Paul Hurt's linkage site: home page

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Click on the official U.S. patent document to view the pdf document - zooming in will be advisable in most cases to obtain a text size suitable for reading, to a magnification of 150% or more.

Below, 1st photograph shows New Greenhouse Design. The core structure takes the form of a triangular prism (a shape with great structural strength.) Around the core structure are
extensions, here with curved panels. Three straight panels of the core structure are visible on this North-facing side. There are 3 panels on the South-facing side. The system has great

versatility. With all the panels in place, gutters and pipes at the base can divert water collected from the roof to water storage containers and ponds (dual-function, for water storage and to
benefit wildlife). Panels can be removed and put back very easily. When most or all of the panels are removed, crops inside the greenhouse can be watered with natural rainfall. The system
has many advantages for water conservation. It reduces reliance on mains water. It has many other benefits, e.g. for temperature control. Ventilation is very important, to reduce or
eliminate overheating when external temperatures are high and for other reasons. One or more panels can be removed and all the panels can be removed, to give maximum
ventilation. Plastic coverings don't enhance the appearance of a site, for most people. When polycarbonate sheets aren't needed, none need be visible. One of the panels on the South-
facing side has been removed permanently. A grape vine in the greenhouse grows inside the greenhouse, at roof level, and outside, higher up, above the roof. The extensions shown
below, on the West side, include a 'solar composter,' which speeds up the production of compost by the greenhouse effect, a wildlife / water storage pond and other growing areas.
There's a much larger wildlife / water storage pond outside the greenhouse and other water-collecting surfaces and water storage facilities. An extension on the East side includes a
storage area for e.g. tools and supplies and a working area for e.g. propagation. A straw bale wall has been a feature of this extension (shown above, also with a straw bale storage area.)
The greenhouse has been featured in an article I wrote for the magazine of the National Allotment Society.

My New Growing System for farms has the advantages of the New Greenhouse Design as well as many other features. From the official U.S. patent document: ' ... the present invention

is a trellising system with modifiable components and configurations for growing, protected cropping, protected working, materials handling, water collecting and water conservation for

use in vineyards and orchards and as a polytunnel substitute.' The New System has aesthetic advantages. The plastic sheeting which forms part of the system is needed to secure
environmental advantages but is unnecessary when external temperatures are high and no water can be collected. Unlike the plastic of polytunnels, the plastic used in this system can
be retracted. The plastic need not be visible when not needed. The plant growth on the unobtrusive supports will be seen all the more clearly.

Amongst the images below are three rows of images of flowers of native British plants to be found in the land I rent, most of them growing there due to my active encouragement.
There are just two exceptions. Solanum crispum isn't a British native. Pilosella aurantiaca isn't a British native but is widely naturalized in this country.

Below, some images of the land taken in the summer and autumn of 2025 (not including the images of insect visitors to the wildlife pond or the plan of the land)

The material below provides a general introduction to this very versatile system but includes more detailed sections on just two specialized uses of the boats, very, very different uses:

((1) disaster relief, during severe flooding (2) leisure use: rowing, punting at Oxford and Cambridge, water camping. The material here is quite extensive and can obviously be omitted by
scrolling further. Most of the material will eventually be moved to a different page.

But the boats have many, many uses. For example, they can be used in water gardening. Garden ponds and larger ponds need maintenance. Weeding is essential

in land growing. If weeds are 'plants growing in the wrong place,' ponds need a form of weeding. Otherwise, the water area will be reduced and the pond will gradually return to land.
Maintenance of ponds can be difficult. There is generally no easy way of removing unwanted water plants to allow the essential plants to flourish. Water lilies, amongst the most
beautiful of plants, have to be kept in check - otherwise, they act as 'weeds.' This system allows quick and easy construction of boats of various sizes, including smaller boats for smaller ponds.

This is a system which includes boats rather than a method of constructing boats and only boats. Many of the components, to give just one example, larch beams, are used in other
configurations, for very different applications. The images above show a use in gardening - for growing / propagation / water collecting. The polycarbonate sheets, seen edge on,

have multiple functions, including warming by the greenhouse effect for container plants and water collecting. The water collected can be transferred to the storage barrels shown here, using

a battery-powered pump. But the basic boat configuration is very similar, almost identical in many respects. In the boat configuration, the larch beams, only a few of them seen here, are
now crucial for buoyancy / flotation of the boat. The water storage barrels are now empty of water and play a part in buoyancy / flotation. Buoyancy / flotation layers can be added to keep

the boat afloat even when it is supporting very heavy loads.

Every configuration is heavy but none of the components used to build the configurations are heavy or very large. The larch beams, for instance, are only 1.2m long, with a weight of

13.5kg. (All the components can easily be stored and transported in my van.) Not visible here, structural steel components within the structure which can be omitted in many applications.

In the boat configurations, these components are above the waterline. Most can be constructed easily and quickly by one person, using practically no tools. A few applications require

work on a very few of the components using a machine tool or other specialized equipment. Some configurations include internal woodworking joints, modifications of a traditional
woodworking joint. To incorporate these joints requires a machine tool. If the end user doesn't have this machine tool, then suitably modified beams can be made available.

Below, images of a smaller boat, the 'boatlet,' during construction. As with all the boats of this design, a very wide range of configurations and additional equipment is possible.

The boat here has two flat areas, separated by one of two transverse larch beams. The flat areas are suitable as a base for heavy loads. Whatever the size of boat, small, like this
boat or much larger, the loads can be piled very high, provided that the boat is used simply to store belongings and not for transporting them. It can be securely anchored against

a wall or a very sturdy pole, so that it can move only slightly, if at all. The usual considerations of boat design, avoidance of capsizing, care to ensure that the centre of gravity will

not lead to instability, don't apply in this situation. The boat can be made secure until the flood waters have become lower or gone altogether. Then the excess load can be removed

and it can be used as a boat rather than a floating platform. It can also go back to an alternative use, in gardening or a range of other activities.

