Launch Day!!!

Monday 28th September

A beautiful bright blue sky, the sun shining down and today was the launch of Ella onto the Trent and Mersey Canal.

Our good friends, Anne and Steve, arrived soon after us, a complete surprise for us, but it was lovely to see them and they stayed with us for the whole day and enjoyed the spectacle.

We arrived at the Boatbuilders at 8.30 in the morning and watched Ella being brought out of the shed.

She was then hoisted up in the air by an enormous crane.

Then very gently placed on the back of a low loader.

The lorry drove her very carefully to the carpark of the Broughton Arms pub in Rode Heath where she waited for the crane to follow her down.

The crane then lifted her slowly off the lowloader and spun her round to be placed very gently onto the canal.

Ella sitting in the water where we have left her for the night, we shall return tomorrow and load everything onto her ready to start the cruise to her home for this year.

A fantastic day, we are over the moon with the boat and feel so excited and emotional over this most amazing day.

Signwriting!

Friday 4th September

Great excitement, we had an e-mail from Daniel to say that Andy Russell would be arriving at the boatyard at 7.30am on Friday to begin work on our boat!!!

So, up at 6am and on the road by 6.30 to meet him!

Andy Russell (L) and Wayne (R)

We talked through our ideas, took advice on what would work and what wouldn't, decided on the colours for the writing and Andy set to work straight away.

Chalk on the paint

This is an example of the way in which Andy works.  In fact the number has now been changed to 33 and all he did was rub it out and put in the new number.

Slogan to be painted on a ribbon

Dave's slogan for the majority of this year has been  'One life...live it.'  and it is going to be painted onto this ribbon.

Engine in situ

Sparkling clean engine, how long will it stay like this?

Control Panel

The electrician was working on connecting all the wiring whilst we were there. 

Hob in place

Hob has now been fitted into it's space above the oven and we are pleased with how smart it looks and how easy to keep clean as well!!

Kitchen cupboard

The pull out drawers have been put in and are very handy for using all the available space without having to get on hands and knees to see what is right at the back!!

Dinette

The dining area is on a raised plinth so that we can see out the large window just above the table.  This will also convert into a double bed.

The signwriting will take most of the day, so we decided to leave them to it and return home. Daniel will send through photos of the finished work later on today.

We drove home via Overwater Marina and called in so that we could see where our mooring was.  We also paid our £10 deposit for the fob to allow us into the secure parking for our mooring area. 

Electric hookup

Mooring

This is where our boat will live and where can hookup for mains power and water.

View

Here is the view from the boat when we are moored up and going nowhere!!!







The next time we see Ella she will be hoisted on to the back of a lorry, driven down to the canal and hoisted into the water.  We are looking forward to it immensely!

Sparkling, shiny paint job!!!

1st September 2015

We went to visit Ella yesterday and were mightily pleased to see the progress that has been made.  Although the paintwork is not yet finished we are very happy with the choice of colour and the effect so far.

Door with blind

These doors are very clever as the windows are all double glazed and the blinds are between the panels of glass.  This means the blinds don't swing about and even more importantly don't get dirty!!!  See how shiny the paint is, my reflection is very clear!

Stern of Ella

Here is Dave standing at the stern of the boat. You can clearly see the propeller under the boat and the rudder in front of it.

Flag pole attached!!

Dave is very pleased to see the bracket for the flag pole and how it will look when it is attached.  
There is also a bracket that we can attach a bicycle carrier onto when we are ready.

These are the various control panels which will help us to look after the boat and the engine. We don't really know what they all do but Daniel will explain everything during the handover and there will be documents in folders for everything on the boat.  Exciting bedtime reading!

Hob

The three ring hob has still to be placed in the work surface, but it has only just arrived.  This and the oven are the only appliances to use gas.

Lounge lighting

Wall lamps in the lounge along with spotlights in the ceiling.  All the lighting is LED so power consumption should be very low. 

Kitchen work surface and sink

The work surface is made from the granite slab we went and chose from Derby.  We are very pleased with the colour and the way it lightens the kitchen area.

