Getting Sorted

No work on Trudy-Ann this past week. Over the last few months I have been getting increasingly irritated by having to shuffle round in a cluttered workshop and more often worked outside if the item was of any size, so I decided to bite the bullet. Well one week and several trips down the tip later things are starting to take shape. The table saw has been moved towards the back corner but it means that I can only cut 8x4 sheets of ply cross ways without moving the set up back to the middle. It is on wheels but it means lifting all the support legs so can be a bit of a pain. Now work can be carried out whatever the weather is like or what time of day it is.

I decided to treat myself to this for Christmas and Karen added a full set of blades from 6mm to 25mm and the wheel set.

It’s a bit of a beast and can cope with timber up to 12” thick but will also cut 8x4 ply lengthways yet the footprint is hardly more than the dinky little bandsaw I had before. Should be useful to turn blocks into boards and shaped items, can’t wait to try it out.

Cheer up the sun has just set on the shortest day of the year, now we can start looking forward to spring and to cheer us all up further, the world will have ended by this time next year so they say. Merry Christmas everyone.  

Pottering About

Stopped blogging for a while due to getting strange comments – usually with a link to another site flogging Viagra. I have reset some security protocols on older posts which will hopefully stop this nuisance.

Despite the weather deterioration I’m still managing to get a few jobs done between work parties and Christmas parties. Been down to the boat three or four times doing a few jobs to prepare for the new control panel which is still under construction. The interior of the boat now seems to be remaining dry despite the weather, the bottom plate under the sink and in the engine bay are still dry which I am taking to be a good sign.

Popped into Nottingham and got a 6ft of 1.5 by 6 inch ash board which I am converting into mouldings to edge the control panel and wheelhouse lining.

The existing panelling which has not been rotted by water ingress is blackening around the fixing screws as they rust, using stainless steel and brass should prevent this in future. On the visit to T-A today I measured up the water pipes into the Hurricane heater in the hopes that I can turn down some mahogany to make bungs to seal the pipes during removal to try and save the coolant in the heating system when the boiler is removed prior to repositioning. Not really surprised to find that it is only held in place by the earth strap. Disconnected the engine control cable and am a bit concerned to find two wires cut and taped back at the multi pin connector but will be unable to find if anything is amiss until I fit the new engine sensors and deluxe panel. New cross member fitted in front of the control panel to stop the narrower deck board dropping into the engine bay this is to accommodate the control desk being moved back for the new wheel and trip panel – I know – I keep adding jobs but at the end of the day the plan is to end up with something that I am happy with. In my own defence, many of the jobs added are in response to problems found.

Slowing Down for Winter

Party in Bedford last Saturday and had a great time, shame we had to leave early because of the distance. How many times have you been 49 Les???.

Still working on the control panel framework but with the weather getting colder it is taking glue and paint longer to go off, but I refuse just to assemble with screws and leave the internal woodwork with no protection at all. As it is getting made each section is getting two coats of bulkhead paint so in all as I can only paint one side at a time, with the longer drying time, it is taking four days to paint each item. Never the less I was down at T-A last Sunday trying the parts for size and bolting the brackets to the steelwork, cheating a bit as I was using some nifty self drilling/tapping bolts. Thanks to the new lighting I was at least able to get this job finished.

In the mean time I’ve not been totally idle as I’ve had a couple of days with the GCS. Firstly to return the kit to depot after the failed attempt to replace the top gates at lock 18 and scrub clearance on the towpath side of locks 13 to 15, this really is a beautiful part of the country and it has been great enjoying the outdoor life again after so many years of being stuck at a desk. Christmas shopping tomorrow but plan to drop in on the lads who will be beavering away to drop of some bits that have been in for sharpening. I’ll try and remember the camera – may even use it as an excuse to walk the dogs down there.