Image 1 here shows that the layer above the base layer is made up of two flat areas separated by one of the two tranverse larch beams. The other transverse beam
forms part of the transom of the boat. The area to the left, between the two larch beams, is made up of of four longitudinal larch beams. The area to the right is made up

of oak components supported by a structure which includes structural steel. Only this image gives an impression of the size of the flat area to the right, even though not all

of it is shown. In the other Images here, this area is hidden by a transverse beam. In Images 3 and 4, objects placed on the supporting / supported structure can be seen.

Image 2 shows the flat area on the left in Image 1, now equipped with storage containers of strong, rigid plastic. Possible contents include buoyancy material.

Image 3 shows the storage containers now covered by the same oak components visible on the right of Image 1.

The flat area on the right in Image 1 now has two aluminium components. The long flat component is an aluminium folding ramp. When opened and moved, this gives a means of

bringing heavy objects on to the boat and removing them. It can carry a maximum load of 350kg. The ramp has smooth and rough sections. The rough sections give a suitably

secure means for people to get to the boat. The smooth sections make it easier to move heavy objects on to the boat. The taller aluminium structure can be used for various

purposes, including seating and as a step to help people to get on to the boat. There are many, many other ways in which the two flat areas can be used. One possible use is
to support the loads 'piled very high' discussed above, in cases where movement of the boat is subject to restriction by the operator, when the only movement allowed is

movement upwards and downwards caused by the flood water rising or falling. This is to ensure that the boat can't capsize and that the load is stored safely.

Image 4 gives another view of the larger multi-purpose flat layer and the aluminium components.

Image 5 is the only image here which shows the length of the boatlet. The other images show smaller sections, although (1) gives quite an extensive view.

The image shows the ramp unfolded and supported by two additional larch beams. The design makes provision for making these beams secure and unable to move as soon as
they are put in position. Other additions to the structure are secured by the same or different means. The ramp can now be used as a bench. It will seat four people sitting side
by side and one person, at the far end of the bench, facing forwards and sitting either astraddle or in a more usual position. The bench as shown is very low and uncomfortable.
The height and the comfort level can be increased very much by adding a layer of cushioning material, rectangular and shaped to fit the ramp / seating support. There are many
other ways of arranging seating.

Image 6 shows a night scene, arching, overlapping polycarbonate shelter sheets visible overhead. The interior of the boatlet is quite cosy. Obviously, it would not be so cosy

during flooding but very welcome, I would think, as a place of refuge by night as well as by day.

Image 7 shows the curved polycarbonate shelter - in one arrangement. Its varying height can be adjusted and it can moved to the opposite end of the boat, so that the higher end
faces in the opposite direction.

Image 8 shows a similar view but here, the folded metal ramp which is stored towards the bows of the boat in Image 7 is placed transversely. When fixed in place, by the

method not described here, and given a layer of suitable material to raise its height and provide a degree of comfort, it can act as an effective rowing seat. Rowlocks and

oars are amongst the things provided too, of course.

Image 9. Assorted useful items in connection with the boatlet, items within four broad bands, from left to right. Two battery powered lamps. The circular lamp can be used

as a headlamp for the boatlet. Parts of a powerful battery-powered water pump. Very valuable too when boats of this design are used for a different function, as water collecting
and conservation / growing units. The water can be pumped from the storage vessel inside the unit to a larger container or a water storage pond. When used in the boat, it can
pump water ballast and pump drinking water from a storage container. Ground anchor with yellow turning handle. This is a medium duty anchor. Much heavier anchors are
readily available. Heavy duty chain, for use as anchorage when the boat is afloat, used for security purposes on dry land. The chain will prevent the boat from floating away

if flood waters ever do encroach. At other times, the chain can be used to prevent theft of valuable items. It would prevent theft of the entire boat by thieves possessing the

resources to make the attempt.

Image 10. The area of oak panelling prominent here is not, of course, the same as the area of panelling to the right of the ramp in Image8. This area was shown in Image 1 but is

concealed in most of the images. This area is now edged at the sides with beams - only one of the beams is visible.

This is an area which would provide standing room for a punter, or space for a comfortable chair, or space for stacking loads. When the

system is used for purposes unconnected with linking, there are a large number of other uses. For example, it can be used for container gardening. When the upper surface

is cleared, the whole area can be used as a viewing platform - in my experience, a very interesting way of viewing a garden. In this system, the bow of the boat can become

the stern and the stern can become the bow. A punter standing in the area shown in this image would propel the boat to the left. A punter standing at the opposite end would

propel the boat to the right. In this case, the curved polycarbonate could not be used in the position shown in these images, but the polycarbonate sheets can easily be

relocated. In another configuration of the boat, an altertative bow can be added. The 'standard' bow is square, as used in many boat designs, including punts. A V-shaped

bow can be attached, or other shapes, which will have advantages in certain water conditions

On the boat, shelter will often be a necessity. The time spent on the boat may be a time of incessant rainfall, or of snow, sleet, hail. My favoured method of providing shelter in
many or most projects is by means of polycarbonate sheets bent into curves. This page gives many examples. Curved polycarbonate has great structural strength and can
withstand strong winds. Polycarbonate and other means of providing shelter have the difficulty that they can act as sails, leading to unintended movements of the boat. The
situation is very much better in the case of the static configuration, the boat kept in place not by an anchor of the kind used by boats and ships but by a very wide range of
methods, which I don't list here. Many of these depend upon the support given by more or less large, even massive structures, such as anchorage points set into walls, or
the anchorage provided by strong ground anchors. In these cases, the boat shelter can be 'wind-proofed,' but the exact method will be site-specific to an extent, taking

advantage of the particular features of the site, installed advantages as well as pre-existing advantages.

