# Life without Air Conditioning



## wind_magic (Jun 6, 2006)

It's June.

It is starting to get hot now.  

How do you cope with the heat on your boat ?


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## imagine2frolic (Aug 7, 2008)

While on the hook a/c was never missed except several nights in 4 years. This includes the Bahamas, South Florida, and the Caribbean. At the dock life may become miserable if it is hot, humid, and not a zephyr of wind.

I use an $80 a/c window unit with a roll of silver tape, and a board of foam insulation board for a total of $100. 2 of these will keep the boat cold, and this is on a 46ft. cat........i2f


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## Valiente (Jun 16, 2006)

Windscoop and ice cubes and recreational nudity.


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## JohnRPollard (Mar 26, 2007)

Valiente said:


> Windscoop and ice cubes and recreational nudity.


Says the Canadian....


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## WouldaShoulda (Oct 7, 2008)

Proper attire and maintaining air-flow are key!!


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## Skipper Joe (Oct 1, 2007)

We slap a window unit in the companionway and get a nice tricep workout getting in and out of the boat. We want to go without soon as we leave the convenience of shore power behind. I reckon nudity is best and a lot of fun! Freaks out the conservative types, though. But, heck, that can be fun too.

I have also used a $8 1 gallon garden sprayer on high mist on deck for cooling. That garden sprayer is indispensible, it is also my pressure hot water shower. Just be sure to clip the wand and heat bend it for the more "creative" angles desired.


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## T37Chef (Oct 9, 2006)

We could not survive the summer months without a Bimini and 12 V Fans. 
The wife wants to make a canopy to hang over the boom at anchor or motoring, and when we replaced the headliner this year I added some insulation. The insulation combined with the Nicro Fans keeps the boat much cooler when we're not aboard and the 12V Oscillating fans do well when away from the dock. We even have a fan for the cockpit that plugs into a 12V receptacle  Light clothing, going nude just sounds painful, there's just someplace's I don't want a tan/burn


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## merc2dogs (Jun 5, 2004)

I've always found that shading as much of the boat as possible works well for keeping it from getting oppresivly hot inside. Biminy or canvas over the boom, another bit (triangular) from mast to bow with the front corner fastened at the bow and the base fastened at each side, kept high enough to allow airflow. May not be exactly beautiful, but does lower the temps on the boat enough that you can sit comfortably in the cockpit, or go below without melting.

Ken.


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## imagine2frolic (Aug 7, 2008)

merc2dogs said:


> I've always found that shading as much of the boat as possible works well for keeping it from getting oppresivly hot inside. Biminy or canvas over the boom, another bit (triangular) from mast to bow with the front corner fastened at the bow and the base fastened at each side, kept high enough to allow airflow. May not be exactly beautiful, but does lower the temps on the boat enough that you can sit comfortably in the cockpit, or go below without melting.
> 
> Ken.


My friend has this cloth you describe on his bow. I imagine if the rain is not blowing sideways it allows the hatch to stay open too.

Shade is mandatory in the tropics. We have shade that lays down on the windows for night privacy, and lifts up during the day for the view.......i2f


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## saltydawg (May 20, 2004)

Get pregnant.

Just kidding. On our old boat which we lived aboard for 6 years and cruised on, we lived without a/c or hot water... and I did my full pregnancy on that boat in the muggy Chesapeake Bay. I joke that I was so flush with pregnancy hormones I didn 't notice the heat. 

We have 2 air conditioning units dockside now with a little one on board. But I still can feel a BIG difference when I shade out the hatches. I buy scrap fabric at the fabric store (about a $1 for a fat quarter) and then pop it between the screen and the hatch. You still get some light (in lovely colors and prints) but it keep the radiant heat WAY down.


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## timebandit (Sep 18, 2002)

I use that green nursery cloth, the stuff you can see through.

You can see through out but can't see in and it is almost invisible to air flow and does not flap in most wind conditions.

I sew and put grommets in it just like canvas.

It won't stop rain though.


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## TQA (Apr 4, 2009)

The first two of the following assumes living on the hook. 

BIG windscoop over the forehatch. Make it at least 5 foot high.

Have an awning that shades as much of the boat as possible and if you have a dodger fold it down. 

That was sufficient from Trinidad to Florida. I added some Hella fans to provide air movement on windless nights.


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## eryka (Mar 16, 2006)

We use a white canvas awning over most of the boat - helps enormously and you can open the hatches underneath even in rain. I also have a chill cloth - a tube of cotton fabric wrapped around moisture-holding beads. You soak it in water and put it in the fridge, then drape it around the back of your neck. It holds the cold for an hour or so, and is pretty effective even in the HHH days (hazy, hot, humid) in the Chesapeake. I found mine at a farmers market for $5.


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## Valiente (Jun 16, 2006)

JohnRPollard said:


> Says the Canadian....


Hey, if you're using a manual windlass, you warm up quickly!


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## nailbunnySPU (Apr 8, 2009)

i tinted my windows and portlights with heat control platinum stuff from lowes. it calms down the heat and adds some privacy as long as the light is on the other side. curtains next. with temperature problems, i start with windows.

i don't know what I'd do without my 12v fans.


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## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

You have a fridge??????? 



eryka said:


> We use a white canvas awning over most of the boat - helps enormously and you can open the hatches underneath even in rain.* I also have a chill cloth - a tube of cotton fabric wrapped around moisture-holding beads. You soak it in water and put it in the fridge, then drape it around the back of your neck. *It holds the cold for an hour or so, and is pretty effective even in the HHH days (hazy, hot, humid) in the Chesapeake. I found mine at a farmers market for $5.


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## mgmhead (Jan 14, 2007)

When not at the dock I use a white tarp as a boom tent which shades the boat from companion way to mast. I also have a bimini over the cockpit and use a "Breeze Booster" on the forward hatch. This setup along with a couple of 12V fans keeps the boat cool. Well... that and ice cold adult beverages.


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## chef2sail (Nov 27, 2007)

At anchor and sail a bimini, windscoop, and 4 12v small Caframo fans do the trick as well as an occasional rinse in the cockpit with the shower nozzel. At the dock...AIR CONDITIONING. We have an in hatch air conditioner which restes under the filler of the V berth when not in the hatch. Its a simple operation for my wife to place a spare halyard around the handle and winch it up through the hatch with me guiding it and takes 30 seconds. next project may be built in AC

Dave

Dave


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## eryka (Mar 16, 2006)

sailingdog said:


> You have a fridge???????


How else to keep the beer cold?


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