Tuesday 15th of November 2016
Another overcast and damp morning - but no rain today - so the ground might dry up during the day ?
I decided to dig a section of the rockery that is a bit bigger than half of what's left - starting at the front - the soil was wet and heavy - slow going.
I roughly estimated 20 barrow loads for today - but it is was it is.
Gradually the soil dried up as it got deeper and all done for today at 15.30.
The whole area now looks like the Somme battle ground - puddles - sludge - bits of slate - it can only get better from here on ??
Jackie helped to hose the paths while I swept with the heavy yard brush - All tidy before dark - great.
The pile of muck is now massive and we can only just get Jackie's car out - Mine would be multiple shunts to get out !!
A fine day tomorrow - I aim to finish the big dig - take levels - dig off any high spots - arrange for the Grab Truck for Thursday if they can ?
NEARLY THERE !!
Mike.
Wednesday, 16 November 2016
Tuesday, 15 November 2016
Recovery Day
Monday 14th of November 2016
A damp start today - little bit of drizzle - not good for digging and barrowing - there would be mud everywhere.
So today - plan B.
Two trips to the tip - my poor little car - full to the roof with huge poly bags of garden waste - shredded bushes - rotten timber and bush roots.
Jackie helped to sort it all out at the tip - we go so often that we know the routine well !
The worst job is the bag of chicken and dog poo - Erghhhh !
We have a dedicated small wheelie bin for it - lined with a really thick poly bag - the bin and bag dosed with Jeyes Fluid. We slide the bag out with the bin tilted forward and the bag drops into a big soft plastic builders bucket / tote. - in summer the pong is bad, so we tie wrap the neck of the bag, but today was not so bad.
The bucket stops any drips and makes it easy to carry the bag with it's two handles. - it all goes for composting with the garden waste at the tip.
Then tidy up everywhere - hose down the paths - sort out the potting shed.
No progress with digging today - the forecast looks like the same tomorrow - it might be dry enough in the afternoon - Wednesday looks better.
Mike.
A damp start today - little bit of drizzle - not good for digging and barrowing - there would be mud everywhere.
So today - plan B.
Two trips to the tip - my poor little car - full to the roof with huge poly bags of garden waste - shredded bushes - rotten timber and bush roots.
Jackie helped to sort it all out at the tip - we go so often that we know the routine well !
The worst job is the bag of chicken and dog poo - Erghhhh !
We have a dedicated small wheelie bin for it - lined with a really thick poly bag - the bin and bag dosed with Jeyes Fluid. We slide the bag out with the bin tilted forward and the bag drops into a big soft plastic builders bucket / tote. - in summer the pong is bad, so we tie wrap the neck of the bag, but today was not so bad.
The bucket stops any drips and makes it easy to carry the bag with it's two handles. - it all goes for composting with the garden waste at the tip.
Then tidy up everywhere - hose down the paths - sort out the potting shed.
No progress with digging today - the forecast looks like the same tomorrow - it might be dry enough in the afternoon - Wednesday looks better.
Mike.
Monday, 14 November 2016
Hi Ho - Hi Ho It's off to work I go.
Sunday 13th of November 2016
A lovely dry and sunny day - so digging - digging today.
Jackie helped to tidy up the garden and chicken run area - so that we are working as tidy as possible.
Then I decided to aim at moving a section of the rockery about 18 inches high by 3 feet wide and 8 feet long - all the way to the fence - I guessed at 20 barrow loads, maybe ?
I hate trailing mud all over the paths so I quickly made a simple boot scraper - two bits of timber knocked into the ground and a thin piece of steel screwed between them - it works well.
I am still using the wonderful Mattock - the big wide blade chops through the soil / roots and stones and gives a pile of easy to shovel waste - Great !! - well worth the fiver on Ebay.
I got stuck in - I thought I would be on my own today but Jackie decided to fill three barrows for me - WOW!
In the end it took about 25 barrow loads to clear the area - I had enough by then - time to clear up.
The pile is really growing now - I can't go any further across the drive - so I am extending the pile towards the house.
That means the grab truck will have to reach further - they have a limit of 5 metres - I must measure up.!
I am using a long plank now to get the barrow high up the pile - Scott and Neil were using it when they were here but I wasn't quite fit enough and my left arm won't flick the barrow over - but today I went for it and I got it !!!