Seeing The Light

Been down at Woolsthorpe with the Grantham Canal Society lads for the last couple of days getting ready for the new gates at lock 18, but the news is not good. It would seem that BW have decided the paperwork submitted is not in keeping with their internal system so the work cannot go ahead. BU***R. It’s a pity the society weren’t advised when it was submitted so it could be changed. Looks like the work will take place next year now. On the plus side it kept me out the way while Karen painted the kitchen, Sox being the only casualty, ending up half off white after leaning against the wall.

The work on T-A continues slowly in the workshop with the framework for the control desk although it looks like I’ll have a few extra days at the marina next week. 

With the shortening days affecting the work I can do I’ve invested in some auxiliary lighting which will help the situation. They are both 240V so can be run from the shore supply if batteries and inverter are disconnected.

Hopefully these will help extend my work periods, just hope it doesn’t get too cold while the heating is disconnected, I’m guessing a patio heater in the wheelhouse would look silly.

Poor Light Stops Play

Fairly early start down at the boat today fitting the new bits and pieces. Did a bit of thinking and planning but the main event was remounting the steering pump and installing the new trip box.

Showing the new lower position for the wheel, and of course the trip switches will be a lot handier when the wiring is complete.

This is as it used to be after I had tidied up the original cats cradle.

I had hoped to be able to connect the panel to the battery bank but the light was getting too bad to work in the engine ‘ole, but at least we have steering now.

Time Flies

Must be the short days! Never mind in 30 days we will pass the shortest day and will start to look forward to spring again.

Anyway what’s been happening in this past week, well the isolation transformer arrived, nearly giving the delivery driver a hernia – I did offer to bring it in with the sack barrow but no he insisted it could be carried.

It will fit between the engine bearers when I reposition the Hurricane heater to a location where it can be accessed for servicing, to that end I have cut a piece of 6mm steel sheet to bolt on to the top of the engine bearer. To make life easier during the rewire I am thinking of draining down all the systems for winter and removing the boiler altogether.

The new bracket to bolt the steering pump onto the bulkhead is made (no more glue) as well as the new trip switch box.

For ease of access the front hinges down to get at the wiring being held closed by two allen bolts.

It is to be mounted on the cabin bulkhead below the wheel and form part of the control panel but will be recessed to avoid accidental operation, once that’s done then the rewiring can start in earnest. The bilge pump will be wired independently – not though the panel as it is now.

The frame work for the control panel is coming along and I am now starting to replace the cheap shuttering pattern with exterior grade ply. Tending to waste time running between home and boat measuring up and testing the fit, what I need is an articulated lorry with the workshop in the back.

Been into Nottingham for some ash faced ply and some ash planking that can be used to make good the removed panelling in the main cabin and wheelhouse

Fruit trees have been pruned and some right royal bonfires have been had, other than that not a lot happening. 

A Quiet Week

Not much to say about this past week. Been down to T-A a couple of times to measure up the control panel templates, it’s times like this when you wish you had the boat parked on the drive, but things are slowly taking shape. The control desk will be substantially altered when finished so at the moment the framework is being run up in cheap shuttering to make sure everything fits. The trip switch box I mentioned last time had been completed but I wasn’t satisfied with the result so it’s back to being just an open box at present – can’t win them all.

Reading the Waiouru blog, Tom mentioned the flush fitting mains shoreline sockets on Ufton – what a good idea – so now I am the proud owner of two in beige which will hopefully blend with the cream paintwork either side of the wheelhouse. While on the Aquafax website I also ordered a galvanic isolator which set me to thinking (dangerous and expensive) and in the end I have ordered an isolation transformer from Airlink. Talk about over-kill but then if I’m rewiring the boat I may as well make a proper job of it, eh.

In the main this week has been in the garden pruning fruit trees and clearing leaves. The leaves are being composted and the fruit tree cuttings along with the bean vines are satisfying my latent urge for pyromania. Still plenty of apples and pears on the trees which are still nice and firm – it sure has been a good year for fruit. The mice have moved into their winter moorings in the middle shed so now several sacks of potatoes are hanging precariously from the rafters, just hope the don’t chew the freezer wiring out of spite.

