Quickstep192 91 Posted January 4 Share Posted January 4 We got about 6” of heavy wet snow today. Thanks to snow drifts in various locations on the boat, in places, the snow was over a foot deep. Concerned that it might be too much weight for the lift, I shoveled the snow off with a small plastic shovel. I’m sure boats that were in the water were riding really low today. It makes me wonder if having a heater in the boat could have warmed the boat enough to have prevented the snow from accumulating. Does anyone have other ideas? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
See Level 1,171 Posted January 4 Share Posted January 4 No, you can't put enough heat on to melt the snow, at least on a 30 amp circuit. We just spent a week of snow and cold in Seattle. Even the liveaboards had snow on their decks. The only cure is move south. Or covered moorage (kind of a bitch to find for most sailboats) 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Boathavn 192 Posted January 4 Share Posted January 4 Seattle/Elliott Bay just coming out of a rare 20 degree cold snap & 6+ inches of snow... 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sail4beer 3,411 Posted January 4 Share Posted January 4 Hmmm, electric went out around 10 am and overnighting in a house. Shoveled off about 3” myself if Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Leeroy Jenkins 475 Posted January 4 Share Posted January 4 A few days ago.... No after pic. 20 minutes with a dust pan sorted it out, including the finger. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ctutmark 285 Posted January 4 Share Posted January 4 I would agree with above. I had a couple of boat that I checked on here in Seattle during our week of cold. The one with two round air warmers and a de-hu had some snow but nothing too bad was about 38F inside. The one with heaters running had some serious ice on deck, it was 56F inside. Had to break icicles off fenders and out of scuppers on the warm boat. Warm boat was seriously treacherous on deck, cold boats could be walked around on. 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
silent bob 1,256 Posted January 4 Share Posted January 4 2 hours ago, Quickstep192 said: We got about 6” of heavy wet snow today. Thanks to snow drifts in various locations on the boat, in places, the snow was over a foot deep. Concerned that it might be too much weight for the lift, I shoveled the snow off with a small plastic shovel. I’m sure boats that were in the water were riding really low today. It makes me wonder if having a heater in the boat could have warmed the boat enough to have prevented the snow from accumulating. Does anyone have other ideas? Move someplace warmer?! 4 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Boathavn 192 Posted January 4 Share Posted January 4 Courtesy of richmond-news.com Less than a hundred miles north of SEA-town: Extreme cold causing boats to sink into the Fraser in Richmond At least two have gone under and a third was saved, according to the Steveston Harbour Authority Maria Rantanen & Alan Campbell Dec 29, 2021 3:24 PM . Richmond News reader Allisa Ritchie noticed this small boat was floating at a marina on Tuesday and sunk by WednesdayAllisa Ritchie photo It’s so cold on the Fraser River in Richmond right now that it’s creating chunks of ice and it's sinking boats. Yes, you read that right, it’s causing small boats to take on water while moored and sending them below. The Steveston Harbour Authority (SHA) told the Richmond News on Wednesday that it’s asking boat owners to check their vessels several times a day as two have sunk in the past week, apparently due to the frigid temperatures. A third vessel, said SHA, was saved from sinking. It’s thought that pipes bursting on the boats due to the weather is causing their hulls to crack and take on water. Local residents reported temperatures of -13 overnight Tuesday into Wednesday and the SHA is urging boat owners to keep the heat switched on in their vessels. "Like a house you have to maintain... you have to take care of your boat," said Jaime Goosto, SHA general manager. Boat owners should be especially vigilant when the weather is poor, either during heavy rain or snow - which can add a lot of weight to the vessel - or when it's windy. Steveston resident Allisa Ritchie said she spotted the small boat in the picture floating on Tuesday at the marina between Trites and No. 2 roads on the south dyke. By today, she said, it was under the water. Maintenance of boats - and raising them if they sink - is the responsibility of boat owners, the SHA added. The extreme cold weather is expected to continue for the next week with snow forecast for Wednesday evening. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Boathavn 192 Posted January 4 Share Posted January 4 Post Script: Luckily the jug the owner uses to pee in was saved... 