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Post by jeff on Dec 30, 2015 0:34:33 GMT
The Ramform hull is a patented design by Roar Ramde, of Norway, in commercial vessels. The ships range up to 104.2m LOA X 70m Beam, a 1.488 : 1 length to width ratio. Reducing that to a more manageable size, personally, I would aim for 52ft LOA by 35ft Beam. Being roughly triangular in shape, this would createa lower deck approximately equivalent to a 60 ft long X 16 ft double-wide mobilehome., while a second, upper deck shared space between a dome-section greenhouse and more closed space, plus an open-air top deck and lookout/pilothouse.
I plan to use compostite reinforcement, and geopolymer cement, emulating common ferrocement techniques, resulting in a lighter, stronger, more durable hull, that can be fully examined for seaworthiness, by means of field-portable X-ray, already in use in the pipeline industry. Rather than having an onboard drive system, or sail, I hope to exploit a gap in technical definitions, to create the definition of "Seastead". By being self-contained, for power and waste management, it will avoid the houseboat/live-aboard category. By being purpose built, without a drive system, or sails, to be permanently anchored, it avoids being a ship, or boat, exploiting the ship-like-hull description, for regulatory purposes.
The lower deck is intended to primarily be guest and entertainment area, the mid-level as quarters for my wife and I, and bioponic gardening, to handle vegetable production and bio-digestible waste (paper, sewage, food waste), and, possibly aquaponics, as well.
Externally, I hope to be able to establish an openwater multi-trophic aquaculture, consisting of Kelp beds, floating Abalone beds, and multi-level sea-pens with feeder fish, market fish and shellfish (such as crabs and oysters). Part of the goal is to create a semi-open, non-polluting, production and harvest.
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Post by Admin on Dec 31, 2015 8:39:59 GMT
Extra posts, by Spark, moved to 'General' category and saved under the general rules.
I am not running Spark off the Forum and he is welcome to make Coherent, intelligent contributions.
Jeff
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Post by jeff on Feb 10, 2016 0:54:44 GMT
Been working on the deck-plans and reconciling them to the cross-section. While I plan to be an unpowered boat-like hull, I did base the design on several conceptual yacht designs. To the best of my ability, the Ramform hull meets most of the latest specs for such a vessel, just that it scales everything down, from the massive survey ships... I chose the hull based on stablity, being able to weathervane to self-orient in existing currents, as well as for weather conditions. I hope to put in a permanent mooring, located so the prevailing current flows North-to-South, so that the aft decks are facing South, for solar orientation, bot for renewable energy and for the hydroponics. 1) No included detail for the intended sewage treatment by Biogas Digester. 2) No included detail for the intended hydroponic gardening, that makes use of the bio-slurry fertilizer effluent of the digester. 3) No included detail for the intended solar and wind renewable energy sources. 4) No included detail for other intended components (I hope to use thermoacoustics as a solar-powered source of energy and refrigeration). 5) No included detail for mooring provision. 6) No included detail of the motion-damping methods I intend to try. a) An underwater heave 'wing', or stirrup, at the rear. b) An active damping system like has been retrofitted to at least one Ramform vessel. As has been noted in comments, elsewhere, this would be a multi-million dollar yacht, if built under contract, and powered for navigation. However, the hull itself is a lower-budget portion of the project, meaning maybe 15% of the actual construction costs, or more like 5% of the initial 'value' of the completed project. Knocked down to basics, it is a 3-br/3-bath floating house. I expect total costs to be moderated by building it myself, but making use of professional marine engineers and naval architects. i268.photobucket.com/albums/jj5/phrogjlf/Gulfstead%203-view.png?t=1454977223
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Post by jeff on Feb 10, 2016 1:34:28 GMT
I hope to build in such a way that the 2 lower living areas can be stored within the bedroom cabins, when not in use, to create a covered work-shop, potentially with some limited dry-dock capability, based on using the active motion-damping system in a manual mode, that ballasts the hull into partial submersion.
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Post by jeff on Apr 23, 2016 15:00:13 GMT
So, took a leap into the abyss... Posted into a modeling forum for help with the design and model-construction of my idea...
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Post by jeff on Apr 28, 2016 4:50:52 GMT
Somehow, I managed to no post up the last pics, BUT, I found FRTP rebar... Muahahahahahahaaaaaa... www.bandbfrp.com/#!mfxbar/o1y6d Q: Can we bend MFX-BAR® in the workshop or on site? A: MFX-BAR® is manufactured with a unique & patented method using Thermoplastic & Corrosion-resistant glass fiber. MFX-BAR® can be re-heat and re-shape just like any other thermoplastic. Apply the heat to 200°C (Centigrade) until adequate softness achieves, use proper tools and jig to bend. (NOTE: to have maximum strength, avoid buckling and dislocating the fibers).
