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Ravensdale is transported up the slipway out of the marina. |
The lift out went ahead as planned on Friday and our boat is
now propped up on chocks on the hard standing so we can carry out work to the
hull.
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The view of the marina from our aft deck |
Our new location with the deck about 14ft off the ground
means Ravensdale has been transformed into a penthouse apartment with a
spectacular view over the marina.
And the fabulous weather we have had this weekend has meant
we have been able to sit out on the aft deck and enjoy the sunshine during our
coffee breaks.
Phil had a nasty shock when we set off from our mooring to
the pump out on the way to the slipway for the lift out.
He checked the bow thrusters before we started to move and
it was working fine, but it packed up and refused to work as he was pulling out
of the mooring and went to use it to move the boat away from the pontoon.
Thankfully he was able to control Ravensdale using her two
engines and got around to the pump out without incident. Strangely the bow thrusters
decided to work again while out the pump out, but it is something else that we
will be checking while out of the water.
Phil then had to drive her towards the slipway and the
marina staff used a remote control to position the boat hoist underneath the
vessel.
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Approaching the slipway and the waiting boat hoist |
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Marina staff Reg and Mick make sure Ravensdale is in the correct position on the hoist |
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Reg uses a remote control unit to bring Ravensdale up the slipway |
Giant slings were placed under her hull and she was manoeuvred
up the slipway and onto the hard standing, where the hull was pressure washed
before she was placed on chocks and a wooden framework was erected to hold her
upright in our current parking place.
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Adam pressure washing the hull |
The boat ended up much higher than we had expected and the large
wooden steps he had arranged to borrow turned out to be far too short so we
called in a scaffolding firm to build a set of steps, which will be considerably safer than using a ladder.
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The scaffolders building a 14ft flight of steps to Ravensdale's aft deck |
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The scaffolding steps provide safe access to the aft deck |
Unfortunately, one of the fibreglass exhaust manifolds was
damaged during the lift out so Phil removed it so we could clean it up and
repair it.
That was my job today.
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Sanding the damaged exhaust manifold |
I scraped off all the silicone sealant and muck and sanded
the edges ready for repair and then reattaching it to the side of the boat. I
have also been scraping the area of the hull where it was attached, but ran out
of time so will be sanding that down tomorrow.
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Phil removing the vinyl tape stripes from the hull |
Meanwhile, Phil has been busy removing the many vinyl strips
that have been used to create blue and black stripes on the hull and
superstructure with a heat gun and scraper.
We have not yet decided whether to replace the stripes in
the same pattern or to change them and use paint instead of tape as it should
make it easier to redo in the future.
We were pleased to discover that the antifouling was in
better condition than we had expected so will not have to be totally removed.
Those with more experience of these things than us have told us that rubbing it
down, priming any areas that need it and then painting on the new antifoul over
the top.
Also, the sacrificial anodes that were put on when we first
bought the boat are still in good condition so that is another job that will
not need to be done this time.
We are really hoping that we can get all the work done in a
fortnight as we are keen to get back in the water asap, but have accepted that
we will just have to stay out as long as it takes to get the job done properly.
Not only have we been very lucky with the weather during the
day since the lift out, but we have seen some fabulous sunsets, which looked
even better viewed from our vantage point above the marina.
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Sunset over Maryport Marina |
