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Sun Harbor Marina Minute
Welcome to Sun Harbor Marina’s
February newsletter. We hope you all stayed warm during the
cold weather. Don't forget to ask Cupid to remember your
favorite Valentine on February 14th with that something
special!
Mark Your Calendar - Two Sun Harbor Special
Events
Please join us on Saturday, February 10th at 2:00 p.m. for a special presentation on Hull Coating presented
by Koehler Kraft and Interlux
representatives on Hull Coating (a team effort) plus a FREE
BBQ! Learn more about
environmentally friendly hull coatings such as Interlux’s
Ultra-Kote and enjoy a free BBQ burger. And - get a 10%
discount on Koehler Kraft paint for your boat bottom.
Then, on Saturday,
March 10th at 10:00 a.m., plan to
join a discussion on Invasive Species, Non-Toxic Bottom Paints
and Boater environmental responsibilities presented by the University of California’s Sea Grant
Extension Program.
Winter Weather Calls For Extra Caution
With Winter comes the possibility of high
winds and wet weather. A few simple precautions can help avoid
costly incidents. Set your dock
lines as though high winds
are around the corner so you don’t have a possibility to
bump into your neighbor’s boat. If your lines are frayed;
please replace them.
Extension cords with GFCI protected pig
tails are required at Sun Harbor Marina. This is an OSHA
regulation . .. for more information, contact the Marina
office.
Also, inspect
your heating systems for corrosion
and dust buildup before the first Winter use.If your power cords have cracks, it’s imperative you replace them so that
moisture doesn’t seep in and cause a short. Sailboats
should make sure sails are furled
and securely covered.
Correction To January Newsletter
We mistakenly identified one of the
winners of the Sun Harbor Christmas light decoration contest as
Lacy T. and My Highway. It should have been Lacy T. and “My Way”. We obviously must have been thinking of that old
phrase “My Way or the Highway!”.
Some Notes About Your Marine VHF Radio
If you are a new recreational boater,
here are a few tips about the channels
on your VHF marine radio that
you will find useful. First and foremost, when you’re
cruising, you should always have your radio turned on and set
to monitor channel 16.
Channel 16 is the boater’s
“window to the world”. It’s priority use is
for calling in emergencies and distress safety communications
to the Coast Guard, but when it’s quiet, Channel 16 is
also the channel you can use to get the attention of another
vessel or station (such as a specific marina).
There are some strict regulations here as
to how often you can continue to hail another station on
Channel 16, but if you use common sense, a time or two will let
you know whether your party is on-line and likely to respond.
If you do get a response from the party
you are hailing on Channel 16, the object of the game is to
agree on another channel that you can both immediately switch
to to continue your communication.
As time goes by, you’ll get the
hang of which channels the local fishermen, commercial traffic,
and casual boaters use to communicate, and which are most
comfortable and appropriate for you to use.
In the meantime, here is a link to a
terrific FCC chart that
we recommend you print out to keep handy by your marine radio.
It’s interesting information, and it demystifies the
marine radio channel protocol in a simplified manner.
Let Us Hear From You
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Kathy OBrien - Sun Harbor Marina
Reducing the Risk of and Managing Oil
Spills
Oil spills are the most common blunder a
boater makes and perhaps the easiest to avoid. Be mindful
of fueling practices and keep an eye on your bilge pump.
Many marine fueling stations are not
equipped with nozzles that automatically shut off with
backpressure, thus on-water fueling often entails waiting for
the gas to spurt out the overflow vent. Fuel docks fill
your boat for you to avoid careless behavior. Be a
watchful eye and speak up if you see sloppy practices.
For efficient fuel consumption, keep your engine properly
tuned. Know your tank’s capacity and have absorbent
pads handy just in case. Consider installing an in-line fuel/air separator to prevent fuel from escaping out the
vent hole, while letting the air through (devices are
Inexpensive – about $75).
Note:
transferring fuel to your boat from fuel cans is prohibited at
Sun Harbor Marina.
Oil leaks from numerous lubricated parts
of an engine and mixes with water entering the bilge.
While, it is important to know proper disposal of this
mixture, it is more important to know how to prevent it.
Routinely check and fix those small leaks that allow oil
to drip into the bilge. Before you change the oil, take a few
minutes to ensure the proper capture and clean up of all the
fluids. Keep an aluminum or plastic tray in the bilge as
a containment device.
If your bilge is contaminated, use
absorbent pads to capture the surface oil. Do not add
liquid detergents to the bilge water as it will only disperse
the oil and foul bilge pumps and absorbent pads. Further, the US Coast Guard can zap you for up
to $32,500 for those few squirts of soap pumped overboard.
When a spill occurs, immediately stop the
source. Contain the spill with absorbent pads or a boom.
Call Vessel
Assist and the marina
office for assistance. Wrap soiled pads in newspaper and
tie inside a plastic bag for disposal.
