Swimming house for self-construction. Floating cottages

Almost all people, with a few exceptions of adherents of an urbanistic lifestyle, tend to gravitate towards natural nature. Therefore, everyone, to the best of his ability, in one way or another tries to achieve this. Someone travels out of town, wealthier people travel around exotic countries, less - explore the picturesque corners of the fatherland. And someone is attracted by a floating dacha, located on a small reservoir a few hours away from the city.

Dacha on the water

What if there is no way to acquire even a piece of land? In such cases, and, of course, according to an irresistible desire to rest in this way, the option with the arrangement of a residential building directly above the water surface is suitable for you. The history of water houses goes back a century, and the geography is interesting and varied.

A small excursion into history

More than a hundred years ago, during the period when India was an English colony, it was the British who began building floating houses on Indian Lake Dal. The maharaja of the capital of the Indian state of Kashmir, the city of Srinagar, prompted them to do this by banning the sale of land for the construction of houses to foreigners.

Resourceful lovers of relaxation in these wonderful places began to build houses on the water.

And now Lake Dal can boast not only floating dachas, but also:

• Shops.
• Palaces.
• Temples.
• Hotels.
• Mansions.

Houses on the water are very popular in many other countries, for example, France, Germany and England are also famous for the abundance of residential buildings on the water.

Holland should be noted separately. The total complexity here is up to ten thousand floating houses; near Amsterdam there is a whole modern district of floating houses - Iburg. More than 2,500 families permanently reside in such houses on the canals of Amsterdam.

Features of houses on the water

A water recreation house has significant advantages for fishing and swimming enthusiasts. Waking up in the morning, you can jump into the water or get a job catching fish literally from the doorstep.

A summer cottage is being built over the water in almost the same way as an ordinary one, with the only difference that its base will not be, but a pontoon.

Interesting!
A dacha, of course, can also be a comfortably equipped self-propelled boat or some decommissioned floating facility converted into housing.

So, a small instruction on the arrangement and operation of a floating cottage:

• The floating house pontoon is made of prefabricated reinforced concrete elements or high-quality steel.

• The best place for the location of the house will be an internal reservoir (lake, pond), where there is no strong wave of water:
  • The wave is no more than one meter.
  • The wind speed does not exceed 15 m / s.
  • The daily flow does not affect the location of the building.
• Since rolling on the water still cannot be avoided, the frame of the house is made of steel by welding, which will prevent changes in the geometry of the structure (in other words, distortions).
• Proceeding from the same, finishing works are carried out by facing panels, which have the possibility of "free movement". It is not recommended to plaster and putty, since with maximum excitement and even temporary deformations of the hull, such surfaces will crack.
• A well-built houseboat is not afraid of frost and ice. With appropriate measures to insulate structures, such a summer cottage can serve all year round. Having such a house, you can go swimming in the ice-hole. For those who like to steam on a winter day, it is important to equip a sauna.

For your information!
The fastest way to equip country houses from prefabricated block containers.
For the waterfowl option, all that remains is to make a pontoon, and then install and dock on it the ready-made sections made to order.

• All communications should be carefully sealed, since the humidity in the building will be high.
• It is desirable to distribute the load evenly around the perimeter of the building..
• We recommend installing door closers on the door, automatic closing will allow to avoid puddles on the floor in bad weather.

Nuances of life support

When designing a house, do not forget about life support systems:

• If you plan and have such an opportunity to connect the house to onshore utilities, then you only need to take care of the appropriate piping and installation of sanitary equipment.
• In the case of an autonomous existence, you will need reservoirs for:
  • Drinking water supply.
  • Fuel storage.
  • Wastewater collection.
• can be solved in two ways:
  • Installing a steel or cast iron fireplace stove.
  • Underfloor heating plus electric or gas convectors.

Attention!
A floating house, by virtue of its specificity, must be provided with both fire-extinguishing and water rescue equipment.
At the very least, you should get life jackets and an inflatable rubber boat.

• When the floating house cannot be connected to the central power grid, its power supply can be solved by purchasing a mobile generator. To illuminate the house and ensure the operation of household electrical appliances, a unit designed for 100 kW is sufficient.

A more powerful generator is unlikely to be needed, and the price of such goods increases in parallel with an increase in this parameter.

Advice!
In the case when your floating house is used for short periods of time and stands on the road in the ice for six months, it is advisable to rent a diesel generator for a summer residence.
The cost of the service is low, moreover, you will have a chance to assess the capabilities of the unit and subsequently, if necessary, purchase the best option without spending extra money.

Another important point is an anchor and any other means that does not allow the structure to move freely around the reservoir. Often, the owners of such houses keep them near the shore, connecting them with a suspension bridge. And when it "pushes away" from the mainland, plastic containers with sand and earth can serve as a stopper.

Output

As you can imagine, a do-it-yourself floating dacha is being built without the use of any special tools and equipment, the main point that may confuse you is the pontoon. And if you find it difficult to create it yourself, then it is easier to purchase a finished product that suits your desires.

In the photos and videos presented in this article, you will find additional information on this topic.

A floating dacha usually means a comfortable structure - a house on the water with spacious, full-length, internal rooms, with a shallow draft, used for a long rest in some closed water area or even for a leisurely swim along the river.

In our country, floating dachas have not yet received noticeable distribution. Firstly, because the industry has not yet established a stable production of such vessels for sale to the population. Several years ago, two enterprises in the country manufactured the prototype of the Beryozka dacha (), but due to the high cost - the price turned out to be twice as high as that of a standard dacha house of the same usable area - the implementation of Beryozok became problematic, the enterprises were forced to refuse further work.

More acceptable for the consumer - both in terms of size and cost - is the “Alenushka” floating house, the main information about which is published on the pages of this issue. But those who want to purchase such a vessel face another problem: for non-separable sailing, an equipped parking lot is needed, the possibilities of transporting it to a reservoir chosen for recreation are limited - a truck with sufficiently large body dimensions and crane for loading and launching. The design of the floating structure is notable for its significant material consumption, the large volume of hull work makes it difficult to organize its production in a larger series. The steel hull, which is the main reason for the significant weight of the vessel, is inconvenient to operate in that it will require an annual painting.

