Mallie Lennon / Eufaula, OK
Rev. Jan 21, 2001
Boat history
By Mallie Lennon
We bought our House boat in 1992, and have maintained and up graded ever
since. It is a 1975 model, 36foot Drifer-Curise by PaceMaker.
It is powered by a Single 318 Chrysler, with a Dana outdrive, and
a fiberglass hull. The layout is unique in that it has a large upper
deck that can be accessed by a door and steps directly behind the wheel.
I don’t have an Auto pilot, but I can usually set a course, and then go
to the deck with out being too far from the controls. The first year
we redid the engine covers. It was originally designed with weep
hole into the bilge. This had caused the wood around it to rot and make
it leak very bad. We used “deck board” material which is marine plywood,
faced both sides with fiberglass coating, to make a new cover.
I made a drain trough around the edge of the new cover, coupled
with drains to the outside. This made it possible to keep the bilge dry,
eliminating all sorts of mildew problems inside.
In 93 we put in a new Refrigerator. It had an under counter original
that was too small and did not cool very well. We had added a dorm type
to the top deck, but it did not work very well in the sun. We chose a 10CF
double door that did not have a fan in it or defrost. It was Avanti brand
sold by our locale coast to coast. I think GE markets the some unit now.
We had to sacrifice some cabinet space above, and it was about ½
inch wider than the space available. I know that does not sound like much,
but it would not go in with out some change. The right side was against
the hall partition, with a hall already too small, so the options quickly
narrowed to cutting the partition between the space and the closet on the
left side. One of the AC evaporators is mounted above the ref space, so
I cut the partition just below, and nudged it over 1/2 inch. The
space was set up for a LP refrigerator, so there was a vent at the bottom,
and a chase out the top for hot air to escape. I Installed a small Computer
fan to blow on the heated compressor and increase efficiency.
It has a cooling coil in the freezer and the fresh food section. It works
good and requires very little elect. The Separate compartments keeps food
smells from getting in the freezer as with a regular ref. The down side
is the temp is controlled from the refrigerator side, and when the cabin
is not heated in the winter, the freezer will not maintain freezing. Since
we usually turn every thing off in the late fall it works ok. We added
a small inverter to run the ref when we don’t want the generator. It is
a heart 1000, and is automatic switching, and has a built in 200A charger,
that maintains our 8D house battery. We also added a 1500 converter
to power microwave, coffee pot, and anything else we might need. It is
nice to be able to make coffee early in the morning with out the sound
of a generator. By turning the chargers off, and using the inverters,
we can add 2.5k to our generator power for short period. We
have since replaced the ref on the deck with an AC/DC that works wonderfully.
It switches to dc if there is no ac present, so both are automatic. The
8D battery will provide house power over night, about 10 hours. We also
have the TV, Stereo, various light, and circulation fans on the inverter
circuit. In 93 we replaced the walk on the port side that was weak, with
the same deck board. While we had it off we designed a fuel tank that would
fit into the space below, between the cabin and the outside. It turned
out long and wedge shaped and held 84 gallons. We also installed a gage,
which the original 54 gallon didn’t have. We have a switch that will allow
the engine to run on either tank, but the generator is confined to the
54 gallon. Since stainless was over $600, we used steel and coated it inside
for a cost of $150. In 94 we redid the other walk on the starboard side.
Our generator is a gasoline 6.5K Onan, raw water-cooled. We over hauled
it last year, with new rings and a valve job. It was a 25 years old and
at least 6k hours. The generator will use about ¾ gal per hour,
and is always loaded with at least one AC.
There are two ACs which are Cruise Aire, water cooled. A single
water pump supplies lake water to cool the freon on both units mounted
in the engine room. The evaporators are mounted in the front and back,
and connected by two cooper lines, as in a house unit. The big advantage
besides being very efficient is no fan noise on the upper deck as with
a roof unit. The only disadvantage is the constant stream of water
shooting out the side, causing folks to ask if we have a big leak LOL.
We bought our first water scooter from the Marina in 95, a slightly used
rental Yamaha wave runner. We liked it so well we bought a new Wave Venture
1100 in Feb 96. We wanted a way to lift them up out of the water when not
I use, and not have to load on a trailer. I designed and built a double
lift to mount on the walk way to the boat. I used a boat lift tank, and
cut it in two. The 16 foot tank had a baffle in the middle, which I used
for an extra end, and robber one more from another damaged tank.
We added a swim platform in 97, with an attachment to pull the two
scooters, and a ladder. The Yamaha has a single hole in the front for attachment.
There is a rubber receiver made to secure the scooter to a trailer.
It works good mounted to the swim platform. I had planed an arm of ½”
conduit that would hold the unit straight when backing, but it did not
work, and broke the first time I used it. Ski ropes the right length,
tied to the grip handles near the seat, at a small angle on each side of
the scooter did the trick. It simply keeps the unit from straying too far,
but allows sufficient movement for the turbulence of the water. It is nice
to be able to take the scooter out in the evening without having to worry
about dragging them back unsecured in the middle of the night. Since
we try to never pull the scooters up on the sand , it is also a very secure
place to leave them while moored over night on the beach.
The ladder on the swim platform make easy entry exit into the water,
and out, especially in the middle of the lake.
Mallie Lennon / Eufaula, OK
MC-8
Back to Main Page
Rev Jan. 21, 2001