I estimate another two days like today - 40 to 50 barrow loads left - Just keep going.
Mike.
A lovely dry and sunny day - so digging - digging today.
Jackie helped to tidy up the garden and chicken run area - so that we are working as tidy as possible.
Then I decided to aim at moving a section of the rockery about 18 inches high by 3 feet wide and 8 feet long - all the way to the fence - I guessed at 20 barrow loads, maybe ?
I hate trailing mud all over the paths so I quickly made a simple boot scraper - two bits of timber knocked into the ground and a thin piece of steel screwed between them - it works well.
I am still using the wonderful Mattock - the big wide blade chops through the soil / roots and stones and gives a pile of easy to shovel waste - Great !! - well worth the fiver on Ebay.
I got stuck in - I thought I would be on my own today but Jackie decided to fill three barrows for me - WOW!
I have been so lucky with the weather - maybe I started just early enough in the year - the ground is nice and dry - it breaks up easily.
It would be 10 times harder to dig wet through soil.
In the end it took about 25 barrow loads to clear the area - I had enough by then - time to clear up.
That means the grab truck will have to reach further - they have a limit of 5 metres - I must measure up.!
I am using a long plank now to get the barrow high up the pile - Scott and Neil were using it when they were here but I wasn't quite fit enough and my left arm won't flick the barrow over - but today I went for it and I got it !!!
I estimate another two days like today - 40 to 50 barrow loads left - Just keep going.
Mike.
Saturday, 12 November 2016
More Digging.
Friday 11th of November 2016
Today was a lovely dry and sunny day in Derby - Ideal for more digging.
Neil from next door came to help today and brought his wheel barrow !
We carried on digging what was the rockery - advancing the cut edge towards the right hand fence - then concentrating on a 2 foot wide dig at the back which eventually reached the right hand fence!
Much better digging today in the dry - I won't dig in the rain again - the sludge trails all over and your boots weigh a ton !!
We took levels as we went along so that we didn't dig out any soil we don't have to.
The area looks strange with no visual level reference - the fence slopes down towards the end of the garden - it all appears wrong but the dumpy level says its good.
I have decided to try and get all the soil on the drive if we can before I get the grab truck in and then they can quote for the whole lot.
The pile is really growing now - I am amazed at the rapid progress, thanks to Scott and Neil for all their efforts.
Heavy rain tomorrow - Saturday - so a day off digging - back to it on Sunday.
Just to be be sure that I don't get a river of sludge in the rain - I covered the muck pile with Visqueen overnight.
Mike.
Neil from next door came to help today and brought his wheel barrow !
Much better digging today in the dry - I won't dig in the rain again - the sludge trails all over and your boots weigh a ton !!
We took levels as we went along so that we didn't dig out any soil we don't have to.
The area looks strange with no visual level reference - the fence slopes down towards the end of the garden - it all appears wrong but the dumpy level says its good.
I have decided to try and get all the soil on the drive if we can before I get the grab truck in and then they can quote for the whole lot.
Heavy rain tomorrow - Saturday - so a day off digging - back to it on Sunday.
Just to be be sure that I don't get a river of sludge in the rain - I covered the muck pile with Visqueen overnight.
Mike.
Friday, 11 November 2016
Workshop at home in Derby
Friday 4th of November 2016
Now that the Summer house renovation is complete and Blazer is in good shape - I have managed to spend about three months there this year - (that was the plan after last year hardly getting to Blazer at all ).
Time for the Big Project - A big workshop - big enough to take all my wood working and metal working machines plus everything that I have in storage in Sheffield.
My wood turning workshop in Sheffield is still in operation with John working from there - sometimes jobs for me and sometimes for himself - plus I have a sub let tenant - Dave who rents half the shop to help pay the rent.
The situation is that John is looking to retire in the new year which means that the workshop will be costing me instead of earning a little.
It has taken me 16 years to find the top quality wood working machines that I have in Sheffield and I love them - they have allowed my little company to produce fine quality turnings for one of Britain's top furniture companies - If I sell them individually I will only get a fraction of their value.
I wish to keep them and use them to make items of furniture perhaps for new family here in Derby - without the overheads of a rented workshop 40 miles away.
