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Hi Randy. Thanks for the tip. I was wondering if it
would be of any help to run the recirculating air duct through a desiccant
filled canister before the air blows across the face of the windows. I'm not too
concerned about temperature, just fogging of the windows. I can always wear a
jacket to keep warm.
Because of the deep trench we have here off the
coast of Monterey, the local water temperature stays around 55 degrees, winter
and summer. This upwelling of cold, nutrient rich water makes for some great
fishing, and the sea life here is awesome.
I've been thinking how I could get some video of
the Humboldt squid which have recently taken up residence along our coast.
There's a lot of discussion about the recent crash in salmon stocks in the area,
and many think it's partly due to the squid. Either directly attacking the
salmon or preying on the food that the salmon eat.
There have been some documentaries on the squid lately
but the video is in short segments due to being taken by scuba divers with
limited down time. I am hoping to get some videos of various types of critters
that run much longer using the extended time available through the use of my
little sub. It may even be possible to set up near the bottom and film a
particular species or area for hours on end, giving me a better perspective on
the activities and habits of the sea creatures.
There are many opportunities to use a small submarine in
the local environment to study little known or understood sea life. I will be
contacting some of the local fish farms raising mussels, abalone, and
salmon to see if I can get permission to dive near their operations and
hopefully provide them with some feed back on what goes on down there over an
extended period of time.
We also have a large whale migration that passes by
here, along with the great whites that patrol the coast. I think there may be a
market for local videos of the animals if it's possible to follow them around
and capture them doing things like hunting prey, seeking mates, and generally
just being fish.
I'll be investigating these and other uses once the sub
is operational.
It's a big ocean, and the opportunities to explore
and discover are almost unlimited.
We have a large resident seal and otter population here
as well, and they generally stay in one area, making them good candidates for
extended videos.
A trip down to the Sea of Cortez off Baja would be a
dream dive. The sea life there is fantastic. Huge schools of hammerhead sharks,
birthing whales, giant squid, and many other creatures are just waiting to be
studied.
I have some plans for modifications to my sub that will
make it possible to travel longer distances on the surface, and stay down for
many hours, possibly days, at a time. Due to the modular nature of my design,
this can be accomplished with the addition of the larger rear section I'm
designing. It will include an on-board diesel, extra batteries, gen set, air
tanks and compressor, fuel tanks, and sleeping area. The new section should be
able to be bolted on relatively quickly at the dock, or left floating there
while just the small pressure hull is taken out for dives. I have some rough
sketches of the concept and how it would all come together, and I'll be bringing
those to the convention for feed back from the guys.
Anyway, thanks for the heater tip, and I'll see how bad the fogging problem
is when I finally get this thing wet. Frank D. Get trade secrets for amazing burgers. Watch "Cooking with Tyler Florence" on AOL Food. |