When I pressure-washed the water tank last Sunday, I dried it out but not quickly enough: it started flash rusting… but this time I only needed a quick angle grind with a wire brush, followed by a regular vacuum and wipe-down before it was ready to paint.
The paint I’m using — the right one this time! — is Acothane, a 2-component polyurethane designed for water tanks. It’s the weirdest paint I’ve used; the first thing you notice (besides the beautiful cerulean blue) is the clotted cream-like base. The hardener is like syrup, and together they make a whipped cream.
Then the timing: you have 24 hours to overcoat it, and after mixing you have 30 minutes until it becomes unpaintable molasses (of course the data sheet says “DO NOT THIN”). It’s a real workout, and with the time limit and some morning coffee shits you really start to sweat.
Because of all the odd metal bits and joins in there, a full coat takes about 90 minutes, and I needed 3 coats: 9 painting sessions, all tightly packed. It’s the most painting logistics fun I’ve had, and will maybe ever have. And I didn’t get thinners either, so I couldn’t clean brushes, rollers or myself:
It needed a special “Thinner No. 4”; your regular acetone or white spirit won’t cut it. But this morning I finished coat #9 on the floor, and it is done! I have a potable drinking water tank, wide enough to sleep in!!
The hatch gives you a better idea of the colour:
When my time comes I don’t expect a burial, but if I were buried then I’d like the inside of the coffin to be cerulean blue, from experience. It’s delightful.
In some other exciting news, insurance got back to me about the sinking and agreed to cover it citing “an extensive chine.” They said they wouldn’t cover me for any other chine-related sinkings until I ensmallen it, and then my renewal quote came through for £2.17 less than last year?!
I’ve also started designing the kitchen, and making plans for the underfloor heating. The unknowns are starting to crystallize which just fuels the momentum. There’ll be two heating zones — bedroom/bathroom and lounge/kitchen — as I’d like warm tiles in the summer without heating the whole boat. To make it more complicated there’ll be two heat sources: a diesel water heater in the engine bay, and there’s also a back-boiler on the multi fuel stove. I’ll have to be careful with the stove though, as that can boil water instead of just warming it.
On Wednesday I finalised the window order — 10 of them, double-glazed “thermal break” — followed by ordering some kits for the pocket doors (ones that slide into walls). This is when the rebuild gets expensive… although I’m having a lot of fun, no longer the dread of a horrible day cleaning that tank.
Then with some odd spots of insulation to do in the bow, on Saturday I finished off the battens:
Followed by masking tape:
Which really accentuates the strong Steiner angles, and they give me +3 points when I sleep. Then today, after painting the tank, insulation!
It wasn’t a lot so I only got a small kit, and there’s a little to do at the stern as well. For the last bit of work today, I installed a shiny new water filler cap:
Don’t mind the unsightly paint around it, all in due course…
In a final piece of incredibly exciting news: as of 10:04 this morning I officially own 100% of Katona. I had a loan to buy it, and today was the final payment.
Until next Sunday!
- Nick
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