29th September 2017 – I finally started on the Watergeus. Yesterday we did some small repairs, made the anchor winch turn and removed some old fuel pipes. Seems simple, but it did take a lot of time.
Today, I finished removing the old wires from the wheelhouse and engine room.
29th September 2017 – A job I was hating was removing the old wiring. I had to check every wire there was. No matter how carefully I was, the light went out in the engine room anyway.
28th September 2017 – There is a lot of pitting on deck. It has been there before I bought her, but it is hard to maintain and I believed the metal was weak underneath. While chipping, we discovered it was rotten. Some parts on deck have been doubled where it was the worst. Other parts will be done at a later stage since I ran out of metal. Most of my spare parts are still on Tordino.
Between the engine room and the storage unit used to be a bulkhead. It was removed when the Watergeus became a water supply ship. In February, I rebuild most of the bulkhead. The bottom plate had to be done, but there were some pipes running through from an old fuel tank. We disconnected the fuel tank, so I can easily remove the fuel pipes and the old fuel pump.
In the afternoon, we managed to get the anchor winch running again. She was stuck. After removing the brakes and spraying a lot of wd40, she started turning…
I made two holes in the wheelhouse for the wiring. To prevent rain from coming in, I welded two rvs pipes. Some brackets for the lights were mounted and the day was over…
Some friends moored alongside late in the evening, we had a drink and time to close the day!
26th September 2017 – While I was in Ghent, i took some time to walk along the ‘Oude Dokken’ and take some pictures. A lot of these ships have changed since they moved to the other side. It is certainly becoming a nice area to live!
18th September 2017 – Found some time again to update the blog. A lot if things are supposed to be happening in the near future, mainly on the Watergeus again. I’m making her ready for the next survey. I would like to get an European Certificate (CVO) for her.
At this moment, I’m still recovering from Sunday 10th where there was a major event aboard Tordino. Nearly 700 people came to my ship in Beernem for an exhibition about the history of the Canal and the Inland waterways.
17th September 2017 – At least one day where I didn’t have to work. I went to the Scheldefeesten in Baasrode and visited the museum on the old shipyard.
14th September 2017 – One of the items on my wish list was an old back accommodation from a barge. There were four spits barges at the scrapyard in Hoboken. I managed to buy one of the interiors. It took me all day to get it out with the two of us. It is now in storage and should be one of the main items on Museumschip Tordino in the near future.
10th September 2017 – More information will follow.
30rd August 2017 – Just driving up and down with some more stuff. I think one of the most annoying things during the conversion of a ship is getting stuff aboard.
30th August 2017 – Found some time again to update this site. It has been a few months since the last update. I have been working nearly every day on Tordino to get her ready for the 10th September 2017. There will be an exhibition about the history of Inland shipping.
27th August 2017 – Like I already mentioned earlier, besides working on the ship, I also need to take care of the content for the exhibition. I bought a few old photo albums in Sas van Gent, not far from where I’ve lived on the Watergeus. The seller also had the letters DOUANE from the customs office in Zelzate. They will look good aboard Tordino.
22nd August 2017 – I was surprised to see what I’ve done in four hours of work. Not much. I’m hanging the old tools on wooden panels. It takes much more time then expected. Just hope to be ready on time for the 10th September 2017. Also realized I have to build a work bench to show some of my tools.
26th August 2017 – Finishing and hanging frames
25th August 2017 – Work table and smaller things
23rd August 2017 – Building work bench