31st December 2019 – I started putting t&g around the supports. Another beam was added to one of the supports to make it stronger. The Ikea cabinets were put together and integrated in the supports. The whole middle section is getting into shape.
Month: December 2019
30th December 2019 – I just bought another ship. I have been looking twice at the ship and I don’t know why I just bought. It had a good running engine and that’s about the only positive element. Maybe the price? Or just the idea to have something to do in the future? I don’t know…
29th December 2019 – I called the owner and said I wanted to see the inside of the ship. He started the engine and it was running. Great to convince desperate people, but we had no idea where to look first. The bottom has so many pipes and fittings sticking out. It is like a ticking time bomb. The size is good, I can stand up in the hold, but there is not much space left. A project to do? I don’t know…
28th December 2019 – With all my tools in position and the museum stuff covered with plastic, I could finally start finishing the supports for the ceiling. I worked with t&g to finish the construction, but time wasn’t on my side. I lost a few hours in the morning moving the anchor winch to a different location. This heavy piece of metal weights around 600kgs.
25th December 2019 – Recently, an acquaintance contacted me about a yacht in Ghent. His son has passed away and the ship needs to go. It was a 8.5 meters motor yacht with work on the outside and inside. I went to Ghent and had a look. The boat isn’t looking that great at all. After ten minutes, I drove to some friends and forgot about it.
23rd December 2019 – In the morning we went to pick up a diesel heater for the Watergeus, a young model, perfect for my central heating. Before we could lower it in the hold, I had to remove the old ballast tank. In 2007 we welded a ballast tank, but it had been used one time. Ii was taking so much space, we now removed it.
At lunch time, two additional friends came to unload the heater and lower it into the hold. Everything went well. Sadly enough at the last stage, lowering it into the hold, the rope broke and the heater felt down the hatch on the floor. So no heating in the next couple of weeks. No one to blame, a sad accident…
21st December 2019 – My friends came back from the yard. Since I was on standby for my work, I couldn’t join for the trip. At the lock in Bruges, I got aboard and jumped off a little further where they stayed for the night.
21st December 2019 – I’ve started cleaning out the storage space. It will be used for the central heating. The second part will become a clean room, probably for restoring my objects for the museum. This hold has been used since I own the boat for putting away tools and spare parts. You can imagine how much stuff was stored in this room. Even my old tins of paint from the start were still there. I filled up a van with rubbish…
The room is now empty and ready for cutting out the ballast tank.
Many boats used to have a small cabin between the wheelhouse and the cargo hold. After the war most of these cabins were removed to create a bigger cargo hold. A few boats still have it, most of them house boats…
A coal cabin could be used as an entrance to the cargo hold. Then it remains on the boat and has a functional use when living on the boat.
A coal cabin in detail
The following pictures were taken aboard the spits Reginald. This boat, built in 1927, is still sailing commercially.
15th December 2019 – At five o’clock in the morning, they lowered the ship in the water. There was a lot of wind, but everything went well until we were halfway between the slipway and the pontoon of the yard. The beunkoeler (cooling unit of the engine and part of the hull of the ship). Sadly enough there was no more time left to dry-dock the ship again. The tide was getting out, so we had to wait until the evening to pull us back in.
During the day, we kept the pump going. There was nothing else to do. I took some pictures at the yard to keep myself busy….
In the evening we dry-docked the ship with assistance of a tug from the yard. Repairs will be for another day.
14th December 2019 – The bedroom was finished, the bathroom continued and in the hold, both beams were connected to each other. Another support was build.
10th December 2019 – I quickly went to see the Fabuleux Destin at the yard. I was to late to see the yard people working. I don’t know what it exaclty is with this yard, but it is one I like coming to. I have been there so many times….
It was to dark to take any decent pictures….
8th December 2019 – We left in Merelbeke in the early morning. It was dark and wet. Around six hours later, we moored alongside a platform at the yard. A successful journey. The ship will be drydocked tomorrow. It was busy at the yard.
6th December 2019 – I joined the Fabuleux Destin on their jouney to the yard. I got aboard in Bruges and left in Beernem. Tomorrow the journey continues to Merelbeke. I will not be joining that part.
5th December 2019 – The last of a three day training. Today we went to the MAS in Antwerp. It was amazing to see how big their collection is.