A busy day and some maintenance.

Wednesday 21st May.

What a beautiful morning, after overnight rain there was lovely warm sunshine bathing the marina.

You can just see the stern of Bracken, second boat from left with red tiller arm.

Nice picnic area with tables and benches just out of camera shot on the left.

A while ago I turned off the diesel at the tank because I thought there was traces of diesel in the bilges, then I got ill and went home vowing to look at the problem next time.

Well, in my absence Graham has been down in the deepest darkest regions of the bilges and had a clean up!

He tried nipping up all the connections but still wetness appeared as soon as I turned the diesel on but I managed to locate the problem as coming from the top of the fuel filter assembly. Specifically it was where the injectors feed back into the top of the filter assembly through the large banjo fitting. Well even with new copper washers in place it wouldn't stop weeping, mainly due to the thread being stripped, therefore unable to tighten it down. So, a replacement fuel filter assembly is required. Still at least we know what the problem is. 

Looking at the state of the filter assembly and the way the pipe obscures the center bolt i'm wondering when the filter was last changed? Hmmm, we'll see when i remove it. 

Graham and Jaq came over late afternoon and we looked at positioning two storage boxes on the rear deck.

The idea being to provide storage for logs and coal and possibly tools and as the rear deck is quite large being a cruiser stern thats the best place for them.

As you can see from the two pictures, the stern on Bracken is large and empty, ok if you're entertaining but otherwise pretty wasted space, so Graham, bless him, found a couple of matching boxes just the right size and height to be useful storage and about the right height for sitting on too.

Ever wished you'd picked up old rags and tools before taking pictures??

Notice the box under the window- another of Grahams finds off Ebay, just the right height not to obscure the window, and bolted to the deck for security.

After deciding on the best position for the boxes we drilled through the bottom of both boxes to mark the deck plates for drilling. Graham's going to take the boxes back to his place for painting. they've had a coat of etching primer and black primer, next he's going to top coat them. 

I really appreciate all the work he's done for me whilst i've been unwell, he's been an absolute diamond geezer!! And I bet he tells me off for saying that. Embarrassed or what !

Thursday 22nd May.

Im back home in Kent now, well with it being bank holiday weekend the traffic will probably be horrendous so l decided to come home before. Not a bad journey, just a few minutes short of 3 hours, l bet it's different tomorrow. 

I have a couple of appointments next week, so next visit to Bracken will be around 6/7 th of June to move her down to Fradley for the work to be done starting on the 9th.

Bye for now :) 

  

A quote and some visitors

Tuesday 20th May

Well the guys came to have a look at what needs doing. Pressure wash and blacking is pretty much what i expected, £9 per foot inc vat. The welding however is a bit more than I was anticipating. The job is made difficult because it involves welding over part of the diesel tank. Oh well the guy seems to know what needs to be done so Bracken is booked into drydock on the 9th of June.

On a lighter note, i had visitors this afternoon, my niece Jemma and her youngest son Archie came to see me with Jenny. Lovely to see them after so long, I last saw Archie when he was only a few weeks old and he's now toddling around and into everything.

Here again

Sunday 18th May.

Feeling stronger l decided to drive up to the boat for a few days. Well i need to finalize arrangments for the welding that needs doing, and whilst Bracken is out of the water the hull can be de-scaled and blacked.

Before buying Bracken l had the hull and steering gear surveyed, and the surveyer made a couple of recommendations ie some minor overplating round the stern, replace the cup bearing at the base of the rudder and fill with weld two worn areas where the rudder has contacted the hull. Also on the waterline there is some scale that needs removing before blacking the whole of the hull.

I have made arrangments for someone to come to the boat and quote me for the work, hopefully on Tuesday.

Monday 19th May.

A bit of shopping in Lichfield, just the bare essentials as i'm only here for a few days.

Jenny popped in to see me and we had a good 'catch up chat'

After Jenny had gone I tidied up a bit and then drove over to G & Jaq for the evening and ended up staying the night there. Well their spare bed is big and comfortable, and their shower is big and plentiful, as is also their loo!

