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Most of you will have read the topic about the Wolverhampton pollution, well today the horror extended. Dear all, What I have witnessed today at Hollybank basin and Lane Head is beyond reasonable belief. The EA have worked through the weekend attempting to oxygenate the waterway and save what life may be there. However there are a few problems. Despite being told the Wyrley had stop planks in, why was the water still flowing west to east? The pollution is now heading towards Sneyd! Beacuse NO stop planks have been put in!! BW has told us a lie. In its wake fish are migrating but the flow needs to be stopped. Hollybank basin was considered to be a refuge for fish, off the main canal. Today the sight there was horrifying, tens of thousands of fish gasping for air. it looked like rain on the water until you got close, this was a heartbreaking scene, "I for one will never forget the majestic pike, the "killer elite" of fish sitting amongst its natural prey - just waiting to die, its life was over just like the leaf floating aside it". No one was doing anything to save these animals. I went back to Lane Head and begged the EA guys to arrange a fish rescue, "we cant do that" was the reply. Then a lady member of EA cam on site and the situation was explained to her, she made some calls and told me nothing could be arranged today. She also quietly said "I dont care how much you want to rubbish us or say we could have done more" - She admitted they could have acted better, faster and been more effective! Hearing this I phoned two friends Sue Williams and Vaughan Welch and asked them to call as many people as they could find to get a fish rescue on Hollybank. Eventually a call came from the RSPCA who will try and do something tommorow, however even with the BW aerators going all night I doubt much will be alive tomorrow. The local residenst were out with some helping to move larger fish to the aerators in the hope that they may revive, it seemed local people have more sense than the professionals who just stood and watched. Further afield there is another report of a dead swan (not confirmed), also dead birds being seen and at Wednesfield the swan family is still missing a cygnet. Locals were providing water and food, but they need moving away from the canal. I have rescued some fish myself but have noted that despite being put into well oxygenated water some have died within a short space of time, is this an indication of poisoning? It is hoped tomorrow will see independant testing of the water to confirm what is in it, there is a suspicion that the EA are not sending out the whole picture and if that is the case is there more risk out there than we know of? Who ever started the fire started a chain reaction, that reaction could have been minimized by the EA and only the Ettingshall to Wolverhampton water, some three miles would have been affected. However they seem to have failed to grasp the seriousness of the pollution Likewise British Waterways could have done more, without question the stop planks should have been inserted to stop the pollution entering the Wyrley and Essington canal. every narrows and bridge has grooves for stop planks, this is inexcusable. We now have some 11 miles of seriously polluted canal, destroying some of the best regarded fishery in the country, we are still seeing this get worse - why? The answer is simple in my opinion, bad assesment and management by the EA, lack of awareness by BW. When I walked away from Hollybank tonight it was getting dark, the frantic movement of the waters was no more except for the pumps, I expect most of what was alive had slipped away, I have known the basin since I was a boy, it was always a nice place to fish ........ but in this age of technology ..... all this "caring for the enviroment" ..... All these clever people with their clever systems, control centres, managers, blackberrys, hi viz jackets, testing equipment and meters, ... if I hand them the dead pike tomorrow will they have the knowledge & technology to make it alive again? Laurence Hogg

This is our 'Yarwood' without pointy bow. The ealier photograph you make reference to is a Lambon hull made to another customers specification (and satisfaction).

Here on CWF we have a massive variety of views and vested interests in conversation for it's own intrinsic rewards. NABO and other organisations claim to influence the powers that be on behalf of boaters. I would not join such an organisation on the grounds that they are either: a/ Totally innefectual with no influence, b/ wield considerable influence totally contrary to my own best interests. Now if GOOD things were afoot and an organisation came forward claiming to have had an input then I might consider joining but all the time the news is unremittingly bad anyone who claims to be influencing developments best stay at least a mooring pins length away from me.

Only vague info, do not use easystart very bad!! I use an oil can to squirt oil into the inlet valves that helps when my Lister fr is sulking. there are high pressure wheels on the side of the JP which if set either in or out? increased the compression for starting. The workshop manual recommends that you pour a half pint of oil into the rocker covers to lubricate the rocker assembly. The decompression leavers on the top of the engine are to allow the engine to be spun over quickly enough to allow the engine to fire when they are dropped. You might try dropping just one and seeing if any one cylinder fires. While any engine creates heat when firing it should be all right for a minuet or two without water.

"Well he would say that wouldn't he". Whilst I am sure they are very knowledeable about solid fuel stoves, I'm struggling to go with this. My stove has a standard 4" steel pipe for a flue, with a chimney extgending about a foot or so above the roof. I can control the stove from a barely perceptible glow up to a roaring blast furnace. Not that t ever gets anywhere near that. I can't see that an insulated flue would give me any more control over the fire, or see how it would improve combustion. The combustion rate is determined by the amount of oxygen fed in and the degree of draught and that seems fine to me. I agree that some of the heat produced will heat the flue, but that then gets radiated into the room. As I've said before, I suspect that as much as 50% of the heat produced by the fuel radiates from the flue. With an insulated flue, a lot of heat must be lost going up the flue. My chimney never gets hot and the paint on the collar doesn't suffer much, so I reckon that most of the heat produced by the fuel stays in the boat. How do you get much more efficient than that?