Alanne Afloat - Day 201

I have not added anything to the blog over the last week or two, because as previously explained, boat builders have two speeds - slow and stop. We must be at stop again.

I get that feeling of deja vu.  We are beginning to feel marooned in a “Ground Hog” moment.  The outstanding work on “Alanne” has not been started, although vague promises have been made that work will begin shortly.

Until the major outstanding jobs are completed we cannot risk leaving “Orchard Marina”, or we could find ourselves in a position where we have accepted the boat in its present condition.

We have had to be content with only going on short cruises from the marina and returning the same day, in the hope that work really will commence *manyarna or maybe tomorrow.

* manyarna - Spanish for maybe tomorrow, but probably never.

The photos below show some of the outstanding jobs, some more serious than others.

Bathroom tap only just manages to put water into the sink,  Builders have agreed to replace tap for one with a longer reach.  ------------- SOON

         Galley cupboard should have swing out shelves for easy access @ a cost of £450.00.   -----------------------  PAID UPFRONT

Fridge/Freezer door damaged during installation, builders agreed to replace.  --  NO SIGN OF REPLACEMENT

Roof looks a bit like a beach with multi-colour sand.  Agreed roof to be repainted.    ---------------------  ANYONE FOR BEACH VOLLEY BALL

Diesel stove roof outlet.  A real bodged job.  Builders agreed replacement with correct outlet.   ------------- CANNOT USE STOVE TILL THIS IS FIXED

Hing on cover of control binnacle broke off after a couple of uses.  Welding very poor quality.  Builders agreed to repair.  -------------------  BOAT CONTROLS CANNOT BE SECURED

Alanne Afloat - Day 182

We spent the week at Orchard Marina in Northwich on "Alanne".  We took the final bits and pieces with us and we now have 2 very comfy swivel chairs in our saloon.  Its a pity that we are still unable to use the on-board TV, from our comfy chairs, as we have yet to receive the remote control.
Progress is still very slow and a number of jobs need to be cleared before we can sail off into the sunset.  We had a very exciting morning, on Thursday, when Garry came over to demonstrate the diesel fired space heater, "Bubble Stove".  He struggled to get the diesel to flow to the stove, but eventually it appeared to be coming through "ever so slowly".  This was Garrys prompt to set it alight by adding some white spirit and throwing a lighted paper into the firebox.  After an initial roar the stove started to evaporate and burn the diesel fuel.  Garry got excited and opened the diesel valve fully and all seemed to be going according to plan, then very suddenly the gentle yellow flame inside the burner grew very large indeed, Garry said not to worry this was normal, well that was until there was a mighty bang, black smoke flooded into the cabin from the air intake and a couple of seconds later, came a splashing sound outside the boat.   We discovered later that this was the external chimney doing its impression of an Apollo Moon Rocket trying to achieve Earth orbit, it shot up 8 feet in a plume of black smoke then came splashing down in the marina.  The initial bang resulted in a stampede to leave the boat after turning off the diesel feed to the stove.  After a suitable time loitering outside we ventured back inside to survey the stove, which was now coated with a thick layer of soot on the inside and the glass window blacked out.  I'm sure Garry will get it right next time, he just needs to repair the chimney and give us plenty of warning so we can watch from a safe distance.
On Thursday Garry produced the Boat Safety Certificate and the Recreational Craft Directive paperwork, (it was a bit like a magician pulling a rabbit from a hat).  We were now able to get our Canal and River Licence from the Canal and River Trust office in Northwich.  Hurrah, we can now legally chug along the canal network without getting our collars felt by the dreaded Canal Police.
We currently have around 16 outstanding jobs on the boat and it looks as if it will be several weeks before they get signed off.  The covered workshop where the jobs will be sorted is currently on a short term rental to another boat owner, who is renovating his boat.  I was thinking of asking Garry to chuck him out, but all the marina "live aboard" crowd are so nice it would be rude to upset them.
I guess we are getting used to the slower pace of life in the boat world.  Cancel that last comment, There is no pace in the boat world.
On our way home this morning, we visited Aston Marina near Stone and finalised our permanent mooring as we now had the relevant paperwork care of Garry.  Hopefully in the dim and misty future we will sail down to Aston marina and prepare for our circular excursions around the canal network.  Lets hope its this year.