It is going to be a busy couple of weeks down on the Grantham canal as the new gates for Woolsthorpe Top Lock are being installed towards the end of the month so it is all hands to the pumps to get the site ready for the contractors and muggings has agreed to be available for a few days, hope I can get some shots of the gates going in.

Back to Basics

Well I said in my last blog that something would turn up – and it did, almost literally.

I decided to make a boss to cover the hydraulic steering pump as the new wheel is flat rather than dished and will have to be moved out to clear the desk. Took more time to clear stuff away from the lathe than it did to turn down a bit of sapele, the hole is for the oil filler cap. Also finished off the box which will take the trip panel – nothing fancy just dowelled joints and access holes rounded with a router.

 Saturday was a day off for a bit of retail therapy being Karen’s birthday, but we still remember the birthday two years ago when we made a failed attempt to get home in T-A. She boiled up even before we got to the water point at Great Haywood (T-A not Karen) because the cooling system had been connected back to front.

Today was spent clearing the panelling from the cabin bulkhead to get at the wiring and the last bits of detritus from the control desk. No shortage of firewood this year J

Thinking of repositioning the microwave against the outside wall as most seem to open from the right and where it was meant working round the door. (See pic in previous blog entry)

The steelwork was rubbed down and given a coat of paint before departure as I’d scraped off a fair bit of paint removing all the glue that held the battens and steering in place. Just leaves it to remove the panelling from under the gunnels to get at the wiring, at least the major part of destructive work is over on this part of the project The next destructive task will be to lift the warped flooring but that can wait for now.

Helpful People

One of the minor items spotted in the survey was that there was no cover over the screws on the morse control – it just never got fitted, so while the control panel is under reconstruction I thought I would try and get one.

After looking on the Uniflex web site I was starting to think I may have to buy a whole new unit. I had the part number but no listed dealers. On the off chance I rang Aquafax on Monday. Yes we stock them says they and a jiffy bag dropped on the mat first thing this morning with the appropriate part. Certainly a lot cheaper than buying the whole item.

Thinking about it, every person or firm I have had dealings with in the boating world (Bar one of course) have been civil, efficient, prompt as well as ready to proffer advice and support. So to all those people a big thank you.

Back to today and down at T-A with some square drive bits to remove the few Kreg screws holding the last remnants of control panel in place. Also started to remove some of the rotted panelling around the doors – we still seem to be dry so keeping fingers crossed. Emptied out the cupboards and removed the microwave ready to remove the panelling to get at the wiring. Looking to enlarge the shelves when it goes back up.

Old picture taken during the build.

Yesterday found me down at my favourite local wood yard picking up some cheap ply to make the templates for the new control desk, took them down today but no serious work done before light stopped play.

Back in the workshop and started making the case to mount the trip switch panel using some of the wood from the skylight – waste not want not.

Nothing planned for tomorrow but something will turn up - it always does. Bored? - Not me!

Catching Up

Can’t believe it’s been six days since I last blogged. Tuesday and Wednesday found me down at T-A working on the weatherboards. The doors are now complete but I have not managed to do the door frame surrounds to cover the gap between steelwork and woodwork on the off side. That may have to wait until we are moored up on that side, but both doors and frames have had an extra coat of varnish. I was wrong about the doors being only screwed and glued butt joints – there wasn’t any glue, but I think there may be recoverable wood to use in the wheelhouse framework.

If the idea was that the glass could be replaced by unscrewing the frame, then this failed because several of the screws had rusted and seized in. Makes me aware that I am doing the right thing by using stainless steel or brass.

Thursday was spent on the GCS work boat Centauri clearing rubbish, good fun but smelly work.

Down to T-A on Friday with Karen to sheet up for the winter as the wheelhouse cover stitching has split on the corners and has a tendency to lift. Very pleased to find little or no water in the wheelhouse after the rain, what water that was there looked as though it had dripped off the door when opened.

