LIFE ABOARD TIVOLI

The Boat 

A Brief History 

Tivoli was constructed in 1998-99 and commissioned on the East coast for her original owners, Bill and Barbara Hakos.  She was kept on Chesapeake Bay during summers and traveled to West Florida during the winters so she had relatively few hours on the engines and was in great shape when we purchased her in April, 2011.  We brought her down the East coast to Key West and up the West coast  of Florida to Tampa.  We hired Captain Bernie Francis to bring her across the Gulf and up the Tenn-Tom to Aqua Yacht Harbor on Pickwick Lake so that she would be close to our home in Memphis.  For the past 3 years we have worked nearly every spare moment refitting and updating the boat. The engines had few hours and are in great shape but nearly every other major system on the boat has received attention.  We’ve updated the cooktop, microwave, and disposal in the galley, new ultraleather upholstery throughout the boat, replaced the ceiling panel upholstery, replaced salon chairs, stereo system, new washer/dryer, water pump and filtration system, replaced the tender, updated all the electronics in the pilothouse (radars, chart plotters, GPSs, AIS, VHF, FLIR, side-scan sonar, cameras, etc.) new stainless muffler, batteries, inverter, monitoring systems,  alternator, A/C unit in pilothouse, Stidd chair, teak wheel, stainless muffler, Rocna anchor, life raft, first aid supplies,EPIRB, PLBs, life vests, AED, new Steelhead davit, Spectra watermaker, etc. etc.  This is our new home and we wanted her safe, well-equipped for passagemaking and comfortable. I believe we have succeeded.

The Name TIVOLI

Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen was the inspiration for the builders and first owners of this boat.  We decided to keep the name thinking it is short and sweet and should work well in radio communications.  Of course, it is still commonly mispronounced Tiv-oooh-lee….nothing is simple it seems.

Boat Overview

Pacific Asian Enterprises (PAE) intended to built a solid successor to the venerable 46 Nordhavn but with a more spacious and modern design and with a faster turn of speed.  They succeeded in that Tivoli can idle along for days on end burning only 3 gallons of diesel/hour while achieving 7 knots of speed (she carries a total of 1320 gallons).  Bump up the fuel burn to 9 gallons/hour and she will hit a maximum of 10 knots.  Doesn’t seem like much when you consider a riding lawnmower can easily outpace us, but the extra speed makes a big difference in distance covered per day and comes in handy if needed to outrun weather, reach port at optimal tide, etc.  It is a nice feature to have and is made possible by using a larger Lugger engine, the 300 HP turbo-charged after-cooled L6108A.  This 6-cylinder beast is the epitome of reliability; we’ve heard they will run 30,000 hours before overhaul if maintained properly.  Since the boat only has 2500 hours on it and one can circle the globe in a few thousand hours we don’t anticipate needing a major overhaul anytime soon (knock on wood!).  The engine is keel cooled eliminating several points of failure (water pumps, impellors, etc.).  The boat also differed from the 46 in having a bulbous bow.  Tank testing suggested this would improve the hull’s efficiency and the experience of many 50 owners suggest that is the case.  Of course there are detractors as this design feature can have an annoying wave slap under certain conditions but we have yet to be annoyed.  Critical to comfort aboard while underway is the hydraulic NAIAD stabilizer system.  The fins mounted on either side of the hull rotate under gyroscopic control and serve to keep the boat flat in seas; i.e. dampen roll from side to side.  These systems are remarkably efficient and really do work well.  The boat’s main prop is shown below; there is also a “wing” or “get home” engine with its own drive shaft and folding prop.  It can power the boat along a 4 knots or so in calm water and is a redundant propulsion system in the unlikely event the main Lugger needs to be shut down for any reason.  The boat has a full keel and a skeg-hung rudder offering protection to the running gear.

Outdoor Living Spaces (Foredeck, Boatdeck, Cockpit)

The exterior of Tivoli has several areas while underway or at anchor to manage the boat and to enjoy the surroundings.  They include the “foredeck” or bow of the boat, the “Boatdeck” or top aft of the boat, and the “cockpit” or aft end of the boat, and a starboard-side walkway.  The pilothouse roof also is home to various items of equipment.  Each has its functions and uses while underway, docking or anchoring.

The Foredeck

The boat is designed for offshore travel and has design features to accomodate heavy seas.  The foredeck is home to a storage locker for mooring lines, anchor snubber, water hose, and other paraphernalia.  It has two dorades that allow air and not water to enter the boat.  Most importantly, it is home to the anchor gear, a beefy Maxwell 3500 chain/rode windlass provides the muscle to deploy and retrieve our 125 lb. Rocna anchor along with up to 400 feet of 3/8′ galvanized chain.  A separate anchor can be stowed and deployed as well and a separate Fortress anchor is available if needed.  High stainless rails provide a secure platform for handling anchoring duties.  Further aft is the “Portugese bridge”.  This is a secure walkway about chest height that offers a very secure location to observe and pass from one side of the boat to the other; a gate in the Portugese bridge allows entry onto the foredeck.

