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For what it's worth (not much) my view is that the way CRT dealt with Tony was wrong, but that having seen the way Tony states his case on this forum, I suspect that to a large degree, it is his attitude which has brought that situation about. Just the most recent example of this being him posting an accusation that CRT had deliberatly tried to trick him into not being able to make representations in relation to the costs order; namely that they sent the documentation to an address where they knew he couldn't be found. As details were teased out, it became clear that this wasn't quite the case at all and to be honest, I find his continual protestations and accusations are becoming tedious. A judge is going to have to decide whether Tony is entitled to have CRT pay some or all of his costs. He may find that if by his actions and statements, Tony has brought the action upon himself, he is not entitled to costs. I have confidence that a judge will decide the matter fairly, so I'll await the outcome. I'm pleased Tony didn't lose his home and I'd like to say I hope CRT leave him in peace now, but my guess is that he will continue to try and antoagonise them. He seems to enjoy it.

Start putting more thought into how much unecessary packaging you bring onto your boat to start with, Cans can be crushed as can plastic bottles. Although I don't live on board when we are out for a holiday I keep my eye open for recycling bins along the route. A lot of councils will have small litter bins that you can recycle cans and paper in and I make use of them, It can make a big difference to how much rubbish ends up on board

I think you are misunderstanding what I have said. My comments were directed at the situation as it existed post the initial court hearing. By that stage it was too late to take any initiative in the case other than to do what Tony did do – which was to file a statement with the court that sufficed to have the judge reject the Part 8 procedure and give time for filing a Defence. Could/should Tony have taken immediate advice once his ‘licence’ was revoked, regarding taking the initiative at that earlier stage? Indubitably. Serendipity has played its part, however, and now not only is Tony wiser, but so are we all.

Today we have received some more good news we have another 2 mooring sites which means we now have 5 all together, 2 of these are already open and being used, the next one is not far off completion.

It was built as a lined sailaway, so according to one p*ss-taking neighbour it was already fitted-out when I bought it and should never have taken me so long to finish. I have to admit he was right - it took me ages... But I was living on it while installing the stove, fitting the kitchen, bathroom, building cupboards, installing the gas system and fitting various bits of electrical equipment. Living on a boat while fitting it out is always going to be a bit slower - plus I didn't have any previous experience and never claimed to be quick. But I think even inexperienced people can get reasonable results if they take their time and do plenty of research beforehand. I was always ok at using tools so that helped. If you look carefully every job I did is far from perfect, but I think the overall effect is good. Galley at the stern Corridor from the saloon through to the bedroom with the bathroom to the right Cupboards I built to use the dead space along the corridor and into the bedroom. Bedroom at the bow. I just bought some pine wardrobes and fitted them to the bulkhead. I couldn't afford oak to match the lining. I haven't bothered to follow the various arguments on this subject because I'd first need someone to explain to me why it matters....

You don't have to arse kiss anyone. Treating someone with the respect that you would like them to show you is not arse kissing. Is that not for the judge to decide?

I can't say I agree with you very often, but you are quite right this time around. Tony has every right to be as much of an in-your-face curmudgeon as he wants to be, and that particularly applies when an organization with endless resources and the authority of a quasi-government organization tries to take his home. Tony's attitude and personality determine how many friends he has, they don't determine his rights. No person should have to ask nicely to not have their rights infringed upon. As a matter of fact, it is those who are overtly confrontational with abusive authority that guarantee that the meeker amongst us do not have their rights curtailed or trampled upon. Those people who are saying that Tony is an obnoxious person are probably right. However, to say that his problems could have been avoided with an appropriate amount of arse kissing are missing the point. Tony showed CRT that they can't steamroll boaters just because of their unlimited resources and position of authority. His was a veritable David vs. Goliath scenario, and David won. In winning, it would seem that he has done a service to all those subject to CRT's whims. Anyone who thinks that a tyrant becomes more benevolent with victory hasn't paid much attention to history. If CRT had succeeded in taking Tony's home in an illegal manner, they would have felt empowered to take anyone else's boat in the same manner. Those who say they have nothing to fear because they are playing by the rules, seem to ignore the fact that Tony was playing by the rules when CRT came after him. ETA - a missing word.