The use of polycarbonate sheets as sails would be a fruitful area for trials and testing. The position of the curved polycarbonate sheets can be altered by rotation around

an axis, the degree of curvature can be adjusted, strongly or slightly curved. Polycarbonate sheets can be removed and stored or put to alternative uses if windless conditions
persist. Obviously, large sails constructed of polycarbonate are out of the question but for small boats, they may well be not just practicable but genuinely useful. These

comments are purely speculative. To return to the main themes of this section:

If this system is found useful (and it's intended to provide a wide range of advantages, not only advantages in helping the victims of floods) then these advantages can transcend

the local level, relevant, I would think, at the national and international level. The advantages of the system include water collecting and water storage. A period of prolonged,

torrential rain may well be followed by a prolonged drought. The arrival of rain to end the drought before an emergency becomes an outright disaster can never be guaranteed.

Certainly, far, far more can be done to mitigate drought in this country and so many others. The use of mains water for uses which don't require mains water in the least, such as

watering garden plants, should become more and more uncommon. Methods of purification are available to make water collected in these ways safe for drinking and safe for use

in cooking, if purification is required at all for water used in cooking.

So much of boat building is an achievement of a high order, ship building in general even more so. The skills needed to build the boats and ships, whether the materials are

wood, fibreglass or metal, are in general skills of a high order: to give just one example from this extraordinary world, one of many extraordinary worlds of achievement,

the ship Götheborg, a replica of the Swedish ship launched in 1738 but lost in 1745, after voyages to and from China. The replica has needed the skills of the workers in

wood and metal, not so very different from the skills needed to build the original ship, but also contemporary skills, the skills needed to equip the ship with modern safety

equipment, satellite navigation equipment, communications equipment and a range of modern facilities, conveniences. The new technology was essential to pass national

and international safety regulations. The ship was launched on 6 June 2003 and has been very successful.

I'm very much aware that the boat and boatlet which I've devised represent a completely different order of achievement, incomparably simpler. At the same time, I believe that

it represents a genuine innovation, using for the first time some completely new advances, not established methods of working, and I believe that the new design is
potentially useful and can be very useful when the design is followed. The design allows many modifications. For example, the transom bows are modifiable. Other bows can
be installed and other modifications can be made, to give a more streamlined craft.

I obviously hope that this system will be widely adopted. I hope that the boats will be able to use the canal network in time, after consultations and planning. I would hope that
eventually, I'll be able to sail the boat on Ullswater, a lake which allows boat launching by the public. The method of propulsion would be rowing. (For a time, I was a competitive rower.)

This is an ambition which may or may not be realized. The boat is flat-bottomed, suitable for calm or fairly calm water, able to reach shallow or very shallow areas, perfectly suited to
greater depths but not for use at sea. I intend to work on modifications which would give some of the advantages of very different boat designs to this boat, such as a V-hull, allowing it

to sail successfully in less calm inland waters but not in turbulent, fast flowing sections of rivers and not in the sea, rough or calm.

For the time being, I don't give information in any detail at all about the design and construction of the boat or the system of which the boat is a part. Disclosure of detailed

information won't be possible for quite some time, for reasons which I think will be obvious. Once some of the many enhancements are put in place, the boat will look more

'boat-like.' The basic ideas came very quickly and I constructed a basic prototype very quickly but there followed a period in which I tried out many new approaches and gained

many new insights, experimenting and testing a wide range of features, retaining the ones which worked best and gaining a comprehensive body of knowledge: amongst other

things, a period of hard work.

(1) Use of the boat system during flooding

Image above: Attribution

The image on the left shows the rescue of people affected by the severe flooding of 2015 in York. The next image conveys an impression of flooding as catastrophe in lurid light. This is
followed by more images of the York flooding. The work of the members of the Mountain Rescue Team in York, and all the other people involved in flood rescue, is appreciated very much,

of course, but there are much better and more efficient methods of moving victims of floods than dinghies, even if dinghies are obviously important in this work. Rescue work may

well take place in rainy conditions, perhaps in conditions of torrential rain. Dinghies provide no shelter from the rain and next to no provision for people's possessions, whereas this boat, one

of a series of boats of very similar design, but larger and smaller, with a range of advantages, can all be quickly fitted with curved poycarbonate sheets to protect the people and the possessions

taken on board, the possessions not protected by storage containers. It will often be possible to include possessions which are regarded as irreplaceable, ones which an insurance policy can't

realistically replace. An experience which is likely to be very difficult - perhaps traumatic - can be made less difficult.

IHere, I focus attention on just one use, an important one. The system is obviously intended to be useful during drought, as well as during times when precipitation is nearer to the average, as

part of a comprehensive water conservation system. The boat configuration can provide substantial help to people facing flooding, or the possibility of flooding. The boat has been

designed as a very flexible sub-system which can carry heavy loads, and passengers. This makes it a valuable asset to assist the victims of flooding. The rising levels of water during flooding
pose a potentially serious risk to property, the contents of a property and often to life but the rising water can also be used to lift possessions and people (and animals) above the surface of the
water, even if it can make no contribution to avoidance of damage to buildings and other structures. The buoyancy of the boats will ensure that many objects and people can be saved from

the effects of the water. Hydraulic lifting equipment could achieve the same objective but these boats are a more convenient and much cheaper method, and can be employed on a much

larger scale, if a large number of boats are available. Unlike the dinghies often used, these boats are designed to carry heavy loads and to make putting the loads in place and removing

the loads much more convenient.

The boat can lessen the serious consequences of major flooding. Before flood waters cause damage to the ground floor of a property, some furniture, a very wide range of other goods,

can be transferred to the boat. Ramps and winches can achieve movement even of very heavy objects. (A ramp is shown in an image of a smaller boat below. Larger ramps are available.)

