Bought CD 28. First ? Storage

[Northoceanbeach]

I just bought a cape dory 28 in mint condition. It looks new it is hard to tell it isn't. It's my first day, I bought it less than ten hours ago. I'm unloading my stuff. So...where does it all go? Maybe I brought too much, I did, but it's too late so I have to put it some where. There doesn't seem to be any storage whatsoever.

Don't get me wrong. I love the boat. If I can tackle this issue it's my dream boat, it really is. But I brought a lot of clothes and gear and I don't have anywhere to put it.

It's such a well thought out layout in terms of spaciousness. Can't complain about 6'2" standing headroom. I've never really had that before. It feels great, I just like to be really clean and organized so my gear has to be out of sight.

Are there any secret compartments or anything?

[Neil Gordon]

I don't know how much you have but I'm always amazed at the carloads of stuff I haul back and forth every Spring and Fall.

Here's my general storage scheme, including spaces that for the most part are empty and available. From bow to stern:

V-berth: Small shower caddies port and starboard hold cell phone, glasses, etc. Hooks on door posts hold flashlight, hats, whatever.
V-berth drawers: Misc. items of clothing; previously used for smaller spares, e.g., fuses, in small, flat, tackle boxes. Now mostly empty.
V-berth lockers: Holding tank to port but room for head supplies. Starboard side has linens and towels with lots of space to spare. Lots of extra space here!
V-berth step: Lots of room under, which I use for storage of cleaning supplies. Mostly empty.
Head cabinet: The usual bathroom stuff. Less than 1/2 utilized.
Hanging locker: Foulies (3 sets), 30 lb. bag of dog food, assorted articles of clothing. Still mostly empty.
Bilge area: Various spares in larger tackle boxes, under the floor board.
Hanging locker shelf: Shoes, power tools, various equipment manuals.
Main cabin bulkhead: Book shelf to port holds log, nav. rules, tide/current book and the like. Book shelf to starboard holds chart kits, cruising guide, and the like. I also hang my inflatable life jacked from the starboard shelf. Lots of room for hooks and/or additional storage shelves. Bell and hand bearing compass also live here.
Port side shelf: Single malt scotch/rum/wine, signal flag kit, recreational reading/games, bulk food storage (rice, coffee, dried fruit, whatever) in square plastic containers, also oil, vinegar, soy sauce, hot sauce, etc.
Starboard side shelf: 2 dog bowls, sailing gloves, lamp oil, PB Blaster, pens/pencils, hats, whatever. 1/2 empty.
Port side locker: Mask/snorkle, fishing tackle, auto pilot, ditty bag with sail needles, palm, etc., etc., tarred seine twine (no boat should be without it!), searchlight, spare bilge pump. 1/2 full.
Starboard side locker: Harness, tethers, jack lines, cockpit awning. 1/2 empty.
Port side under settee: Flare gun, radar reflector, spare air horn cannisters. 80% empty.
Starboard side under settee: Extra winch handles, empty sail bags, six pack of black beans. 90% empty.
Bilge forward: Tools, grease, caulking, etc., in tool/tackle boxes.
Aft bulkhead before galley: Upper spice rack holds salt/pepper grinders, etc. Lower spice rack holds handheld GPS, misc. nav stuff. Binocular box holds flatware, wooden spoons, chopsticks.
Shelves behind stove mostly serve as my kitchen junk drawer.
Lots of hooks for hanging galley stuff that otherwise gets lost.
Pots, pans, dishes stored behind stove. Aft of stove is misc. non-food galley storage, e.g., paper towels, plastic containers, plastic bags.
Ice box is used for the usual stuff, whether there's ice in it or not. Canned/packaged goods are mostly stored in the deep locker next to the sink.
Lots of hooks for hanging stuff on the starboard side of the galley, too.
Spice rack along after bulkhead holds misc. galley related cleaning supplies.
Port locker under stove holds trash can; otherwise 75% empty.
Starboard locker under sink holds misc. sponges, rags; otherwise 50% empty.
Area behind ice box holds companionway boards plus larger bottles of cleaning stuff (e.g., vinegar and simple green)
More storage available in the after bilge.
Port cockpit locker: mostly in storage crates: spare line, oil/coolant, chafe gear, spare dock lines, buckets, cetol, sandpaper, brushes, spare boat hooks, and more. I'd guess only about 1/2 full.
Starboard cockpit locker: Life jackets, throwable cushions, trash basket for recycling, storage crate for stove alcohol. About 3/4 full but I could carry fewer life jackets and get down to about 1/2 full.

