it. Mark and Sue are back at their boat which is in Auckland - I think they should be there for another year or so - they love NZ. Cheers for now ... Brent
Great Vlog!! starting to watch more and more of the Catamaran sailing. Just subscribed.
Hi Scott and welcome onboard - thank you for the compliment and we hope we can add value to you - we love interacting and hope our channel can help those who want to make a life at sea easier to achieve - let us know if there is anything we can help you with. Cheers for now ... Brent
another great vid guys !
Thanks Peter - nice of you to leave the comment ...
Cheers
Brent
Nice one guys, welcome back.
Cheers - thanks !
Hello Impi, Just a little F.Y.I. .. I was just viewing a video from "Gone with the Wynns" and who's smiling mug do I see, non-other then your son Terry...Jason and Nikki Wynn used to be land loving boon docking travelers, but they sold it all and bought a catamaran..So now their learning to sail...And Terry is helping them out in this video...Stay Safe and Fair Winds Impi...
Sorry for the delay in reply - we have been at sea the last 6 days from New Zealand to New Caledonia !
Hi JIM ... LOL - you can run but you can't hide - they say!!
Gone With The Wynns are awesome people - we are subscribed to their channel. My cousin was the agent (Kent) who sold them the boat too!
I have not seen the one with Terry - wonder why it does not show when I look at their channel?
Anyway, thanks for the 'heads up' - watching Gone With The Wynns and hoping their dream of sailing exceeds their best expectations ...
Cheers for now
Brent n Ana
doing some bing watching ,I have been a subscriber for a while. But I just want to be sure I didn't miss any videos. thanks for sharing. happy -safe sailing.
Hi T Lowe - happy to have you here with us - you have commented before :)
I hope you don[t miss any - look at the PLAYLIST to be sure.
Cheers my friend
Brent
Just saw your son on Gone With the Wynns video page. He looks and sounds just like you. LOL He was sailing down in Florida, USA and having fun.
Hi Ted, yes can one believe it ! Terry now works for Just Catamarans (owned by my cousin who features in their other videos) - kinda spooky to see the lad there :) Terry is 'sailing mad' - he loves the sea and it's nice to see him getting some salt air after moving to the USA only a month or two ago now. Tanks for the 'heads up' - I guess a bit of the old man has rubbed off on him then! Cheers
Hi just heard about you from gonewiththewynns enjoying your videos. All the best from Australia
Wow - we love 'Gone with the Wynns'. My cousin Kent sold them the boat and my son Terry sailed with them for a while and did some video work. He says they are really nice folks and were generous to him as a newbie to living in America, so yeah - rock on with Gone with the Wynns ... Thanks for the comment Maria - cheers for now - Brent n Ana
Terry gave you a great plug on GoneWithTheWynns ! Looking forward to following you and being part of your circ nav!
We have not seen the video since we have been sailing from NZ to New Caledonia, but will look it up !
Go Terry
Go 'Gone With The Wynns - awesome folks huh!
Cheers M - keep in touch and thanks for letting us know
Brent n Ana
+Catamaran Impi yea been following them for a long time. Great people! And Terry seems like a great guy and son. Looking forward to your adventures! Cheers Safe Sails
M Gar - I just watched it - such awesome folks huh! and so nice of them to have Terry along - he has just arrived in the USA so it is nice for Dad to see his son enjoying 'the US life' ... Cheers
I sure miss the Impi clan, one of the best cruising channels ever. Sure wish they would post once in awhile. How about an update guys?!
@@mikephillips9311 I just saw your message and really appreciate the kind words so much . We still publish updates on FB and Instagram and just felt there are so many amazing publishers on TH-cam that it takes too much time for us to share stuff as the older generation 😊 - but - we’re on our second circumnavigation and currently in Ilha Dos Lençois which was where we put out one of our first TH-cam videos . Back then it was really tough to have the right editing tools, access to music etc etc - it’s a different world now 😊
Perhaps I’ll get around to sharing some more videos about cruising the world when I’m not so busy sailing 😂
The channel Catamaran Javerne just published a video on their French channel interviewing us so you can take a look there 😊
Thanks again and we do love the interaction of everyone - thank you 🙏 🤗
@@CatamaranImpi You guys had one of the very best sailing channels ever. Your approach to challenges & problems was ever so intuitive & informative, you had sensible solutions. You are the "man's man" and your wife added the beauty & classy feminine touch. I'll never understand why your channel never took off more. My wife & I sailed over 30k miles over 5 years, survived 5 hurricanes and never took any serious damage. We shunned the large groups and stuck mostly to uninhabited islands in far off rarely visited places. Pre GPS & pre internet so I know of what I speak. Your videos exhibited a depth of heroic character, determination & honesty that is rare now. Thank you for taking the time for your response, it just shows the depth of character of you both. May God shower you two with innumerable blessings of joy & protection during your travels.