On the boat, shelter from rain is provided, for people as well as goods, by means of one or more curved polycarbonate sheets. I have extensive experience of constructing shelters using
oxtended sheets much larger than the curved sheets shown above, which serve a different purpose, keeping the exterior dry on dry land. The boat can contribute to the welfare of pets,

which can be moved to the boat in transportation cages. A wide range of clothing, bedding and other materials can be transferred and kept dry. This may well be helpful in the very difficult

times which lie ahead, when the household is living in temporary accommodation. The barrels used for storage of water can be used for storage of clothes and bedding and other (light)

things, once their interior has been dried. The contents of the barrels will aid buoyancy, to counteract the downward force of heavy loads in other parts of the boat.

I envisage the main use of the boat in case of flooding as static use. In many circumstances, occupants of flooded houses are much better off outside the house than inside. The

ground floor may well be converted into a hideous mess, the mess including quite possibly sewage. The advice to go upstairs and wait for the flood to subside may or may not be good

advice in the circumstances. If people choose to go outside, then this system is designed to support them. If there's severe flooding of the ground floor, then it's certain that they won't

be able to live in the property until the damage is made good. In that case, they will have to live in alternative accommodation for quite a long time. It would be advisable to move to

temporary accommodation and then longer term accommodation as quickly as practicable, certainly if the flood waters will be around for days.

This system can offer substantial help in some unexpected ways. Dinghies are very practical craft but aren't a suitable base for carrying out woodwork and many other forms of practical
work. Transportation of timber and tools isn't amongst their strengths. It may not be possible to board up doors until the flood waters have reached a level which doesn't allow the boat

to move on to the next property, but the case is different with windows, which have to be boarded up as well in many cases.

The flat surface of this boat system provides a low-level workbench. Or, far more likely, a portable work bench of quite some size can be erected on the base. The shelter facilities

provided will make the work far easier for the people carrying out the boarding up. These facilities will also protect their hand tools and power tools. There will be space for storage

boxes for these tools. The workers can travel from one job to the next job before the flood waters recede. When they do recede, and the craft is grounded, then land transportation

comes into its own. The boat can be winched on to a trailer and towed from one property needing attention to the next. Return visits can be made to properties where the doors

could not be boarded up during the first visit. The system offers the many advantages of promptness, immediacy.

This is from an Internet Summary Guide to the issues:

Properties damaged by flooding are boarded up to provide a fast, temporary solution to prevent further harm from the elements or intruders, secure the structure, and ensure safety.

This process involves covering openings like doors and windows with materials such as plywood or steel, often by a professional boarding-up service. It is a critical step for insurance

compliance and helps manage health hazards like mould by enabling controlled drying and remediation.

Why Boarding Up is essential After a Flood [I would add: 'and should be carried out as quickly as possible, whilst the area is still flooded, in fact.]

Security: Floodwaters can dislodge doors, shatter windows and weaken frames, creating easy entry points for thieves. Boarding provides immediate protection against unauthorized access.

Secondary damage: A damaged property envelope is vulnerable to rain, wind and debris, which can cause further, costly damage to the interior and structure.

...

Structural Integrity: Temporary boarding can offer support to weakened areas, helping to prevent further collapse until permanent repairs can be made.

Insurance Compliance: Most insurance policies require property owners to take reasonable steps to prevent further loss after a flood. Boarding up is a key way to meet this obligation,

which is crucial for a successful insurance claim.

Flood water is intrinsically destructive. It can sweep away trees. cars and other vehicles. The design incorporates secure anchorage components, such as
heavy chain, to ensure that the boat does not move. Once the flood waters have subsided to some extent, with only shallow water left, it would be possible to move the boat but in many situations

not advisable. There would be a risk of collisions with people, other boats and buildings. In some circumstances, it may well be possible to move the boat. If, as I hope, this system is adopted

to a greater or lesser extent, then it would be feasible to provide 'tug boats' in some flooded areas. Boats of this design (usually of the longer length) would make perfectly good tug boats
when equipped with an outboard engine. A tug boat could tow a line of these emergency boats to a location where temporary storage facilities (and perhaps the temporary accommodation)

is provided. It would be possible to provide fork lift trucks to transfer loads on the boats to buildings or other facilities where these would be stored.

The boat's width and length can be increased, and the buoyancy / flotation components can be easily augmented to make support and transport of heavy loads possible. The boat above has

two distinct sections, each with the exact dimensions, or almost the same dimensions, as the standard pallet size, 120cm x 100cm allowing ready use of a fork lift truck, if available, for putting

loads in place or removing loads from the boat. When the structure is used for water storage, an Intermediate Bulk Container (IBC) commonly used for water storage (I have an IBC for this

purpose) can fit on the structure easily. The structure is designed to take an IBC, or more than one, and other loads which are commonly transported on pallets. During flooding, water

uncontaminated by sewage or other material may not readily available, and a supply of clean water may well be needed.

The first structure shown here can easily be doubled in total length. It can be constructed using larch beams 2.4m in length, used end to end, to give a total length for the boat of a little over 4.8m,

instead of the boat length here, a little over 2.4m. Larger boats will obviously be less easy to move than those of length 1.2m, the length in this case but the largest boats in this design can

easily be disassembled. They use the same components as the smaller boats.

The second boat shown here, the 'boatlet' is shown during construction, in my main workshop, and is smaller than the boat already outdoors. It has only one layer of larch beams, whilst the

ll only larger boat has two, and the number of larch beams in the single row is 4, whilst the larger boat has five in each layer. Both boats are shown without the base layer, of rigid, heavy duty

plastic. The base layer is essential for overall support and the provision of attachment points.

