Another issue to wrestle with: the air conditioner.
We've used the forward A/C twice in the last two years. About a month ago when it was hot. About a week ago to test it after I pulled it out to get at the chainplates.
It's been hot. Really hot.
But.
We've been using the fans and been reasonably comfortable. We're going to add a fan in the forward cabin for guests. I already put in a 12V outlet for it. Plus a dual USB charging station for phones.
The A/C has two requirements that don't travel well.
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It requires shore power. Something we rarely pay for. This summer has been special because CA has been working for the marina. For most of the past year, we've had almost zero shore power available.
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It requires raw water. Something we won't have for the next three weeks while we're on the hard painting the boat. The one time an A/C is really necessary is when we're doing summer repairs on the hard.
So, a sophisticated $1,500 reverse-cycle heat pump has proven to be approximately useless on Red Ranger. It's appropriate for a boat with a pemament dock; it's not a fit for our cruising agenda.
We already tore out one of the two huge units, back in November 2011. Cindy Ann Improved the Galley. I Made a Hole.
In order to replace the starboard lower-forward chainplate we disconnected the A/C again. CA decided not to reconnect it. We're slowly coming to realize that summer haulout and repair is the norm, a dry-land A/C is more valuable than an in-the-water A/C.
I also have to remove the raw water pump and some wiring. And we can have another hole in the hull plugged.
Wiser heads than ours use ordinary domestic units for those summer haulout days when it's intolerably hot. A $150 home unit works well enough and doesn't need to be repaired or maintained. If it doesn't work, replace it. Serenade bought one for use while they worked on the boat this summer; they turned around and sold/donated it to one of the boatyard guys just prior to launch.
A 5,000 BTU "portable" unit would just about fit into the upper shelf in the hanging locker. It could use the exising Charlie Noble (chimney) as a vent for hot air from the A/C. $400.