Mike & Karla.
Excellent vid ya'll.
Thanks :) :)
I thought you guys forgot your loving followers after all this time waiting for a new video.. Love it :)
LOL - Laurent - I think I have posted a few recently ... did you miss them?
I hope not. The last one I saw was you with that camera police trap. Was there another in between that one and this one? Hope you are both well. Thanks again for sharing :)
at 11:16 your pointer/magnet sticks to the hose clamp which indicates it is not stainless and should be replaced
Terry - yes, this is a very good point you make - thanks mate. And to think it was sold as Stainless. Interesting thing is that in years it has yet to show any form of corrosion, but then again, stainless can corrode from the inside - clamp changed :) Thanks
hi.
interesting video onboard catamaran.
nice video on diy maintenance onboard.
such a nice boat. big like a house.
hope to hear from you.
cheers
azhar
lumut malaysia
Hi Azhar - thank you for the comment - always once to hear from folks from all over the world. We should be in Malaysia either next year or the year following ... hope to see you there :)
Another wonderful video, thank you for sharing!
One question I did have for you is did you have much sailing experience beyond childhood prior to purchasing Impi and setting off to see the world. I remember from a previous video you had family heritage in sailing which included memories as a younger boy.
You and Anna certainly seem very capable with the mechanics and inner workings of keeping Impi ticking along in fine condition. Appreciate the multiple aspects covered in the videos as always and hope the weather finds you well.
Hi Goete, thanks for the comment and we enjoy the sharing :)
To answer your question honestly, I must admit our sailing experience was rather limited to coastal sailing and not open passages or remote destinations. We have learnt 100 fold more by actually getting out and doing it and I do advise folks who want to go from zero to hero, to engage in sailing races at the local yacht club, to do courses and to sail their boat for a year close to home before setting out.
I think my biggest challenge has been 'weather' and trying to get enough knowledge to understand its complexity. We really have made it our business to understand weather as much as possible and we have a long way to go yet - it is very intricate by nature and we find many of the weather guru's themselves get it wrong. I would really encourage folks to do a course in this if possible before setting out - especially to try and gain an understanding of how weather in the upper layers affect weather at the oceans surface since weather models do not take this into account. We now look closely at the 500hpa layer along with the surface layers and are trying to understand the correlation between these.
Thanks for the 'well wishes' and of course your interest
Cheers for now
Brent
Thank you so much, Bent special thanks about the pumps, And nice work, I should not be surprised that you can do this your self, I know a few guys from south Africa, Great people, And like you lots of know how, I do have a question, how much weiight can the davit arms support? Up here is Canada small jet boats are being build and I would have that for a dinky, T
Hi Terry - Any time mate! The davits take 1/2 ton happily. We usually pull the dinghy back and up against the stern of the boat and position straps around the tops when crossing oceans. Yeah - often thought a jet ski would be awesome on the boat - especially the ones the convert into 4 wheelers ... www.gizmag.com/go/5682/
Hey Captain and first mate aboard IMPI. My first time with one of your videos. Nice !! How do you like your catamaran? Looks like a Lagoon, yet there are no links in the description. My bride and I will be beginning our adventure by years end and have not solidified boat choice yet. Thanks. Richard.
Hi Richard and thanks for commenting. Nice to have you checking out our vids and for engaging with us.