The boat could be available for use in areas subject to flooding already assembled. If not, it can be very quickly assembled if flooding seems likely. Further buoyancy aids are available

or can be added. The barrels used for water storage in some configurations, when emptied, become air-filled and can make a valuable contribution to buoyancy. There is provision for

inserting polymer insulating materials into the layers which make up the structure, which have dual use in this system. Tall storage containers can be installed on the wooden bases of the

boat. These are secured by means not shown here - a modification of a traditional woodworking joint is one of the means - made easily available in this design.

When the boat is used in other situations, for example, pleasurable uses, a very versatile system is provided in the design, again, not shown here: provision of rowlocks for rowing, seating
for rowing, seating for other purposes, a clear level area when the boat is moved by punting, provision of supports for installation of an outboard motor, provision of safety rails, installation

of a mast to support a sail, to convert the boat into a sailing boat. There are many other possibilities. Ease of use is a feature of the design, including easy installation of all these features.
Whatever use is made of the boat, the importance of safety must be stressed, safety in lifting and moving and use of tools - and in particular, the importance of safety on the water. Wearing

a life jacket (or buoyancy aid in the case of good swimmers) is essential.

The boat can only make a subsidiary contribution to lessening the serious consequences of major flooding but it can help. Before flood waters cause damage to the ground floor of a property,

some furniture, a very wide range of other goods, can be transferred to the boat. Ramps and winches can achieve movement even of very heavy objects. On the boat, shelter from rain is
provided, for people as well as goods, by means of one or more curved polycarbonate sheets. I have extensive experience of constructing shelters using extended sheets much larger
than the curved sheets shown above, which serve a different purpose, keeping the exterior dry on dry land. The boat can contribute to the welfare of pets, which can be moved to the boat in

transportation cages. A wide range of clothing, bedding and other materials can be transferred and kept dry. This may well be helpful in the very difficult times which lie ahead, when the

household is living in temporary accommodation. The barrels used for storage of water can be used for storage of clothes and bedding and other (light) things, once their interior has been dried.

The contents of the barrels will aid buoyancy, to counteract the downward force of heavy loads in other parts of the boat.

Flood water is intrinsically destructive, of course. It can sweep away and destroy even cars and other vehicles. The design incorporates secure anchorage components, such as heavy

chain, to ensure that the boat does not move. Once the flood waters have subsided, to some extent, with only shallow water left, it would be possible to move the boat but in many situations

not advisable. There would be a risk of collisions with people, other boats and buildings. In some circumstances, it may well be possible to move the boat. If, as I hope, this system is adopted

is provided. It might well be possible to provide fork lift trucks to transfer loads on the boats to buildings or other facilities where these would be stored.

I live on a hill which can never be affected by flooding but the valley of the River Don is very near, as well as two smaller river valleys, of the Rivers Loxley and Rivelin. Low-lying areas near to

the Don have been badly flooded in fairly recent times. Areas around the Don and the Loxley were subject to catastrophic flooding during an event which is very significant in the history of

this city, the 'Great Sheffield Flood' of 11 March, 1864, caused by failure of the Dale Dyke Dam. It killed more than 240 people and damaged or destroyed more than 600 houses. Boats of

this design would be of no help or hardly any help in the case of floods which occur suddenly, with little or no warning, at least in the immediate aftermath.

(2) For happier times: use of the boat for rowing (but not competitive rowing), punting, water camping. To begin with punting and camping. I only refer to punting

with one version of this boat and at Cambridge, not at Oxford or any other places where punting is practised. Images (3) and (4) show that this boatlet has a substantial flat
area where the person propelling the craft with a punting pole can stand. The passengers are seated in the remaining space. The boat (stored in the open air) makes available
a similar, larger area.

Below, some images of punting at Cambridge, at 'The Backs.'

I don't include images of punting on the River Cam, for example near Grantchester. Most of the images show traditional punts, very, very attractive craft, to me, more beautiful

than the Venetian gondola. The boating system described here introduces modifications. The result is a craft which is less beautiful, less harmonious that the traditional punt

but far more versatile. For example, it restores the use of punts to carry heavy cargo but is useful in other ways. For example, it protects passengers (but not the punter

propelling the boat) from light summer rain, as well as the driving, incessant rain which can occur in any season of the year in this country. The curved polycarbonate

panels which protect the passengers also make the boat useful in 'water camping' - camping by the river bank. It's likely that regulations would never allow camping on the

canal network.

For camping, as well as for shorter punting excursions, seating and other facilities need to be more relaxed than the simple facilities of the punt - for seating, hard wooden

components, made more comfortable with cushions. The resources of camping and other leisure retailers are available, such as folding chairs and tables, all kept in position

by the means readily available in this design. My own long experience of camping never included such luxuries. The cooking and sleeping and other facilities available for

water camping would be available for a form of camping which is much more common, static camping on dry land.

The land at campsites can be far from dry, of course. There are many campsites in areas subject to flooding. Campsites which could offering campers a wooden platform

which will rise if the floodwaters ever inundate the site rise would have an advantage. As the floodwaters rose, the platform would rise. A simple system consisting of not
much more than the indispensable plastic base (widely available, and cheap to buy) and the larch beams, would suffice, not one of the more elaborate constructions.
Campers would be able to have an interesting experience rather than a ruined stay.

Image 1. The Keswick area, including the Keswick campsite, was one of many areas in this country badly affected by flooding in November 2009. Derwentwater and Bassenthwaite
lake, usually widely separated, became one body of water.

Image 2. Flooding in Carlisle, Cumbria, 2015, The Civic Centre. A storm brought gusts of wind up to 130 km/hour and torrential rain, resulting in the worst flooding for 600 years.

Carlisle had been badly affected by flooding in 2005 and millions of pounds had been spent on flood defences.

Image 3. Shows flooding in another part of Carlisle, Cumbria, 2015. During the flooding of 2005, people in the bedrooms of houses in Carlisle had been rescued by boats.

