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.
Maintaining a Lookout
The Rule Every vessel shall at all times maintain a proper look-out by sight and hearing as...
How to Negotiate When Buying a Boat
Get expert tips on how to negotiate when buying a boat, helping you make an informed investment for your sailing experience.
Sinking
A boat sits down in the water until it has displaced the same weight of water as the weight of the boat. It is a universal arrangement between boat and water...
Types of PFDs
Types of PDF's Here is a graphical explanation between a lifejacket and a buoyancy vest. PFD Type ratings are being phased out...
Rigging
At boat shows, we see folks huddled down in the vessel’s salon oohing and aahing at the leather cushions to sit on, and at the electronic gadgets for navigation and entertainment.
Sails
Sails are sophisticated objects. It is not only the materials they are made from that are important, but also, the way they are cut and sewn.
Catamaran vs Monohull: A Real-World Comparison for Cruisers
Comparing catamaran vs monohull for cruising? This guide breaks down comfort, sailing feel, cost, safety, and real-life tradeoffs that matter.
Electronic Navigation
We are well into the 21st century. Chances are that within 30 feet (10 meters) of you right now there are 2-3 GPS-enabled potentially lifesaving devices...
Key Sailboat Instruments
Sailboat Instrumentation can be very sophisticated and intelligent. Most electronic displays provide a wide range of menus of useful information...
Mast Head and Fractional Rigging
There are two variations on the standing rigging set up: Masthead and Fractional. On masthead rigs, the attachment point for the sidestays (shrouds), forestay, and backstay (if they exist) is at the top of the mast.
Alternating Current and Direct Current
In your house, your wall outlets deliver alternating current (AC) electricity. The electricity provided to your house and your marina from the national electric grid is AC. Most of the devices...
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.
Towing
The following diagram shows how you can tow another vessel. Form a “bridle” from the rear cleats...
Sailing and Wind Forces
A sailboat moves in upwind and downwind directions. Downwind is intuitive; it just gets blown downwind. But just how does a sailboat move into the wind?
Sail Twist Basics
How can the wind direction be different between the top of the mast and the bottom?
Sailboat Balance
Below is an animation that shows the balance of forces: actually it is technically the balance of a concept called “moments.”
DC Electrical System on a Charter Boat
Batteries power the 12 Volt DC “house” electrical system. There may be one or several batteries linked together to supply power...
Holding a Constant Heading while Adjusting the Sails
We're heading to a specific point on land or a compass heading. Thus we need to keep the sails flying effectively...
Electric Devices and Standards
A word of caution whenever using any home AC appliances on a vessel. Generally, these devices will work fine
Winged Sail Vector Diagrams
Sail and Winged Sail Wind Force Vector Diagrams. And it's highly relevant right now because of the America's Cup AC45 catamarans using winged sails.
Diesel Raw-Water System
Raw-water means that the water is straight from outside the boat. It might be seawater - it might be
Weather Predictions
While we have touched on weather concepts in this Module, no one can expect you to be a meteorologist (unless you are one) and do a good enough job at predicting the weather with enough quality to guarantee your safety.
How to Book a Sailing Charter
There are a few things you need to know about booking a charter.
Sailboat Diesel Engine Operation
As noted earlier, diesel engines are sturdy and highly reliable, and operating them today is straightforward.