Vessel Assist 619-235-VASD (8273)
Coast Guard 619-278-7033
Harbor Police 619-686-6272
Anonymous Spill
Report 619-571-2621
Thank you to all who joined us for the
Vessel Assist demonstration. Sun Harbor’s HazMat
Kit (pads and boom) is located at the head of the docks
(combination is 5000).
LORAN - The Possible End Of A Historical
Navigational Icon?
The Coast Guard has informed all mariners
that the U.S. Department of Transportation, in coordination
with the Department of Homeland Security, is seeking public
input on the fate of the Long Range
Navigation System, otherwise known as
LORAN-C.
The land based navigation system,
operated by the Coast Guard, may be scheduled for
decommissioning later this year. At question is whether the
system should be decommissioned, maintained "as is,"
or up-graded to an enhanced LORAN system (eLORAN), which could
be used either as a back-up to the GPS (Global Position
Satellite) System, or a complimentary system to GPS.
LORAN-C is a radio navigation service for
mariners, which provides better than 500 yard absolute accuracy
for suitably equipped users, to assist in locating their
position on the water.
The public is invited to submit their
thoughts and comments, which must be received on or by February
7, 2006. Click Here to
learn how to submit those comments or call the U.S. Coast Guard
Information line at 1-800-368-5647.
Desktop Photo of the Month -
Our Fine-Feathered Friend
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Between The Sheets - Winter Is A Good Time
To Prepare For Summer
My brother lives in Milwaukee, and every
year he hauls his out his Hunter and proceeds with the
recommended regiment of decommissioning and covering it for the
winter.
We lucky Southern Californians
don’t have to haul out our boats for the Winter, but it
is equally important for us to do our own bi-annual inspection
to prevent problems from cropping up during the idle times.
Here are the salient items I took from my brother’s
Northern latitude checklist that I adapted for us:
Check batteries
Replace frayed dock lines and tie down
for
rough weather
Check transmission fluid level - Dark
color
may
signify problems
Lubricate all seacocks
Change zincs if necessary (Don’t
forget the
zincs
in the engine and generator set)
Replace raw water impeller
Drain, shock and fill water tanks
Lubricate control cables
Check flare dates and replace if
expired
Check fire extinguishers (Annual
weighing
required)
Lubricate winches
Standing rigging clevis pins
Packing gland
Replace any suspicious hoses and hose
clamps
(thru hulls, engine, etc.)
Change engine oil and coolant
Check engine air filter and belts
Test bilge pumps for operability
Check anchor, shackle and windlass
Check propane tank and lines
Check rigging screws up on the mast
Check standing and running rigging
Wax and polish
Richard Benscoter | |||||||||||
What’s In Your Fresh Water Tank?
Counting yacht clubs, there are 35 major
marinas in San Diego Bay and Mission Bay averaging about 350 slips per marina. Allowing
for a small vacancy rate, that represents over 12,000 boats and
yachts. Being conservative and estimating that the average
capacity of their fresh water tanks is 45 gallons, that
represents a total capacity of over a half million gallons of
potable water if those tanks are full. Considering Homeland
Security issues, the possibility of “the big one”,
and your own disaster preparedness, keeping your fresh water
tanks treated and topped off could mean a great deal in case of
an emergency.
Editor’s Note: If you’d like
to have Homeland Security’s emergency supply kit
containing a complete list of recommended emergency supplies,
please visit www.ready.gov.
How High Is Too High?
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On a clear day, the light could be seen
by ships at sea over 30 miles away, however, since San Diego
lies most of the time under a marine layer, the light was so
high that it often shone into or on top of the marine layer
instead of underneath it, and so it was virtually useless to
vessels at sea for most of the year.
That’s why the lighthouse was
abandoned in 1891 in favor of the lower one down at the Point
Loma Coast Guard Facility. Although at only 88 feet above sea
level, and a lower visibility range of 17 miles, the new light
was visible in a much broader span of weather conditions.
Do You Know The Real Story Behind Spanish
Landing?
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Although Cabrillo claimed the area as the
property of Spain under the right of discovery in the
1500’s, nothing much happened in this area of California
for a long time, and up until the late 1760s, Spain didn't seem
to have much interest in aggressively colonizing California.
But then came the Russians. King Carlos
III caught wind of the fact that Russian fur traders had been
expanding their hunting grounds and had gotten as far south as
the area we now call San Francisco. This just would not do, so
His Majesty sent word to his representatives in New Spain
(Mexico) to pack their bags and head north. Five expeditions,
three by sea and two by land, set out from La Paz for Monterey
by way of San Diego. In charge of the military side of things
was Gaspar de Portola, the first Governor of California. The
religious leader of the expedition was Father Junipero Sierra.
The expedition was a disaster. One ship
got lost at sea and most of the crew of the other two ships
were decimated by scurvy. The ground expeditions ran out of
supplies and had to live off the land, and almost half of their
original members died or deserted before reaching San Diego.
Spanish Landing is dedicated to the
memory of these explorers who made the first serious attempt of
Spain to colonize California.
Clif Oliver | |||||||||||
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