Image 4. Flooding in Tenbury Wells, Worcestershire, 2000.

The massive increase in flood risk

.The information in this section comes (as it happens) from the Guardian article, 'Towns may have to be abandoned due to floods with millions more homes in Great Britain at risk.'

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/oct/14/millions-more-homes-in-great-britain-at-risk-of-flooding-investigation-finds Extracts:

'Every constituency projected to be at greater risk, with many areas likely to be uninsurable ...'

'New analysis from the insurance industry ... reveals the extent of concern in the sector.' The article identifies densely populated areas including London, Manchester

and parts of north-east England as areas of particular concern.

'Tenbury Wells, a market town in Worcestershire, has become the first in the country to find that its public buildings are uninsurable. The town has historically suffered

damaging floods about once a decade, but in the past six years people there have been hit four times.

'Over the past decade, 110,000 new homes were built in the highest risk flood zones, equivalent to one in 13 of the new homes built. Aviva [an insurance company which

has produced a report on the rising flood risk] calculates that if this trend were to continue, 115,000 of the government's planned 1.5m new homes would also be in the

highest-risk flood zones.'

'Dr Jess Neumann, associate professor of hydrology at the University of Reading, said, 'We can't keep building defences taller ... to deal with larger and more frequent floods.'

Below, punting at Cambridge and some of the views of the Backs at Cambridge.

The separate images can't convey the sense of kinetic rather than static experience, the ever-changing vista, the flow and flux which reveal new sights, sights of great

distinction and distinctiveness. There is no such thing as a 'Venice of the North,'Venice is incomparable, but so is Cambridge. Its relationship with water is far less extensive

but the sights are not all to the advantage of Venice. The Cambridge 'Bridge of Sighs' is, to me, more impressive than the Venice 'Bridge of Sighs,' but there are many reasons
for the differences, including differences in their uses. The significant aesthetic and other differences between the Cambridge Bridge of Sighs and the Venetian Rialto Bridge

are instructive.

Image 1, View of the River Cam near Trinity College. Image 2, Clare College Building and King's College Chapel seen from the Backs. Image 3, Clare Bridge.
Image 4, Trinity Bridge. Image 5, the Mathematical Bridge, Queens College. Image 6, the Bridge of Sighs, St John's College.

For more on Cambridge University, see my page Cambridge University: excellence, mediocrity, stupidity, which now includes comment on other universities.

In the case of many images below, clicking on the image takes you not to a listed page but to Home Page Images. This provides description / explanation and usually a larger version of the image.

My approach to growing is broadly based. Aesthetic values are very important to me and these values underlie my use of the land rented from Sheffield City Council. From the introduction

to Jane Grigson's 'Vegetable Book,' 'In my most optimistic moments, I see every town ringed again with small gardens, nurseries, allotments, greenhouses, orchards, as it was in the past,

an assertion of delight and human scale.' The claim that I've had 'a detrimental effect, of a persistent or continuing nature on the quality of life of those in the locality' (the land I rent happens
to be in 'the locality') is not just false but vile. I made determined efforts to have cleared a large heap of fly tipped rubbish near to the land I rent but no action was taken by the Council, or by
the so-called 'Community Garden' who were using the area when the heap appeared or the Garden Church which assumed control of the land later on. Images of the mess (including
discarded Council plastic bins and discarded plastic containers of organic fertilizer and other gardening materials):

Below, images showing a 'sack-truck-system:' a set of applications with similarities ('linkages') and contrasts. The system which includes boats, growing and water conservation

units is another example. The boats form a sub-system - they vary in size and are very varied in their possible applications. In the sack-truck-system, the possible
applications are very varied too. They include carrying loads, as a shopping trolley and a trolley for transporting tools. These applications are common enough but the system has a
higher degree of versatility. It includes display and presentation facilities which can be used for portable advertizing and for use in protests. I've taken part in many protests myself but
I think that many public protests have become over-used and misused, heavily dependent upon slogan shouting and practically never providing argument and evidence sufficient to
defend the cause against reasoned objections. I find it essential to distinguish argument against and action against opponents with few or no redeeming features and action against
people and organizations which have great strengths, in some cases massive strengths. In the first category I include Christian belief, but there are many other examples. In the
second category, I include police forces such as South Yorkshire Police, whose strengths are accompanied by some bizarre, disastrously misguided shortcomings. There are other
examples of this second category described on this page and other pages. I refer to action in these cases as 'appreciation-protest.' Another use for the sack-truck-system is as a

replacement for a tripod. The system incorporates a monopod which has the stability of a tripod and which has various advantages.

Above, images from left to right. The lightweight sack-truck in folded position, easily carried. There are three small wheels on each side, which facilitate moving the trolley up steps and stairs.
Despite the small size of the wheels (which enable the truck to be readily moved up stairs) it can be moved over quite rough ground.

The sack-truck used as a shopping trolley, an adaptation which followed the loss of my van, which had suffered catastrophic engine damage and can't realistically be replaced.

The sack-truck used to support two white boards. The boards can be used for information hand-written with a pen and for displaying paper documents. Larger white boards can be used.

Image showing possible use for a (non-appreciative) protest. People making use of the system for protest, appreciative or non-appreciative, or using the system for other purposes,
may well bring the trolley and associated equipment in a car or van. This system is a convenient way of transporting these things from a vehicle to the place where the system will be used.

Image showing the reverse side of the trolley system. White boards, of this size or larger, can be installed on this side, to make a double-sided system.

Image showing folded chair supported on the reverse side of the sack-truck.