This is our second brand of catamaran and this one seriously has impressed us, especially for its ability to sail close hauled (close to the wind), for its safety aspect with the nacelle which is a kind suspended middle hull / bullnose reaching into the trampoline area ... this is fantastic feature when dropping down wave faces in rough following seas since as the bows drop this part engages with the sea and floats the bows to the surface. The fly bridge and coach roof are designed in such a way that the added space on a 45 foot catamaran is incredible ... beds that are queen size with room around the sides and plenty of height to the ceiling - the folks at LAGOON know what they are doing for sure.
In the end we all choose boats for different reasons but I would encourage you to consider Lagoon in your choice.
We hope your bride and you are going to have terrific adventures and excitement in living life - I can assure you that if you choose the proper boat, set it up well and do preventative maintenance schedules that you will get years and years of sheer pleasure cruising the oceans :)
A simple header tank with low input and high exit point fitted higher than the original pump on the geni would extend the life of the rubber impeller greatly. I am thinking it's the dry running before water is down into the pump that is causing early failure. You would need to install a non return flow valve on pump intake also. That probably wouldn't last as long as the March pump though.
Yes, I see your thinking and agree with the impeller running dry in spite of us having a non return valve at the sea cock. The March Pump has been a fairly easy fix - can't remember the exact cost as we fitted it years ago now, but from what I recall it was not overly expensive and touch wood (here is me now holding my head) it has lasted well :)
Cheers and thanks for the contribution
Brent
March pump is a stroke of genius! Impellers can be such a pain, nice work. The new mains sets nicely too. Btw, if money was no object, I've had an eye on the Outreamer 5X and wonder what you think of that boat?
Hi Orange Whip - thanks for the comment.
Regarding the Outremer 5x - yues, a very nice boat - my cousin is actually agent for them in US Florida - but as you say, 'If money were no object'.
We sailed extensively with a couple who owned a 5X and recently sold it as they concluded their sailing journey ... SV Moana (Johan and Christine with son Kim). The boat is INCREDIBLY fast and on long passages they would get in a week ahead of the rest of us.
Of course there are trade offs - such as loading up the vessel. These boats are designed light and fast and not to be heavily loaded so one needs to take this into consideration. Speaking with Johan there was no way he would attempt to put all the home comforts on-board which we have on Impi since this would defeat the 'nature' of the 5X, so one needs to adjust oneself to keeping the boat as light as possible and perhaps sacrificing some of the additional weight like dive compressors and so on.
Still, I must say the Outremer 5X is one serious boat and certainly has the advantage on passages of accelerating around storms a lot easier than we can - and that is one big plus factor!
We know the man from Outremer and he is an awesome guy - Xavier - we like his integrity. I spoke to him about building one that is designed to take more weight for extended cruising but he says the philosophy around the boat is different - he wants to keep the vessel as one with terrific performance and speed with the 'necessary gear to be comfortable enough' but not like most cats suitable to heavier loading.
So in the end I think one needs to look at what it is you want from your cruising experience, but yeah, The Outremer 5X overall kicks butt :)
Cheers for now
excellent points. Keep it light, don't over load it with too many toys. I like the concept of light, when pacific squalls hit, reef early, and still go 9-12 kts, any faster and the boat and people get beat up. I've been following a new Outreamer 5X owner, Wilding, and he mentions that Moana is up for sale again, the recent owner Urs has done some nice upgrades, including a dive compressor. I'm amazed at over 1800 watts solar, watermaker can run on solar, no genset, etc. two fridges and one freezer. Wilding has a cool website with some interesting insights to these boats; sailwildling.com/ Here is Moana for sale info, amazing boat: moana.rothacher.us/
Yes, we actually know Urs very well - a great guy and his wife who used to live in South Africa. We saw Moana up for sale on a poster here in Oupua at the marina.Thanks for the links - will check them out! We had hoped to hook up with Urs in New Cal this year - will drop a line to him and find out what he plans to do ... cheers and thanks for the info
Hey Orange Whip - we have not heard from you in a while - tried to message you but your page does not allow it. All ok with you my friend?
Catamaran Impi Hi Brent, yeah been on the road the last two months....North Carolina, New York, Las Vegas, Abu Dhabi, Bangalore India, U.K.....All work...I'm looking forward to binge watching your channel to see what you've been up to! Take care, Scott.