The Boatdeck

The Boatdeck is home to the family car; out 12 foot Rigid Boats tender with a 40 hp Tohatsu outboard.  To launch the tender we have a Steelhead ES1000  electrohydraulic davit or crane.  The boatdeck is a nice place to deploy our folding deck chairs and watch the sunset with a glass of wine.  The Boatdeck is also the platform for the ‘stack”, this structure houses the dry exhaust stack and stainless muffler and also serves as a place to mount electronics such as radar, satelite TV, a host of antennae (GPS, WiFi booster, Cell Booster, AIS, etc.), wind instrument, lights, hailer horn, search lights, etc.  The pilothouse roof is home to our Winslow 6-person life raft in a cannister and a Seaview mount with a 4G Broadband radar antenna, a FLIR infrared camera, Maretron weather sensor, and Iridium satelite phone antenna.

The Cockpit

The Cockpit at the aft end of the boat provides access to the main entry into the saloon, access to the swim platform, and a ladder providing access to the boat deck. It also has two storage lockers and a large hatch providing access to the lazarette.   It is also a convenient place to grill fish on the barbee and to lounge in deck chairs while watching the sunset



The Accomodations

Saloon

The saloon is the “living room” on the boat; it contains comfy chairs and settee, entertainment equipment, and lots of storage for the usual range of goodies needed for long-term cruising.  It is open to the galley and the combined spaces create an inviting and fairly large living space that is comfortable at anchor or underway.

The PH is the center of all operations aboard.  It house the helm; all navigation electronics, power management for 240 VAC, 120 VAC, 24 VDC, and 12 VDC systems, Controls for each of the three engines aboard (main, wing and genset); safety gear; and communications gear.  The pilothouse also houses a large L-shaped settee and table that can accomodate up to 6 guests to enjoy the passage, dinner, cocktails, etc.

Tivoli has two staterooms; the master stateroom (MSR) is under the pilot house and just forward of the engine room.  This position was chosen as this location should experience the least motion when underway in seas.  This stateroom has a center walk-around queen size bed and ample drawer and hanging lockers for storage of clothes, bedding, etc.  The guest stateroom (GSR) is in the forward end or bow of the boat also has a Queen size bed on the port side with ample drawers and lockers for storage.

Bathrooms

Each stateroom has its own ensuite bathroom (head) including toilet, sink, shower and ample storage compartments.  The waste is directed to an 80 gallon black water holding tank for pump out at an appropriate facility.  Most marinas offer such pump out services and many locations have boats equipped to travel to your location to empty your holding tanks as well.  Regulations do allow discharge directly into the ocean while at sea.  The Captain will handle all pump outs.

The kitchen (galley) is equal to that in any land based home.  It has ample Corian counter space, a double sink, dishwasher, trash compactor, microwave/convection oven, Wolf induction cooktop, refrigerator/freezer, icemaker, and disposal.  Ample storage is provided for food, beverages etc.

The engine room (ER) is home to three diesel engines; the main propulsion for the boat is a Lugger 250 hp diesel engine.  This engine was built for the Alaskan fishing industry and is known for its longevity – 30,000 hours before overhaul is not uncommon.  Tivoli has ~2500 hours at the time of this writing.  It is also remarkably fuel efficient; burning approximately 2.8 gal/hour at 7 knots.  The Northern Lights generator (genset) is located on the starboard side of the ER.  In the event the main engine needs to be shut down the “wing engine”; a Yanmar 24 hp engine with its own drive shaft and folding prop can be started and will move the boat along at about 4 knots in calm seas.  The ER is flanked by two of the four fuel tanks; each of these primary tanks holds 550 gal of diesel.  Two additional fuel tanks (125 gal each) are located in the lazarette.  The ER houses fuel filtration and fuel transfer functions; numerous pumps (fresh water, sea water, bilge, stabilizer cooling, etc.).  Finally, the NAIAD hydraulic stabilizers are mounted port and starboard with the gyro unit mounted on the port side.  These units move “fins” mounted externally on both sides of the boat to keep the boat level in seas.  Without the steadying force of sails, power cruisers such as this need active (or passive) stabilization methods to keep the ride comfortable.


Lazarette

 

Laundry

 
The boat was originally fitted with Asko washer and dryer.  These are located in the stairwell leading to the staterooms.  A simple part failure on the dryer led to replacement of both units (long story).  The old models had to be disassembled to remove them from the boat.  Clearly, the boat had been constructed around the washer/dryer.  Unfortunately, Asko increased the height of their 2014 models by 1 inch so they would not fit. We selected separate Splendide units, a 110V washer and 220V dryer.  Some teak trim had to be temporarily removed to accomodate the washer but the dryer fit in the available space perfectly.  As it turns out, all holding tank antisiphon and pumpout hoses are located behind the washer and dryer so we replaced these while the compartments were empty.



The Systems and Resources Aboard