Synergy - about the boat

What does Synergy mean?

There are a few definitions but the gist of them all is that "together you can accomplish more than you can alone". That pretty much sums up how Kathy and I view life. Together we are going to get more out of it that we could have by ourselves.  With common goals and interests, and some motivation, anything is possible.

One of our favorite quotes:

Years from now
you will be more disappointed
by the things you did NOT do…
than by the ones you DID do.

So - throw off the bow lines!
Sail away from the safe harbor.
Catch the tradewinds in your sails.

Explore!
Dream!
Discover!

~ Mark Twain

And one more that we like:

If you don't do it this year,
You will be one year old when you do it next year.

~ Warren Miller (ski film producer)

Now onto the boat itself:

The boat is a 1986 Bayliner 4550 Pilothouse. It is 45' long, but including bow pulpit and swimstep it is almost 52' long. The beam (or width) is 14'10". The draft (or depth in the water) is 3'. Total weight is around 31,000 pounds.  The weight can vary quite a bit depending on fuel, water, supplies, and beer  :-)

Propulsion power is provided by two 220hp turbocharged diesel engines made by Hino Heavy Industries of Japan. Hino is the diesel engine manufacturer for Toyota. World-wide, Toyota diesels are considered one of the most reliable engines in existence. We certainly hope that ours live up to this reputation. The transmissions have a 2:1 ratio and are made by TwinDisc. These are rugged transmissions that should outlast the rest of the boat.  But, just in case, I have a spare unit in my garage at home.

We have a 12.5KW Westerbeke diesel generator. It provides 120 volt AC power like you have in your house when we have a big demand like cooking or electric heat. Otherwise, 120 volt AC power is supplied by a 2500 watt Heart Interface inverter that converts 12 volt DC power to 120 volt AC power. We have 4 HUGE deep cycle industrial-grade batteries to draw 12 volt power from. They are Interstate UL16HC batteries. There is a separate battery for starting the main engines as well as a separate battery for starting the generator battery.

We primarily heat the boat with a Webasto diesel hydronic heating system. It's pretty complex, but basically there is a diesel boiler that heats water which is then circulated through water lines that run throughout the boat. In each room there is a heat exchanger unit that pulls heat out of the water and blows it as hot air into the room. This is exactly what your car does for heat; it turns the hot water from the engine into hot air that blows into the passenger compartment. In our boat there are 4 different "zones" each with it’s own thermostat. There is no way we could go boating year-round without the diesel furnace. During winter we have sea-water temps in the mid-40's and overnight air temps near or below freezing. Inside our boat though it's a toasty 68-70 despite the cold environment outside.

The boat has two 250 gallon fuel tanks, for a total of 500 gallons of diesel. Yes, it is painful to visit the fuel docks!

We have 190 gallons of fresh water on board for drinking, sinks, showers, the toilets, and even a washdown hose to clean off dirty feet when returning from shore. 190 gallons is enough to keep us going for about two weeks, perhaps 3 if we are VERY conservative.

There are two heads (bathrooms) each with a toilet. Both toilets are VacuFlush units (similar to a vacuum-style toilet on an airplane) that use very little water per flush and are very reliable (boat toilets are quite troublesome for many reasons). The sewage holding tank is 45 gallons which lasts the four of us about a week before we have to empty the holding tank.

In the galley we have a microwave, a trash compactor, an oven, an electric cooktop, and a decent sized refrigerator/freezer.  The trash compactor is great on a boat, as garbage becomes an issue when you have to carry it with you wherever you go.

The boat has three staterooms (bedrooms), with one of them featuring two bunk beds. The kids love their bunks.

Our main living area is called the Salon and it is quite large. This is where we eat most meal, play games, read, do crafts with the kids, etc.  Most driving/piloting is done from the pilothouse. It has a great view forward and to the sides, but not much out the back. Steve installed a rear facing camera so he can monitor the action behind us all the time without having to leave the helm.

The flybridge up top has another steering station (the upper helm). We have seating for about 6 people up there. We store two kayaks, a small propane BBQ, and our big dinghy on the flybridge. It is a great place to go when the weather is nice.