A multitude of innovative ideas were shared at our gathering on Thursday.  As usual, boating crowds are tremendously creative in their problem solving!

• Ron and Peggy Watt have made plastic mesh sunscreens for their boat.  These are mounted to the outside of their windows with Velcro.
• Paul and Erika Benson introduced us to Turkish towels.  They are thin, absorbent, dry quickly and are available on Amazon in a variety of sizes and colors.  There is a site called itsanecessity.net that has reviewed these towels in depth.  The Bensons also gave us an ANTI tip about Teak Guard.  Their review after a year of use (and many hours of labor) was DON’T DO IT! They also have two cans of Teak Guard left if anyone would like them…
• Kevin Klein Meier (and daughter Esme) recommend the Fissler stovetop pressure cooker.  Kevin said that it is so fast, the main problem is overcooking items such as beans until they are mush! Don’t worry, sounds like they have had some remarkable success with it as well.
• Ralph and Carol De La O love their Ikea soap dispenser with a twist tight suction cup that attaches to the wall.  There is also a toothbrush holder and both are compact enough to fit in the head on their boat.
• Arnold Amenda continues to find his blunt nosed knife with a serrated edge incredibly useful onboard as well as his small Gerber LED waterproof flashlight.
• Mark Aberle told us about Alibris.com. This company carries many out of print books on Northwest coast history and sailing.  Books cost only $2.00-3.00 apiece.
• Susan Haggist has found a wonderful coffee making/stainless steel thermos combo with a funnel that sets onto and filters coffee directly into the thermos.  It is made by Thermos Nissan.
• Lee Youngblood’s sage advice was to avoid tying up to the pilings/dock area outside of the Ballard Locks.  He tied up one time and stepped off for a photo…he and the boat ended up covered in sticky tar!
• Chris and Lauri Bushue have had success with Pettit Cabin Coat, a mildew resistant paint that they found at Fisheries and West Marine.   It comes in a variety of colors…white and gray! Chris also has a system for cutting plywood where he lays down a sheet of blue foam (blue board) on the dock or in the parking lot, lays the plywood on top, then uses his cordless circular or sabre saw to make the cuts – no sawhorses or other equipment needed (maybe kneepads).
• Ian Reilly has had good results with a clear coat product from Home Depot called Mold Control.  He also had an issue with cormorants roosting and filling his furler with guano!!!  Ideas such as slingshots filled with frozen peas were quickly “flung around”.  Ian also has a line with a curved hook (a type of grapnel or grappling hook) that he swings around, then throws to catch the dock cleats or rails when docking single-handed.  This is particularly useful for docks with rails instead of cleats, such as in Canada and some areas of the San Juan Islands.
• Brett and Joyce Phillips recommend the AcuRite thermostat ($25 on Amazon) and the AcuRite weather sensor as they are small and can stick magnetically to surfaces.  Also, after many cruising cockpit parties with red wine spills, Joyce can attest to the efficiency of vinegar to wipe it all clean.
• Jim Harris’ tip for us is a set of 4 ceramic cups with stainless steel insulators around them. They keep your beverages hot for hours.
• Paul and Suzette Baker have happily used their Happy Wheels (now Davis) dinghy wheels for years. They snap in an upright position when not needed, then can click into place so that the dinghy may be wheeled easily up the beach.  They have developed an air ventilation system for their hatch; a stick with notches to keep the hatch open at a variety of settings.  They also like their Nebo LED light switch that can be set in any dark spot on the boat.
• Amy and Dan Miller Dowell enjoy their Fagor pressure cooker.  They enjoy the pressure cooker cookbook Complete Vegetarian Kitchen by Lorna Sass.  They also recommend an article about non-electric crockpots by theboatgalley.com/thermal-cooker.
• Melissa on Miss Mayhem loves her electric Instapot.  She said that it replaces her crockpot, pressure cooker and more.  It is especially valuable when she has a hungry racing crew on board!  She also likes Command hooks, in plastic or metal, that stick onto any surface.
• Tom and Carol Muir always want to have these items aboard their boat:  a stainless-steel tea kettle, a Thermopen instant thermometer, a Soaring Heart pillow, a wetsuit, mask and snorkel, a white foam wedge to keep the wheel set in place and a hair tie and Command hook system to tie the shades up on the ports.
• Brianne Wojtesta says that Magnatiles are a hit with kids of all ages and store flat.  Magnatiles magnets are much stronger than other brands.
• Eric and Gretchen Becker have found that Howard brand cutting board oil works well on their teak table.  They also recommend a Blue Seas state of charge meter and a Lacrosse Technology household weather station.
• Scott and Mary Malone had the great idea of making affordable, effective wind scoops for their hatches with the head of an old spinnaker and tent poles.
• Jerry Andrews has found some wonderful motion activated lights (Coleman auto-on cooler lights available on Amazon). He also gave us a battery life management tip, reminding us to pay attention to the charge absorption rate (refer to Eric’s recommendation on the Blue Seas state of charge meter).
• Mike McGuane, we are sorry that you were feeling “under the weather” and weren’t able to attend…so glad to have your list of items to always have on a boat:  olives, wine, bacon, duct(or duck) tape, vice grips and needle nose pliers!

Thanks to all contributors. Happy Cruising!