Boating Knowledge Base
Have a sailing question? Access NauticEd’s sailing and boating knowledge base, and gain in-depth answers to your sailing questions. If you’re interested in powerboating, visit our new powerboating blog.
Catamaran Maneuvering Mastery
As now learned, Cats can turn inside their own length, they can vector sideways, and using the bulldozer effect you can instantly rotate the Cat to point in any direction, you can do almost anything.
Magnetism
We begin with a phenomenon called magnetism. This phenomenon was known thousands of years before electricity. Magnetism was discovered...
Sailboat Diesel Engine Fluids
Diesel engines make use of a variety of fluids, including raw and coolant water, diesel fuel, and lubricating oil. A problem in the flow of any one of these fluids can cause problems...
When Turbulent Flow Happens in Sailing
An airplane stalls and falls out of the sky when the wings stop producing as much lift, similar to when turbulent air flow happens in sailing...
Communications while Underway on a Charter
Contact between vessels, or a boat and a land station, is usually carried out using VHF (Very High Frequency) radios.
Sailing Directions
Directions are super important because while sailing, you will always be in communication with others regarding directions of obstacles, wind changes, your destination, water current, and other boat traffic.
Electricity and Charging Your Devices on a Charter
It’s a given, we can’t live without electricity. At home, we have all the conveniences and all the chargers we need. But what about on a boat on a sailing vacation? What can I charge and what voltage is available?
Diesel Raw-Water System
Raw-water means that the water is straight from outside the boat. It might be seawater - it might be
Keeping the Telltales Flying Steady
As a sailor we are doing one of two things when it comes to sail trim, either holding a course or trimming to our sails...
Available Energy Stored in a Battery
You don’t actually run all of the electron charge out of a battery when it is considered empty.
Responsibility between Vessels Nav Rules
Every vessel has a definition of being one and only one of the below at all times. And each vessel has the ability to morph from one to the other.
Dock Slips Docking Techniques
Wind coming into the dock slip channel and your boat is to be docked stern-to, steer into the slip channel...
Advanced Catamaran Maneuvering – Using the Rudders
There are some other cool things you can do when you consider the propeller thrust over a Catamaran's rudders.
True Wind vs. Apparent Wind
Learn the basic difference between True Wind and Apparent Wind...
Seasickness on a Bareboat Charter
Here is some education about sea sickness that can help you and your crew overcome it.
Sailboat Design
Surely, the first sailboat was invented by a five-year-old child with a block of wood. He or she stuck a twig through a piece of animal skin and then down into a knothole in the wood.
Mediterranean Mooring with an Anchor
Another factor when Mediterranean Mooring with an anchor is that the wind direction determines who is in control...
Basic Telltale Control continued
Controlling the telltales by making course adjustments - when making the woolies fly by making course adjustments the rule is...
Navigation Units
Sailors are forever measuring stuff. This brings us to the subject of navigation units. As we all remember from the good ol’ school days, measurement is the process of comparing something with an established standard.
Sailboat Inverters
Sailboat Inverters are devices used to convert 12-volt DC battery electricity to AC 110-volt or 220-volt electricity. Special electronics in
Docking Force Alignment and Moment Balance
When you are docking, if your boat pulls on a line attached to the dock, the line pulls back on your boat. If the forces are aligned, then nothing really happens.
Sailboat Diesel Engine
Thanks go to Mr. Rudolf Diesel who years ago in Germany cleverly invented an engine that today bears his name (luckily, they chose to use his last name)—the sailboat diesel engine.
Deploying the Anchor
It is important that the person deploying the anchor and the helmsperson are in agreement about the anchoring plan first. Discuss the placement, the direction, the depth, the desired scope, and the setting plan.
Prop Walk Bests You
There is one situation where you are just going to have to suck it up, admit defeat, and work with the forces of nature.
