Galley
Cooking Appliances
The boat at the time of purchase has propane based cooking. Propane has a number of draw backs (safety, availability, cooking efficiency) and given that we have a substantial electrical system based on solar, we are going to replace all of the propane appliances with electric. Additionally the electric propane sensor and valve unit was not working at the time of the survey, and the propane tank in the propane locker was not fitted properly and was just loose in a space large enough for it to bounce around in, it's a good time to just retire the whole system. This upgrade will retire several critical safety findings in the survey.
Propane stove top - this is easily replaced with an induction cooktop (likely a single hob - built-in, and a second unit that can be used if the need for multiple hobs arise). We found the induction cooktop combined with a traditional cast iron skillet heats up far faster than the propane could heat up our old tried and true Fabarware pots and pans. We have also purchased a basic set of pots and pans that will work with the induction hobs.
Propane oven - Now that combination Microwave, convection and air fryer units are available in the residential market, we are going to mount one of these in a gimble with the induction cooktop on top and we will save the space the external microwave currently takes up. This will also give us a larger microwave than the boat is equipped with. We are far more apt to use the microwave and maybe the Air Fryer function then do any baking so having a decent size and powered microwave is more important to us than traditional oven baking (and we have the convection feature otherwise)
Ninja Foodie - We had a insta-pot that was very versatile especially as we really don't bake that often. The insta-pot went flying during the knockdown and is now in the dump on Carriacuo. We plan to replace it with a NinjaFoodie as that has more versatility for us going forward.
Hot Water Pot - We found this to be very useful on the Beneteau especially when hot water wasn't readily available. We could heat up just enough water for hygiene purposes without having to energize the hot water heater and the significant battery drain that would accompany it.
This combination of appliances easily accommodates our cooking and dietary requirements.
Refrigeration
The boat is equipped with both a built in freezer and refrigerator. Neither one worked at the time of the survey. Depending on the issue(s), we will likely swap out the guts with FrigoBoat Keel Cooler units. This jumps one or 2 technology generations and is far more efficient than air cooled units.
The space that the propane range was in is large enough to accommodate a self contained refrigerator that was removed from another boat to make room for a freezer unit. At this point, with the time and resources we have, we are going to just install this unit into this space. The space can be made larger to accommodate a larger unit potentially build out a new built in refrigerator at some point in the future as our refrigeration space a bit on the small side.
Engels "portable" combination refrigerator/ freezer. This unit has been with us from the start and has proven very reliable. We will "install" it into the new boat by building the center salon bench around it. It will not take up as much space that way and will be readily available to the galley.