One appreciates these things!  :)

sometimes things just don't go well.......

Shortly after writing my last post, in fact the day after my birthday on the 17th, i contracted a rather nasty tummy bug. After a few days of feeling unwell i ended up in Burton Hospital on a drip. I was discharged today and Jaq picked me up and took me back to her and Bro's house. I'm hoping to make my way home to Kent on Sunday, where i hope to continue my recovery from the cancer treatment.
I guess maybe i was a bit premature in thinking i was well enough to work on the boat.

afloat again

Thursday 10th April.

Sitting at home in Kent and going stir crazy, so i decided to drive up to the boat for a few days. Whilst not feeling 100%,  l am feeling better so what the hell, l thought, lets go for it!

Well i have to say it was one of the worst journeys i've done for a while. Advance warning signs said M25 closed junction 29 - 28 so after doing the Dartford crossing i thought i'd be able to re-join the M25 at junction 28 only to find that the closure extended past 28 and me and 1000 other drivers had had the same idea!! Result = gridlock on the roundabout trying to join the M25. I eventualy found an alternative route and joined the motorway further up, after which it was fairly clear M25 - M1 - M6 and M6 toll - Lichfield and on to Kings Bromley Marina. In all the journey took 5 hours whereas normaly it would be around 3 and a half hours. 

Before leaving Kent my good friend John gave me a hand to load the chest of drawers into the Polo along with numerous other items to take up to the boat.

In the evening after Graham had finished his dinner he and Jaq came over to the boat and we shoe-horned the chest of drawers into the space left for it when graham built the wardrobe...... it fitted- just!

On Friday i fitted the new water pump in a slightly more accessable position than where Graham removed it from, which was right at the back of the sink unit cupboard.

Now its just inside the cupboard, easy to reach, and easy access to the filter/strainer.

As with most jobs nothing is straight forward, the compresion fitting on the bottom of the accumulator developed a steady drip so out it came to anoint the joint with some boss white purloined from Brother. That did the trick and hey presto pump and taps back in service.

Saturday i started painting the inside of the new wardrobe area and what we call the 'pidgeon holes' (storage areas), Graham came over in the afternoon and took over the painting and we also fitted a few little trim strips to neaten the edges. Its looking good now, bro did an excellent job of construction.

Now i just need to get some wood stain to blend it in to the original woodwork. So i guess its off to the shops i go.

A little fresh air before my visitors go home.

Sunday 9th March.
G & J arrived from their hotel around 10 am closely followed by Margaret who had come to visit too.

I did a hurried breakfast for the 3 of them.........and sat and watched and drooled as they polished it all off. Its a bugger when you can only take liquid food thro a peg tube, and you watch lovely bacon, eggs, sausage, mushrooms etc etc being eagerly devoured! :) never mind, my day will come.

We sat about chatting for a while then bro suggested a wander up the beach for some fresh air. Well i don't do 'wandering' so i drove us all up the shingle bank and then waited in the car whilst they went for a stroll. It was certainly a gorgeous day with only a gentle breeze to ruffle the incoming tide.

Looking East.
That group of people have a BBQ on the go, more nice smells to torture me!

Looking North.

The intrepid trio return.

a short visit to form some plans

Its been a while since my last blog. My treatment is ongoing- leaving me exhausted, sore, and generaly 'not well', but there are a great many people going thro far worse so enough said about me.
Graham and Jackie have driven down to see me for this weekend. Great to see them as always and its given me a much needed lift, so much so i've decided to update this blog.................


I drove up to the boat on Friday 14th February after my radio session. Not a bad journey but it certainly left me pretty exhausted. I stayed at G and J's friday night, then on Saturday Bro and i went to the boat to do some measuring up. During our time there i discovered a water leak from the fresh water pump so Graham had the hands and knees job of removing the pump for inspection. The leak seemed to be from the join in the pump body casing so we left it off ready to replace.
Sister Jenny came up G&J's in the evening for a nosh and a natter and some quality family time.
I returned home to Kent on Sunday, not looking forward to another week of chemo and radio.

