Blog March 2017

Ketcham’s Creek on Narrasketuk River is the waterfront home of Steve’s Marine.

Steve’s Marine is centrally located on water location in scenic Amityville, Long Island, New York. 

We are convenient to get to by both land and water.

Our 10,000 square foot complex accommodates over 100 boats on land for winter storage and 40 slips for dockage in the summer.

Everything you need for boating is located here at Steve’s Marine including:

• A Factory Trained Service department with Mechanics employed full time
• A nearby Park Fishing Station (Bait, Fuel, Ice, Food and Beverages, and Tackle Store with all you fishing needs)
• A stocked Parts Department with integrated warehouse to supply you with any parts you need for repair, or just toys to enhance your boating experience.
• Walking distance to shopping, restaurants, and public transportation.

Dockage

Steve ‘s Marine slips are all floating finger docks to keep your boat protected and to allow easy access on and off your boat. All of the slips have access to water and electric and the larger slips have 30-amp service.

The floating docks are maintained every winter to keep them safe and reliable for you and your family. Our facilities also offer a picnic areas and bathrooms.

Our location is a few quick minutes from the Great South Bay. Easily get to the state channel, Captree, Fire Island, Jones Beach, and Long Island’s nightlife.

Join the friendly atmosphere and  see what Steve’s Marine has to offer.

Avoid Spills

So you have the right fuel, you know how much you need, and you put the nozzle in the correct deck fill. Now you can sit back and relax, right? Not quite. Most gas docks don't have the convenient hands-free clip on the nozzle allowing you to pump mindlessly, and for good reason: They often don't click off in time. The venturi mechanism in a roadside gas pump works in closed fuel systems, as in a car. When fuel enters the tank, air is forced out at its opening as it's displaced by the fuel.

In boats, you have a vented fuel system. The vent allows air to escape so the automatic shutoff doesn't work as you'd expect. Take your time and pay attention, and while you're at it, keep a fuel-absorbent absorbent cloth with you to hold around the deck fill and vent in case any fuel burps out. Ask for one if you don't have one.

Follow basic fueling safety practices while fueling. Be sure all smoking materials are extinguished, and ask that all passengers move onto the dock. This is a good time to use the shoreside restrooms one last time or pick up some more bait from the marina store. With gasoline engines, be sure to run the blower for five minutes before starting the engine. 

— Published: BoatUS December 2016

Did you Know That more vessels sink at the dock while unattended than sink while underway and manned.  A common reason for this is when cockpit drains get clogged and the vessel takes on water from heavy rains or waves slapping over a low transom.  The added weight of this water lowers the vessel in the water until a through hull fitting or cut-out transom is forced under water.  Sea water then spills into the hull from the fitting or floods over the transom sinking the vessel. 

The average vessel's bilge pump system and battery capacity is not designed to deal with this amount of flooding, especially when unmanned.  The amount of flooding that occurs when a prop shaft falls out of a vessel, or from a lost sea cock, is substantial

The second most common source of sinking at the dock is snow and rain.  I had this happen to one of my clients’ boats because the self-bailing scuppers clogged from leaves. Rain followed, and followed, and followed—until they had a submarine. Also, many skippers believe that Bimini tops and canvas covers prevent water from entering the boat.  Wrong again. They slow it, but don’t stop it.  In the winter, stow them someplace dry and shrink wrap the boat.

So, more than 80 percent of the boats sink for two reasons—all of which adds up to checking the boat from time to time. Or paying the dock hand to, or your teenager who wants some extra spending money. But check it.

Your best defense against a dock side sinking is to check on your vessel often, and ensure that cockpit drains are kept clear of debris.  In addition, it is important to check and maintain all through hull fittings.  Plastic through hull fittings are notorious for degrading from UV exposure and snapping off at the slightest pressure.  If your plastic fittings leave a chalky residue when wiped with a finger, replace them now!  And take the opportunity to upgrade to a bronze fitting.  Hoses connected to above water through hull fittings should lead upwards if possible.  The higher the hose is lead above the waterline, the lower your vessel can be submerged without creating a back siphon. 

 Finally, if your vessel has a low transom (as found on many outboard powered vessels) be sure to dock it with the bow of the vessel pointing to any exposed stretch of water.  That way, storm waves will break on the bow rather than over the transom.

The Origins of Spring Cleaning

According to Wikipedia, spring cleaning refers to "the yearly act of cleaning a house from top to bottom which would take place in the first warm days of the year, typically in the spring."

It has been suggested that the origins date back to the Iranian Norouz, the Persian new year which falls on the first day of spring. Iranians continue the practice of "khooneh tekouni" which literally means "shaking the house" just before the new year.

Other cultures which participate in full house cleanings are:

1. The Jewish culture cleanses the home in preparation of Passover (I don't remember my Kessler family doing this one!!)
2. The Greek call the week before lent "Clean Week" and clean their homes thoroughly inside and out.
3. "New Years’ Cleaning" is a tradition that the Scottish practice on Hogmanay which falls on December 31st.

So no matter how long ago it started, get out there and get cleaning!

The Ides of March is a day on the Roman calendar that corresponds to 15 March. It was marked by several religious observances and became notorious as the date of the assassination of Julius Caesar in 44 BC. The death of Caesar made the Ides of March a turning point in Roman history, as one of the events that marked the transition from the historical period known as the Roman Republic to the Roman Empire

Although March was the third month of the Julian calendar, in the oldest Roman calendar it was the first month of the year. The holidays observed by the Romans from the first through the Ides often reflect their origin as new-year celebrations

NASA tracks down two lost spacecraft

You might think that losing a spaceship would be tricky, given how big they are, but NASA has announced that it’s found not one but two errant spacecraft thanks to a new telescope technique.

The craft – the tiny and dormant Indian Chandrayaan-1 spaceship, launched in 2008, and a NASA Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, launched in 2009  – were both orbiting the moon, which made it hard to spot them “hidden in the bright glare of the moon”, said NASA.

“Finding LRO was relatively easy as … we had precise orbit data where it was located,” said Marina Brozovic, a radar scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. “Finding India’s Chandrayaan-1 required a bit more detective work because the last contact with the spacecraft was in August of 2009.”

The scientists used a new application of interplanetary radar to detect and track small spacecraft, which could in future play a part in missions to the moon.   naked security