Play d’eau and South Africa

1 September 2014. A decision had been made.

Having prepared our Fleming 55, Play d’eau, for the journey, Kim and I left sunny Beaucette soon after midday delivering a long and triumphant blast of the Kahlenbergs echoing around the marina’s quarry walls, and set sail (set motor?) for the journey. Not to South Africa, but Southampton via Alderney where we’d have a few hours break for supper.

Casting off from Buoy 20 in Braye Harbour, we travelled throughout a moonless night in a rather emotional sea and arrived in a flat calm Solent just as the sun rose, casting her fire orange hue over the water.

Having completed the handover to GRP Boat Repairs Ltd at Shamrock Quay, I caught the 1440 Blue Islands flight back to Guernsey and was tucked up and asleep by 8pm.

Why Southampton?

Well, Play d’eau is in need of extensive repair work which will be carried out by UK specialists. Whilst there, Lin and I will take the opportunity to visit South Africa for the two months Play d’eau will be under cover in a heated shed.

A great friend of ours, Kim Hollamby, had flown to Guernsey to accompany me to Southampton. Lin was staying behind to make final preparations for our extended South African adventure.

Why South Africa?

Readers will remember that our youngest son, Toby, married his fiancé Amy in April this year in the Tala Private Game Reserve just outside Durban. We spent a month sightseeing this beautiful country and meeting members of our new extended family. We agreed that this, our first time in South Africa, would not be the last.

Why two months?

Simple. The work needed on Play d’eau will take two months, and since she is our home we have taken the opportunity to return to beautiful South Africa.

There’s so much to explore. Magnificent mountain ranges, wines, exotic game reserves, wines, family to meet, wines, journeys to be made, and have I mentioned the fine luscious South African wines?

What’s up with Play d’eau?

Good question. The main problem is hundreds of blisters on many of the surfaces above the waterline. Above the waterline? Yes, above the waterline.

Apparently, when she was built a water-attractive filler was used in some places under the gel coat rather than an epoxy water-repellent filler. Hence, any water resting on surfaces was ‘sucked’ through the gel coat, into the filler, causing blistering, looking just like a bad rash of teenage acne. Given her debut was at the 2002 Southampton Boat Show, she’ll be thirteen in a year’s time, so teenage acne isn’t a bad metaphor.

The Blisters

So, Play d’eau will be in a heated tent, with the blister correction work being carried out by a Fleming recommended facility. Work will be monitored by a marine surveyor and finally signed off as complete and corrected.

Other work will include blasting the hull back to the original epoxy coating, applying additional epoxy, re-antifouling, reseating caprails, remaking any loose caulking in the teak decking, repairing any ‘dinks’ in the internal wooden flooring, certifying the fire protection systems, replacing a gearbox oil seal and servicing the Glendenning engine synchroniser.

And that will all take two months. But at least she’ll be ready for next year’s cruising with not a hint of acne.

Piers and Lin
from a friend’s bungalow near Cobo
Play d’eau
Fleming 55