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Post by jeff on Jul 24, 2016 0:23:12 GMT
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Post by jeff on Nov 22, 2016 15:39:31 GMT
Latest rendition, and design I expect to build. DIY is going to tend to be significantly cheaper than anything commercially built and produced. Consider 20% of the cost of a commercially built yacht is the hull, and half of that is labor. Now, turn it around and pay 10% of the commercial cost to build your own hull, and even 40% to equip it exactly the same, and you've saved 50%. My concept comes in at ~$100/sq ft. 15% the expected cost for the TSI Barge, and I get to put it where I want it.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 22, 2016 16:25:37 GMT
The cost is still too high for me. For instance, you have shown two 200hp(?) outboards, at a cost over $15k each (per www.boats.net/outboard_motor/Yamaha/200HP/parts.html ). I don't know (i have no data) that 400hp worth of outboard will push your 32ft wide beam in all conditions, as many narrower liveaboards have over twice that hp with inboard diesels. I wish you the best, but due to the cost of just one outboard, not even looking at any other costs, i cannot follow your particular path. I realise you intend to anchor and stay, except to avoid storms, for which you travel to sheltered water. For this one item, i am looking at car engines (i have several) and possibly making my own ducted fan propulsor. However, i do have a large pile of conventional boat propellors (and baby engines to spin them) for side thrusters. I hope to ride out storms in place, once i have scaled up to survive deep water. You also said "My concept comes in at ~$100/sq ft. 15% the expected cost for the TSI Barge, and I get to put it where I want it.". I wonder if you cannot get that cost down to where you can afford it, or where poor people like me can afford it. If i look at a boat cross section and count the steel plating going up from the bottom, 1/4 plate at $5, 3/16 deck at $4, 1/8 roof at $2.50, totals $11, triple that for scantlings and consumeables and protective coatings, yields $35 per sq ft. That's 1/3 your cost. That said, your cement or geopoly will last forever, but as far as i can see, there is no one in our footsteps (or wake), and i won't last another 30 years, so i see no reason to built my personal boat to outlast me. At 30% of your cost, i can take a look at it, but at your cost i cannot seastead. It's not even all about the upfronts, your non-plastic and non-metal hull will still require bottom cleanings, and because it's heavier it will cost more fuel to move it. Maybe i have gone off-topic. I'll stop now.
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Post by jeff on Nov 23, 2016 0:47:53 GMT
For one thing, the Ramform has reduced drag, and only tends to require the power of an equal length, at half the beam, and you have to take into account the shallow draft. I based to power off several different vessels, to minimize the chance of error. In addition, it's not a 'fast' vessel. Might be able to pull a couple of light-weight skiers, but too slow to really be 'fun'. For another thing, I chose one of the physically largest outboards, to make sure there was space to accommodate whatever I can get and put in that space. I would rather use something like the thrusters used in dynamic positioning, with a separate power supply, to make storage even more practical. I've actually seen V-8 Auto engine outboards, as well.
However, part of the 'Seastead/Gulfstead' goal, here, is the ability to NOT be a houseboat, or liveaboard. Ship-like Hull is an acceptable designation, but being self-contained for utilities is critical, to NOT be a houseboat. Houseboats and liveaboards are designed for minimal excursions, but primarily, residential houseboats are designed for shore service hookups, and liveaboards have holding tanks to pump-out. Power to get to and from, and away from storms, but moored with engines removed from the water, to minimize corrosion and fouling. Lift them up, into lockers, rinse and drain the fuel, to prevent old fuel gelling, ruining, or shellacking inside the fuel delivery system, while stored for considerable lengths of time.
Cost-wise, my plan is, like you, build with out-of-pocket expenses. In theory, after getting out of here, with Bertha remodeled and livable, we have some $14k+/yr as disposable income. If I can get the Geopolymer experiments more scientifically reproducible, and get the formula to do what I need it to do, it becomes commercially viable, and I can either go commercial, or sell the formula. The goal of USING geopolymer is longevity, over concrete, though concrete CAN last hundreds of years, it takes a lot of preparation to do so.
The hardest part of the construction is going to be the other elements. Plastics and other materials just don't have that kind of durability, so access and the ability to remodel/reconfigure areas, as well as replace old wiring, plumbing, and such is going to be critical to the construction process. I have 5 children, 1 grandchild (so far) and this is my 'legacy'. I want to leave them something to be proud of, that shows, for generations, that I was here, not baubles that get handed down and lost. This is my one chance to do something of historical value, even if it eventually becomes only family history, or maybe a footnote in some future book/text.
My entire family has nothing but baubles, pictures and stories left. The 1st house my Daddy built for himself is long since sold and out of our price-range, the second my stepmother intends to sell, and is also out of our price-range. As a homemade, ferrocement vessel, this will have no real market value, and would be easier to keep in the family, as such, which is part of what I'm counting on. As long as the hull is structurally intact, and repairable, it will potentially be useful.
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Post by jeff on Oct 19, 2017 8:03:40 GMT
Slow developments, but finally have a hull designer working on it part-time, with a further request for contact, yesterday, by someone else...
Progress!
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Post by jeff on Oct 25, 2017 15:58:03 GMT
So, about this 2nd contact...
Company in India... They already plan to make a profit of designing this for me. However, the numbnuts in charge hasn't been bothering to really look at what I have been sending.
How do I know? Latest round of emails was asking dimensions and whether or not I wanted it as an enclosed, or open top design... WTF?
How can there be any question like that, when it's already labeled as a 'yacht', to begin with, has fully enclosed living quarters, an enclosed Cockpit, and limited open deck space, as well as dimensional and calculated displacement on the very first drawing...?
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