Apologies re NtM

T

tillergirl

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I found I had to babysit last night to stop Tiller Girl sinking and so woke every hour or so (during a very cold night too) to pump. So I couldn't get home.

Tonight? I'm too 'nacked'. I will catch up tomorrow evening. None of the UKHO notices were dangerous.

'Pols.

Er, could it ever be warm on this East Coast? :disgust:
 
Just think, that bit of pumping saved you all the trouble of having to report an obstruction/reduced depth in the vicinity of your mooring.;)

Hope your boat's now sorted and safe, and you can catch up on your sleep. We'll proceed on the assumption they're still dredging in Wells and there is the odd changed depth far below our keels off Oostend until your normal, very much appreciated service, is resumed.
 
Thanks. Now awake (and clean - me that is). In reply to the query, it is a perenial issue for wooden boats (esp aged) just drying once laid-up ashore for winter. TG loses about .4 of a ton over a dry winter (on the basis that the crane took a ball-park figure taking her out and putting her back). That is 0.4 of a ton of water! I wouldn't claim that's scientific but the weight reduction based on the crane approximation has repeated that diffence each time she has been laid up ashore. Hard to believe. It's basically a natural process but this spring has been the worst. Normally for half a day I would have pumped half a douzen hand pumps every hour and that would have been that. This spring has been back. First we have had two months of dry wind and (I would say) above average wind speed. The particular wind direction has 'played' on the starboard quarter. Also when there is sun - and there has been quite a bit of sun - that will play on the same starboard quarter. So the seams in that area have dried significantly.

So what can be done? Seams can be checked to make sure that the caulking and stopping is tight and if too loose can be racked out and sorted. It's not difficult at all. I did some. But others can be seen to be dried via a very thin crack either side of the two planks but the stopping is still rock hard - the planks just need to swell. You can put some red lead putty in the cracks but really the cracks are too thin to work anything in - or if wide enough to get some in, once she swells the putty will get squeezed out and the seam 'don't look pretty no more". On this occasion I have never experienced such a large inflow and that was an area of one seam on the starboard quarters - which was like a kitchen basin tap left moderately on - and slightly forward, again on the starboard side. There were of course lots of little dribbles.

Now you might think it's quite bad but within 4 hours all of the little dribbles had stopped - the starboard quarters however continued. After about 6 hours a third of the inflow reduced and by 11pm two thirds inflow reduced again. By 0630 yesterday morning the flow had reduced again and by 1930 last night I was happy that if the pump gave up the ghost she would be ok. By the morning that bad seam may now be tight. How can a seam close like that? Bizarrely yes. So imagine I had put in a lot of putty (and I had not spotted a problem area) the putty would now have been squeezed out by now.



On an interesting point. What size of bilge pump? I have a Gusher 25 (hand stuff). I think the Gusher would have held up with 'active' pumping but I would not have carried on with the physical effort for more than 10 minutes! The electice is slightly less powerful (not sure of its capacity - I have it written down somewhere) and wouldn't have held up for the inflow for that first hour. I used the yard's 1750 lt pump. So some serious thought about electric pump capacity. May have been reasonable when I was younger; now it is seriously worth thinking through.

Sorry the varnish still isn't done yet on account of the weather. Note someone's stolen the bilge keels!
 
Rhoda Rose said:
She is a very pretty boat though.
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+1

Thanks for the explanation TG..... Oh the joys of wooden boats! I well remember our first holiday on my Dad's first boat "Random". The whole family took it in turns to pump right through the night to stop her sinking on her mooring :)
 
A lovely boat!

What solutions to consider to avoid the same again, ie the planks drying out more in one particular place, due to wind direction?

Tarpaulins hanging down to the ground perhaps? Interesting one.

I have the usual manual pump, usable from the helm, + auto electric, but the arm muscles, and /or 12v battery, wouldn't last long as you say.
 
Paddy yes. I have already talked with the yard about a different position in the yard when I get lifted again in two years time. Tarps, yes a good idea. I had plastic tarp but although I used that it wasn't the best idea; the old fashioned tarp could have been regular soaked - but of course when wet it won't be the best to prepare the paintwork!

I have had a chat with some professionals and the view is this year is exceptional unusual for wooden boats. The drying persistent winds we have had on this East Coast this early spring has been the trouble.

On the pump issue taking up on launch aside, I am now thinking what if I had a calamity? I have a 950 litre electric pump and the hand Gusher 25. I think more capacity would be better. This is the first time I have had the 950 tested and for the first hour it would have needed help.
 
tillergirl said:
No, but the planking will rot. OK when new, not when 54 years old.
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My second Stella was over 33 years old when I did her, with sprung planks loose roves, broken ribs, worm holes, holes due to rotten planks & knees, rotten decks. 17 years later owner tells me that she is still Ok & still is as dry as a bone. Just have to do it properly.
 
Humm thats quite a bit o water coming in there I would say; might I ask when did you paint her with Antifoul, assuming that its below the water line that she is taking water in, just after taken out or just before she went back in, or somewhere in between her time out ?

Because I used to find that applying the Antifoul just before dipping her back the Antifoul can be run into any small seam openings as one does the job, plus if any apparent bigger seam openings can be attended to then; just asking ?
 
tillergirl said:
I have had a chat with some professionals and the view is this year is exceptional unusual for wooden boats. The drying persistent winds we have had on this East Coast this early spring has been the trouble.

.
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We had a wooden Folkboat that used to leak like a sieve for the first 12 hours after we launched her every spring, we stored her in a field under a tarpaulin in Essex during the winter.

Then we put her inside in Trevor Taylor’s shed at Wallasea over the winter and this reduced the launching leaks dramatically so this also backs up your thoughts that the cold wind that does the drying out
 
Daydream believer said:
My second Stella was over 33 years old when I did her, with sprung planks loose roves, broken ribs, worm holes, holes due to rotten planks & knees, rotten decks. 17 years later owner tells me that she is still Ok & still is as dry as a bone. Just have to do it properly.
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Professional opinion from some is that it is a high risk of the timber rotting away behind the sheathing. I have seen examples in the past. But I guess some, perhaps many, have been successful. But I have no sprung planks, ribs that needed are repaired, the deck is fine etc. She now doesn't take any water at all. I only needed one broken night and that was largely on account of the failure of the auto feature on the bilge pump. Even if it hadn't taken up by now, there was a solution that would have been immediately available: cross the other side of the Basin and get hooked up in strops on the canal crane for one hours to rake out 4ft of one seam, harden up the caulking and stop up with red lead putty.
 
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