Jackie has kindly agreed to me building a big workshop here in our garden and for my part - I will do my best to make it look attractive.
To prepare the area we decided to get rid of two raised beds that adjoin the big raised bed and to relocate the fruit bush into the big raised bed.
Jackie had already moved the bush while I was in France - so it was a case of moving the soil into the big raised bed and riddling the last of it to take out the slate ground cover - done !
We also decided to remove the diseased pear tree which was poorly rooted anyway and at the same time we pruned the plum tree and shredded all the cuttings ready for the tip.
So today we started to clear the area in the far right hand corner of the garden.
When the summer house was built some 10 years ago, or more, the soil from the excavation was made into a big rockery in this corner - I now have to move it again - this time to the tip !
The first job was to move the slate ground cover off the site so that it does not become contaminated with soil and concrete making it useless for filling in around the workshop at the end of the project.
I started the job today - raking it up - down to the weed membrane and then into the barrow and heaping it up just off the site.
Jackie helped to relocate the slab circle with the wishing well and collection of grasses to a spot near the chicken hut.
I then made a substantial timber ramp for the barrow to get up the two steps to the front of the house.
To my surprise Jackie's son Scott volunteered to help with the digging - WONDERFUL !!
Tuesday 8th of November
We removed the stone wall that was around the small pond and the rockery - hard work - every stone was a battle.
We dug out the pond - pulled out the rubber liner and filled it in with stone.
I took some advice from a local company who explained that I would save money and make life easier if I didn't use skips and instead use a grab lorry.
So I made a wooden barrier between us and next door - near the causeway - to pile up the muck within reach of the grab without him coming onto the drive which would damage the slabs.
It worked well - not having to barrow up into a skip.
Thursday 10th of November.
Scott again helping ( more like doing most of the work ) we started digging in earnest - a lot easier that moving the rocks.
We use a mattock to loosen the soil and then easily shovel it to the barrow.
So that we don't dig out any more than we need to - I took levels as we went along.
I bought a dumpy level on EBay for £40 - fantastic for very accurate level measurements - I have used one before and knew how good they are - on this site a spirit level would be useless and could lead to massive errors.
The workshop will be 24 feet ( 7.4 metres ) by 12 feet ( 3.7 metres ) externally with a 2 foot gap to the fence at the back and the side.
There will be around 7 feet space between the workshop and the summer house to allow as much light into the summer house as possible.
Once the site is clear and level, I can lay out the concrete base easily now that I have the tools.
After this project I can resell the dumpy level and might even make a profit !
The only problem we had today was the weather - it rained on and off until early afternoon, which turned the soil to sludge and we trailed it everywhere - Jackie was NOT HAPPY !!
Then the sun came out - we hosed and swept the paths and our boots - ALL SORTED
We are about half way through the rockery clearance now - Scott is back at work - so I will slowly press on on my own shifting the rest of it.
Mike.
Now that the Summer house renovation is complete and Blazer is in good shape - I have managed to spend about three months there this year - (that was the plan after last year hardly getting to Blazer at all ).
Time for the Big Project - A big workshop - big enough to take all my wood working and metal working machines plus everything that I have in storage in Sheffield.
My wood turning workshop in Sheffield is still in operation with John working from there - sometimes jobs for me and sometimes for himself - plus I have a sub let tenant - Dave who rents half the shop to help pay the rent.
The situation is that John is looking to retire in the new year which means that the workshop will be costing me instead of earning a little.
It has taken me 16 years to find the top quality wood working machines that I have in Sheffield and I love them - they have allowed my little company to produce fine quality turnings for one of Britain's top furniture companies - If I sell them individually I will only get a fraction of their value.
I wish to keep them and use them to make items of furniture perhaps for new family here in Derby - without the overheads of a rented workshop 40 miles away.
Jackie has kindly agreed to me building a big workshop here in our garden and for my part - I will do my best to make it look attractive.
To prepare the area we decided to get rid of two raised beds that adjoin the big raised bed and to relocate the fruit bush into the big raised bed.
Jackie had already moved the bush while I was in France - so it was a case of moving the soil into the big raised bed and riddling the last of it to take out the slate ground cover - done !
We also decided to remove the diseased pear tree which was poorly rooted anyway and at the same time we pruned the plum tree and shredded all the cuttings ready for the tip.