Apparently, the noted drawbacks would be deprived of the cottages-catamarans of a collapsible design (as an example, the collection of this number contains photographs and basic data of such a floating boat, produced in the USA). This design is also promising due to the possibility of organizing production at woodworking enterprises with the production of metal pontoons of a cylindrical shape by cooperation. And most importantly - it would be much easier to solve the issues of storage and transfer of the dacha over long distances in disassembled form.

Even more interesting is the proposal of our industry to master the production of the Don amphibious boat, which can be transported as a trailer behind a passenger car to almost any body of water, wherever it is. Parking, lifting and launching problems are also much easier to solve. However, the level of comfort on a light aluminum "box" with a tent on it will, of course, be lower than what you can have on a ship like the same "Alyonushka" with its stability, stable microclimate, comfortable stationary cabin equipment.

Along the way, you can express a wish to the Gorky aircraft plant named after. S. Ordzhonikidze, who became interested in this project. It is advisable to manufacture at least some of these trailer boats with wheel brakes in order to increase the carrying capacity when driving behind the car to a practically acceptable figure.

After all, the 50 kg stipulated by the initial project is just one 25-horsepower engine, and you also need to take with you a supply of gasoline, sleeping bags and utensils necessary for a truly comfortable stay!

Our next project "KiYa" is addressed to lovers of DIY crafts.

The dimensions of the Cinderella collapsible floating dwelling were selected in such a way that the builder could make all its sections in a city apartment. The ship can be assembled in any open area directly on the shore. The living area is 3.8 m 2 - and the volume of this mini-cottage is not large, but one should not forget that, as a rule, a floating house is more comfortable than a tent, which, moreover, must be put up anew after each transition, looking for a suitable place on shore.

Of course, if possible, the floats can be made welded from an aluminum alloy or from lightweight foam with fiberglass pasting on the outside. A variant with cylindrical inflatable balloons is also possible, which will further simplify the storage and transportation of the vessel.

In our selection of materials about floating dachas, we also publish a draft design of a dacha boat for open water, made by Japanese boat builders. In recent years, summer cottages of this type are increasingly appearing in the skerries and lakes of Finland, in norwegian fjords, off the coast of France - wherever there is an opportunity to spend the weekend in cozy sea bays or small provincial harbors. Possessing a high level of comfort, such floating boats must be seaworthy enough to make small sea crossings, their equipment and operation are no longer different from ordinary coastal pleasure-tourist sea boats.

The editors of the collection will be grateful to amateurs who have built or operate floating dachas for reports on the experience of their use, and also invites readers to express their opinion on the advisability of mastering floating dachas in serial production, their possible types and sizes.

Floating dacha "Alyonushka"

Samples of the floating dacha "Alenushka", developed by NPO Ritm, were demonstrated at VDNKh, at exhibitions of small vessels in Moscow and Leningrad, as well as at the exhibition "Shipbuilding of the USSR and the GDR" in Rostock. A small number of these vessels were released into the trading network of the Svirskaya Shipyard (Leningrad Region); floating houses were sold at a retail price of 2500 rubles.

Basic data of the ship "Alenushka"

The compact and comfortable self-propelled four-seater floating house "Alyonushka" aroused a certain interest of specialists, especially those who like to rest on the water, was awarded medals of VDNH.

As conceived by the designers, floating can be used both for walking exits at low speed and for a relatively long rest on rivers, lakes and reservoirs with a distance of up to 1 km from the coast at a wave height of no more than 0.5 m.

Alyonushka's speed in calm water at full load and 18 hp outboard motor power. from. is 9-10 km / h (with a standard propeller).

The hull of the floating dacha is made in the form of a welded flat-bottomed pontoon of a simplified shape, assembled from corrugated steel sheets 2 mm thick. The superstructure is made of wood with a frame made of bars, lined on the outside and inside with plywood sheets 6 and 3 mm thick, respectively.

On a relatively small area of \u200b\u200bthe pontoon (12 m 2), it was possible to place two separate light cabins with a galley and a dinette, two open deck areas (foredeck - 3.2 m 2 and aft - 1.2 m 2), as well as a solarium on the roof superstructure (7.6 m 2). Convenient sliding doors are made in the bow and stern walls of the superstructure. The height of the superstructure is such that it is possible to stand freely at full height in the interior of the floating building.

A steel ladder leads to the roof of the superstructure. At the deck level, latticed side depressions are made for ease of passage along the floatation.

The bow and stern cabins are separated by lockers for clothes and household items. Shelves for personal belongings are fixed above the windows. Four large side windows (two of which are openable) and small portholes on the sliding doors provide good illumination and visibility from the cabins.

The plush sofas in both cabins can be easily converted into double berths. Below them are lockers for storing bedding and household items. The dinette in the forward cabin is equipped with a folding table and padded seats. The galley, located on the starboard side in the aft cabin, has a sink and a tank for fresh water, a table for cooking with boxes for storing food and dishes and a socket for a gas stove "Tourist".

A bracket for the outboard motor is installed in the stern, and on the stern platform on the left side there is a helmsman's place equipped with a remote control device for turning, reverse and engine gas; there is also a shield for turning on the navigation and parking lights, as well as two ceiling lights in the cabins. Electricity is supplied from a storage battery, for which a special compartment is provided in the cockpit.

There are four bollards for mooring and towing (two at the bow and two at the stern); the dacha is equipped with an anchor with an anchor rope, boom hooks and a fire extinguisher.

"Alenushka" with the removed depressions and the mast can be transported in the back of a truck (for example, "MAZ-535A" or "KRAZ-255B"); this makes it possible to significantly expand the possible areas of its operation.

Unsinkability is provided by buoyancy blocks (PSB foam) with a total volume of 2.1 m 3. Tests have shown that when the pontoon is filled with water to the level of the door coaming, the cottage remains afloat and has an excess buoyancy of 350 kg.

For the project of the floating dacha "Alenushka", the Committee for Inventions and Discoveries under the Council of Ministers of the USSR issued a certificate for industrial design No. 3525 dated April 6, 1973.

