Life without Air Conditioning

[wind_magic]

It's June.

It is starting to get hot now.

How do you cope with the heat on your boat ?

[imagine2frolic]

While on the hook a/c was never missed except several nights in 4 years. This includes the Bahamas, South Florida, and the Caribbean. At the dock life may become miserable if it is hot, humid, and not a zephyr of wind.

I use an $80 a/c window unit with a roll of silver tape, and a board of foam insulation board for a total of $100. 2 of these will keep the boat cold, and this is on a 46ft. cat........i2f

[Valiente]

Windscoop and ice cubes and recreational nudity.

[JohnRPollard]

Originally Posted by Valiente

Windscoop and ice cubes and recreational nudity.

Says the Canadian....

[WouldaShoulda]

Proper attire and maintaining air-flow are key!!

[GilStump]

We slap a window unit in the companionway and get a nice tricep workout getting in and out of the boat. We want to go without soon as we leave the convenience of shore power behind. I reckon nudity is best and a lot of fun! Freaks out the conservative types, though. But, heck, that can be fun too.

I have also used a $8 1 gallon garden sprayer on high mist on deck for cooling. That garden sprayer is indispensible, it is also my pressure hot water shower. Just be sure to clip the wand and heat bend it for the more "creative" angles desired.

[T37Chef]

We could not survive the summer months without a Bimini and 12 V Fans.
The wife wants to make a canopy to hang over the boom at anchor or motoring, and when we replaced the headliner this year I added some insulation. The insulation combined with the Nicro Fans keeps the boat much cooler when we're not aboard and the 12V Oscillating fans do well when away from the dock. We even have a fan for the cockpit that plugs into a 12V receptacle Light clothing, going nude just sounds painful, there's just someplace's I don't want a tan/burn

[merc2dogs]

I've always found that shading as much of the boat as possible works well for keeping it from getting oppresivly hot inside. Biminy or canvas over the boom, another bit (triangular) from mast to bow with the front corner fastened at the bow and the base fastened at each side, kept high enough to allow airflow. May not be exactly beautiful, but does lower the temps on the boat enough that you can sit comfortably in the cockpit, or go below without melting.

Ken.

[imagine2frolic]

Originally Posted by merc2dogs

I've always found that shading as much of the boat as possible works well for keeping it from getting oppresivly hot inside. Biminy or canvas over the boom, another bit (triangular) from mast to bow with the front corner fastened at the bow and the base fastened at each side, kept high enough to allow airflow. May not be exactly beautiful, but does lower the temps on the boat enough that you can sit comfortably in the cockpit, or go below without melting.

Ken.

My friend has this cloth you describe on his bow. I imagine if the rain is not blowing sideways it allows the hatch to stay open too.

Shade is mandatory in the tropics. We have shade that lays down on the windows for night privacy, and lifts up during the day for the view.......i2f

[saltydawg]

Get pregnant.

Just kidding. On our old boat which we lived aboard for 6 years and cruised on, we lived without a/c or hot water... and I did my full pregnancy on that boat in the muggy Chesapeake Bay. I joke that I was so flush with pregnancy hormones I didn 't notice the heat.

We have 2 air conditioning units dockside now with a little one on board. But I still can feel a BIG difference when I shade out the hatches. I buy scrap fabric at the fabric store (about a $1 for a fat quarter) and then pop it between the screen and the hatch. You still get some light (in lovely colors and prints) but it keep the radiant heat WAY down.