Sailing SV Cordelia · video

What this video covers

Steve and Annette, aboard their 42-year-old boat Cordelia at Rio Dulce, Guatemala, discover mid-refit that they lack the correct parts for a planned lithium battery installation with eight weeks until departure.Watch Steve orders roughly $500 of additional components through Guatemala Digital, described as similar to Amazon, hoping delivery arrives within two weeks — a timeline he calls extremely tight.8:20 The core anxiety is not just logistics: Steve describes genuine fear of wiring lithium incorrectly, citing fire risk and skepticism that professional installers offer better results, noting one acquaintance paid $50,000 for a professional install.7:16 Alongside the battery project, the crew strips approximately 20 headlining panels of their old vinyl covering, a labor-intensive job that leaves Annette with painful wrists and a cat bite on her hand.6:30 Steve repairs peeling teak veneer near the companionway using wood glue, cocktail sticks, lolly sticks, and blue masking tape rather than replacing the section outright.1:43 A donated piece of teak veneer arrives too late to simplify that repair. The episode ends without the lithium install underway, with the decision to proceed or delay dependent on whether parts arrive in time.9:45

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