Boat-floating dacha "Yanta"

The project of this floating dacha based on a 9.5-meter jet boat with simplified contours was developed by Y. Kobachevsky. He also built a solid building with a double diagonal planking of pine planks, lined on the outside with 3 mm AMg-3 alloy sheets. I had a chance to finish building the floatation. This task was complicated by the fact that after the death of the designer, all the sketches and diagrams he had made were lost.

To some extent, the ship is similar to the "Birch", the project of which was published in the third issue of "Boats and Yachts" (1964), but, as it turned out, the hull was designed long before the publication of the collection, but when completing and equipping the "Yant" information from "KiYa" and all available materials were widely used.

Basic data of the "Yanta"

The forepeak contains a 20 m long anchor chain and two Hall anchors. In the bow there is a “veranda” with two sofas-lockers on the sides, covered with a light duralumin awning made of two halves connected by a piano loop.

The superstructure has dimensions in terms of 5.0X3.0 m. Its walls and roof are made of bakelized plywood 10 mm thick; the roof is covered with epoxy resin. The height of the walls is 1100 mm. Since the horizontal flooring (floor) is lowered below the deck (300 mm from the OL), the height of the premises is 1800 mm. For thermal insulation, a foam layer is laid along the walls and ceiling. Internal lining is made of decorative mahogany plywood and plastic with layouts along the beams. The side windows of the saloon are made of the trolleybus type with sliding glass, the front observation windows are made of plexiglass.

The aft cabin, separated from the saloon by a sliding metal door, is equipped with built-in wardrobes for various purposes, hangers and shelves. There is also a kitchen table with shelves, a gas stove and a sink-sink, which is supplied with hot and cold water. Nearby there is a combined bathroom - shower and latrine.

In the stern - in the engine compartment - there is a 45-horsepower Skoda 1201 automobile engine with an additional casing on the exhaust manifold for heating water. Two gas tanks with a capacity of 80 liters are suspended under the deck; cans and an inflatable boat - tuzik are also placed here. The Yant's deck is covered with corrugated rubber mats on a glyphtal varnish.

The driver's post is located on the left side in the bow compartment, near the front glass. A plexiglass skylight is made above the driver's head.

For two years, in winter and summer, our whole family worked with great enthusiasm on the completion and equipment of the floating dacha. And then came the long-awaited moment of the first sailing of "Yant". What can you say about our ship in general? This is a reliable and comfortable houseboat. Due to the high cabin "Yanta" has a large windage, so that the speed is in direct proportion to the strength and direction of the wind and ranges from 15 to 20 km / h. Large weight results in significant inertia. It was necessary to get used to the peculiarities of the ship's control due to the reaction of the jet of the water cannon.

The shape of the hull turned out to be very successful - you can get out with your nose on the shore by almost a third of the hull. The jet of the water cannon, directed under the bottom, easily lifts the hull and pulls it off any shoal.

Early in the morning of July, Yanta headed for the Big Volga. Having joined the caravan of small ships, we passed five locks and entered the Moscow Sea. We follow up the Volga. Strong wind, high wave, but Yanta is going confidently.

We go into a picturesque bay. The sedge rustles against the sides. Lilies and water lilies form a continuous carpet here. And further, on the way to Kalinin, we deliberately go not along the fairway, but along the coast, visiting shallow bays and estuaries of forest streams. I had to clean the water cannon twice, until I got the hang of passing overgrown places at low speeds - so the algae does not break out and clog the propeller.

We spent our first vacation on "Yant" on the left bank of the Volga, opposite the village of Gorodnya, 207 km from Moscow. In a word, our "Yanta" was above all praise!

Dacha-amphibious "Don"

Versatility is a distinctive feature of the Don amphibious dacha, the serial production of which was prepared at the Gorky Aviation Plant named after S. Ordzhonikidze. When designing this original structure, the designers made an attempt to take into account the conflicting demands of anglers, water skiers, water-powered tourism enthusiasts, car enthusiasts relaxing by the water and taking short walks near the camp.

This wide range of applications is made possible by the design of a trolley trailer and a light boat. By combining them with each other or using them separately, you can get about ten use cases.

It is possible to tow to the place of rest "Don" by a car. In this case, "Don" is a trailer - a uniaxial cart, the cover of which is a boat mounted on top. Part of the luggage and equipment can be put into a trailer, and when towing behind the Volga, it can accommodate 50 kg of luggage, and if the towboat is Moskvich or Zhiguli - 30 kg (the weight of the equipped trailer is 270 kg). Thanks to the independent link suspension of the wheels (with spring-hydraulic shock absorbers), the trailer has a high cross-country ability (ground clearance of 332 mm), does not reduce the speed and maneuverability of the car, has an alarm, electrical devices, a towing and towing device. The trailer (dimensions 3.5X1.9X1.6) can be stored in the garage along with the car.

By connecting the two components of the trailer with a special cover plate and locks along the sides, it is easy to turn the Don into a cottage on wheels and install it in any place you like. The two-room tent house has a spacious area of \u200b\u200b8.5 m 2. For a night in it, two people can be accommodated on soft sofas, and three - on additional berths - a full car crew.

To transform the "Don" from a land-based dacha into a floating one, it is enough to lower it into the water on wheels, which then need to be lifted and secured in the surface position with a special lock (or even removed). Near the camp, you can move with the help of oars, for the convenience of getting out of the water while swimming, the "Don" is equipped with a removable side ladder. Provided on it and roomy luggage racks, a folding table, handrails, equipped with a "Don" scoop, a repair kit. By installing an outboard motor up to 30 hp on the transom of the main part. with., you can make long long journeys. With four passengers on board, the Don glides at a speed of 30 km / h, and with one driver, the speed increases to 37 km / h. This is quite a solid vessel, which can move 3 km from the coast and overcome a wave up to 0.3 m high, thanks to the catamaran bow contours and moderately keeled aft contours.

