Converting trawler to expedition yacht

Hi everybody,

I bought a 132 ft North Sea trawler last year to convert into an expedition yacht.

Feedback is greatly appreciated.

Thorwald

trawler conversion project

Thank you both of you.

Yes, it's quite a project. And when I started my research I figured, it would be fun to write this down so others may save some time or educate themselves on the many issues I ran into.

As Bruno remarket privately, lifeboat requirements seem to most likely kill my quest for SOLAS compliance. The only acceptable solutions would be either a free-fall boat on the aft deck and you can just imagine how ugly that would look.

I might get away with some kind of alternative arrangement acceptable to the flag state (Panama) but then it will most likely result in a restriction to stay within 20 miles of the coast. That's not acceptable for a vessel with a range of 10.000 nm!

So, I'm looking at alternatives like ABS Motor Yacht or MCA LY2.

And if we go to Tahiti with more than 12 friends, we''ll just have to list them as supernummary crew such as nannies and body guards .


Thorwald

Comments welcome

One area where I'd love to get some feedback is readers' experience with

- vacuum toilet systems
I keep wondering how they deal with bigger items
or tampons

- chiller airconditioning systeems
Anybody experience with Webasto for such a big installation?

- power requirements
Are there any guidelines to calculate how much KW I should
install based on the installed electrical equipment on board.
I want a smart system (2 small ones + one big (existing gen set)
that's not over dimensioned.


Thorwald

toilets, space

I looked into Tecma but they are a lot more expensive then vacuum toilets (about 2x the price). Yes, if you add everything, a Tecma system saves some $$ but you also have a lot of moving parts all over the place. And it uses more water.

The airco will be calculated by a supplier, that's for sure ;-)

"In either case, you'd need more crew cabins though. It's not just a matter of providing enough beds for the guests, but also a large enough dining table, lounge, a galley that can handle such numbers, etc. "

Check my general plan.

I'll have 8 'comfortable' cabins (double or triple with a Pullman), 1 twin cabin on main deck for guests or crew (private head). and then there's still space for a crew of max. 10. And the dining area can handle 20 people.

It's not a mega yacht but the crew accommodation is above standard compared to most mega yachts..

But, let me know what you would do different. Constructive critisism is always welcome

the hole

Nice vessel. Like me, you'll have your hands full (and your wallet empty

As to the engineroom, or should I say palace... I'm not going to touch the main engine. It's in excellent shape, recently overhault, ready for thousands of hours more. I will have the prop blades adjusted to make it more of a 'cruising' prop instead of a 'trawling' (as with fishing) prop.

I'm taking out one gen set and will replace it with 2 Onan sets. I also have to add water makers, air/co, waster water treatment , SCUBA air compresssors, that's about it. Some of this equipment may go under the guest cabins.

I looked initially at getting a smaller engine (6cyl. instead of 9) but there is no way I can ever recoup that investment. Of course the switchboard will need some upgrades and we may replace the Halon system with something more ozone friendly.

As you probably know, it's not difficult to spend money on a project like this; buying the ship is the easy part.

I'll have a lot of work done in Colombia. That will save me mucho $$$ and the offer good quality .

Saludos,

Thorwald

yards in Cartagena, Colombia

Hi Loren,

Cotecmar in Cartagena (www.cotecmar.com) came highly recommended by Damen Shipyards in the Netherlands. They are building two tugs there now and very happy. It's probably the best yard in Cartagena but like all yards in Colombia, they have almost no pleasure yacht experience. (like for instance Inace in Fortaleza, Brasil). We hope that wiill change ;-).

They have two facilities: the Boca Grande yard, right in town is perfect for small yards and very safe (remember, navy yard).

They do quality work and are eager to take new business. But being semi-governmetn and ISO 9001 certified, they can be a little slow and bureaucratic. Quotes can take a long time.

I really depends on the kind of project to determine if it's a good yard for you. In my case with lots of steel work and more of an industrial type of yacht, they are perfect.

Another yard recommended by a local naval architect I work with is Astivik (www.astivik.com). For steel and alum. work they are great I was told. Smaller, cheaper, more flexible. I may use them to tear out all the old stuff and do the finer work with COTECMAR. They are in an industrial area , outside town. I have not visited them ... yet.

In both cases, you need to be there yourself (and speak Spanish) or have somebody on your behalf to be on top of it. There are good naval architecs out there in Colombia.

Finally, Cartagena is a great place and a lot closer to the US.

Hope this helps.

Thorwald

I sold this 92' expedition yacht about a year ago. It was built as a shrimper in 2000 with the plan that it would work long distances. The shrimper went bankrupt and the boat was purchased by a former yacht broker who knew what clients would like, and what would be most cost effective in the conversion. Rough and tough exterior, very nicely done interior.
He too, brought the boat to South America to have the interior work done, after having mechanical changes done in the USA, in Texas, where they are used to this type of boat.
He bought a lot of fuel in Venezuela at 40 cents a gallon! 18,000 gallon fuel capacity.
I sold the boat to a buyer from New Zealand who hired a crew to bring the boat from Antigua to the canal, and then all the way to New Zealand on her own bottom. He told me the trip went well.

Tucker Fallon

conversion shrimp trawler - fuel from Venezuela

That's kind of my plan to. I'll have the design done in the Netherlands and most of the work in Colombia.

And I also am looking into buying fuel in Venezuela. But it's not so easy anymore. I'm told I'll not only have to reflag (which is mostly some paperwork) but they now have restrictions on where you go. You get the low rates only if yoiu stay in Venezuelan waters; if you leave, you have to pay the difference.

Of course, the devil is in the details: how well enforced is this rule....

If I make I convert some water tanks to fuel, I can take about 40.000 gallons of fuel. You do the math .

Anybody in Venezuela who can help me out here ?