Getting "ship shape" and ready to move!

Approaching the Gippsland Ports jetty

The Captain keeps everything in and on Manookatoo as ship-shape as possible all the time. He is forever checking the electricals, filling tanks, lubricating parts and cleaning from top to water line. Engine maintenance and replacement of any worn parts is done regularly too.
Once a year, Manookatoo needs a more thorough going over, which involves taking her out of the water in order to inspect and repair anything under the water line. Doing this is easy when Manookatoo is at Yaringa Marina - all the Captain's trusted service people are there and he (and they) know all about the boat. At Gippsland Ports it is a new experience, but there are good service people to be found everywhere, it is just a matter of getting to know who they are! Our experiences here have proved positive so far as well.....

In the travel lift

Washing the bottom

Cruising up to the jetty at the Gippsland Ports ship yard, a travel lift attached belts under the boat and she was hoisted up into the air and moved onto dry land. This whole process takes just over 2 minutes! Her bottom was then pressure washed so that slime and barnacles are removed. Once that job was completed, she was moved to a cradle while everything dried.

Ready for the Captain to work

Then the Captain inspected underneath closely, chiselling off any hard-to-move barnacles and checking that there are no scrapes where she has touched the bottom, applying antifoul where it was required and replacing the sacrificial anodes, which prevent the boat being corroded by electrodes in the water. He worked hard and fast, as the longer the boat is out of the water the more it costs in storage, and, as it is currently our home, we have to find somewhere else to stay if the job is not complete before the yard closes at night. By 4pm Manookatoo was hoisted onto the travel lift and lowered back into the water, clean and almost ready for her next adventures.

It's easy to see the engine with the floor up!

Engine maintenance is also undertaken annually, by a qualified mechanic, of course. After consulting with Gary, Manookatoo's regular mechanic, and on the advice of boating friends, Jim, a long standing local, was appointed to check on the servicing of the engine and generator. All the floor panels were lifted out, to make it easier for Jim to check all the vital organs and give the all-clear; as a big service had been done last winter he was satisfied that nothing needed replacing and everything was working perfectly.
Power generation is another important component of life aboard Manookatoo. When we are in the Marina, we plug into shore power, but at other times we must make our own. A series of batteries supplies power for starting the engine and for small energy requirements such as boiling the (low voltage) kettle, while bigger jobs are handled by a generator which, along with solar panels, replenishes energy into the batteries.

Checking we are maintaining power

A panel relays all information about power generation so that the Captain can be aware of capacity and load at all times - he checks this regularly, as well as testing the batteries with a hydrometer and ensuring there is pleny of distilled water to cover the battery plates. Batteries are expensive items to replace and, as they are a vital part of running the boat, they need careful management. With a long trip about to be undertaken, it was time for some new batteries to be fitted and, at 54 kilograms each this is an undertaking much more laborious than a trip to the local garage!

Leaving Paynesville....almost on our way

So now everything that had been done or checked has been done, it is a matter of watching the weather and the sea state for the next opportunity to go. Manookatoo has been moved from Paynesville to Lakes Entrance, and we wait for that opportunity.......