Back down on Saturday to measure up for the new woodwork but got carried away and also dismantled the control desk which came home with me. Nearly in trouble as I had forgotten we were out partying later.

Today has been spent on various designs and getting some of the bits ready. The old tachometer is now connected into the new panel and the radio connectors have been modified for use on the boat.

A Long Day

Had a full day on T-A today, now I’m looking like a boiled shrimp, after a real hot bath to sooth my aching knees. Spent all morning finishing off the battery wiring, so it was spent kneeling on the base plate. Thought about taking up religion – could have done with a hassock. Anyway enough of the sob story, the electrics are reconnected and the new battery bank is charging away, it’s been a while since we have had all the facilities on board. Still have to replace all the wiring from the distribution panel, but, yes you’ve guessed it we have a new one of those as well as a larger negative bus bar , but at least the engine hole is done.

Also got the new doors fitted but have not yet filed all the weather strips, plan to do that tomorrow if the rudder indicator delivery is early enough. High time Karen retired so she can be at home for these duties. (Only kidding dear)

Think I may apply a coat of a tinted varnish to the door frames to bring the colour up a bit but I haven’t ruled out replacing them as well.

Now the doors are fitted with 5 lever deadlocks to replace the originals. I had asked to be provided with any spare keys but Kelly said they had none, but strangely enough a few weeks before Ben boasted that he had a box with a set of keys for every boat he had built. Now who should we believe? That was the main reason for beefing up the security on the flimsy hatch cover.

If I have time tomorrow I plan to carry out a post mortem on the old doors to see if any of the wood can be reused.

Really must get round to more jobs round the house, Karen’s done all the work in the garden lately and I think another day on the GCS work boat is coming up shortly.

A Short Visit

Only had time for a couple of hours on T-A today, so decided to make a start on running the main battery leads. I awoke early this morning and it’s strange how your mind turns things over, I had a feeling that there was something was not quite right with the battery leads I had been making up. Spent the morning checking things out and realised that the live feed for the trip switches was coming from the wrong side of the master switch. i.e. the battery was still connected with the switch out. So this afternoon it was down to the boat firstly to install the new troughing between the engine bearers and then the leads before starting to link up the batteries repositioning the trip panel feed as I did so.

You may remember this.

Well it now looks like this

There are still wires to be re run but they will be done when the wiring is replaced, then a lid will be fitted to make it safe to walk on. Got a few battery links on but was beaten by the loss of light as there are no electrics on the boat at the moment.

Took one of the tarnished vent trims out of the roof lining, to see if the new one would fit, and found one of the ceiling light wires wrapped in insulation tape. With the tape off it was apparent that the wire had been caught by the hole cutter and stripped. Perhaps this rewire is a blessing in disguise.

In the previous post I was wondering if I were being finicky but now I’d rather think of it as attention to detail which may save future problems.

Slow Progress

But progress none the less.

Lost a couple of days work this week because Gerry and Chris came to repair the workshop roof where the gable end gullies had been leaking. It certainly needed doing and I’m glad to have this fixed before the winter weather arrives.

As the new cabling had arrived I started making up the new battery cables, ready to connect in the new battery bank and the main feeds from the engine. The first question was how to strip cable this size without damaging the individual wires. Had the inspiration of using a small pipe cutter and it worked a treat – not a single strand was harmed during the making of these leads. Just work it round as you would do on a copper pipe and when nearly through back off a turn and pull.

To fix the cable terminals I opted for a beast of a crimping tool but it makes a good solid job and is heavy enough to sit on the work top to enable it to be used one handed while you line up the work with the other.

Old and new. The original domestic battery feed from the engine case alongside its replacement. The terminals on the engine are 8mm as are the battery terminals the only 10mm terminals are on the battery isolation switches. Finicky I know but I like to know things are right, after all it’s easier to do right in the first place than try and sort it out later.