Image showing chair erected after removal from storage position on reverse side. If the system is used for long periods of time, then a chair is very useful.
Image showing use of sack-truck to transport a tool-box. Tool boxes and other storage containers can be piled high on the trolley, secured by straps. Once the various containers have

been removed, the white boards are visible again and can be used to advertise the business carrying out the work, if the trolley is being used by a business.
Image showing monopod fixed in position and supporting a video camera, with image visible on the screen of the camera. The system can obviously be used for still photography also, and for
transporting photographic equipment in containers, and many other pieces of non-photographic equipment / food / drink etc. The monopod is as stable as a tripod and has the advantage,

when used in this way, that any objections (generally invalid) raised against use of a tripod in crowded places - as causing obstruction - aren't applicable to this system. It can be
moved much more readily than a tripod and photographic activities can be resumed. Tripods are much more unwieldy than the complete system here. Not all photographers favour
lightweight cameras. This system can accommodate heavy cameras, including heavy film cameras.
Image showing the camera and the head of the monopod in more detail, larger. The head is flexible and allows the camera to be fixed in many different positions, or rotated to follow movement.
Two monopods, supporting two cameras, can be installed on the system-trolley. Sound equipment can also be readily carried.
Not shown in any of these images: the provision which the design makes for security, including the use of heavy duty chain to prevent theft of a camera attached to the system, to
prevent theft of containers stored on the trolley and provision to prevent the trolley from being taken away.

Above, some uses for two of the foldable sack-trucks.

Image 1, two trucks form a horizontal surface which can be covered with rigid boards. Image 2, another view of the linked trucks. The two truck system in this configuration can be used
to transport quite heavy loads. Plastic containers placed on the horizontal support can contain a wide range of goods - manure, compost, straw bales, bricks, building stone, timber and, of
course, many other things. Some of the paths I've constructed have smooth strips which make movement of single containers much easier, pulled up the slopes by straps, but the system

here is preferable, since there are wheels at the ends of the linked trolleys and less frictional force to overcome. It's essential when using this wheeled system to have safety measures in
place which would make impossible downwards, possibly out-of-control movement. This could be ensured by straps fastened securely to a person, with checks to ensure that the person
could not be thrown off balance.

Image 3, the two trucks in a vertical position. The distance between the two trolleys is obviously adjustable, to fit various lengths and heights for polycarbonate sheet, when used.

Two uses for the two truck system: a lightweight container growing system, in which the trucks act as horizontal supports for the containers, as a lightweight water collecting / conservation
system and as a lightweight shelter. The shelter can protect the trucks from the effects of rain, protect users from the rain - as when the system is used for displays / presentations - and protect
the displays / presentations from the rain, for example the magnetic white boards shown in Image 4, and the colour-printed sheets attached to the boards with clamps or magnets shown in Image 5.

Here, the displays are unsympathetic to Christian belief but there is obviously nothing to stop an end-user of this system using it to promote Christian belief, evangelism.

Above, image on the left, the use of larger, heavier trucks in a two truck system. They support large water barrels in a system whose primary component is a new water-storage
pond, which receives water from water-collecting surfaces below the large greenhouse higher up the slope. Clearly visible, the lower part of the gutter system at or near

ground level, taking water from the upper slopes to the storage pond.

Water collected / stored in the barrels can be released into the pond by opening the taps on the barrels but the main source of water to be stored in the pond will be water from the
water-collecting surfaces. The upper polycarbonate sheets which are supported by the two barrels can act as a shelter when the area is used for purposes other than growing. These
sheets protect the sack-trucks from rainwater, making theme usable for longer. In general, in a construction project I include components which shelter components vulnerable to corrosion
or rotting or other degradation. The lower polycarbonate sheet at right angles to the upper polycarbonate sheets conceal pond liner at this end of the pond. Some of the liner here is unused

but it can easily be put to use, to make the pond longer. This side of the pond has the polycarbonate sheet as a boundary. The longer side nearer the wall has a lightweight galvanized steel

bar as boundary. These two sides are straight edges, then. The other two sides, one short, one longer (only the longer side visible here) are bounded by quite large rocks - gritstone, slate

and 'Cotswold stone.' (The larger wildlife pond at the lower boundary of this plot has two straight edges and too irregular edges, formed by vegetation and the natural boundary between
land and water. The metal components play an important part in giving support to the polycarbonate sheets. These metal components, of the same size or a different size, have played an

important part in construction projects here, to build trellis systems for plant support (runner beans, grape vines and others). A long table in the upper plot, used for growing watercress in

containers, now usable for propagation outdoors and for general purposes, was strengthened with these metal components. For many years, there was a large structure, quite high, on the largest

growing area, used for various purposes. For example, it supported netting for plant protection. The bending of the polycarbonate sheets if these supports aren't used seems to me to detract

from the appearance of the pond and compromises to a restricted extent its functionality.

In water conservation systems which rely mainly on gravity (although two water pumps are available to supplement movement of water by gravity) then a lower pond is obviously a suitable

storage container for water transferred from a higher level and a higher pond is obviously needed to supply a lower storage pond without the need for pumping. As well as the ponds, there
are a number of galvanised steel water storage containers. Watering cans are the obvious choice for these.

The larger, heavier trucks can also be used to construct larger, heavier display / presentation systems, as well as many other possible uses.

The photograph above to the right shows the fig tree growing against the wall which can be seen in the first photograph. This photograph shows the fig tree in summer, the first photo
shows some of the fig tree in later October. The fig tree has by now lost most of its leaves. I don't share the view that gardens can look good in every season, for most of the year. For me, spring

and summer are the important seasons for appearances. Autumn and winter are obviously important seasons for work - during one winter, I worked on the land every day, except for a few days
when the snow was too deep for working.

The magnificence of the autumn foliage always has an impact (most of all, the autumn foliage of beech trees) but garden foliage has only limited appeal, with limited exceptions. My
thoughts turn to the built environment and the constructed environment - not that I neglect these environments at other times. For me, the appeal of planes, surfaces and other architectural features
can compensate for the changes in the natural environment. The inner world isn't much the same throughout the year, or the balance between the inner world and outward preoccupations.
All this involves simplification to some extent, but for me, the rhythm of the seasons involves, many changes, adjustments, in choices and preferences, in feeling and in practical matters. The fig
tree shown in the first photograph has far less interest for me than the fig tree in the second one.