While traveling for better view the side curtains of the awning tent can be raised and fastened. In this case, only a light shade awning remains above the deck and cockpit.
With a length of 5.0 m, a width of 1.7 m and a side height of 0.55 m, floating water has a weight of 220 kg, it can carry 400 kg of cargo by water (500 kg is also allowed); passenger capacity - 4-6 people.

The designers of the "Don" provided for a completely independent use of each of its components.

The bow section of the floating dacha is a lightweight (65 kg) boat with catamaract contours and adjustable transom plates that can be removed and laid on the starboard side - you get a berth in a docked version of a floating dacha. Thanks to the catamaran lines and a relatively large width - 1.7 m (with a length of 2.95 m with transom plates), the boat is very stable, it is allowed to install a motor with a power of up to 30 hp on it. from. With one driver, the speed reaches 42 km / h, with a full load (225 kg) - 38 km / h. The boat is convenient for walking, fishing, hunting; with a 20-horsepower motor tows a skier. To ensure unsinkability, sealed containers are provided - one in the bow and two in the stern.

The boat has only a transverse set, longitudinal rigidity is provided by a rectangular tunnel. To damp the vibration of the body from the operating motor, an elastic tape is laid on the transom under the duralumin lining. Separately, the trailer can serve as a one-room house with a shady canopy, in which you can relax or settle for the night. The trailer put on wheels can be used for household needs.

Dacha-amphibian "Don" is made of aluminum alloy D16-T, the structure is riveted, the body is painted with durable waterproof paints.

Once an elderly amateur navigator came to our office. I introduced myself. He said that he had come in without any special purpose - just to show the color photographs of his ship, which, by the way, was very pleased with, just received from the studio. When we saw in the photo an elegant 8-meter floatation underneath Neptune-23 and recognized the old Birch project published in 1964, we immediately asked Alexei Pavlovich to write at least a small note.

Along the way, we recall that once the serial production of a floating boat for the same project, but of a slightly longer length (authors VN Aladin, ES Zhuravlev, VK Lapin) was supposed to master the Svirsk shipyard. The built and tested prototype () turned out to be too heavy, laborious and, most importantly, expensive. “Beryozka” never went into series for sale to the population. Over the next years, the editorial office received only a few messages about the construction of motor floating boats of similar dimensions in our country ().

Obviously, in the current conditions, when there is a clear interest in the "leisurely" large boats, it is worth drawing attention to the forgotten, or rather - the type of ship that did not take place in our country for family water recreation.

On the other hand, it is worth acquainting readers with the very builder of "Birch" - an extraordinary man with golden hands, now a mechanic for instruments and equipment at the Pavlov Institute of Physiology of the USSR Academy of Sciences. Agree, not everyone is capable of building a really comfortable ship with a usable area of \u200b\u200balmost 20 sq. meters, and everywhere you can safely straighten even a person above average height. And at the same time to do and decorate everything so carefully and lovingly that his "Birch" is usually considered an imported product - a Finnish-built boat. Admirable is the fact that Alexey Pavlovich built his ship virtually alone, and even all the equipment (with the exception, as it turned out, of the toilet bowl) was made with his own hands.

At first, the builder strictly followed the drawings given in the "KiYa", but then - both during construction and during the first years of the operation of the ship - made a lot of rather interesting changes and improvements.

To prevent the transom from "dragging water", the stern contours were changed. Improved layout - the bathroom is fenced off; a camel appeared; the aft cockpit is covered with an awning; the control post has become more convenient; a balcony is made on the transom, etc., etc. At the stern, on davits, a tuzik is suspended - an inflatable. The "Neptune" propeller is equipped with an annular nozzle; the motor itself is not simply hung on the transom, but placed on a welded bracket. As an auxiliary emergency propulsive device, a system of two aft oars invented by the author was used, which deserves the highest praise. At Istomin's Berezka one never ceases to be amazed at even the simplest things. The original folding sink-sink with a flush in the toilet. Even the design of the stove pipe is unusual: its work is based on the use of the effect of rarefaction of air ...

In a word, the amateur designer has put his talent and experience, his soul into every detail, every node. (He whose most interesting developments will be described in the following issues.)

The editorial office receives a large number of letters beginning the same: "Help me to buy, where to get it, where to order, etc." Alexei Pavlovich's story about a far from simple 20-year history of making his dreams come true will help to find answers to such questions, instill confidence in the souls of novice shipbuilders who trembled at the sight of seemingly insurmountable difficulties.

Having finished the third navigation, my "Birch" returned to Koltushi, to its native boathouse - to the winter parking. And in the new spring, she will, as befits a self-respecting ship, smarten up, not really, however, following a changeable fashion. Along the way, something will throw off something superfluous, which has not justified itself. Something will acquire new, not designed for an external effect, but rational, for which there is an obvious need.

This motor cottage for recreation on the river expanses has been built by me for twenty years! Analyzing the accumulated experience, I can say that this work, working practically alone and every day from 18.00 to 24.00 (plus weekends and vacations), could well have been completed in two years. The remaining eighteen went to find, purchase and deliver materials and tools. The main materials were purchased only upon confirmation of their legal purchase and sale by a document. Otherwise, the labor expended would have been in vain, because registration of a boat without documents for materials was excluded.

Basic data of the floating dacha "Berezka"

The hobby was born about sixty years ago on the dear Sheksna. In early spring, three guys from the other end of our village Matyukovo, straining like Repin's barge haulers, pulled along the street, completely covered with puddles, an impressive floating structure - either the icebreaker Krasin, or the battleship Potemkin. The sight captured me. The feeling of joy from what he saw was mixed with envy. I really wanted to do something similar, albeit not so impressive. For me, an eight-year-old, a heavy and not very sharp ax served as a tool, and a birch block was the material. Two days later I was testing my boat in a ditch. The imperfection of the design was brightened up by fantasy. I felt like a captain at the head of an invisible team. The only disappointment was that the resulting ship sat too deep in the water and did not look very much like that magnificent boat "No. 13" with rapid contours, on which my father went, supplying the buoy-keepers with kerosene.

In the summer, free from the burdensome household duties, I spent among the village freemen, mostly on the river. Bathing, catching ruffs, cooking unusually tasty potatoes in cast iron ...

