Watermaker

A reverse-osmosis desalinator that forces seawater through a semi-permeable membrane at high pressure to produce drinking-quality fresh water on board.

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Related W-terms

Working sheet

The leeward sheet carrying load — the one actually trimming the sail at that moment.

Whisker pole

A light spar temporarily set between the mast and the clew of a poled-out jib to hold it s…

Working sails

The mainsail plus the standard (working) jib — the boat's all-round sail wardrobe for mode…

Weather routing

The practice — today usually software-assisted using GRIB forecasts and the boat's polars …

Waypoint

A position — latitude and longitude — stored in a GPS or chartplotter and used as a step i…

Windward side

The side of the boat facing the wind.

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