boat going in on thursday?

[Hannah and Jay]

After a year of work our boat is going in the water this week. We've yet to prep and paint the inner bilge pre floorboads... Question is we now have a super heavy engine i the stern and the rest of the boat is pretty much empty, should we be thinking of ballasting the bow? will it sit REALLY stern heavy in the water without it?

 

If we do chuck our ballast in, it'll be a bit in the way in terms of having to shift it about as we prep and paint the floor, but will be worth the bother if it means stability.....

[blackrose]

Chances are it will sink at the stern and then the entire boat will tip up almost vertically in the water, before descending beneath the surface.

 

Why don't you get a couple of 50 gallon plastic drums and put them on the bow. Then just fill them with water after the launch. That should even things out. To empty the drums once you're ballasted, just syphon the water out with a couple of metres of hose.

 

These would be ok: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Water-Butt-Plastic-Barrel-Drum-Tub-Storage-Drum-/170642558236?pt=UK_Home_Garden_GardenEquipment_HandTools_SM&hash=item27bb16cd1c

 

Edit: Actually, thinking about it, if you're moving around without any ballast you would have some stability problems in terms of roll. Is it a narrow boat and how thick is the baseplate?

Edited May 17, 2011 by blackrose

[Liam]

If it's a complete empty boat, with just the engine you'll probably find that you will need ballast at the back end just as much as you need at the front. With no weight in the boat, the propellor won't be in the water enough and without the extra weight it'll just end up throwing out bubbles. Even if you do end up getting a bit of speed up to be able to steer, you won't be able to stop!

 

It may be a case of getting movable ballast, that you can move around in the boat, or just using temporary ballast that you can remove again once you've got back to your mooring.

[paulcatchpole]

I agree with Liam - it won't tip up on one end, it'll be generally miles out of the water however - and as he says, it won't go well and certainly won't stop or reverse!

 

Mine, with a few tonnes of ballast, and a fitout, still has the uxter plate 20mm out of the water when moored up! She's a light boat for her volume though.

 

PC

[Proper Job]

I suppose the first question is: once it's in the water, will you be moving it? ....... and if you are, under it's own motive power?

 

If you're just doing a floating fit out, I wouldn't bother. Yes it will roll around a bit, but it will be stable enough to work on.

 

Once you've got the bilges painted and prepped, then ballast it up as required.

[Hannah and Jay]

Nice one, thanks for advice, I was worried about it. We will only be punting it across the cut to continue working on it, engine not ready fire up as we haven't got a diesel tank yet! We've put some ballast in today at the bow, just to put my mind at rest

 

 

 

Mine, with a few tonnes of ballast, and a fitout, still has the uxter plate 20mm out of the water when moored up! She's a light boat for her volume though.

 

PC

 

Uxter plate? which bit is this? flat plate above the swim? I'm enjoying learning all the terms!

[alan_fincher]

IIRC the engine involved here is a Perkins P4, and the boat a Springer......

 

I think the "back end down by a bit" effect may be rather more than some are predicting, if there really is no ballast at the front.

 

I had a boat with a P3 in, and , although admittedly shorter, that needed no added ballast at all at the back. My guess is that a P4 will come close enough to holding the back end down, that to get some purchase on the water might not be the issue some are expecting.

[blackrose]

Uxter plate? which bit is this? flat plate above the swim? I'm enjoying learning all the terms!

 

That's right, also called "the counter" by some people

[paulcatchpole]

That's right, also called "the counter" by some people

 

Usually by me, until someone beat me over the head and told me it was an uxter plate, and the topmost bit of flat steel was the counter!

 

I'm still learning...

 

PC

[WotEver]

Usually by me, until someone beat me over the head and told me it was an uxter plate, and the topmost bit of flat steel was the counter!

 

I'm still learning...

 

PC

So you stand on the counter and the uxter is a foot or two beneath your feet just in the water, yes?

 

Tony

[alan_fincher]

Until I saw the various usages on here, I always used to think that the "counter" was not one particular bit of plate, but the whole ensemble, of "uxter", "the plate you stand on", and "the curved bit around the back, with the guards and tunnel bands on".

 

I'm still not convinced that to describe the whole of that bit as "the counter" is incorrect!

[paulcatchpole]

So you stand on the counter and the uxter is a foot or two beneath your feet just in the water, yes?

 

Tony

 

Erm, I don't stand on the counter, 'cause they're both cruiser-sterned. I stand one some deck boards! Counter around the edge, for me?

 

For the person who asked...:

 

Uxter plate, with daylight viewing aperture...

 

 

Sadly, for reasons of floating, I was told to cover up the daylight viewing hole...

 

 

 

PC