Alanne Afloat - Day 174

We have been without Internet  access since Tueday, so I am writing this blog from home on Friday 1 August 2014.

We returned to Orchard Marina on Tuesday morning, (29th July 2014 - Day 174).  We had a telephone call from Ian at Collingwood Boats to tell us the money was now in their account and we could take possession of "Alanne".  We set of from home at 09.30, determined that Alan McNaughton was not going to spoil our day after his antics of last Friday.  When we arrived at Orchard Marina, a very helpful guy was there to handover the keys and give us a tour of the boat systems and engine.  It was a delight to have someone around who actually cared and was willing to give as much time as we needed to understand the complexity of  "the bits under the bonnet".  A big thank you to Johnny.  We spent the rest of Tuesday bringing all our "bits and bobs" onto the boat and Johnny was close at hand to give us help when needed.
Wednesday we took the boat for a short cruise to Anderton boat yard to refuel and have our first real chance to see how "Alanne" handled.  She cut through the water with almost no bow wave or wash, which will please owners of moored boats who wont have to shout abuse because their boat is "rocking and rolling".  Steering we found was very heavy and at times struggled to make tight bends in the canal and on our return to Orchard Marina, asked Johnny to take a look.  He agreed it was on the heavy side and thought the "Skeg" might have been damaged when the boat was first lowered into the water, possibly catching the edge of the dock as it was lowered.   Later in the day I looked into the Bow Thruster chamber and was alarmed to see a lot of canal water sloshing around, again Johnny came over and between us dried out the chamber and tried to spot where the water was coming from, but without success.  Johnny suggested that we take the boat back to Wincham Wharf and he would arrange for the boat to be lifted out so that he could take a closer look at the welding done the previous Friday.
Thursday morning Johnny came aboard and we all cruised down to Wincham Wharf after checking to see if any more canal water had entered the Bow Thruster chamber.  it remained dry so possibly the leak had sealed itself.  "Alanne" was lifted out of the water and it was easy to see why the steering was so heavy.  The bottom of the rudder shaft should have been sitting in a bearing in the "Skeg", but it was the point of the rudder which rested in the bearing housing.  It took almost 30 seconds to fix and slot the shaft into the bearing and the rudder moved with the lightest of touches.  The other problem could not be resolved, how can you fix something when no fault is apparent.  After many attempt to contact Ian at Collingwood, he finally answered his phone and the mystery of the water in the Bow Thruster chamber was solved.  The water in the chamber was from the first leak on Friday.  Nobody had emptied the chamber at the time and Ian had not told anyone that the water was there.  Oh well,  just goes to show how poor communication can be so expensive.  It cost a total of £500 to lift the boat out and back in the water. so someone will not be a happy bunny at Collingwood.  The journey back to Orchard Marina was a joy, the steering was excellent and "Alanne" was responsive to all commands.  The entrance to Orchard Marina is extremely tight and we had previously had a bump on the narrow opening.  The boat needed to be at right angles to the canal which I estimate was only just over 60 feet wide.  This time it was a breeze with everything working as it should and we entered without a bump and reversed into our mooring.
Friday morning we awoke to heavy rain and decided that cruising in the rain wasn't for us.  We packed up and took the 90 minute drive home.
The saga continues as we are unable to register "Alanne" without the supporting paperwork and without a Canal and River Trust, (CRT) licence we are not legally permitted to cruise any canal.  Garry Evans is back from his holiday on Monday,  I hope he is refreshed because we have a list of faults and missing items, plus the urgency of some ownership paperwork and certificates of  "sea worthiness".