STENSON FOR PAINTING

Last weekend we (my trusty Dad & me) moved Aqua Vita from Kingfisher Narrowboat’s base at Trent Lock up to the MCC boatyard at Stenson for painting. I’d planned that the journey should take around 5 hours but I hadn’t taken into account the plummenting temperatures! We arrived to find over 1″ thick layer of ice cocooning the boat onto the mooring! We couldn’t even push the boat out and off the bank to turn her around. In the end I had to slowly creep forwards and backwards to crack and loosen the ice to create enough space to manoeuvre the boat into the winding hole immediately in front of dockyard. An hour later and we’d managed to carefully turn the boat without causing any ice damage to the other boats moored nearby. It’s actually quite satisfying to be the first to break through the ice and hear it crunch and crack, definitely worth a couple of coats of blacking!!

We finally managed to get onto the river to head up towards Sawley and the Trent & Mersey canal. Although cold it was a beautiful crisp and clear day with bright blue skys – a perfect winter cruising day.

We timed our arrival at Sawley to perfection with a narrowboat just coming out of the lock as we arrived.

Above: superb moorings at Crockers Marina just below Shardlow.

The Clock Warehouse at Shardlow where the boat was lowered into the water just before Christmas.

Above: Just below Weston on Trent the owner of the 40ft boat in front thought that he’d be able to turn his boat around without the help of a winding hole…….needless to say he managed to free the boat twenty minutes later with a couple of barge poles – but not in the direction he’d hoped. Shortly after freeing the boat he promptly went aground again, apologised and waved us through – why is it that when you muck up there’s always an audience happy to watch you make a complete prat of yourself but when you perform a superb feat of helsmanship there’s not a single sole around! Anyway he ended up sharing Weston lock with us and then followed behind for another mile or so until the next winding hole. I think the lesson was learnt….well until next time.

About six and half hours later we finally arrived at Stenson where my Mum picked us up to collect my car from Trent Lock. The boat will take about three weeks to paint but I’m hoping that i’ll be able to get access to her over that time to carry on with the ‘To Do’ list. But for the time being I’ve managed to have a few days off this week as it’s half term and I’ve been looking after the Kids – and Jane who’s been knocked for six by a dreadful flu type bug. But hopefully we’ll be back up to speed next week ready for the final push!

Justin.

…AND ON WITH THE BATHROOM

I’m always extra cautious when it comes to fitting out the shower, it’s definately a belt & braces job! With up to six passengers on board throughout the whole season the shower gets a fair bit of use and therefore it’s important that it’s water tight. I always use an alcove shower tray with three upstands, this prevents the water slipping back over the rear or sides of the tray should any sealant fail.

I then clad the walls of the alcove with Aquapanel which is a cement based waterproof board, so if water does penetrate through the shower panels (below) the wood work behind will be protected from water damage or rot.

On top of the Aquapanel is placed a decorative shower panel cut to size and sealed in place.

And finally the thermostatic bar shower and pivot door is added. Now it just needs testing!

As the shower tray is situated below the outside waterline, the waste water has to be pumped up and out over board. The waste pump opposite is positioned in the cupboard next to the shower cubicle. The pipe disappearing under the floor is connected to the tray waste outlet, once the pump is turned on, the water is sucked and then pumped up and out into the canal through the waste outlet welded into the side of the boat. The pump is covered over with wood to create useable cupboard space, this is where the vaccum cleaner will be located!

Empty space opposite the shower ready for the sink and toilet to be located. The small pipe in the boat side is the waste outlet for the bathroom sink.

Sink is built and fixed in place.

Starting on the installation of the loo. The loo is a top of the range macerator type and is very similar in style and appearance to a domestic toilet. The toilet, as it name suggests, macerates the waste and pumps into a storage tank. The hole in the bulkhead is where the pipes connect to the tank and water supply. When the tank is full (indicated by a red light on the flush panel) it’s ‘pumped out’ at designated ‘Pump Outs’ stations which are in most marinas. The charge for this is around £15 but includes a member of staff to carry out the task for you! Apologies if you’re eating whilst reading this, but i like to be informative!!

Toilet in position and electronic flush panel installed in the side of the basin unit.

Rear of the toilet (& under the double bed). Large black pipe at the base of the photo is the waste pipe that connects into the large steel tank. The clear hose just above is the water inlet pipe for fresh flushing water – if you follow this back you can just make out the solenoid valve that controls the amount of water let into the bowl. The black wire in the centre of the photo connects the flush panel together with the power supply, macerator pump, toilet tank sensor and solenoid valve. I also install a isolation tap from the water supply just in case i need to remove the toilet to unblock it!

Storage tank. Three pipes are inlet from the toilet (top), breather (middle) and pump out outlet (bottom)

Enough toilet talk!

Kingfisher narrowboats have now completed the beds, wardrobes and stairs as well as the main seating areas in the saloon (pictures to follow when I’ve cleared my tools out the way!). Kingfisher have become the new tenants of Trent Lock Dry Dock and so offically we were there first customer! Good luck to the brothers Day, a website link to follow once their site is up and running.

This is the double cabin with as yet untreated wood work on the wardrobe and bed – another job to add to the list!

And the twin rear cabin (excuse the mess) as two singles….

and again as a double. The outside single has drawers that slide out from either side, so when in the double position you can still access clothes etc.

That’s all for now. Many thanks for the comments of encouragement, it’s appreaciated particulary right now whilst typing this latest update at 1am! We also got a mention last week on Andrew Denny’s Granny Buttons blog (the grand master of canal bloggers). Thanks Andrew!

We’ll be leaving Trent Lock over the weekend to head up to Stenson for painting so give us a wave if you pass by.

Cheers

Justin.