Month: August 2020

Stern – Empty spaces

31st August 2020 – One thing I cannot afford is to have empty spaces aboard the Stern. It is a small ship and I want to get as much space as possible out of it. There is a lot of lost space around the water tank. I finished one corner. It took me most of the evening, but I’m happy with the result. 

I made the inspection hatches half the size on the bed. It is less heavy to lift them. I will still have an issue with the matras on top of it, but these are worries for later.

Stern – Building a bed

30th August 2020 – The day started badly. I hadn’t seen that much rain in such a short period.  I could only hope the Stern would not have to many leaks.  Once the rain stopped, I had to empty the small boat first. It was nearly sinking.  The Stern was fine, but I had a leak at the front. I put a bucket while dropping some silicone as a temporary measurement to prevent any more damage.  I unloaded the wood from the car and started working. 

The goal was to create a bed as big as possible, to have some storage and to make sure I could still enter the room. It took me hours and during the building process I got an idea what I wanted and how I wanted it. Access to the water tank was also needed.

Stern – Putting the watertank in position

29th August 2020 – A major job was getting the water tank in sleeping room. I had to break down a part of a wall and a door. I have to do it now before I finish that room. Also the tank needs to go since we are replacing the wheelhouse soon.  Lowering the tank was quick. It fitted nicely on the new build floor. I was a bit disappointed about the size; the Stern is very round and I could not fit it like I wanted. anyway, it is where it should be. 

In the evening, I had a drink wit a friend in the wheelhouse, the first time I’ve used the Stern as a place to invite friends. More occasions will follow!

Stad Rotterdam – A first visit

28th August 2020 – After seeing three ships, I called the yard at Franeker to know if this beurtschip was still for sale and if we could visit it since we were 30 minutes away. It was fine to them. We had a chat and a drink and we believe this ship is making a good chance for my neighbour.

 

We need to talk through a lot now. Like, are we going to lengthen the ship? Do we keep the engine, can we get a CVO on her, etc… 

Stern – Bedroom

23rd August 2020 – The bedroom needs to be finished first so I can put the watertank in position. The bow was still filled with insulation, so I had to move that first. After a lot of moving around, I could start working. In the evening I filled the holes of the nails with filler. Painting will be for another day.

 

Stern – Watertank

21st August 2020 – I drove to Holland to pick up a water tank for the Stern. I wanted a specific size, and I was happy where I bought them for the Hornblower years ago…

I need a specific size so it fits through the door, and underneath the bed, without causing stability issues on the ship. I asked a few people to measure how deep the ship will be after building a wheelhouse and having a filled up watertank. 100kgs means the ship lowers 1 centimetre.  I calculated the weight of the wheelhouse to be around 500 kgs and a filled up watertank 400 kgs including its own weight.  I cannot afford the ship to be another 10 centimetres deeper, so I have to start thinking about the weight since there is no furniture yet aboard and I still need to finish many things.

 

 

Stern – Bedroom walls

16th August 2020 – I finished the two bedroom walls. This was the last bit I could do without moving the insulation. Now I have to move it, but I have nowhere to store it at the moment…

There was some heavy rain, but the ship stayed dry. I also cleaned the wheelhouse with the idea of starting to replace it on Wednesday. Sadly enough plans have changed and now it is sheduled for September 11th.