Month: January 2017

Tordino – Welding

22nd January 2017 – Another day of welding. I wasn’t feeling right and it was the coldest night so fare with minus six degrees. By the end of the day I was totally broken, but good progress was made. I’m happy!

Tordino – Working on the entrance

21st January 2017  Two plates needed some adjustment since one of the major supports of the den is sticking out. The other sheets were the right size. They were quickly in position so I could weld them together.

When my father arrived, I used him as a weight to stand on the sheets while I was welding underneath. The sheets need to be welded to the ribs before they are welded to each other.

 

Tordino – Metal sheets

20th January 2017 – I went to pick up some metal in the early morning. When I ordered it earlier this week, I asked them to cut the supports for the roof in two pieces since I can’t transport them in their full length. I had to do the job myself, so I lost more then one hour. The sheets of metal were loaded with a forklift.

A friend helped me mounting the supports. They were not that heavy, but not practicable to handle and move. We put the sheets of metal on a pile on the ribs and both of us went home.

Tordino – Building a proper entrance

17th January 2017 – The idea to make a descent entrance to the hold is coming closer. I drew a few plans, but this evening, I measured the hold. She was not that high as expected. I changed my plans and the entrance will come near the living accommodation instead of in the middle of the hold. Knowing myself, there is a chance that even this plan will change again in the future…

Tordino – Collecting stuff

15th January 2017 – At the shipyard in Rupelmonde are some friends of mine. They are breaking down a houseboat to rebuild it later this year. The interior is not that valuable, but some pieces are nice as decoration. The bedroom doors come from an old ship, just like the light fittings. I went to collect them. They are going to be used in the hold as entrance doors for the exhibition boxes.

High water

14th January 2017 – There was heavy wind last night and a lot of rain. The barrier in Beernem was closed and water was high in Bruges. Because of the high tide and the wind, several of our ships got stuck on land when the water lowered. I decided to stay the night in Bruges.

Tordino – Decorating the back accommodation

13th January 2017 – I’m a great fan of old furniture and reusing it. There are only a few things I do buy new. A sofa is one them. I needed a sofa that could fit through the door of the wheelhouse so I went to Ikea.

Instead of buying a sofa, I bought three small ones and a carpet. In the evening, I started mounting the furniture and discovered Ikea is now giving spanners for mounting the furniture. I always wanted to have one room with old colonial decoration.

Since the Tordino is not becoming a houseboat and I don’t have intentions of creating one in the near future, the living space will be decorated with my African stuff.

Just home!

8th January 2017 – Just home after a heavy week of boating! I need to update this blog from November till now and a lot of events took place! So it might take a while. What happened last month? I swapped the Aquarel for the Tordino.

Tordino – Day 1: from Leeuwarden to Vreeswijk

4th January 2017 – Just a few pictures from the first part of the journey:

 

 

 

This is also the day where I lost several baskets for my ropes, a gangway, ropes and much more. There was 8 Beaufort wind on the IJselmeer and 9 Beaufort wind on the Markermeer.  The power supply of the lorry for the hatches broke and felt in the water, causing the generator to stop working. A serious nightmare!  Thanks to a skipper that had to be home because he had an argument with his wife.

Tordino – Arriving late at the CMS shipyard in Leeuwarden

3rd January 2017 – We arrived late in the evening aboard the Tordino. After a good meal and a few drinks we all went to bed, to wake up, a little later when another ship hit us. Earlier that day, the yard had launched a ship, but they forgot to put ropes around her so she wouldn’t drift. Besides hitting our ship, and probably a few more on her way, she took a little tjalk with her as well…

She was stopped at the end of the canal, when she became stuck, bow to stern between other ships. I just hoped they would tow her away so we could leave the next day. One thing is for sure, they are amateurs!