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Managing the Maintenance Part II

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This is Part II of our maintenance list while on the hard at the Norsand Boatyard.  Please see “Managing the Maintenance Part I” for our work on our cross beam, sail drives, rudder arm, and props.

Here is a list of the items we worked on that are mentioned in this blog post:

  • New Scuppers
  • Paint Bow Peak Lockers (inside storage area)
  • Polishing Stainless Counter Tops (Bench)
  • Snap Shackles for Main Sheets
  • Cleaning the Interior Cushions
  • Miscellaneous Maintenance
    • Sail and Canvas Repair
    • Propspeed (Saildrives & Props)
    • Finsulate around Rudder posts
    • Window/Hatch removal of velcro
    • Teak Cleaning
    • Relabeling the clutches

Making New Scuppers

We have 17 scuppers (drains) at the bottom of the bridge deck. At some point, one of them fell off and we have not been able to find any replacements.  So, Matt decided to make his own.  

We purchased PVC white (1220mm x 300mm x3mm) plastic from Cambrian Plastics ($37USD).

Matt started by making a mold out of Plaster of Paris.  He made end plates to match the shape of the scupper and used scrap formica around the end plates.

Matt heated a cut piece of the PVC plastic in the oven at 200 degrees for 15-20 minutes.  He then took the warm piece, wrapped it around his mold, clamped it, and let it cool for 20-30 minutes.

We used a band saw or jig saw to cut out the shape, then sanded, drilled the holes, and created our new scuppers.

After we made our surplus, a friend told us about Tenob which makes smaller scuppers.

Repaint Bow Peak Lockers

The forward bow peak lockers are used for storing our spare sails, bean bags, passerelle, tons of fenders, SUP, folding chairs, and more.  

The interior paint of these two storage areas has been chipping off for years. 

It is only a cosmetic issue but it is one that has been bothering me for awhile.

The Long Process

Once the bow peak was empty, I used a metal scraper to remove all of the big flaky bits.  This process was a loud, dirty job.

I got out the power sander with attached vacuum to smooth out the walls, ceiling, floor and “V-berth.” 

It is probably 10-15 degrees hotter inside the hole.  Wearing a full suit, goggles and mask makes it seem even worse.

Next, I wiped down everything with soap and water twice. 

Then we pressure washed the entire bow peak with warm water and simple green and let it dry over night.

Matt mixed the two-part paint, Jotun Jotamasic 90 (3 parts A to 1 part B) and brought it to me.

It is specially designed for areas where optimum surface preparation is not possible or required and provides long-lasting protection in environments with high corrosivity.

The paint has a pot life of 2 hours so I had to work fast and in small increments. I started with the hardest to reach part first, the “V berth.”  It is super difficult to reach and requires full body contortion. 

But 4-hours later the entire bow locker was done.

The next day I painted a second coat and we let it out-gas for 7 days. 

Talk about a world of difference in appearance.

I also repeated the entire process on the port bow peak which was in a lot worse condition but now looks beautiful.

Stainless Countertop Polish

We love our stainless counter tops!  It does take a little more maintenance than standard counter tops but they look so beautiful!

Our countertops got marked up over the last 4 years, despite our careful management. We are not sure what caused these marks but it could be citrus, oil, salt, bleach, hard water).

We spent 4 hours masking and protecting the entire salon.  

An easy polish by Absolute Stainless and they look brand new.

We clean it twice a week with two products. 

For standard cleaning we use Weiman Stainless Steel Wipes (Amazon).  The cost ranges between $12-20 per container.

For corrosion or harder areas we use “Chemico Cleaning Paste” cleansing paste $7 (4 USD).  This paste was recommended by Absolute Stainless (the company who installed our counter tops).  

Snap Shackles

Our main sheets control our large main sail and are under a lot of pressure during a sail.  We have 16m double braid tied to a Harken Black Magic Air Becket block.  Catana custom made this block to be connected to a Wichard HR Snap Shackle (80mm) at $150USD x 2.