Bro says he will make a start on the wardrobe frame over the next couple of weeks and as these pictures show he certainly has done. He's a top bro!

Bro making some progress

As can be seen we've kept the corner shelves to the left of the front doors and added a'lid'

The space between the frame and the shelves will be wardrobe with a shelf  halfway down and hanging space above.

What was one of the main support beams for the top bunk-------

----------gets topped off as a shelf.-----

-----Whilst to the left of the frame, the marked out area shows where there will be a chest of drawers/dressing table which at the moment is living in my bedroom in Kent. i'll take it up at some point in the future.

Thats it for now folks :)

work in progress

Chatting with brother on the phone and by text it seems My Bro has been busy aboard Bracken in my absence. Apparently the top bunk above the 'shed' area is no more, its gorrn, defunct, deceased!

Before.

And there it was gone.

So I'm thinking i need to get up there and decide what the next step should be. I'm not sure whether to do away with the shelving to the left of the steps, or whether to incorporate them into a hanging space.Where the black box is on the floor will be a small chest of drawers/dressing table instead. 

(actually, the black box is my coal box so could probably go out on well deck).
Well today is Tuesday so I'm thinking maybe I could drive up to the boat after Friday's radio treatment, that'll give me Saturday and Sunday morning to form some ideas for bro to work on. He's a dynamo of energy and enthusiasm bless him, and gets stuck into a job till he's seen it thro.
Oh well, i'll see how i feel later in the week.

some extra pics of work in progress

I've published a few pics of the 'bed' area, a work in progress.

As can be seen in the above picture, with the flaps down I have a wider berth than the original one.
In fact its only 2 ft 6 ins at the widest part. I've hinged the flaps so that when the bed is not in use i can fold the flaps up which leaves the walkway clear to the front steps out to the well deck. Also, having the Flaps up makes a handy bench or seat, and as can be seen in the picture below there is space for storage boxes beneath the bed base

Opposite the 'new' bed is the 'shed', well thats what it resembles at present. Above the shed is the upper bunk bed. This will be removed  (next project) and the resulting space will house a chest of drawers and a small wardrobe for hanging the smarter 'T' shirts and fleeces. that i tend to live in :)

Watch this space :)

A few days afloat

Saturday 11th January

Seizing the opportunity to get afloat for a few days before more 'pressing' things take up my time.
It was lovely to get back to the boat, get the fire lit and put my feet up and listen to the birdsong. My brother came round and we spent some time planning the project, that is to construct a new bed in the front cabin.
Saturday evening Jenny invited me to her place for dinner, delicious stirfried chicken and vegetables. Very nice too!
Slept ok Saturday night, toasty warm in the boat. On opening the hatch Sunday morning i was amazed to see everywhere white over with frost.

bad night Monday night, woke in early hours of Tuesday morning drenched in sweat, the inside of the boat was like an oven! I had to open the hatch to let the heat out, in fact i ended up leaving the hatch open all night. that'll teach me to make sure the vents on the fire are completely shut before going to bed!

Pushed ahead with the project during Tuesday  and by Wednesday i had a bed to sleep on at the cooler end of the boat.

Thursday and Friday was spent clearing up.
Many thanks to Jackie for bringing her dyson over on Thursday as i was almost knee deep in saw dust and wood chippings! She did a sterling job of hoovering all the way through the boat.
Friday i was shattered, and after Jenny and i had eaten Breakfast i had a 'chill out' day and rested my aching bones.
Jenny had invited me for dinner Friday eve, and my nephew Pete and fiancé Sam also came. We had a great meal, and lots of chatting.
Saturday was a finishing off day, some wood trims round the shelf, and re-sited the fire extinguisher
Sunday i have to go back to Sheppey. I have 3 hospital appointments this week before my treatment starts on the 27th so it may be a few weeks till i can get back to Bracken.
I have thoroughly enjoyed my time afloat this week, the peace, the quiet, and the solitude. Also being able to spend time with family has been wonderful.