In 1933, moving away from collectivization, we left the village and moved to Rybinsk. And three years later, they proceeded along the same Sheksna on a passenger steamer with an incomprehensible name "Sovnarkhoz" - now to the city of Cherepovets. We sailed past Matyukovo. Oh, how my heart ached at the sight of my native village, deserted and devastated, floating away forever from our life. My homeland was preparing for the "flood": this place later became a reservoir. IN different countries I had a chance to visit, I saw a lot of beautiful landscapes, neat cities, but all this only intensified that sad feeling that is called nostalgia, longing for the native shores, where an unclouded childhood passed and which cannot be seen again.

In Cherepovets, we settled on the Gavansky Island, in a new two-story house, together with the family of another river steer, Leonid Aleksandrovich. I still remember how pleasant it was to look when he worked with wood surprisingly easily and beautifully. The ax felt weightless in his hands.

Here, in the harbor, on the island separated from the city by the Yagorba River, I found myself, as if by the fabulous Blue Sea. Uncle Sasha, the head of the watermen's bathhouse, hobbled on a prosthesis, gave me a boat (like a "dori"). He did not even suspect what happiness it was for me. I spent the whole summer on the water again. In addition to fishing - raising snags from the bottom of Yagorba on firewood, skating girls and boys, transporting workers to the Cholu railway line. In the evenings I was fond of watercolors. I also tried to paint with oil paints on canvas, but, not knowing the basics of technology, I left this occupation.

At that time my father worked in the "Technical section of the track and construction" of the North-Western Shipyard as the captain of the steamer "Koltsov". It is not surprising that I was my man in the backwater, went into the ship repair shops. I was interested in a lot. Once, having seen electric welding for the first time in my life, unknowingly, I seriously hurt my eyes, I could not close them for two nights: the electric welder must have turned out to be an evil person - he did not warn that one should not look at the arc. I was already 13 years old then.

That summer I had the idea to build a wheeled tug, driven naturally by "own ferry". Managed to interest a friend - Vitka Petrov, the son of a diver. The first step was to "requisition" at night several plywood boxes of pasta, lying near the pier in the open air. And a month later we built a superstructure on the hull of our plywood steamer, mounted wheels with a crank, and painted it. Almost a real tugboat received the wonderful name "Yuny Vodnik".

When we launched it into the water - into the Yagorba River - we did not notice the thunder of applause, but, no doubt, aroused lively interest. Who doesn't want to ride an almost real-life paddle steamer? A queue was quickly established. Obeying the requirement to observe order, the children patiently stood on the shore.

A thunderous ovation and an award awaited us ahead.

Once, on a quiet sunny day, it was decided to go up the Yagorba, go around the city and find out where this river originates. Vitka played the role of a car - he turned the wheels - and a driver. I was the captain, helmsman, and fireman. The fireman needed smoke to come out of the chimney. Otherwise, what kind of steamer?

Skirting the peninsula, on which someone's goat was serenely grazing, we moved towards the wooden bridge connecting our Havana island with the city. The wheel plates were busily splashing, creating a wave and a trail behind the stern. Somewhere beyond the Cathedral Mountain, a shrill-metallic sound of a pioneer bugle arose, breaking the triumph of the velvet peace spilled over the river. And here appeared a solid snow-white ribbon, colored with bright red ties and flags, descending along the road from the mountain, slowly flowing onto the bridge. With the piercing, abrupt sounds of horns and disorderly drums, the seemingly endless pioneer column moved harmoniously and busily. No attention to us. The feeling of fleeting resentment for the indifference to our steamer of these girls and boys heading to the camps - the townspeople, as we called them, was replaced by a feeling of superiority over them. Vitka and I are free birds, an independent people. We are not looked after by nanny counselors. We only do what we like ...

But something happened on the bridge. The pioneer column was scattered like a whirlwind. Screaming furiously, out of control, the childish mass rushed to the railing, frantically waving ties, Spanish caps, waving flags. As if the horns sang alarming or delight and everyone was shouting something to us, pointing at us with their hands, beckoning to us.

It was our triumph with Vitka. We headed under the bridge. There was silence. With bated breath, keen inquisitive eyes looked at us eagerly. There was a silent fuss. They wiped off the lucky ones who hung their bellies on the railing, wanting to see the curiosity. One could hear distinctly the slapping of the tiles, and the childish puffing of the bridge. "Young water worker", fake smoke, confidently walked under the bridge. We hear the clatter of childish feet rushing to occupy the railing of the bridge on the other side. We pass a hundred meters, make a left turn and again go under the bridge. Then, moving away along our route, we see how these townspeople who have somehow become closer to us are waving after us. "

The next day, with the help of the Havana girls, a photojournalist from the Cherepovets newspaper Kommunist found me. Unfortunately, Vitka was not found, and I had to be photographed alone. ”It was embarrassing. It seemed as if I had betrayed my friend.

The newspaper with the picture came out in a month. Her father showed me. I then visited him on the ship, on the voyage, hosted the cabin "The caption under the photo for some reason informed that it was not Alyosha Istomin, but Lenya Vereshchagin that was depicted

That summer, together with Vitka, we were photographed by two newspapermen from "Water Transport". I still don't know if our "Young Vodnik" appeared on the pages of this newspaper ...

These are the origins that have fueled my desire all my life - the dream of building a large comfortable boat. Much water has flowed under the bridge since then. My name is not among the heroes, but I don’t worry about it. Seen Antarctica and the “roaring forties”, the formidable North Atlantic and volcanoes near Reykjavik. He visited ports in many countries of the world.

But now it's time to go ashore. ”Returning from Antarctica, in a conversation with my colleagues, I expressed the idea of \u200b\u200bbuilding together a large boat for fishing and recreation on the river. The well-known boat No. 13 of the SZRP fleet offered as a prototype. The idea was supported. "At first the hull was planned to be made of steel, but it turned out that it was easier to purchase plywood for cash. When this plywood was delivered to the location of the future shipyard, an attempt was made to collect the money I spent turned out to be unrealizable. The fishermen were unable to fish "in clear water". And I turned out to be the owner of plywood folded in a shed.