Out of interest I took the insulation tape off the original to compare the crimp, not having used this tool before.

Oops. Professional over amateur.

Only one trip down to the boat since the last blog entry but the cabin bilge is still dry. Took the new door bottoms with to line up the new hinges as I have decided 4” hinges would be better because the all the weight of the door is taken by the bottom half. New rebates cut and started removing some of the strip fitted to try and seal the door frame which I had lined up to the old warped doors. Made new battens for the door frame today, along with some bits of scrap to fill in the gaps with the wheelhouse sides until the new wheelhouse is made.

The tops of the new door tops are 1” narrower than the old so that they don’t catch the door frame when being opened in the down position. Once the doors are complete they will be the reference point to measure up for the rest of the wheelhouse wood work.

Rudder indicator ordered and should arrive next week, that will complete the instrumentation collection, so along with everything else I should be able to start constructing the new control panel over the winter months. Really must get round to repositioning the rudder hydraulics, building the skylight, lifting the saloon floor, adding more ballast, fix the horn, scrape the rust off the fuel tanks, sorting the mast, fitting the TV and video, plane down the interior cupboard/wardrobe/bathroom/bedroom doors to fit – I know, slacking again.

Nearly There

Still working away on the doors, but it’s taking a bit longer than expected. Only being able to varnish one side at a time is slowing the process down but I am determined not to cut corners. The doors are all assembled now and just need the final coat.

Spot the deliberate mistake.

The weather boards are mahogany. Didn’t realise until I applied the varnish and showed the grain up, too late now to worry about, they’ll probably out last the doors.

Note Sox lying with nose under the gate watching the world go by, wondering if there is any chance of a walk.

All the door furniture in place, tops up.

Tops down.

My nice wide elbow rest which has the added advantage of making the door top rigid when clamped down rather than flapping about.

And the inside, Perspex is held in by beading this time for ease of replacement, rubbed down ready for the last coat.

The ordered cable should arrive early this week along with a heavy duty crimping tool for the battery terminals. Also ordered  a job lot of red and black heat shrink tubing from RS components which should arrive on Monday.

The sheds are filling up with boxes and bags ready for start of work, I do believe Christmas has come early.

Vanishing and sanding

Not much been happening lately that justifies a blog entry in its own right. Down at the boat a couple of times in the past week and the cabin bilge is now dry as a bone even after the rain we have had. The Starboard door has been offered up and fits a treat. Both doors and tops have had all the recesses for locks catches and hinges cut out and are now in the process of being thoroughly varnished before all the door furniture is fitted.

Each item is having 3 coats of varnish before assembly and will then be a final coat just to seal everything in. (possibly 2 if the weather holds) I don’t want the wood turning grey where the varnish has been missed as at present.

Clearing up after a sanding session I had to wonder if I’d got enough sanders - not to mention the final rub down is by hand.

Also spent a couple of days down at Woolsthorpe depot tidying up ready for the GCS discovery day. Popped down on Sunday whilst waiting for the varnish to dry yet again and was surprised by the number of people there. The boat trips were fully booked and there were plenty of activities for both kids and adults. Had a quick coffee and bought a good wide chisel that will be useful when cutting hinge rebates.

Going through the BMEA code of practice if found the following:-

3.11.3

An a.c. circuit shall not be contained in the same wiring system as a d.c. circuit,

unless one of the following methods of separation is used.

a) For a multicore cable or cord, the cores of the a.c. circuit are separated from the cores of

the d.c. circuit by an earthed metal screen of equivalent current-carrying capacity to that

of the largest core of the a.c. circuit.

b) The cables are insulated for their system voltage and installed in a separate compartment

of a cable ducting or trunking system.

c) The cables are installed on a tray or ladder where physical separation is provided by a

partition.

d) A separate conduit, sheathing or trunking system is used.

e) The a.c. and d.c. conductors are fixed directly to a surface and separated by at

least 100 mm.