Hi Brent and Ana, been enjoying your videos so thank you very much. Love your boat and your travels.
regarding the March pumps you use, could you tell me what model and how many gallons per min it needs to be to keep the generator cool? I'd really like to take your advice and do the same thing. We have a 6.5kva genny.
Hi Dave - pleased you enjoying them my friend - been a bit ill recently so slow getting the next one out but busy with it right now.
The March Pumps that are Marine Air-conditioning pumps - such as www.marchpump.com/pumps/series-3/lc-3cp-md/ but do be careful to look at your specifications (RAW WATER FLOW RATE FOR YOUR GENERATOR) and try to match that flow for height.
Also - make sure to wire the unit to the output of the generator otherwise you risk flooding the engine with sea water - could result in bent conrods, broken crankshafts or worse.
Depending on the head / feed height you could go over slightly but please be careful about that. It is also important to make sure that the mixing elbow is clean and the exhaust system has a nice flow.
I must say that we never think about impellers anymore - it's awesome.
For bleeding your Raw Water System - put in a T with a valve after the vented loop syphon valve (which is mounted as the highest point of your Raw Water System. If the non return valve gets a bit of weed in it or something this makes it quick an easy to bleed the air and get the water flowing again.
Cheers for now
Brent
another great video, kudos to y'all.
i'm really surprised that ONAN would use a cheapo chinese fuel pump as original equipment. i needed a transfer pump for diesel on my pick up truck, i have the identical one, it only cost me 11 bucks on ebay.
one silly question, are the mechanical and plumbing fittings metric or american? or are they all mixed up?
one more silly question, do you have a set of line wrenches for the fittings or do you simply use open ended wrenches?
i am always overjoyed to log in to youtube and see a new video from you guys.
bon voyage.
Hi Michael - wow - well it goes to show I did not do my homework well enough on the purchase of the fuel pump - wish I knew I could get that for 11 bucks man. Thanks for sharing.
The fittings on our Onan are metric - not sure if they are as a standard world wide though ...
I use standard open end wrenches. We are have more tools than many boats we come across yet feel to be fairly limited on tools since they add a lot of weight to a sailing vessel - we see so many nice tools the world over and we just can't load the boat with more I'm afraid to say.
We are pleased you enjoy the shares and hope we can keep it up Michael .... cheers for now ... Brent
Great Video...great detail on the gen. maintenance. I think you could have a career in "how to" videos, if you weren't having such a good time sailing!
Pleased you enjoyed that TJ - and yes, we should look at publishing some 'How to' movies. If our countries currency keeps divinbg the way it is we may have to resort to something like that :)
Those are not crayfish where I come from....Lobster :)...great video..thanks
Ahhh Douglas - you may be right - we South Africans tend to call everything with long feelers 'crayfish' ... Thanks for that and yes, I have been corrected before on this score. Cheers
Is there a video where you talk about the boat? Length, why you chose cat over mono, systems you'd like to add, things you really don't need, etc..? Thanks
Sorry for the delay in reply - we have been at sea the last 6 days from New Zealand to New Caledonia !
Hi Ed, Actually I have not done a video around this but it is one I should do! In the end we as individuals know what best works for us and we choose accordingly - perhaps I can use your comment as a reason to make a video around my choices ... cheers
Beautiful seats
Stupid Question ?
Do you ever feel Impi is to large or small ? If money was no issue and buying today. would you get the L440 or the new42 or some other boat ?
Actually for 2 people the 440 is a great boat. I would probably go for the 560 if money was no option - only because I want a reclining lazy boy in the lounge - you know - those nice big wide leather ones :)
Impi is an awesome size boat - it fits our needs well and I think we chose incredibly well for the things we find important for ourselves on a boat. Of course all people have different things that make them happy so its nice to have the variety of models out there. Cheers for now
Hi Brent. Another great video.
How many hours on your gen set ? What is your main use ?
Do you use your aircon often ?
I saw on your last video you have a PE100 dive compressor. Electric model. I have just ordered one for my Leopard but have gone with a petrol version. Do you use this often ?
Some time forward it will be nice to touch base with you on immigration issues and traveling on a RSA passport
Hi Mike, we are just under 5000 hrs now - we replaced the pump around 600 hrs or so after Onan sent us a new raw water pump thinking there was an issue with that. Afterwards they said it had to be the installation by the factory but in all honesty I really think the issue lies somewhere in-between.