So today we started to clear the area in the far right hand corner of the garden.
When the summer house was built some 10 years ago, or more, the soil from the excavation was made into a big rockery in this corner - I now have to move it again - this time to the tip !
The first job was to move the slate ground cover off the site so that it does not become contaminated with soil and concrete making it useless for filling in around the workshop at the end of the project.
To my surprise Jackie's son Scott volunteered to help with the digging - WONDERFUL !!
Tuesday 8th of November
We removed the stone wall that was around the small pond and the rockery - hard work - every stone was a battle.
We dug out the pond - pulled out the rubber liner and filled it in with stone.
So I made a wooden barrier between us and next door - near the causeway - to pile up the muck within reach of the grab without him coming onto the drive which would damage the slabs.
It worked well - not having to barrow up into a skip.
Scott again helping ( more like doing most of the work ) we started digging in earnest - a lot easier that moving the rocks.
We use a mattock to loosen the soil and then easily shovel it to the barrow.
So that we don't dig out any more than we need to - I took levels as we went along.
The workshop will be 24 feet ( 7.4 metres ) by 12 feet ( 3.7 metres ) externally with a 2 foot gap to the fence at the back and the side.
There will be around 7 feet space between the workshop and the summer house to allow as much light into the summer house as possible.
Once the site is clear and level, I can lay out the concrete base easily now that I have the tools.
After this project I can resell the dumpy level and might even make a profit !
The only problem we had today was the weather - it rained on and off until early afternoon, which turned the soil to sludge and we trailed it everywhere - Jackie was NOT HAPPY !!
Then the sun came out - we hosed and swept the paths and our boots - ALL SORTED
We are about half way through the rockery clearance now - Scott is back at work - so I will slowly press on on my own shifting the rest of it.
Mike.
Wednesday, 2 November 2016
Out to sea at last !
Tuesday 1st of November 2016
A lovely hot sunny morning - perfect for a little test run out in the bay.
I spent an hour or more catching up with the blog then I consulted the gate opening times list and found that I had only 45 minutes to get out before it closed for most of the day - I quickly prepared the essentials and made out with time to spare.
To finish off preparation properly I took a waiting buoy just outside the marina - much better.
The forecast gave 4 knots of wind in the morning and 8 knots in the afternoon but I found no wind at all until I was nearly back in the marina !
I was navigating with the Ipad running the i sailor programme - very good but the power level drops rapidly so I fired up the inverter and put it on charge - it still lost power !!
So I turned it off when I could to allow it to charge - I will look for a better fast charger.
The engine ran sweetly and Blazer seemed to glide along without all that weed on the bottom - Great !
Then I noticed that the brand new depth instrument was erratic at times - like the old one was - I am still using the old transponder because it seamed to work fine but not now !
I will fit the new transponder and hope that sorts it out.
Then the new (secondhand) pc monitor went blank - it was running the Seapro navigation programme for a check on the Ipad and for tidal flows - very strong around here - 2 knots when I first came out.
It must be something simple - another little job !
The chart table monitor was fine so I still had tide information.
That's what this little run out was for - shakedown.
Bar ar Gall west cardinal buoy
I did hoist the main sail hoping to sail a bit but no chance.
It was lovely to be out in the hot sunshine just tootling along trying my best to avoid the masses of underwater rocks in this bay
I spotted one lone dolphin about a quarter of a mile off - on a mission - going somewhere quickly - nice.
The gate re opened at 15.25 and I always give in half an hour for the inrush to settle down - so at 16.00 we were back on our berth.
A nice little trip out and a three jobs to sort out next time I come out - possibly next month.
A big clean up day tomorrow - Wednesday - then a 2am start on Thursday to be at Caen ferry port for 7am - home by 6pm with luck.
That's all for this trip - I will restart the blog when I return to Blazer - Soon !
Mike.
A lovely hot sunny morning - perfect for a little test run out in the bay.
I spent an hour or more catching up with the blog then I consulted the gate opening times list and found that I had only 45 minutes to get out before it closed for most of the day - I quickly prepared the essentials and made out with time to spare.
The forecast gave 4 knots of wind in the morning and 8 knots in the afternoon but I found no wind at all until I was nearly back in the marina !
I was navigating with the Ipad running the i sailor programme - very good but the power level drops rapidly so I fired up the inverter and put it on charge - it still lost power !!