Our snap shackles were original to the boat and had some wear on the center clip which causes a weak point.  We had RH Precision fabricate new stainless steel pins that connected the snap shackle to the block.

More Cleaning

Cushion Cleaning: The inside of the boat got very dusty and dirty with all of the work in the yard.  So, I decided it was important to clean our interior upholstery.  We have Macrosuede fabric (color Ash) on the salon settee and the cabin benches. 

We hired JAE Cleaning Services in Whangarei to clean them for us. It was a bit of a chore getting the cushions to them, but worth it to use their “drying room.”

Of course it was raining on the day we had to transport the cushions. We wrapped each cushion in plastic to prevent it from getting soaked.

It was like playing a game of Tetris trying to fit the cushions into the car in one load.

Miscellaneous Maintenance:

Canvas:  We brought Kim (Masterpieces in Canvas) to repair and update a few pieces for us:

  • Kim made 3 new Sauleda window shades
  • Modified 2 helm back rests to accommodate the new arch
  • Made a new back rest cover for our new cockpit back rest.
  • Repaired the 2 side rain shades (put support around each snap and added velcro to hold corner when rolling up
  • Made covers for both of our bow princess seats to protect our new varnish
  • Repaired the aft shade had a small tear near the baton
  • Fixed a few small tears on the dinghy chaps
  • Replaced the top section of the starboard helm seat that got stained
  • Made 2 new helm covers to accommodate our new helm extensions and pods
  • Made a new cover for the cockpit back rest

Genoa: Roger from North Sails repaired our genoa which had a small tear near the bolt rope.  He also made a backup “Sweetie” patch for our dinghy.

Bottoms Up”

We burnished our Coppercoat which activates the copper.  We also added vinyl (from Finsulate) around our rudder posts where we once had antifoul bottom paint (which did not last).

Norsand applied Propspeed to our saildrives and props.  Matt greased the prop gears and changed all the zincs.

We added “Finsulate” a type of vinyl to the area around the rudder post.  Coppercoat can not be applied near our aluminum rudder post so added a vinyl.  

Good comparison between the vinyl around the saildrive and the rudderpost.

Each of these steps are to help prevent growth on the bottom of the boat.

Rudders

The rudders are all cleaned up and have a new bearings so it was time to install them.  The install went smoothly and took all of 10 minutes to do both rudders.

Teak Cleaning

The teak on the sugar scoops and in the cockpit were absolutely filthy.  We had dozens of workers coming and going, fluids spilled, and polish over-sprayed on them

I gave them a good scrub with teak cleaner.  I would prefer to oil or stain them but Matt likes them raw.  Perhaps next time I clean them I will out some oil on them.

Clutch Labels

We have close to 20 clutches on the boat.  Most of the clutches have labels dating back to 2001.  These labels were in both English and French and were very hard to read.

Of course, we know what the clutches do without the labels.  However, it is always a good idea to have nice, readable labels for others that might be assisting on the boat.

So, on a rainy day I took it upon myself to scrape the old labels off and put new labels on.

Lastly we washed and polished of the boat which made her all shiny and pretty.

Be sure to read about our brand new solar arch – it is super sexy!

Our blog posts run 8-10 weeks behind actual live events.

Be sure to read Managing the Maintenance Part I blog post.

We were in the Norsand boat yard working on repairs and maintenance items from November 2025 to January 2026.

Tainted Fresh Water Tank

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We make another attempt to fix the port fresh water tank.  Our boat has (2) 400 liter fresh water tanks (one on port and one on starboard).  Catana built the painted fiberglass water tanks into the boat back in 2001. 

A few years ago we repainted our built in fresh water tank on the port side. If you recall.  See this blog post “Disgusting Water Tank” we scraped clean and repainted the tank.  Unfortunately, the tank continued to have a slight odor and odd taste despite us following the rigorous potable water paint data sheet. 

We are not sure if it was the paint that did not cure properly or if it was the glue that did not get covered by the paint. 

But either way, something had to be done.

It was time to try again. 