This is a water storage pond, not a wildlife or wildflower pond but I did plant a water lily, not the native water lily, Nymphaea alba, the water lily I planted in the large wildlife / wildflower pond lower

down. Instead, I planted a water lily with a similar appearance but more suited to this smaller pond, Marliacea albida. It will be quite a long time before this pond and the other components lose
their rawness and begin to harmonize with their surroundings. The immediate environment includes a great deal of bare soil. Constructive work will be needed to encourage some plants and

discourage others, often by drastic action. The water storage barrels won't be hidden but I intend to harmonize them with their setting, by use of some climbing plants and other plants. There will

need to be thinking time as well as action.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooo

uuuuu

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Simple science: some considerations relating to the boat (alternative use of the system: water conservation unit) shown above.
A great deal of additional material will be needed to explain the construction and uses of the system. For the time being, these

are the only aspects I discuss, background information concerned with (1) flotation and forces (2) background information,

very restricted in scope, concerning aspects of polymer chemistry.

in s
In static equilibrium, the boat will displace a volume of water. The weight of this will equal the total weight of the boat,
together with any loads added to the boat. The buoyant force F, acting upwards, will equal the total weight of the boat
acting downwards: these vector forces are equal and opposite. The state is one of static equilibrium. The boat will
float because the average density of the boat is less than the density of the water in which it floats. The density of the
larch wood which makes up the bulk of the boat is approximately 550 kg/m³ and the density of water at 4°C is
approximately 1000 kg/m³ The mass of the boat (with any additional loads) is equal to the mass of water displaced.
The boat has a mass of approximately 200 kg. The boat can support and move large loads. The greater their mass and

density, the greater will be the buoyant force needed to counteract the downward force. This is achieved by adding
more larch layers and / or the use of other flotation materials.

Calculations making use of hydrostatic equations can supply useful information, eg, the submerged depth of the larch
beams and the depth above the waterline. If it's found that all the beams are below the waterline when the boat is
carrying very heavy loads, more buoyancy material will need to be added, eg in the form of buoyancy bags, PIR
polyisocyanurate material, closed cell polyurethane foam, air-filled plastic barrels, layers of wooden material,

but not very dense woods. (Below, complex science: structure of polyisocyanurate and polyurethane.) Strengthening

by use of steel bars or other means will often be required but the high density of these will not increase significantly

the overall density of the added material. Steel will obviously require protection from corrosion but for many uses, eg

flood mitigation, steel components are not needed.

Calculations in connection with boat buoyancy require use of equations in hydrostatics, including some of those listed here.

The associated discussion and explanations are very concise.

(1) m = ρ V where m is the mass, water, ρ is the density in kg/m³ and V is the volume in /m³ These quantities, m, ρ and V can

refer to the boat or the water. Subscripts make clear that the reference is specifically to the body, in this case the boat (_B) or

the fluid, in this case the water, (_f)

(2) F_B = m_fg = ρ_f V_fg where g is the acceleration due to gravity, 9.81 m/s² (alternative units, newton N per kg.) This gives
the magnitude of the buoyant force. In this equation, the term m can be replaced with the expression ρ V, using equation (1)

ρ_fV_fg = m_B g (3) since the buoyant force, acting upwards, is equal in magnitude to the weight of the boat, acting downwards.

The boat is not fully submerged, due to the buoyant force acting on it. .

Furthermore,

ρ_fV_f g = ρ_B V_B g (4) It will be obvious that the left hand side of the equation refers to the fluid, water and the right hand side

refers to the body floating in the water, the boat. The gravitational constant g which appears on both sides of this equation

can be cancelled. Solving for V_f gives this equation:

Vf = ρ_B / ρ_f x V_B (6) where V_f is the volume of the fluid displaced. V_B is the volume of the body itself, the boat. ρ_B / ρ_f is the

ratio of the densities of the body and the fluid.

IEquations in this section can be used to calculate how much of the semi-submerged boat will be above the water line - the height h

above the water line in m or cm - and how much will be below the water line, with and without added loads.

Calculations involving hypothetical loads, including very heavy loads, are of course crucial in establishing the possibilities and uses

of this boat, including uses in disaster situations. There are many other possible uses, which will require extended comment and explanation.

Notes on some polymers which have potential uses, important uses, in the construction of the system.

Structure of the isocyanurate group (polyols shown as R-group) in the polymer polyisocyanurate, a valuable polymer for buoyancy uses.

The image below shows a synthesis reaction in the manufacture of polyurethane, another valuable polymer for buoyancy uses. Unlike polyethene

and polystyrene, polyurethane is a group of polymers. This polymer is an alternating chain of two monomers. The starting materials for the manufacture of

polyisocyanurate are similar to those used in the manufacture of polyurethane.

The macromolecular and polymolecular level determines and explains the very wide range of properties and applications of polyurethanes,

rigid and flexible, with different degrees of water absorption, their value as insulation materials and buoyancy materials: the polymers

very useful in providing buoyancy for the boat are also very useful insulators, and can readily be used for insulation in applications
where the components can readily be removed, and replaced as needed. The versatility of polymers contributes very significantly to

the versatility of this particular practical application.

Compare the complex structure diagrams for an organic polymer, lignin. Lignin makes up 30% of terrestrial carbon (non-fossil)

and up to 35% of the dry mass of wood. This is a group of heterogeneous polymers synthesized from a few precursor molecules,

lignols, all derived from phenylpropane. Varied and extensive crosslinking between the lignols accounts for the heterogeneity of lignin.

Below, further scientific and other images