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Amati 1,847 Posted January 5 Share Posted January 5 San Juan island enjoyed the Frazier River follies, but the snow was powder, and there was a lot of wind, so not a lot to do. Ice off of English Camp. Budd inlet used to get ice in the 60’s. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bgytr 503 Posted January 5 Share Posted January 5 On 1/3/2022 at 8:05 PM, Quickstep192 said: We got about 6” of heavy wet snow today. Thanks to snow drifts in various locations on the boat, in places, the snow was over a foot deep. Concerned that it might be too much weight for the lift, I shoveled the snow off with a small plastic shovel. I’m sure boats that were in the water were riding really low today. It makes me wonder if having a heater in the boat could have warmed the boat enough to have prevented the snow from accumulating. Does anyone have other ideas? If your deck has a core, then a heater in the boat definitely won't help, too much built in insulation. Even if it doesn't have a core it probably wouldn't help much, in fact it could make it worse by causing a small layer of melting at the deck which could freeze into ice under snowfall. That would suck because ice forming in small cracks or gaps in deck hardware such as padeyes or tracks at the fasteners would expand when freezing, opening up the cracks, potentially causing significant problems. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Somebody Else 889 Posted January 5 Share Posted January 5 On 1/3/2022 at 5:05 PM, Quickstep192 said: Anybody else shovel snow off your boat today (in Annapolis Anacortes) I paid someone to shovel snow off my boat the other day. Does that count? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Steam Flyer 8,381 Posted January 5 Share Posted January 5 15 minutes ago, Somebody Else said: On 1/3/2022 at 8:05 PM, Quickstep192 said: Anybody else shovel snow off your boat today (in Annapolis Anacortes) I paid someone to shovel snow off my boat the other day. Does that count? That depends. How much shit on deck did they break, using an actual shovel? I had the not-wonderful experience of shoveling snow off a Navy destroyer's deck, and the chief bosun's mate was not happy with the result of 20 don't-give-a-fuck squids tearing into his deck and all it's fittings... much more robust than the average racer-cruiser... with shovels. He was in a position to make his unhappiness known. Another person who was even more unhappy was the rating in charge of the yard tug alongside, perhaps 45~50 ft of clunky steel boat wrapped around an engine and firefighting gear, which we shoveled the snow onto. However, he was not in a position to do anything other than complain loudly to people who gave less of a fuck than us. That was ~ 40 years ago so I feel safe telling the story now. If any SA'ers are the poor bastards at BIW who had to flounder thru icy slush to recover that yard tug, well... I'm sorry, I promise to never do it again. - DSK 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ropetrick 197 Posted January 5 Share Posted January 5 An old fashioned corn broom is a great snow removal tool for a small area like a sailboat. Unless it is that heavy wet slushy shit, than all bets are off. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kent_island_sailor 5,280 Posted January 6 Share Posted January 6 I have an assistant: 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Cal20sailor 3,480 Posted January 6 Share Posted January 6 20 minutes ago, kent_island_sailor said: I have an assistant: Beautiful(F) or handsome(M). Probably the best day they can remember! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kent_island_sailor 5,280 Posted January 6 Share Posted January 6 32 minutes ago, Cal20sailor said: Beautiful(F) or handsome(M). Probably the best day they can remember! Yup - Husky fun day! They are sisters. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
130lights 336 Posted January 7 Share Posted January 7 13 hours ago, kent_island_sailor said: Yup - Husky fun day! They are sisters. Love dogs romping in the snow…pure joy! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ride2live 57 Posted January 8 Share Posted January 8 6" to 1', I wouldn't worry too much. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
See Level 1,171 Posted January 8 Share Posted January 8 Fuck dude, I think they call that widow maker level conditions. Be careful. Is that in the water? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Quickstep192 91 Posted January 8 Author Share Posted January 8 I have a kid's snow shovel. It's small enough to get into tight spots and it's polypropylene so it won't scratch. It take a lot of scoops though. Today, the snow was the fluffy kind so I used a leaf blower. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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