Katona

Hello!

Boat updates…?! I have found myself in New York, and didn’t sufficiently have my shit together beforehand to get any boat work done this week. The forecast at home is cold and wet, so I’m not too mad, and it gives me a chance to get parts on order with any downtime. And here’s the nearby water, with a couple of boats if you zoom in:

I’m here for work, back the week after, so I’ll have nothing to show next Sunday either. I can feel my May deadline approaching…

Until next Sunday!

- Nick

Hello!

It didn’t feel like a huge boat progress week, but on Saturday I was back in the tank, sealing the crannies and nooks before I can fill it.

I wouldn’t call it aesthetic, but a generous dose and I hope function prevails. And it wouldn’t be complete without getting some in my hair, but the hairdresser is used to me by now (last time she was cutting out the blue paint).

A few other odd jobs, then back to the bathroom. Because the shower drains will be at floor level, the plumbing has to go lower. I’ve got a sump with a float switch and pump which fills and automatically drains, so today I started digging up the floor:

And feeling a little delicate because reasons, chiselling concrete was the perfect pastime. It’s a little ominous hammering away under the waterline, but it’s so satisfying when you chip away a huge chunk.

Because I’m adding a corner cupboard for the plumbing and electronics, I’ll need 3 drains along the starboard wall for all pitch angles (the bow drops a lot when the water tank is full). And because it lists to starboard I won’t need any on the port side. If by magic it’s level when I’m finished, I’ll add extra weight to keep it tilting. You may say uneven boats are buggy, but here it’s my feature.

I once thought about chiselling out square meters of floor for adjustable ballast and/or a wine “cellar,” but that little square took me 2 hours (the concrete is full of stones). Sometimes it’s healthy to let ideas marinate…

Until next Sunday!

- Nick

Hello, and happy November!

The thought of building out the boat over winter didn’t excite me to start with, but there’s something wholesome about working when it’s dark, lit by lamps and nothing much happening outside in the cold.

Speaking of, on Monday evening I re-did the bedroom lights, as the “wired to never fail” was bugging me. I added snap-on connectors instead of the solder joints, and some slack in the wires so you can pull them out if the LEDs fail.

Then, Denmark! A few days to celebrate my grandmother’s and mother’s birthday, with spades of cheese, rundstykker, wine and good company.

Back last night, and this morning I continued with plumbing, bending pipes to go up-and-over the bathroom for the shower, before starting on the ceiling. And pipe bending bloody hell, that takes it out of you, especially when you’re trying to be fancy across 3 dimensions.

I could have used plastic pipe, but… that has worse vibes for drinking, and something about copper + health benefits and algae resistance. But before I can cover it all up, it needs pressure-testing. That means connecting the electronics, finding some 12V power and finishing the water tank sealant.

Until next Sunday!

- Nick

Slam it to the left… if you’re havin’ a good time?

Mostly confident in my socket wiring last week, but I got a plug tester to be sure. The dopamine hit worked; there’s no substitute for the 2 green lights telling me “well done, you’re not an imbecile.”

Euphoria has so many triggers, like fixing an elusive programming bug, finishing a book you wrote, methylenedioxymethamphetamine, or meditative bliss. Another one is when you wire the lights, turn the switch and they work.

MOODY.

The 2700K colour is cosier than I imagined, but I think that’s fine for the bedroom; I’ll go higher for the rest. And I kinda forgot about maintenance, wiring them like they’ll never fail… I’ll add some easily-changeable connectors or something while they’re accessible.

And for once, I didn’t electrocute myself.

But there’s an issue with the dimmer programming, as they’re sometimes stubborn about turning on. Maybe the LED driver not getting enough power or the minimum setting is off, I’m not entirely sure; I’ve ordered a halogen bulb for testing to help isolate the issue. And a gripe with the switch fidelity — I’ve used the same one as I’ll need elsewhere for dimming in 2 locations, but the knob feels clicky, like a tinny word. Akin to the first iPod’s piezo clicker, it doesn’t have that satisfying resistance or click of a typical rotary switch, something woody.

Earlier in the week some plumbing kit showed up — the pump and accumulator. The latter is a tank that holds pressure and smoothens out the system so the pump doesn’t need to cut in as often, giving it a longer life and more consistent water pressure.

This is vaguely where I’ll mount them, in the bathroom. Old Katona had a 1 litre tank, but we’re yolo’ing this build and I went for 5. The bigger the tank, the longer water will run without the pump. During a shower it’s inevitable, but turning the tap on to wash your hands or fill up a bottle needn’t shake the boat. Speaking of, I was about to connect copper pipes directly to the pump when I remembered it vibrates, a lot. I’ll get some hose for either side, then mount it on vibration-absorbing pads, or maybe suspend it…

A bunch of copper pipe connectors also arrived, and I went to use them, but they were press fit. I wanted push fit, and that is when I learned those are entirely different ways of connecting pipes. Push fit grabs the pipe when you insert it, no tools required. Press fit requires a special crimping tool, which is expensive. Alas, the correct ones are now en route.

Some 10mm² wire arrived for the pump as well, but then I thought about the other devices needing 12v power, and it’s a lot of thick wire to get enough amps that far down the boat. Wondering if there was a more elegant solution, I asked ChatGPT, and it had the excellent idea of running a higher-voltage cable for the 14-metre stretch.

So, new plan! Bump up to 48v at the stern by the batteries, and run thinner cable to the bathroom where I’ll step down to 12v for the pump, shower drain, extractor fan, and water tank overflow. Converters on order, we are cooking.

I have a newfound appreciation for the national grid, what an absolute wonder. Katona’s getting a mini version, because why not.

Finally, it’s been an order-heavy week; I’ve spent so long wading through websites for the correct fittings, cables or other esoteric items. Eventually you just want to get on with putting things together.

Until next Sunday!

- Nick

Hello! Moar varnish this week, and buoy was it boring. Also hard to see given it’s clear, but that is the bedroom done. Some new work lights helped, for day-round daylight inside:

Then, lighting. Or at least the wire-y parts… I forgot fuses for the LED strips, so everything up-to that point:

The white thing below is the LED driver, and I made those brackets for mounting it to help dissipate any heat. Followed by fitting the bedroom plug sockets, which make a nice change to the wires hanging out everywhere:

On Saturday I also moved back to the marina, looking after my neighbour’s boat and their cat, Challa, until next June while they’re travelling. 30 seconds from Katona, ideal.

And finally, a plumbing order! I spent awhile perusing the interwebs to find what I’ll need for starting with the bathroom next week…

Until next Sunday!

- Nick