Once, walking into a bookstore, I accidentally stumbled upon Boats and Yachts (1964). I have never met such a magazine before. I was immediately interested in the project of the Beryozka floating dock. The design was not particularly difficult. With patience, you can overcome.

Having painted his wife a tempting picture of rest and travel on rivers, he found mutual understanding and, therefore, “sanctioned” the unhindered spending of funds from the family budget. And he began to act.

I asked my organization (with payment by check) for more plywood and logs. Then the question of shed boards came up. Indeed, for the construction of the floating house, a whole boathouse with an area of \u200b\u200bat least 100 m 2 was needed. The boards were nowhere to be found. "But all my life it has been so conducted that only fools are given a treasure!" Four scows of waste from a woodworking plant were brought to the base where I worked as firewood for the kindergarten - a croaker saturated with water, which, as it turned out, could not be set on fire even with kerosene in the furnace. ”I exchanged this raw croaker for dry birch firewood, and in the spring, with the help of his sons and relatives, he put together a good barn.

I dragged the frame from the old bus into the barn - the future trailer. Above the frame, on pillars, I assembled a slipway of two 2-inch boards 200 mm wide. I laid a 40-degree floor around it, laid out plywood with graph paper on it and broke the plaza - I depicted the outlines of the frames strictly according to the ordinate table given.

The construction of the hull was carried out upward with the keel, nowhere deviating from the drawings given in the magazine.

From dry planed boards I tied ten frames and transoms with BF-2 glue, screws and plywood knits. The transverse set was exposed using a hose level. ”I laid a keel board on the frames, tied it to the set with steel knits 150X150, welded at my request at the plant in Cherepovets (from waste).

The bending of stringers with a cross section of 40X80 mm in the bow of the hull turned out to be the most difficult thing. ” I got it at the state farm, where it was used to feed vegetable crops. ”And with all that, when installing stringers, I had to call my wife for help.

After mowing, plywood was laid on the set. The sheets were carefully trimmed one to the other and fastened to the set on thick paint with screws. The most time consuming operation was the bending of the 10mm plywood on the bow of the bottom. He did this without unparking the workpieces using stops and wedges, which rested against the roof and walls of the shed.

The assembly technology was thought out along the way. When screwing in the screws, a low-speed drill with a power of 400 W with a supply voltage of 110 V was used through an autotransformer from a 220 V.

Plywood sheets were joined on strips-overlays on thick-grated paint with a strip in the form of a rare fiberglass tape on galvanized MB screws with a countersunk head.

In fact, I was not familiar with the construction of ships. I had to use the literature in the Public Library, where I was admitted with a creak - only as a war veteran, since there is no higher education.

The grooves above the screw heads on the bottom and sides were filled with PN-3 resin with birch sawdust. After sanding, the skin surfaces were covered with a layer of fiberglass on the same resin. By the way, the steel strips purchased at the factory had a triangular cross-sectional shape, so a lot of tinkering had to be done to make the triangles look like a rectangle. The body was painted on the outside with pentaphthalic paint.

The next operation, which took a lot of effort, is tilting - turning the body into a normal position without disassembling the shed. To many, this operation seemed inconceivable, but I thought it over even before the floatation was laid. Steel box grips with earrings for the bow and stern transoms and forepeak bulkhead were manufactured and installed according to the DP. The weight of the hull was transferred to wooden blocks, and the slipway underneath was dismantled. In front of the transoms, high pillars were dug in, braced by steel strips extending beyond the walls of the shed and fixed by eyelets, dug in with "dead" anchors to a depth of about 70 cm. I hung two hoists by the earrings of the pillars. The free hooks of these hoists were connected through welded rings to a steel tubular axle passing through the shackles of the transom grippers.

Such an ingenious device allowed me to lift one, and then turn it over like a cradle, and put an eight-meter hull, which was more than 3 m wide, on five keelblocks, in ten minutes.

Now I have laid the deck and set to work on the superstructure. He began by installing an awning over the bow cockpit. From the stern, the awning rests on steel shorty "pigs" at the corners of the superstructure, and in the bow - on pillars standing on the forepeak deck. ”The supports are reinforced with wooden fillers.

For the possibility of lifting the vessel with a crane, four eyelets are provided; structurally, the attachment points of the eyelets are connected with the body set in the same way as the bollards and the bow duck.

Now about the floating equipment.

What, in my opinion, can be attributed to the shortcomings of the Beryozki project published in K&A, which reduces its comfort and ease of use:

• 1 - wind and splash-proof aprons are not provided around the bow cockpit, which are lowered at night and during wind and rain, which leads to the cockpit filling with rainwater;
• 2 - the same story with the aft cockpit, but, moreover, it is completely unprotected from above;
• 3 - a lattice platform on the transom is not provided, which is necessary for going into the water while swimming, and just to get water, wash;
• 4 - the lack of latrine is a big drawback;
• 5 - cabin heating is not provided; there is nowhere to dry up when the need often arises on the water, especially in autumn bad weather;
• 6 - navigation lights and lighting in the cabin are not provided;
• 7 - there is no emergency (manual?) Propulsion unit in case of failure of the motor unit;
• 8 - the method of launching the vessel into the water, lifting it ashore and transporting it to the berthing place has not been thought out;
• 9 - lockers are not provided for storing food and necessary property, there is not even a hint of a gas tank, a water tank;
• 10 - fire-fighting equipment and its location are not provided;
• 11 - there are no life-saving appliances; there is no inflatable boat or an ebb water pump with hoses;
• 12 - there is no even the simplest sailing equipment;
• 13 - not a word is said about the anchor, its construction, mass, storage;
• 14 - you just need a bow stop on the shore when parking, so that the body does not rub against stones, pebbles and sand;
• 15 - remote steering, throttle and reverse control from the driver's seat is not mentioned. By the way, it is not shown how the outboard motor is installed;
• 16 - a ladder for going ashore, an emergency pole, a hook, a tide stock are not provided;
• 17 - there is no storage compartment for the battery.

All of the above was included in the process of completing the construction and equipment of the vessel.