It could be argued that using ‘arctic blue’ which is basically a flex complies with part d) but I am inclined to think it falls foul of part a). Anyway me being me and not wanting to fall foul of any regulation and to know in my own mind that everything is as safe as it can be, I have purchased 30m of flexible conduit, junction boxes, mountings etc. to run the 240V cable alongside the 12V and not all in the same loom as it is now.

Spent a few evenings working out what cable sizes I need for each item in the rewiring rather than just get a job lot of 65/30 (4.5mm) and also decided to upgrade the battery leads to 50mm as opposed to 35mm, that was a pain in the pocket because apart from the engine there is the bow thruster and winch to replace but they have got to go because they are all blue and brown as well. All cables ordered in red and black, with orange white and purple being used for gauge sensors.

It's Too Hot!

Only kidding.

Like everybody else I’m making the most of this warm spell. Been down to the boat twice since the bilge was pumped out and each time there has been another couple of gallons to remove with the mop. This must mean that the ends of the floor bearers are pretty well clogged with rubbish and the water is just seeping through. No rain to speak of lately so don’t think it is fresh. Checked under the bed at the hatch I had cut some months ago and confirmed that the hull is dry at this point but it smells a bit musty so have left the hatch off but being basically dry would indicate that there is no leak from the water tank forward. Think I’ll install a fan in the bow and duct it under the decking. I’ve got plenty of old computer case fans and will have to add that into the loom when I get round to the wiring.

I have decided the priority is to get the boat as watertight as possible before winter so am concentrating on the wheelhouse doors where most of the water comes in now, since removing the skylight. Trimmed the port door down to measurements and took it to the boat to try for size and it fits fine, just got to do the rebates for hinges and lock. Starboard door next. Door tops have been given their first coat of varnish and are looking good. Not much to show at present but I think it’s one of those times when everything will come together in a rush.

Even so I found time to visit Newark Air Museum with some old work colleagues and luckily for us the Vulcan was open for viewing – all I can say is the five aircrew must have got on well together.

Thanks Al it was a grand day out and have a long and pleasant retirement.

Woodwork and Other Things

While I am waiting for the BMEA codes of practice to arrive there’s no point in being idle. Set to designing and making the tops for the wheelhouse doors. The plan is to reduce the height of the wheelhouse by about 5” because at the moment there is loads of headroom and to my eye it looks out of proportion and too flimsy. Also at the moment if any of the Perspex gets damaged the only way to replace it is to dismantle the framework.

Made the new door tops shorter  and slightly heavier in the wood work but the reduction in height should balance out the overall weight. These will set the height for the new wheelhouse. I also made the tops of the window with a slight arch so that they are in keeping with the style of boat and main cabin windows. At the moment the framework has only just been assembled so there is plenty more to do in the way of sanding and varnishing. Pespex ordered online from Screwfix just before starting this blog entry.

The edges are rebated to marry with the wheelhouse sides when built, you can just make it out in the photo, the reverse side (inside) is rebated to take 10mm beading to hold the Perspex. The top bar stands out by 8mm to anchor the canopy and hold it away from the woodwork. The bottom bar has a lip on the reverse which reflects the top of the door bottom so that when folded down it will provide me with a 6” wide ledge to lean on or gongoozle from. Not a single screw used in the construction so far but of course they will be used for the hinges and to hold the beading in place, Never realised how much thinking can go into a simple frame!

Spent last Thursday down at Woolsthorpe helping to tidy up the old BW depot with some other chaps from GCS, left plenty more to do for the others coming on Saturday. It’s all in preparation for a discovery day there on 9^th of October, looks like there should be quite a bit happening. http://www.granthamcanal.com/index.htm

Ben Harp Strikes Again

Put quite a lot of feelers out to see if the wiring colour coding on Trudy-Ann was acceptable. Well, I’ve had it confirmed by British Marine Electrics Association that the wiring does not comply with regulations. At this stage all I have done is to order an interactive copy of BMEA codes of practice from the British Marine Federation but it certainly looks like I am going to have to rip out all of it and replace the 12V wiring throughout the boat, possibly rerunning the 240v circuits as it is all bunched up together.