The folks at Onan have been honourable in many respects where we have asked them to be ... they have replaced most items we suggested should not have failed so I give them their due for that, however, I don't think that pump of theirs is up to doing the trick bringing ocean water up to the unit. Perhaps if the unit was installed at or below sea level it would not be an issue.
As mentioned in the video we have never had an issue since we replaced the March Pump and have had it operate for roughly 4000 hrs this way.
A mate of mine sailing on a vessel Sv Jardean, wrote to say his cat is still under warranty and he is getting no more than 100 hrs to an impeller. We found the hours on impeller replacements became less with the increase in generator hours, so I conclude from this that the efficiency loss through internal wear plays a role here. With a new pump the tolerances seem to meet the requirement but only just it seems, and with the slightest wear on the faceplate and / or 'moon landing' the tolerance falls out of the bracket for the head feed rate required .
The annoying thing is not only the replacement of the impeller each time, it is more about the fact that the broken rubber blades end up in the cooler and one needs to strip the cooler down each time to remove these . Not doing so limits the raw water flow and causes overheating, or in the case of this Onan set a sensor shuts the unit down on 'lack of raw water flow' (a great safety mechanism).
Our main use for the generator is Battery charge - it powers two Victron Inverter chargers which delivers a charge rate of 220 Amps , at the same time we use the washing /drier machine, run air conditioning (dries out the boat and prevents mould) and /or in the case in New Zealand the heaters. Fortunately our air con units double up as amazing heaters so we use those a lot. We also make water although our water maker is a 12v unit - we run it automatically if the genset or engines are delivering charge to the house banks.
Ironically, it is our alternators that produce the most charge rated at 150a each so through a centerfielder both engines running combine to deliver 300a (theoretically).
Use the air con often? Yes - in the tropics we use them a lot (as said it also keeps the boat dry internally which is our big excuse to run them).
The dive compressor - yes Mike - use it very often in warm climates - I am a dive master and love diving.
The petrol units are great too - as you know one just needs to keep the intake away from the exhaust. Even with the electrical unit, we use the generator and I have a series of those swimming pool tubes which interlock - I connect them to the intake and take that upwind of the exhaust fumes.
Ok Mike - no worries - you can contact us anytime - most folks reach us through face book and leave messages there.
Cheers for now
Brent
i hope i can see your new video sir
Where are you...Well I know where Impi is according to vessel finder but what about the wonderful crew. Miss you vids greatly, hope you and your family are well
Hey Pete - this is so kind of you !
Yes, so sorry for the lack of videos but to be honest we are finding time flies so quickly here in Australia. We have so many people showing us a good time, many couples visiting to chat about their dream to sail full time and it's almost like 'engaging with people in real life' is taking over our ability to keep making videos.
I promised some folks recently I would record some of the preventative maintenance projects we are busy with so I will try get one out on the Windlass soonest and of course need to get my final episode of Sailing Tasmania out too.
My daughter, Jenna seen in the video thumb here has just settled in New Zealand so we have managed to see our kids finally out of South Africa which has also been a huge amount of planning and expense together with the adjustment - so phew - been tough to make those videos between.
Thanks again for the nice comment mate - with all the beautiful videos being produced these days we never thought we would be missed ...
Cheers for now
Brent
How did you come up with Impi as the name for your catamaran ? Do you only have 220 volt for on board power ? Do you have a dish washer , washer n dryer on board and do you make your own drinking water & for baths n showers also ? How many heads does Impi have on board ? Was the Sky Tower in Auckland , New Zealand or some other city there ? Is Cummkngs Onan the only brand of on board generator made for boats and motor homes ? On Impi Is there only one on board generator ?
Hi Again Bob ... sorry for the delay in reply - been sailing overnight from The Loyalty Islands' in sporty conditions and was very tired.
The name - IMPI ? It's a very well known South African term for the 'warriors' from Shaka Zulu's time. They against all odds won many battles. Ana heard the song 'Impi' by Johnny Clegg playing at my brothers home and she loved the vibe of the song. She and my brother said we should call the boat 'Impi'. Ana felt it was fitting since we had overcome so many obstacles in life (health wise too) to reach this dream. So, we are the Impi's doing our thing even against the odds of keeping the dream alive.