1973 year. My wife and I are moving to a new place of residence, leaving the unfinished boat unattended. A week later, I go in and find that under the shed with the boat there is a channel from the garbage dump located above. Working in a barn is unbearable. Who could have done this?

Winter came. In order not to freeze the newly made columns, the Presidential Council ordered to open them. A lot of water has flowed under the bridge over the winter uselessly, but the worst part is that, having washed out a huge garbage dump, the water filled my shed in one night, and the boat was frozen into this stinking ice along the waterline. For a whole month, at nights and on weekends, I cut down, dug out, melted this ice with a blowtorch, so there was no time for construction. Most of all I was afraid that when the frosts intensified, the ice would break the hull ...

Spring came. On one of the first fine days, having dismantled the wall of the shed, I hired a tractor and rolled out my Birch on a trailer. The move went well, and soon we arrived at the new parking lot.

For three years "Berezka" stood in the open air on a trailer, until I got the opportunity to buy a decommissioned cafe "Tourist" in the Raypotrebsoyuz for 800 rubles. Having disassembled it, I received boards on the walls and glass slate on the roof of the new boathouse. As if wishing me luck, someone burned down a two-story wooden school (next to the fire brigade), and for participating in its dismantling I got twelve logs, which went to the posts.

During this period, I visited the North Atlantic, Iceland and at my leisure I managed to develop and build a fireplace with a removable chimney on the roof of the wheelhouse with enhanced traction. ”Then I made a gangway and a lattice platform-balcony in the stern.

When the boathouse was ready, I rolled the floatation into it and began to mount and equip the superstructure. At the same time, a stern awning was developed and manufactured, covered with a thick greenhouse film, a combined bathroom was equipped, a supply tank for water was installed, a manual dewatering pump (it also serves to supply water to the tank), 150-liter fuel tank (aft on the left side), etc.

Two words about the water storage tank. Found at the dump, I cleaned the fuel tank from the tractor from the rust: I poured sand, small stones inside and shook it for a long time. "Then I poured primers and rolled them from side to side, draining the excess. After drying, I painted it in the same way.

Now a few words about the power plant. After analyzing the existing outboard motors, my choice fell on the Neptune 23. However, when I bought it, as they say, "married". After collecting money, he began to go shopping in search of an engine, but "Neptune" just disappeared at that time! Finally, it appeared, but for some reason the price soared from 360 to 540 rubles. I am upset, but I borrow the missing 180 rubles and make a long-awaited purchase. In a month or two - knockout: "Neptune" is again at the old price! Now I reassure myself that this wonderful motor is out of production and now you can't buy it for any money.

Made a single-lever remote control with gas and reverse according to the drawings of the "Kiya". At the request of the sailing rules, I installed a fuel collection system when pouring it out of the carburetor. I put a float sink protruding behind the hood on the carburetor. Attached a handle to the hood for easy tilting of the motor. I found all these useful improvements on the pages of the magazine.

I operate a motor with a cargo screw with a pitch of 220 mm. A good effect is given by an annular nozzle, again made according to the advice of "KiYa"; it provides a speed increase of about 2 km / h. Now I am working on creating a screw with a reduced pitch of 180 mm.

The desire to alleviate the difficult fate of the engine in every possible way led to the creation of a transom attachment (with an upward rise) for a smoother flow around the stern. This improvement also had a beneficial effect on speed, so that 11-12 km / h travel can be considered guaranteed.

For movement in case of outboard motor failure, a system is designed with two special oars connected by rods on hinges. The oars are attached to the stern transom and swing in a plane parallel to the midship frame. I must say that I was also satisfied with one large yulo-type aft paddle (). However, the speed with the yulo was less. And with the new system, I have about 5 km / h and, as experience has already shown, I can, if necessary, get off the ship's course on my own, without really straining.

To increase speed and save fuel in a tailwind, an auxiliary sailing equipment in the form of a straight sail, but it has not yet been practically tested.

A collapsible mast (5 m high), as well as boom hooks, boat hooks, a tide rod are stored in the wheelhouse, secured with brackets. Two lifebuoys, two fire extinguishers and an inflatable boat "LGN-2", suspended in an inflated state on a davit in the stern, are constantly ready for use.

My enthusiasm for the construction of "Birch" seemed completely unusual to those villagers who surrounded me. I did not scandal with anyone, I was not fond of alcohol - I was completely occupied with an interesting business and, perhaps, looked like an alien from the outside. And someone annoyed, not suspecting about it. Subsequently, I was told that, it turns out, they complained about me to the OBKHSS, the village council, the district committee and even the regional committee, as if I were secretly making a personal atomic bomb.

The gates of my shipyard were always open, I willingly explained to those interested, why and why I was so diligently spending my free time. Whether they believed me that I find pleasure in this, I don't know. I only know that not everyone likes to work, but everyone likes to receive a lot. Maybe that's why many were convinced that Beryozka was being built for sale ...

Land people do not even know what pleasure a person gets in communicating with water, what a wonderful rest from all worries it is when you hear the gentle lapping of river waves on the shore. And you sail on your ship wherever you want and how you want.

However, there are, of course, limitations. Before building my unusual family boat, I planned long trips, but my good intentions came across some measures of my government: gasoline prices "swelled". If only for this reason I have to be content with small routes: Black River - Petrokrepost - a little Lake Ladoga yes Novoladozhsky Canal up to 15-20 kilometers. That's all for now. Only this is not so little and not bad at all!

For those who want to follow in my footsteps and build a floating dachshund, I can advise: the main thing is to be patient. Patience and accuracy are the keys to the success of such a construction!

The Edem Swimming Facility is a comfortable 20 m² house, which has: two separate cabins, a kitchen bar, a bathroom; in the stern, under a rigid awning, there is an open terrace - a platform (6.2 m²), where a dining room can be placed. The entrance to the living quarters in the stern is through a sliding door on the shp. 10 and in the bow - through a sliding hatch door on the front wall of the dacha.

