Planning permission granted for Tideway's new boatshed

After much hard work from David Connearn and Chris Todhunter in drawing up plans for our new boatshed and Simon Whiteley's efforts with the planning department, permission has finally been granted. It is hoped work will start on this project towards the end of the season to minimise disruption.

Have a read through Chris' build proposal

A great deal of secondhand timber and other found materials have been donated to the club and the intention is to use this in large part to rebuild the boat house. Mostly with voluntary labour.

It is sensible at the same time to organise the storage and working space inside and therefore it is proposed to build the new boathouse slightly larger than the existing one and to include a work bench. Various items are presently stored in the open and it is proposed to utilise the narrow space between the boathouse and the existing winch compound to collect this material under cover.

The design of the boathouse is intended to use all sorts of timber sizes so that the waste from the found material is minimised. The walls will be constructed of timber framing with plywood hoarding material on the outside. This will be protected against weather by a black non-woven waterproof material (Tyvek) and this in turn will be protected by panels of sawn timber lathing laid crosswise with gaps between the laths to allow drainage and ventilation. In places there will be transparent panels behind the slats allowing some light to the interior. The roof structure will consist of composite trusses made up with the materials available, supporting storage of long items such as masts, with purlins and rafters supporting a plywood deck. The waterproofing will be by a light grey liquid membrane. Since this will be en entirely timber building, the roof needs to overhang for protection and the overhang will be supported on the ends of the rafters with matching brackets at the sides. The roof will fall to the centre of one side where rainwater will be collected and channelled to run off on the adjacent paving. The walls will be raised up 15cm off the ground, allowing free ventilation underneath.