I'll note that when we're cruising (for around two weeks at a time), the v-berth is used for storage of clothing we don't unpack. Since we sleep there, we simply relocate the bags/backpacks to a settee for the night.

The sort version of storage is this: You can stuff amazing amounts of stuff in to a Cape Dory 28... but you can't always have easy access and everything won't necessarily live next to its usual siblings as they do on the land.

If your 28 doesn't have shelves, storage racks, hooks, etc., etc., those are all good projects.

[Northoceanbeach]

Great reply. I'm going on extended cruising. I just unloaded everything onto the boat and looked around and it doesn't look like it will fit. But I bet it will. And if not I will ship it home.

I have shelves, could use more hooks. Where is the hanging locker?

[Ken Cave]

In our CD 28, I took out one of the water tanks, leaving more room than you can imagine for goodies. In the northwest
there are plenty of places to get water, so the 30 gallon tank that I took out will not be missed. We can usually get
by on 30 gallons for more than a week before looking for more. By that time it is also shower time!!



Hope this helps

Ken Cave
1979 CD 28
Dragontale

[Northoceanbeach]

I do have a lot of tanks! I've also never had an inboard or no quarter berth so I have to rethink my strategy. I love the layout though. I have #260. It says cape dory "28". Probably Alberg was givin the finger quotes sign when they named the boat.

[Neil Gordon]

My '77 has a single water tank under the V-berth. We're not as careful with using water for dishes as we might be, but have never had a problem in up to two weeks of cruising. Our ice supply comes from home initially, in the form of frozen 2 liter bottles of water. Everything in the ice box stays dry that way and the bottled water becomes our emergency ration if need be. We carry a full Sun Shower on deck.

[Northoceanbeach]

I have tanks out the wazoo! Could my head holding tank be under the port settee? I lifted the cushion to starboard, expecting to see a bunch of squares to sotre stuff in, nope. There is one, about 10"x10". Under it is a tank, same to port. They both have little cubbies on the bottom though, forward.

I found the hanging locker. It looks like behind the head there is a deflated ripped bladder. I'm assuming was the old holding tank. I've got a new Jabsco head, but I haven't figured it out yet, or tried.

[Rebinva]

It will ALL fit. I have more than Neal does and it fits.

NEAL: How large is your holding tank? Ours is in the hanging locker and is 13 gallons. There is still lots of room in there for storage.

[Steve Laume]

Part of the initial post was about hidden stowage space. I have found a good bit on Raven. She is a CD-30 but very similar to the CD-28.

First of all I took the cushions right out of the Vee berth and use it only for stowage. I have a compartment under the center of the berth. I also found some extra space along the sides of the hull where the liner flattens off. I cut holes there and made covers for them. I keep lots of supplies there in small plastic tubs. I use a variety of different sized plastic containers for everything from fastens to food. It keeps things nicely organized and you can stack them up in all sorts of places. They are clear so it is easy to see what is in them.

I removed the Vee berth door because it was always in the way. In it's place, I made up drop boards that come up above the height of the Vee birth. This allows me easy access to the lower area but also holds things in the Vee birth from tumbling out.

I put a flat bottom in the hanging locker and it holds all of my safety gear. The first aid kit is mounted on the forward bulkhead and there are clips to hold my two piece emergency till. I have enough flairs in there for a major fourth of July celebration and my ditch bag.