Tap

Wayne is holding the tap in place to give an impression of what it will look like when finished.  Simple but effective.

Bathroom sink

The bathroom is most impressive with the shower, sink and enormous mirror in place.  It does look lovely.

Bedroom television

The bedroom has it's own small TV with a dressing table area underneath it.  Wayne is going to put some additional lighting under the frame of the television.

Dave in the kitchen

Door design

Here you can see the red and black clearly.  There will be a cream coach line between the two colours.

Beside our boat is another boat that is being worked on as well. 

Brackets

You can see the brackets clearly here, the flat one is for the flag pole and the upright one is for the bicycle carrier.









What next?  The signwriter appears to be on holiday, so that will have to wait until he reappears.  We are away on holiday ourselves during September, so are unable to take delivery of Ella until the end of the month.

Once everything has been finished, the boat will be covered in polythene sheeting to protect it and left where it is.

The date for launching the boat is 28th September 2015, an independent surveyor will then survey it and hopefully pass it, and a safety certificate will be provided.

We are visiting again on Friday and if Andy Russell is available we might get to meet him.  If not we have given Daniel drawings of what we want painted on the boat.  

After so long it feels amazing to know that the boat will be ready for us to cruise away in before the end of the month!!  So exciting!!

Ella in the paint shed

31st August 2015

Ella has been moved into the paint workshop and work has begun on her decoration.

Before paint shed

All the grey protective coating was removed from the boat and the black undercoat was applied.

In the paint shed

Once that was complete, the black paint was 'flattened' - not sure what that means but I think it is in preparation for the main colour application.

Flattened undercoat

The final coats of paint were then applied.

Mercedes Red and Black trim

Doors

The doors have been painted in Mercedes Red.

Houdini Hatch

All wood work on the roof is also Mercedes Red.

Engine

Finally the engine has been delivered and is still under wraps until it is time to load it in to the engine bay.

Ella's Appliances

14th August 2015

The last visit to see Ella was 25th July 2015.  As reported at the end of the previous post we have received our registration number so that the signwriter can paint the sign onto the boat. 

Mug shot!!!

We were so excited when these came through.  It really felt as though things were moving forward.

Airing Cupboard

Hot water tank is beneath the slates on the left hand side.  The water is heated by the diesel so as long as we are cruising then there will be unlimited hot water.  When we are moored up and not cruising then there is an electric immersion heater for the water.

Space for TV

The television will be mounted into the top space and the shelving beneath can be used for DVD and book storage.  To the left of the photo is the  woodburner.

Sweepovac

We have chosen not to have a vacuum cleaner on board as they are bulky and difficult to store.  There are no carpets, just rugs, so the floors will be swept and the sweepings will be sucked into a space saving device mounted under the units in the kitchen. 

Fridge

In the galley there is a full sized fridge with a small freezer compartment.  Ample space for two people.

Oven

There is a full sized oven with a baking compartment and a full sized grill.  I do like my toast grilled perfectly!!

Wine cooler

The wine cooler is on the opposite side from the fridge and will be great for chilling wine and keeping bottles of water cool as well.

Space for hob

The hob will be above the oven and is going to be three rings in a linear design. The hob and oven are the only gas appliances on the boat.

Composting toilet

This is where the toilet will be positioned.  It is a separator arrangement, solids kept separate from liquids and there is a fan unit attached to kept the solids tank aerated and any smells out of the boat. Fascinating topic of conversation!!!

Shower unit

Full sized shower unit with pie shaped tray and sliding doors.

Towel radiator

Small radiator for drying towels in the bathroom, there is also another radiator on the other side of the bathroom, so important to keep to warm.







As it stands Ella was moved into the paintshop this week and they are in the process of stripping the exterior back to bare steel and putting a new coat of primer on her.  Once that is done then the top coats of paint will be applied.

We are looking forward to seeing this and meeting with the signwriter to discuss the painting of the name decorations onto the sides.  

Once this has been completed we believe it will then be a matter of weeks before she is put into the water.  It is all very exciting!!!