Basic data of the ship "Edem"
Length (dimension), m	6,00(6,80)
Width (dimensions), m	3,48(3,64)
Height (overall), m	2,60(4,50)
Draft, m	0,40
Displacement, t:
- at draft 370 mm at design waterline	1,7
- with a draft along the overhead line of 500 mm	2,9
Passenger capacity, pers.	4-8
PM power, hp from.	2x (10-40)

General view, layout, body design and sketch of contours
floating cottage "Eden"

Construction of a floating house

The floating cottage is built of wood. Waterproof plywood, pine slats, fiberglass, epoxy and hardware should be purchased according to the specification and working drawings. The construction of the buildings is no different from the traditional process, described many times in the "KiYa".

Using the table of plaza ordinates, all frames are drawn in full size. Frame half-frames are made - two sets for both boats (they are the same, PB and LB are symmetrical).

Table of plazovy ordinates for the construction of the hulls of the "Edem"

Line	Frame
	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12
	Height, mm
Keel - K	1000	200	2	0	0	0	0	50	102	153	205	256	300
Cheekbone - Sk	-	308	182	102	55	10	0	50	102	153	205	266	300
Board - B	1000	915	860	825	803	787	770	755	740	725	710	695	680
Tunnel - T	870	785	730	695	673	657	640	625	610	595	580	565	550
	Half-latitude, mm
Board - B	0	193	290	355	385	415	430	440	440	437	430	417	405
Cheekbone - Sk	-	88	175	230	261	293	300	320	333	340	343	345	340
Note: Spacing - 500 mm; all thicknesses from theoretical lines to the nose.

The building berth for assembling the catamaran upward with the keel consists of two flattened beams, set to the horizon, at a distance of 2600 mm from one another (along the axes). Cross beams (det. 5) are installed according to the markings at a height from the slipway indicated in the table, and fixed on strong stands. Frames are placed on them and after checking the perpendicularity and verticality of all structural elements; put knits.

Longitudinal ties cut into frames and beams, after attaching them and drying, the exposed set is caked. Now the hulls and bridge can be sewn up with plywood. Sewing is carried out on glue with screws (along the frames) and nails in bend (along the stiffeners).

The hulls and the bottom of the bridge are pasted over with fiberglass in several layers, after drying and cleaning they are painted.

Only after that, the catamaran can be carefully (until the deck is sewn up) turned over in order to set it in the horizon, remove the wane in the hulls and paint it with waterproof paint from the inside. The bridge is filled over the entire height of the crossbeams with lightweight foam.

The bridge is sewn up with plywood. Deck holes (350-450 mm. 8 pcs.) Are cut out, coamings and hatches are installed. It is better to assemble the side walls of the superstructure, bulkheads and the roof into volume - in the form of separate sections, immediately rivet the stiffeners and cut out the windows.

The front wall of the superstructure must be bent along a radius of 2060 mm and fixed on the strapping previously glued from flat slats (curved along the same radius), then the strapping of the door and windows can be installed.

The drum of the bathroom enclosure sets a head start from deck to roof. Reinforcements are installed under the units of the utility block and sofas, which must be made folding so that access to the hatches in the hulls opens.

Of course, you can assemble the superstructure in another way - put up the frame and then sew it up with separate sheets of plywood.

It remains to install the glazing, hang the doors, mount hatches and handrails (pipe, stainless steel). Flat tanks with drinking and industrial water can be placed on the roof, in front of the shp. five.

Then the remote control motors and navigation lights are mounted.

Yuri Zimin, Master of Sports, “Boats and Yachts”, 2004, No. 01 (188).

Hello everyone, I thought about it like that (and I pushed the topics of the comrade ar) and decided to come up with and draw a floating dachshund))))
These are only my dreams so far, but I would love to make such a modification to myself.
The dacha was invented with the expectation of 4 people, and that it would be quite comfortable to travel in such a house on the water. As for the pontoon, of course, I still think whether to use large-diameter pipes, or plastic tanks, so for now I stopped at pipes with a diameter of 800 mm. The size of the platform itself is 4000 mm wide and 10000 mm long. I want a big one, since I want to walk around the mobile building (cast a fishing rod), which stands in the center of the platform. The size of the mobile building is 2400 * 7000 * 2500 mm. On the roof of the mobile building, make a platform for sunbathing and dancing)))

Dimensions side view

Dimensions front view

And now the most pleasant thing is the interior arrangement of the building.

The building itself is divided into two parts. One sleeps, the other has a mini kitchen and a big dining table. In the bedroom, make a pair of 2 bunk beds + a chest of drawers + a wardrobe, so that there is a supply of clothes just in case. (I liked this arrangement of beds, this summer I was resting on the Japanese sea and on the beach we lived in a similar cubicle measuring 2 * 2 m with this arrangement of beds + table + mini fridge, 4 people feel quite comfortable in such a room)
Now for the rest of my imaginary buildings. I definitely think there should be a mini kitchen set for the convenient preparation of fish soup and storage of kitchen utensils. Small gas stove. A refrigerator, I think it should still be there, since in such a building you can go out on the water for several days and the food still needs to be stored somewhere. And the "cookies" also need to be cooled somewhere)))). There is also a washbasin with heated water and a tank for clean water, and I think that will be enough. On the other side of the building, I decided to install a seating area and a large dining table, so that 4-6 people could quite freely eat cookies with fish soup and conduct their conversations about the largest fish caught. Install a motor control panel in the same part of the buildings. Windows on 3 sides for a better view of the captain.

A couple of pictures of the interior arrangement of the building in color.

Exterior view in 3D

For heating, you can put a stove in the building, but I thought if there is a diesel generator, then you can have a couple of 0.7 kW heat pumps. and it will be enough to heat such a small room.
Of course, there is still a lot to think over, for example, I have not decided where to stick the dry closet.
And a couple of pictures of how it might look in real life in a mobile version.

Almost like my kitchen))

Two bunk beds

And what glazing might look like in my imaginary mobile building

Photos are taken from the archive of the company where I work. I do not indicate the phone number of the names of the company, so as not to consider my article advertising.
I will nevertheless turn this project into reality someday and make an article with a phased construction.

Use of materials in this article only with the permission of the author or site administration

Sincerely, Ramil.