So I turned it off when I could to allow it to charge - I will look for a better fast charger.
Then I noticed that the brand new depth instrument was erratic at times - like the old one was - I am still using the old transponder because it seamed to work fine but not now !
I will fit the new transponder and hope that sorts it out.
Then the new (secondhand) pc monitor went blank - it was running the Seapro navigation programme for a check on the Ipad and for tidal flows - very strong around here - 2 knots when I first came out.
It must be something simple - another little job !
The chart table monitor was fine so I still had tide information.
That's what this little run out was for - shakedown.
I did hoist the main sail hoping to sail a bit but no chance.
It was lovely to be out in the hot sunshine just tootling along trying my best to avoid the masses of underwater rocks in this bay
I spotted one lone dolphin about a quarter of a mile off - on a mission - going somewhere quickly - nice.
The gate re opened at 15.25 and I always give in half an hour for the inrush to settle down - so at 16.00 we were back on our berth.
A big clean up day tomorrow - Wednesday - then a 2am start on Thursday to be at Caen ferry port for 7am - home by 6pm with luck.
That's all for this trip - I will restart the blog when I return to Blazer - Soon !
Mike.
Tuesday, 1 November 2016
Blazer Has A Nice Clean Bottom !!
Friday 28th to Monday 31st of October 2016
Sorry about no new post over the weekend - the wifi was no good in the yard where I was working on Blazer.
Friday at 08.30 I motored round to the lifting spot and removed the back stay - It was only just getting light.
The two crane operators did a great job of slinging and lifting Blazer onto a trailer and tractor - they then towed Blazer up the ramp to the yard and set up the pressure washer.
The underwater areas of Blazer were not quite as bad as I thought but there were a lot of sea squirts and weed.
Prop after pressure washing only
The Copper plated prop experiment is working I think. It's been on 5 years now - The weed growth was light and the cement like deposit that always builds up came off easily with hot water and a soft scraper.
That cement build up was the reason that I started the experiment because it used to build up rapidly and was really hard to get off. The copper coating is like new - no electrolysis at all !!
The pressure washer was a big petrol job and was so powerful I had to brace myself or it would have blown me over !!
It took a couple of hours to clean all the debris off and some of the layers of old antifouling - in a lot of places the layers had been stripped off back to the commercial grade stuff ( brown ) that I had a company put on in Grimsby - Good stuff - there were no exposed areas of the Vyniguard paint that is protecting the hull - Very good stuff.
New keel anodes fitted
I spent the rest of Friday scraping off the prop shaft and prop - changing anodes - resealing the keel to hull joint with polyurethane sealant - Note - there were no rust streaks from the keel joint like there used to be since I fitted the two keel anodes !
Keel zinc anode.
New hull anode
Toilet outlet.
One bit of concern are the heads of the bolts that hold the toilet outlet sea cock in place. - I replaced it about 5 years ago with a new one from Ebay that had no bolts or flange. - The bolts from Blakes were expensive and I found these bronze bolts much cheaper - NO GOOD !! - they can't be the proper material - the heads are corroding - I will swap them at the next lift out for the proper ones - Penny wise - Pound foolish !!
A close inspection of the hull showed no blisters at all - (GOOD NEWS) - but a few areas of gell coat pimples - (NOT GOOD NEWS) - I scraped off all the hull coatings about eight years ago and found similar pimples - sanded them flat - filled any that popped- and didn't worry about them.
They are caused by some error in the layers of gellcoat and not in the main thickness of fibreglass.
I can not get Vyniguard hull coating quickly here so I chose to ignore the pimples until next time when I can be ready to sort them out.
Saturday - I found that I had a litre of really good underwater primer and I scraped off the underside of the keels and applied lots of coats - they have never been anti fouled because Blazer usually sits on the keels in the yard - but this time she stayed in the trailer all weekend and I just had enough clearance to paint them.
I used lots of the primer on the keels and joints - I used the lot !!
I then masked up the waterline red boot top stripe - (4 strips of masking tape 120 feet !!) and painted that with hard antifoul paint.
I then brush painted the keels - all the awkward areas and the part that joins to the boot top stripe.