Creating a Larger Access Point

Last time we created a new access point in the center of the tank.  However, we cut it too small which made it very difficult to access the far corners of the tank.

So, this time, we decided to cut a much bigger access point. 

Premik, pictured below, had the honor of cutting the hole, then fiber glassing the edges to hold the new lid. 

It took him about a week to cut the hole, build the edges, and fiberglass them into place. 

Making a New Lid

We took our measurements of the lid and flange to Absolute Stainless. 

They took our precise measurements and instructions and one week later provided us with (2) beautiful lids and flanges.

We ordered our gasket material from Shuk Engineering (SQM 3mm Thick Blue EPDM Rubber Sheet – Potable Water AS/NZ 4020 – 1200mm Wide x 600mm). 

It took about a week to receive the material.

Matt cut the gasket material to match the lid, ordered the screws, and fitted it all together. 

The lid screwed into the flange which was glued and screwed into the top of the water tank.

Preparing the Tank

We decided to try a new paint and went with Jotun Tankguard 412, which is a two-component solvent free tank lining designed for potable water. 

This paint will stick to the International Interline 850 paint that we put on a few years ago. 

However, we do have to scratch up the surface to make it adhere better.  It took about 1.5 days to scratch up all the surfaces in the tank (sides, top, bottom, baffles).  Then the yard did a wax/grease wash to remove all particles prior to painting.

The next big project was completely covering our entire port hallway with plastic lining and pvc. 

Our painter, Damian started to paint the tank by hand and within 30 minutes decided it would be much easier to use the spray gun. 

It took way longer to cover and protect the hallway than it did to paint the tank.  But we really appreciated his efforts to protect our home.

It took about 8 hours spread over 3 days to spray paint the tank.

Now we had to maintain a 23c (74F) temperature while it out-gassed for a week. We ran a dehumidifier (which emits heat) to ensure the hallway had low humidity and stayed warm.  

Preparing for Fresh Water

The tank has to be actively flushed with hot water (100F) and an alkaline cleaner.  I had no idea what an alkaline cleaner was so I had to research what to use for portable water.

We found Five Star PBW (Powdered Brewery Wash) at UBrew4U.  Five Star specifically made PBW for breweries and suitable cleaners for potable water tanks.

We bought (8) of the 1lb tubs which cost about $18USD ($35NZD) each.  We used 4 tubs for each tank 

The process was easy, albeit cumbersome. We carried a 2 gallon bucket to the Norsand Boatyards kitchen and filled it with very hot water. 

We took turns carrying the bucket back to the boat, adding 2.5 tablespoons of PBW, and pouring it into the tank.  Matt and I repeated this process 12+ times. 

Matt used the hose to fill the rest of the tank to the lid.

Matt used our emergency bilge pump to agitate the water and create movement for 1 hour. 

We drained and dried the tank.   Next, we flushed the tank through the pipes and flushed the water tank one more time.  Matt was ready to put it all back together.

The hoses and lines were reattached, the lids all screwed in, the water gauge installed and a new “nipple” or elbow was installed.  Matt then repainted the entire top of the tank to finish off this project.

The Conclusion

We filled the tank with high hopes, fingers crossed and prayers in our hearts. 

Matt and I were pleased with the outcome.  The water tasted and smelled like …. water.  

Repeat the entire process 

Now that we know what works, we repeated the entire process on the starboard water tank. 

We were much better prepared. 

We already had the stainless lid and flange so cutting the new access hole was much easier. 

Since Premik did the port side he was more efficient with starboard.  The fiberglass flange was installed in 2 days.

The next step was the difficult process of removing the old paint.  For the first tank it took a laborer one full week to remove the paint.

Matt borrowed an air needle scaler for the 2nd tank which made the removal process so much easier. 

He started with the old bubbled and flaky paint (top left), then used the gun to remove the paint (top right).  

It took Matt 2 full 8-hour days with the air needle and various scrapers to get it all removed (bottom photos).

We brought Premik in to fill some small cracks. 

Then a laborer came in to sand and prep the surface for paint. 

Damian, the lead painter had the lucky role of spray painting the tank. 