POWER: yes, 220v. We have a huge 12v battery bank (1800AH) which delivers 220v through 2 x Inverter chargers. The inverters are rated together at 6KVA and the charger side delivers 220A charge when running the generator or on shore power.
We also have 2 x balmar alternators at 150A each and together 300 through a centre fielder. The Solar panels deliver up to 50A but generally average out in the 40's.
DISH WASHER, DRYING MACHINE etc. - We do not have a dish washer (takes too much room) and yes, we have a 6kg Washing / drying machine in the closet you see on the patio (so outdoors). We make water with our desalinator which is a Spectra Newport 400 MK 11 - it makes about 55 - 60 litters per hour on 12v supply and draws roughly 18A. We have water tanks storing 900 litters.
We live at anchor and not marinas so our water maker works hard and delivers way more than we need. We even wash Impi down almost daily with desalinated water.
HEADS: We have heads and shower for each cabin and since we have an 'Owner Version' (3 Cabin) Lagoon 440 we have 3 heads.
Sky Tower was in Auckland New Zealand - a beautiful country with even more beautiful people!
Cummins Generator: No, there are many brands. We liked the Northern Lights generator but the physical dimensions for the output we wanted did not fit into the area allocated for the generator, so went ahead with Lagoons standard - the Onan. I must say though, the Onan has been great and the Cummins people have been VERY FAIR with us.
Only one generator? Yes, we have just one generator. The thing is that our battery banks will deliver 220V power through the inverters and we have two of those so if one fails we have a back up system. The nice thing is that the two can be combined to deliver double outputs, however if one develops a problem with one of the units we can use the other in stand alone (3KVA as opposed to 6KVA which is more than one wants to draw from a battery.
If the Generator goes down on us, we have the balamar alternators to supply power and again, one on each engine at 150A which when combined with both engines running deliver 300A.
The solar panels are more for 'back up power'.
We put a lot of thought into this - kind like - if one thing develops a problem then lets have 'back ups'. The thing with charging systems to one battery bank though - is that sometimes they 'conflict' which is very particular to the Balmars. If they feel another device charging they get jealous and cam off entirely so we fitted a relay switch and diodes to the solar panel MPPT controller to disconnect the power at the solar panels when we turn the engine keys to 'on'. That way the blamers do not see the solar panels and they relive fully.
Cheers for now
I applaude your outside of the box thinking on the generator saltwater pump solution. I find it surprising that as many marine engines depend on these rubber splined pumps as they do since what they universally do is fail. Perhaps your solution should be more universally applied...like to your new yanmars!
Cheers for that tazman ! Yes, I do believe this should be a more universal approach to marine styled generators. The impeller in the March pumps is teflon and spins magnetically so will not break easily.
The rubber impellers seem to have good results on units installed at or below water level. For unoits like generators which on cats which generally sit higher out of the water, they are not as good. At least with the March Pump we can install it separate of the generator and below water level - it really works well ... cheers and thanks for the comment
Brett/Ana,
Hope you don't mind...but I emailed MOOSE to expect your arrival forthwith.
He said he's been losing weight and some sailors even refer to him in his slimmer profile as I-LEAN.
Regards to you two and the woofster Moose.
(You obviously MUST post pics/video of him).
RW
LOL - that is funny!
ooppsss Again thank you for the video,
nice vacation
AMAZING !!! have an awesome weekend :)
Ahh just seen the comment below take care.
thanks Andrew :)
Nice video, very informative. How do you like the SD60 sail drives? I have a Voyage440 and am thinking of swapping to those as well. The SD50's are 11 years old now. Any advice would be helpful. Thanks
Rob
Hi Rob, Thanks - pleased it worked out that way. The SD 60's are still new of course, but so far so good. We seem to be getting an extra knot (give or take) for the revs so it feels we have a more positive drive. Youn have done well for 11 years on the SD 50's - of course it depends on the hours. So far we are thrilled to have upgraded to the SD 60's but we have a while to go before we can give conclusive feedback. Sorry I can't be of more help at this stage ...