There was some space aft of the water tanks so I cut more squares there as well as over the forward lockers under the settee. I made covers for these as well. While there was access to the little lockers through the hinged door I find it easier to find things by lifting off the top sometimes. There was also a little hidden space in the forward end of that area that was covered by a liner. I cut a couple of inspection ports in that area for low grade stowage. I am not even sure if there is anything in there right now.

Under the sink cabinet in back there was an area next to the fuel tank that is pretty large. It was completely inaccessible so installed an inspection port there as well. It holds all of my engine filters, zincs, belts and impellers. It is right there next to the engine so it works out well. I also made up a large fiddle or divider in the outboard area of this locker. It keeps things from wanting to slide down into the bilge.

Aside from the plastic stowage containers the next best things for improving stowage are gear hammocks. I installed nice brass eyes along the sides of the Vee berth and just above the book shelves in the main saloon. The eyes are bloted through the underside of the liner. I attach the hammocks with little brass clips so they can easily be taken down. The forward ones hold harnesses and tethers along with my spinnaker sheets and mics, tackle. The ones in the main saloon hold hats, gloves, flags and such. When I am cruising, I have a couple of more that I hang from the overhead hand rails. These are great for bread, chips and cookies. The other side gets fruits and veggies. When I am not cruising they get clipped the a hook in the Vee berth.

I also have a few hooks right inside the companion way. There is a nice adjustable wrench, bottle opener keys and a shackle tool hanging there, that are all easily reached, from inside or out. There is also a Mag Light on the side of the companion way that is held in place with clips.

There are some more hooks on the head door and just inside the Vee berth. Fleeces, fowl weather gear and jackets all live there.

These are the extra spaces and arrangements that I added in addition to all the other stowage, Steve.

[Northoceanbeach]

Good advice.

The cockpit lockers are my biggest storage compartments, but they are at an angle. I am going to out some strips of teak glued to the hull so everything doesn't slide around in there. What adhesive would you use? Is 5200 a bad idea? I have two more batteries and a tool box to put in there, and its really heavy stuff, I worry that while out sailing, without those teak dividers, they could slide and take out the thru hulls you see in the lockers. The drains for the cockpit floor right?

That could happen couldn't it? Something un supported and heavy could slide an rip one out? I haven't tested them, I don't know how string they are. Maybe they are stronger than I think, but I always try to protect them.

Same goes for all thru hulls, I am very careful with the way I store things around them.

[Steve Laume]

Batteries are like the a loose cannon in the days of old. You want those things positively secured, with the terminals protected. Raven has three batteries that are housed in plastic boxes. The boxes are held in place by wooden cleats that are through bolted to their platforms and then held down with webbing straps. This is a high quality strap with a metal buckle, not the cheap ones that come with the battery box. Actually, my start battery box is held down with a piece of 3/8" line, cinched down tight. You can also make up a bar to bolt across the tops but I like the straps better for their ease of access.

If you are going to permanently mount a platform to the hull, I would tab it in with fiberglass and resin. I suppose 5200 would work as well but it is a mess to work with, Steve.

[Steve Laume]

One more bit of advise. Keep those batteries as far forward as possible. They are heavy and the stern tends to squat a bit on my boat. I used to keep my tool box in the cockpit locker but have moved it to the cabin sole in the Vee berth, which puts it right behind my drop board partition. I put down a vented rubber matte to keep it from marring the sole. It is now easier to get to and the weight is in a better place. The tackle box now lives where the tool box used to, Steve.

[Northoceanbeach]

Great thanks!

I just discovered last night that the settee backs fold up and there is hidden storage behind them.

What are the two floor opening farthest forward for? I have a slanted one in the bathroom and a flat square one on the forward cabin floor.

[Northoceanbeach]

Not wanting to start a new thread, but what is the knob for on my cockpit sole next to the forward/neutral/reverse lever?

[Neil Gordon]

Not wanting to start a new thread, but what is the knob for on my cockpit sole next to the forward/neutral/reverse lever?

Can we get a picture?