As I understand it, 12V wiring should have a black negative though it seems there can be variations to the positive, the norm is to have red as the positive at least as far as the controlling switch and then the appropriate colour code to the lamp / motor etc. may be used (but no colours used in the 240V system) with a black return wire. If I have got this information round my neck feel free to correct me. Also the 240V system should be kept separate from the 12V. None of this is happening as you can see from the picture.

I asked the question during the build and was told this was the wiring code that applied. This has now been shown to be incorrect but it means that he has probably wired other boats to this standard.

Bilge Pumped Out

Down working on the boat for couple of days since the last blog entry. Cut a hole in the cupboard floor nearest the engine bulkhead and pumped out the water in the bilge as far as I could with an old Hippo pump meant for topping up the fish pond.

For cutting panels out in awkward spaces you can not beat this type of saw.

The last 8 gallons was removed by mopping and the bilge looked much drier.

We will have to see if it stays like this as there is so much rubbish down there it may have blocked the vent spaces in the floor bearers.

In the engine bay the holes through the engine bearers have been fitted with grommets, the brackets fitted which will take the box conduit to support the cables and protect them from damage when working around the engine.

The batteries have been installed in the battery box but not connected in. It has come to light that colour coding of the boat is suspect as both 12V and 240V use brown and blue as positive and negative. I can see the sense in this argument and have been trying to get it confirmed. As of yet all I have found is that ISO 10133 states that negative shall be black or yellow except if black is also used in the 240V system when it must be yellow. So it looks as though the whole boat may have to be rewired, but before ripping everything out I want to be as certain as possible. If anybody knows the appropriate legislation I can refer to please let me know.

On a lighter note – had a pleasant day out at Foxton on Sunday watching the Vikings getting beaten up by the local kiddies before a wander round the museum. Pity we couldn’t get here by water. To cap it all had a very pleasant supper with friends Tony and Les.

Jobs Done - Jobs To Do

A bit more done on Trudy-Ann, the battery box has now been lined and painted, just the front to refit after the batteries are installed.

Slapped a bit of paint round the holes I have just cut to carry the main battery feeds through the engine bearers.

Not a pretty bit of painting but it’s only to protect the bare metal (Which is more than the builder could manage as any holes drilled have been just left to rust) and I just happened to have a brush handy. The bearers are in two parts so the hole has been stepped to accommodate the grommet better as the total thickness is some 16mm.

Whilst I’m down there daubing away I’m looking at this cats cradle and thinking if the jointing is anything like I have found so far I will all have to come out and be redone. Perhaps try and find out whats's what and add a few labels.

While I am at it I think I will move the central heating room sensor from the outside of the cabinet and site it in the living area. After all isn’t that where it should be?

In the galley area the splashback has been modified to vent the fridge from behind and all that is left is to seal it to the worktop.

A hole has been cut in the floor at the back of the fridge space to fit another vent space but in doing so I find at least an inch of water in the bilge sloshing about and all the while various pieces of flotsam and jetsam floating in and out of view, some of it quite large. I wonder now if it was to stop me seeing all the rubbish under the decking that no bilge access was provided.

No point in plating this hole until the water has been pumped out. Some wetness had been expected but not to this extent, if as I suspect it will be the same as far as the skylight which had been leaking right from the start until it was sheeted down, there could be up to half a tonne of water washing about under there. It confirms my thoughts that all the flooring will have to come up between bathroom and engine bulkhead. Get it dried out, Waxoyled and replace the water with fixed ballast.

Sitting there at finish of work taking a breather, enjoying the evening, before returning home I couldn’t help thinking that boating is a relaxing way of life, and some waste of space toe rag isn’t going to spoil it.

I wonder if he will show his face at Foxton this week-end?