Jersey Girl

Houseboat update, Thursday, May 30, 2019 – I started my day with Jersey Girl by bailing out a couple of inches of water that had found its way past the two tarps covering her into several of her compartments, and I finished in a drenching downpour, scrambling to put away my tools and covering her up again. In between, I managed to fit four new framing posts – the ones that will define the areas set aside for the galley and the enclosed head. As soon as weather allows, I’ll complete the shaping of these posts and seal them with two coats of epoxy before installing them. Sadly, my humble Jersey Girl is just a shade over 13 cubits long and 5 cubits wide. In light of the almost-biblical weather we're having in North Jersey, I'm considering the possibility of expanding to biblical size -- Noah's craft was purportedly 300 cubits long, 50 cubits wide and 30 cubits high. By the way, did you see in the news over the last few days that the developers of the Kentucky replica of Noah's ark are suing their insurance company over its refusal to honor their claim for -- get this -- rain damage? It’s funny, I don’t recall anything in the bible about rain damage to Noah’s ark, notwithstanding a storm lasting 40 days and 40 nights. Gotta strike while the irony is hot, right? (Here's a picture of the four new posts. They're the light-colored ones that haven't been coated with epoxy yet.)

Houseboat update, Monday, August 26, 2019 -- As the summer is drawing to an end and cooler weather is closing in on Jersey Girl and me, I'm working hard to seal the cabin for the winter. As you can see, I have finished the roof planking on the port half and a little of the starboard half of the raised central portion of the roof. Before I finish the starboard side, I will use the openings for access to fill the topside grooves of the planking with thickened epoxy, then sand everything to a smooth surface in preparation for fiberglass. I'll finish the planking on the starboard side and smooth that as well. But before I start work on the two "shoulders," I will have to apply the fiberglass fabric, smooth that out and prime and paint the central section. Only then will I be able to treat the port and starboard shoulders the same way. I've included a photo of the neat little (1-inch) overhang along the port edge. I think it's a nice finishing touch.

Houseboat update, Wednesday, August 28, 2019 -- Today is shaping up as a day of scattered thunderstorms through the night, so no actual work on Jersey Girl -- until tomorrow when a 10-day run of excellent building weather is forecast to start. In the meantime, I have been taking very seriously all the concerned comments from a number of observers that I am building failure into Jersey Girl's roof by fastening the planks down with epoxy and filling the topside grooves with more thickened epoxy, and planning to finish the top with fiberglass bedded in epoxy, followed by primer and paint on top of that. The concern is that because of the natural swelling and shrinkage of the wood over the course of the year, without the flexing ability of traditional caulk and a canvas cover, the grain of the wood itself would separate and split, leading to failure. So, after a night of sleepless worry, I called the gurus at Jamestown Distributors this morning and posed the problem to them. The short answer is that I will be fine doing just what I had planned. JD assures me that if the planks are all encapsulated by epoxy on both sides and all edges, and further sealed by epoxy and fiberglass on top, there will be no seasonal changes in moisture levels within the wood, and minimal expansion and contraction to worry about. Moreover, they said, the epoxy itself has a minimal ability to expand and contract with the wood. Finally, there is my own experience. More than 20 years ago, I built two cedar strip kayaks, sealed inside and out with fiberglass and epoxy applied directly to the wood. With regular maintenance, applying a fresh coat of varnish every couple of years, there has been absolutely no evidence of failure of the wood or delamination of the fiberglass, even though they are stored outside (under a roofed but open shelter) during the winter. With the patina of age and heavy use, they are even more beautiful now than they were when I built them. So, with thanks to all who have expressed concern, I have decided to complete Jersey Girl's roof as planned.

Houseboat update, Saturday. September 7, 2019 – I’m rocking my man glitter today, just having finished three sandings of Jersey Girl’s roof – the central portion of it, anyway. I’ve gone from 60 grit (very coarse), to 150 grit to 220 grit, and not it’s just about ready for epoxying and covering with fiberglass woven fabric. Except for a few small lacunae, which I will fill later today. Details, details…

Houseboat update, Tuesday, September 10, 2019 -- I'm a local celebrity, thanks to a couple who are neighborhood real estate brokers. Jon and Lee Long publish a monthly newsletter to help promote their business, and hot-off-the-presses September edition features Jersey Girl and yours truly. Meanwhile, the central portion of Jersey Girl's roof is covered in epoxy-bedded fiberglass fabric, and tomorrow, I'll start priming it.