4 ms·

This is great. I will be on a mooring for the first time this year and it is very tempting to build something like this! But my boat will be close enough where

This is great. I will be on a mooring for the first time this year and it is very tempting to build something like this! But my boat will be close enough where I could almost look out my window to check on it. :)

samstave 5y ago
Still worth the attempt if youre going to be mooring anyway - just for fun.
OldHand2018 5y ago
Hey, if your boat is that close to you, skip the WiFi and send the daily report over marine VHF. In fact, if you decouple the delivery method from the report generation, you can have have it running even while under sail and do periodic data collection and logging. If you get a Marine SSB radio, you could even collect the data while crossing an ocean!
- yardie 5y ago
  How would you send a report over VHF? From what I understand the only digital bands are DSC and AIS and that is broadcast only, anyone can listen in. SSB is not a set and forget communication. It's great for long distance communications but the operator has to be seriously fairly knowledgeable on how to make HF work. It's a 100W radio that can do some damage if used incorrectly.
  - daniellarusso 5y ago
    text to speech?
- odonnellryan 5y ago
  Ha, neat idea - but 4g is probably a lot easier!
Johnny555 5y ago
But will you be looking if the drain plug comes out at 2am and suddenly the only thing keeping the boat afloat is the bilge pump and the battery? Still seems like a good idea to have monitoring even if you can see the boat.
- jessaustin 5y ago
  Can a drain plug "come out" without human intervention? If someone wants to sink my boat, they might want to trash the monitor first...
  - Johnny555 5y ago
    I'm not a boat person, so I have no first hand experience other than seeing a picture from a friend whose boat was half under water because the drain plug had corroded away. He blamed it on galvanic corrosion from the boat being plugged into shore power with depleted anodes. A quick google search shows that corroded drain plugs do happen from time to time. And the drain plug is just one of the through-hull fittings that can leak. Came across this quote: To quote BoatUS Insurance, “for every one boat that sinks underway, four sink at the dock” and “failed thru-hull fittings account for 50% of all sunken boats at the dock.
    - jessaustin 5y ago
      I never did understand why some sailboats have so many holes in the hull. This one for a drain, this one for an old-fashioned "paddle wheel" speedometer, this one for "inspection", good grief. A single drain hole through the transom makes sense for a planing hull that is regularly trailered or lifted, but not for anything with a massive lead keel. Before setting up a complicated monitoring system, boat owners should buy some plastic plugs for $10 per. That should really be a requirement on insurance contracts...
      - odonnellryan 5y ago
        Totally. Many boats have too many thruhulls. I have: - Galley sink drain - Galley sink raw water in - 3x transducers (came with boat, kept them where they are, definitely a liability) - Water intake Too many for my liking. I think I could get rid of the speedo and one transducer and live a little more comfortably... maybe next year.

samstave 5y ago

Still worth the attempt if youre going to be mooring anyway - just for fun.

OldHand2018 5y ago

Hey, if your boat is that close to you, skip the WiFi and send the daily report over marine VHF. In fact, if you decouple the delivery method from the report generation, you can have have it running even while under sail and do periodic data collection and logging. If you get a Marine SSB radio, you could even collect the data while crossing an ocean!

yardie 5y ago
How would you send a report over VHF? From what I understand the only digital bands are DSC and AIS and that is broadcast only, anyone can listen in. SSB is not a set and forget communication. It's great for long distance communications but the operator has to be seriously fairly knowledgeable on how to make HF work. It's a 100W radio that can do some damage if used incorrectly.
- daniellarusso 5y ago
  text to speech?
odonnellryan 5y ago
Ha, neat idea - but 4g is probably a lot easier!

Johnny555 5y ago

But will you be looking if the drain plug comes out at 2am and suddenly the only thing keeping the boat afloat is the bilge pump and the battery? Still seems like a good idea to have monitoring even if you can see the boat.

jessaustin 5y ago
Can a drain plug "come out" without human intervention? If someone wants to sink my boat, they might want to trash the monitor first...
- Johnny555 5y ago
  I'm not a boat person, so I have no first hand experience other than seeing a picture from a friend whose boat was half under water because the drain plug had corroded away. He blamed it on galvanic corrosion from the boat being plugged into shore power with depleted anodes. A quick google search shows that corroded drain plugs do happen from time to time. And the drain plug is just one of the through-hull fittings that can leak. Came across this quote: To quote BoatUS Insurance, “for every one boat that sinks underway, four sink at the dock” and “failed thru-hull fittings account for 50% of all sunken boats at the dock.
  - jessaustin 5y ago
    I never did understand why some sailboats have so many holes in the hull. This one for a drain, this one for an old-fashioned "paddle wheel" speedometer, this one for "inspection", good grief. A single drain hole through the transom makes sense for a planing hull that is regularly trailered or lifted, but not for anything with a massive lead keel. Before setting up a complicated monitoring system, boat owners should buy some plastic plugs for $10 per. That should really be a requirement on insurance contracts...
    - odonnellryan 5y ago
      Totally. Many boats have too many thruhulls. I have: - Galley sink drain - Galley sink raw water in - 3x transducers (came with boat, kept them where they are, definitely a liability) - Water intake Too many for my liking. I think I could get rid of the speedo and one transducer and live a little more comfortably... maybe next year.