Keeping Betty Warm

It's been a pretty warm winter.  We've also done a lot more insulation than ever before.  I installed temperature and humidity monitors and in key places on the boat, so I can see how we're doing all day with an app on my phone.

We heat with electricity, inside the boat, plus the water line that comes in from the dock. Our costs are higher than a lot of boats at the marina because of our size, plus the fact that I heat the engine room as extra protection against engine damage.  But overall the numbers are going in the right direction.

With the temperature monitoring, we've been able to turn off more heating devices than in previous years.  But this has been off-set somewhat by in increase in the use of my new motorized dessicant de-humidifers, which do a truly amazing job of keeping the boat drier and warmer during the winter than ordinary de-humidifers.  That said, those two wonder-machines use 5 amps when on high.

I hope we do even better in March!

Checking the weather in our forward cabin.