Bluewater Gear - Ocean Navigator

14 Jan

New HP Watermaker Introduced

Eric ColbyBluewater Gear, Boat & Gear News, Industry & Company News

HP Watermakers has pulled the sheet off a new model, the HP Genius. The manufacturer says it’s a lighter unit that can be installed more easily than previous models. The company is introducing the new model at the Boot Düsseldorf show in Germany Jan. 18 to 26. “The new HP Genius sets new standards in terms of low eight and ease of use, but it will not be our stand’s only attraction,” Gianni Zucco, co-founder of HP Watermakers, said in a press release. “We will also be displaying the new HP SCA Double 440 watermaker.” That model was introduced at…

19 Dec

Maretron and Raymarine Announce Collaboration

Eric ColbyBluewater Gear, Electronic charting, Industry & Company News, Marine Electronics, Marine Technology

Marine electronics maker Raymarine has partnered with Maretron to integrate the latter’s vessel monitoring systems into the former’s Axiom chartplotter displays. Maretron’s MConnect is a client-server technology that offers access to real-time data across hundreds of data points on a vessel. Integrating MConnect with Raymarine’s Axiom family of multifunction displays lets users monitor and control vessel components from Raymarine’s LightHouse interface. MConnect’s data visualization and customization tools are compatible with Raymarine’s MFDs. They let a user configure personalized interfaces and control vessel systems with ease. By combining MConnect’s graphics editor with Raymarine’s high-definition displays, users can create dashboards that consolidate…

14 Nov

Lifejacket Takes Top Honors in DAME Awards

Eric ColbyBluewater Gear, Ocean Voyaging, Offshore Safety, Offshore Sailing

Marine safety products manufacturer TeamO took the top honors at the 2024 DAME Design Awards for its 150N Hi-Lift Lifejacket & Harness. The announcement was made at the breakfast briefing at the METSTRADE marine trade show Nov. 19 in Amsterdam. The TeamO product won its category, Personal Equipment, and was then named the overall winner by the award program judges. The jury identified a total of eight category winners, nine special mentions and two environmental DAME Design Award winners. What sets apart the 150N Hi-Lift lifejacket is its twisted bladder design. It moves most of the wasted buoyancy above the…

02 Apr

Cruising sabbatical becomes a new lifestyle

Bill MorrisBluewater Gear, Home Page Hero, Ocean Voyager, Offshore Sailing

Corinne Gau-Tchekov and Michel Gau voyage aboard their Alliage 49 aluminum monohull, Ganesh. They left France in 2011 after Michel’s retirement and have been sailing around the world on a six-month-at-sea/six-month-on-land rhythm, leaving Ganesh in various boatyards along the way. Having crossed the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, then cruised for six years in Southeast Asia, they are currently in Malaysia, almost ready to cross the Indian Ocean. Corinne and Michel have been married for 37 years, and they started sailing in 1987, just after the birth of their first daughter, Marina. In 1990, they took a sabbatical year on their…

14 Apr

Story and photos by Craig SmithBluewater Gear

Originally from Scotland, David Irvine has lived and worked in the Netherlands, Dubai and Malaysia before transitioning to working remotely from his boat Ursa, a 1977 Valiant 40. [gtx_gallery] David has been inseparable from the outdoors since a very early age, discovering a love for hiking and mountains in his teens. He has since climbed in many of the great ranges, including the Himalaya, Andes, Rockies and Alaska. A relative newcomer to boating, he completed a number of sailing courses and boating vacations in the Mediterranean before going to Malaysia to experience the Andaman Sea and obtain his RYA Yachtmaster certification.…

14 Apr

Ocean NavigatorBluewater Gear

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14 Apr

Ocean NavigatorBluewater Gear

• Gels are priced slightly higher than AGMs, but both are roughly double the cost of flooded lead acid (FLA) units. • Gels can have as much as double the cycle life of AGMs and usually more than FLAs. • Gels have a flat high performance curve until depleted; AGMs and FLAs lose capacity gradually. • AGMs & Gels are less prone to sulfation than FLAs and are not usually equalized. • Gels do better at higher temperatures, AGMs and FLAs are better at low temperatures. • AGMs have up to five times faster charge rate than FLAs and are also better…

14 Apr

Ocean NavigatorBluewater Gear

If you are full-time cruisers like us, your electrical system, including batteries, is critical to your safety and comfort, so it has to be right. These days, you have multiple options when it comes to constructing your house bank. Some are better than others for a given cruising situation. All should be deep cycle capable, have a lengthy service life, and be part of a well-thought-out electrical system. It’s even better if they require little or no maintenance. And all must be understood and treated well or they will give you continual grief and drain your financial resources unnecessarily. Possibly…

14 Apr

Ocean NavigatorBluewater Gear

New sails can be one of the largest single expenses in the life of a cruising sailboat. As a boat owner, you have myriad sources for new sails, including local sail lofts, online sailmakers, and multi-national companies. You’ll also have to choose the type of sail material, construction technique, shape and size, as well as other design features. Like all things sailing, rarely does one best solution exist for upgrading sails. The following is an interview with three different actively cruising sailboats and their recent experiences with buying new sails. [gtx_gallery] How did you know it was time for new…