22nd December 2007 – I woke up this morning. A pusher was sailing in the canal I was moored. I heard some nice but decided to sleep a bit longer. When I woke up, I noticed the nice. A thin coat of ice was over the water. Since there was no wind last night, the canal was frozen. It must have been much colder then last night. Since I left my both fires on I never noticed any difference.
It is not recommended to start the engine while it is so cold. Therefore I put a heater and a halogen light next to the engine. After a few hours I ran the engine for an hour, a bit in reverse (forward is to risky with my neighbour so close). When everything was hot, I switched the engine of and closed the engine. Enough for this month!
The I went over to my neighbour to start her engine, but with no success. Probably the batteries or her charger don’t work properly. You hear the starter motor running once and then it is over. Anyway since that didn’t work, there was also the water issue that needed solving. The hose was in the grass in the sun and yes the ice melted. Both of us took water, so we are safe for the rest of the winter, well I am. I have around 2000 liters storage, she has around 800 liters.
They say tomorrow will be above 6°C, so I can continue putting oil on the roof of my cargo hold.