We let it off-gas for a week, cleaned it with PBW, flushed it twice, and had fresh water again!

Our rockstar “glasser” 

The feature image is Premik our premier fiberglass expert provided by Norsand boatyard.

This is Premik contorting his body to fiberglass a potential crack.  He was upside down, backwards, and vertical with Matt holding his legs.

We hike to two different waterfalls and Kauri trees in the AH Reed Memorial Park.  Check out the blog post.

Our blog posts run 8-10 weeks behind actual live events.  We worked on the port water tank in Nov-Dec 2025.

Rudder Rebuild: The Shaft Part I

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As you might recall, we lost a rudder while at sea crossing from Minerva Reef to Tonga – it was an utter rudder disaster.  We managed ok for over 1,000nm with just one rudder before we were able to get our hands on a temproary rudder which we then had custom fit to our boat.

But it is time to replace both rudders now that we are in New Zealand and the boat is hauled out.  We researched many different options including having Jefa Rudders custom design them from the UK; a boat builder in Auckland, NZ;  Foss Boatbuilders in Los Angeles; and considered having Norsand Boatyard do the work. There were pros and cons with each company, so we decided to hire local professionals that we had first hand knowledge of their expertise and skills.  They had already worked on our boat and had years of glassing experience.

The Rudder Shaft

The first thing we have to do is design and build the rudder shafts (or posts).  Technically, both of our rudder shafts are “in tact” but the tines or fingers on the port shaft are damaged.  At the top of the shaft you will see a ring and one tine sticking out.  This is the front of tine and there is supposed to be a back.  The middle tine is broken half way in the front and has no back portion and the bottom tine is completely gone.

Damaged Rudder Shaft with broken tines

Damaged Rudder Shaft with broken tines

We engaged our friend Rob at RH Precision while we were still in Tonga.  We love Rob!  He has done several stainless projects for us and is just a gem to work with!  He has all of the fun tools and machines for welding stainless and aluminum.  Matt finds the dimensions and all of the measurements to our existing rudder shafts (thanx to the Catana Mailing Group and several other Catana owners who shared their specifications).  

We triple check all of the measurements with our existing rudder shafts (both the damaged one and the one that is still in tact).  And then we double check them again.  Matt specifically orders 6082 aluminum (from High Grade Metals in NZ) which is stronger than our original lighter aluminum.  Rob works his magic and expertly replicates our rudder shafts as per the diagram.

Bigger is Better

Rob then drills the holes. There are 4 holes near the top which is how we connect the post to the boat and 4 holes for the tines.  We decided to go with 16mm tines which are bigger and stronger than our current 14mm tines.

I assumed Rob would be able to do the tines as well, but I was wrong.  We had to get the rods for the tines…hmmm.  Rob sends us to Vulcan Ullrich Aluminium in Whangarei where we are able to purchase a 5m of 16mm rod.  We have them cut it into (8) 280mm pieces and we take the almost 4m of extra rod back to Rob as a gift.

The Final Steps

Rob pounds the 8 pieces into each hole for us and then we take it to Absolute Stainless to tack them in place so they wont move (tack weld).  Yep, this is a process.  It doesn’t take long to tack weld them as we were able to pick them up the next morning.  The next step is to have the rudder shafts anodized.  So, we drive them to Auckland (2.5hrs each way) to Alert Anodising where they will put 25 micron hard black to protect them.  We had wanted marine grade but evidently there was a mix up. Rob assured us it would be fine and that this was still very good.

10 days later we make the drive back to Auckland to pick up our newly anodized rudder posts.  

The shafts look so sexy!  I am not sure why I think they look sexy with the anodizing, but I do!  We laid the new shaft next to the old shaft and what a difference.  The new shafts are about 27cm longer and weigh almost 1 kilo more than the older shafts.  Compare the damaged shaft to the new one on the right photo.

Now we are ready for the blades.  Stay tuned for part II of the Rudder Rebuild.

Our blog posts run 10-12 weeks behind actual live events.  This blog post occured during November 2023.