Sunday - I applied two full coats of antifouling to all the other areas with the roller - I kept going until I had used the whole gallon with just enough left for the support pad areas when the crane lifts us back in on Monday afternoon at 3pm.
Lovely !
WOW !
SMART !
Even underneath looks good !
I applied a coating of the lanolin grease Prop-Tection by warming some up in a tin and brushing it on to the propshaft - skeg - rope cutter and prop - I'm sure it helps to stop weed growth.
Monday I washed the hull topsides - cleaned the log impeller and sprayed it with the thick silicone lube - and touched up all round.
We were lifted in on the dot with no fuss - ( very professional ) - refitted the back stay and motored back to our berth (she glided along ) - four days of hard work but a labour of love !!
The weather had been perfect throughout the job and I cleaned up everything - disposed of the roller / tins and brushes - then settled down to a corned beef casserole that I made in the morning with a well earned glass of Muscadet. - Fantastic.
Mike.
Sorry about no new post over the weekend - the wifi was no good in the yard where I was working on Blazer.
Friday at 08.30 I motored round to the lifting spot and removed the back stay - It was only just getting light.
The two crane operators did a great job of slinging and lifting Blazer onto a trailer and tractor - they then towed Blazer up the ramp to the yard and set up the pressure washer.
The underwater areas of Blazer were not quite as bad as I thought but there were a lot of sea squirts and weed.
The Copper plated prop experiment is working I think. It's been on 5 years now - The weed growth was light and the cement like deposit that always builds up came off easily with hot water and a soft scraper.
That cement build up was the reason that I started the experiment because it used to build up rapidly and was really hard to get off. The copper coating is like new - no electrolysis at all !!
The pressure washer was a big petrol job and was so powerful I had to brace myself or it would have blown me over !!
It took a couple of hours to clean all the debris off and some of the layers of old antifouling - in a lot of places the layers had been stripped off back to the commercial grade stuff ( brown ) that I had a company put on in Grimsby - Good stuff - there were no exposed areas of the Vyniguard paint that is protecting the hull - Very good stuff.
I spent the rest of Friday scraping off the prop shaft and prop - changing anodes - resealing the keel to hull joint with polyurethane sealant - Note - there were no rust streaks from the keel joint like there used to be since I fitted the two keel anodes !
One bit of concern are the heads of the bolts that hold the toilet outlet sea cock in place. - I replaced it about 5 years ago with a new one from Ebay that had no bolts or flange. - The bolts from Blakes were expensive and I found these bronze bolts much cheaper - NO GOOD !! - they can't be the proper material - the heads are corroding - I will swap them at the next lift out for the proper ones - Penny wise - Pound foolish !!
A close inspection of the hull showed no blisters at all - (GOOD NEWS) - but a few areas of gell coat pimples - (NOT GOOD NEWS) - I scraped off all the hull coatings about eight years ago and found similar pimples - sanded them flat - filled any that popped- and didn't worry about them.
They are caused by some error in the layers of gellcoat and not in the main thickness of fibreglass.
I can not get Vyniguard hull coating quickly here so I chose to ignore the pimples until next time when I can be ready to sort them out.
Saturday - I found that I had a litre of really good underwater primer and I scraped off the underside of the keels and applied lots of coats - they have never been anti fouled because Blazer usually sits on the keels in the yard - but this time she stayed in the trailer all weekend and I just had enough clearance to paint them.
I used lots of the primer on the keels and joints - I used the lot !!
I then masked up the waterline red boot top stripe - (4 strips of masking tape 120 feet !!) and painted that with hard antifoul paint.
I then brush painted the keels - all the awkward areas and the part that joins to the boot top stripe.
Sunday - I applied two full coats of antifouling to all the other areas with the roller - I kept going until I had used the whole gallon with just enough left for the support pad areas when the crane lifts us back in on Monday afternoon at 3pm.
Monday I washed the hull topsides - cleaned the log impeller and sprayed it with the thick silicone lube - and touched up all round.
We were lifted in on the dot with no fuss - ( very professional ) - refitted the back stay and motored back to our berth (she glided along ) - four days of hard work but a labour of love !!
The weather had been perfect throughout the job and I cleaned up everything - disposed of the roller / tins and brushes - then settled down to a corned beef casserole that I made in the morning with a well earned glass of Muscadet. - Fantastic.
Mike.
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