Cheers for now - happy sailing :) Brent
Thanks for the reply, I am waiting for a quote fro the SD60 drives now, should I be scared when I get the quote? Could I ask the ball park replacement cost? Just rough estimate so I know what to expect? Thanks so much. Happy sailing.
Rob - top tip - write to Wayne De Kock at Seascape Marin in Cape Town - ask him for a quote. He is the most reasonably priced I have found. SA pays no import duty for yachting supplies so you are not paying extra for that. If you are foreign he will let you know how not to pay GST. Even with the freight costs they were cheaper than other countries and places I tried ... as in the price for one in NZ was the price for 2 in SA. cheers
wdekock@seascapemarine.co.za
Thanks for the info, I will do that. Keep the great videos coming. Cheers Rob
I don't know how much tv you and Anna watch, but, this started tonight in the uk and may be worth your watching initially to see if you would wish to follow the series,
www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b07lp34l/new-zealand-earths-mythical-islands-1-cast-adrift
Hope this finds you both well.
Cheers,
Mark
Thanks Mark - hope all is great with you - will check that out when we get better internet. Sounds interesting! thanks
Brent.. after your years at sea....just wondering if you have put a pencil to your average monthly financial obligations to keep your beautiful Impi on the go...understand ALL the variables are different...new diesels, moorings, fuel and even water etc...but ....just an idea or even a hope of what you expect on a monthly live aboard...Rand's or Dollars.....understand if this is too personal....just trying to cross all my t's and dot my i's....haven't spent extended time (2yrs) on a boat since the 80's.....so...To the ship that goes and the wind that blows and the lass who loves a sailor...may your departures continue to equal your landfalls...Lee-n-Kelly
Hi Lee n Kelly - no worries with the question - it's a very relevant one.
We work on the principle that most do and that is to budget for 10% of the value of the boat annually as an ALL INCLUSIVE amount. Of course this leaves us with a lot of spare change in the kitty but we also know that as the boat matures it will call for it so one should be mindful of this.
Having said that, of course costs are up and down and vary from one boat to another - ignoring the 10% rule - i you are able to repair things yourself, have a good dinghy so you can anchor out as opposed to marinas ec. etc. - then - we feel a budget of around US$3500 per month could work - but - there will be sudden' big' expenses, and if one is not prepared for that it could become costly. Costs compound when you are unable to afford repairs ...
We see many boats hauled for months because they can't afford the repair, and then are caught by having monthly boat yard expenses and the situation compounds from bad to worse - it really breaks our hearts to see this. We tried to help a sailor who has sailed for so long he called himself an 'old timer'. He had been stuck forever in a boat yard and was spending every dime of his pension keeping the boat there. When I suggested to him that he should just launch and live off the hook (do repairs in an anchorage), he said he could not afford to fix the dinghy. I climbed on-board and tried to fix the things I could - we managed to get the boat 'water ready but not cruise ready' - but it soon became evident that he had not maintained the boat in so many years, that it was a helpless cause. Not wanting to crush his dream but also encourage him to see the reality of his situation was difficult - I hinted toward a sale of the boat and then to look for a smaller neater vessel and am not sure how far that advice sunk in. It's a very hard pill to swallow when we see guys in this position - feels so helpless!
So - I really do encourage people who make this their lives to keep the standard of the boat up - this way it takes 'little by little / money on the bleed' - but at least one knows the boat is good and how much is left in the kitty.
It's not a very straight answer I know, but it varies massively from one boat owner to the next - especially for those who are not skilled in doing the repairs themselves - they get fleeced!
Nice last statement in your comment there - thanks !
Oh to be rich
Hi u 2 have been watching your videos for ages now seen every one so just in case you've not seen it your son isn't camera shy after all lol th-cam.com/video/N5s8ovN3saE/w-d-xo.html please enjoy and hope to meet you out there in the coming years. 2 years to go and selling everything. Possibly buying the new Lagoon 42 off to Cannes this September to look at it again. Keep safe and don't rush in. Raych & Andy
Thanks Andrew and Raych - Terry coming out of his 'camera shell there' I believe - LOL!
Yes guys - really hope to meet you out in the big pool someday ... please let us know when you launch - we so love seeing the dream materialise for folks we have been engaged with ... cheers for now ... Brent