Fitting a drilled plug is not a bad idea. It's certainly worth a try first anyway. I can't hear if the noise is any different when in reverse. It's a Blackstone box, so it's difficult to hear anything in reverse! Good idea about checking the breather, too, but if I remember correctly, there's actually very little in them so I wouldn't have thought they'd clog easily. And yes, I know what you mean about strange noises. I have a clicking from my water pump which only manifests itself when it sees fit. "Starman" had a similar problem with his JP3, and I suggested it could be his water pump. Judging by the fact that he hasn't been back on here asking about it, it must have fixed itself. Jack

What if the person with complaints against them is involved in a baseless enforcement action resulting in the organisation burning money on legal fees and looking like a collection of vindictive fools lacking a clue between them. Does that correlate to anything?

Yes I've noticed that, and when entering long tunnels as well

When were on Honeystreet, we left the poo bags in a Tupperware container on the rear deck, until we passed a dog poo bin. Strangely, whilst other things left on the deck tended to "disappear" overnight, the tupperware container never did!

Far better to buy a quality boat that is a few years old, rather than a brand new cheaply (and badly) built boat for the same money.

Yes it would be interesting . . . so how about it, all you C&RT backers and apologists, why don't you you get up off your knees, stop all the forelock tugging and tell us why?

OK, I'll accept that installation may be responsible for a great deal of the troubles. There is still a big BUT though. This unit was designed for automobile use and doesn't perform well as a boat heater. If you use it the same as a car/lorry then it's OK, but as a central heating unit it leaves a lot to be desired. Those who want a proper central heating system in their boats should look elsewhere. Just to add I do understand that a lot of people want don't want central heating, fine, but we do. Bob

In the 60s/70s we always ran the hire fleet Webastos on 28 second heating oil and they were much more reliable for it. However the combustion "process" was rather different to today's methods. I had enough of all such heaters then (before ECU control!) to ensure I fitted an Alde and am happy to pay for the gas.

Several problems with trash compactors... If you have to get them from the US they will be the wrong voltage for the UK and Europe. They take special bags. If trash compactors aren't available there, I doubt the bags would be either. There are some things they don't compact all that well. They have a limit switch for the ram pressure and some things just bounce back after compacting. For instance, if you fill them with cans and try to compact, the ram just goes down a little ways then comes back up without compacting the cans. It's like the ram can only travel a few inches after first sensing resistance. They smell. Week old garbage is still week old garbage, even if compacted, and it does tend to smell rather raunchy. So other than that you can't use them because of the voltage, they don't work very well if you could use them and they stink, they're a great piece of kit. JMHO

Same experience for us earlier in the year. Brasenose benfitted and were v helpful, albeit a bit quirky!

ok, I'm going to try and work this out without reading any previous posts A lock fills up. It uses A amount of water. The gates open, boat goes in. Some water therefore moves back out, so you've actually used A minus BoatVolume. A - BV inside the lock. You then release A-BV out of the lock, and the boat sinks. You open the bottom gates, and the boat leaves the lock. +BV amount of water then refills the lock. Therefore, Since you used a total of A - BV + BV, you have actually used only A. Therefore whether you have a narrow or widebeam, both boats actually only use A TaDaa. Sorted. Clear as Mud.

I am not at all sure about how large loads on the engine pulley will affect the torsional oscillation damper used on 1.5s. I would suggest that you take great care and take advice from Calcutt. I would hate your crankshaft to snap.

No actually I agree that boats should be tied up properly, however that presumes something solid to attach to. When on mooring stakes, whilst I suppose using multiple stakes to ensure security in soft ground is possible, it is not something folk do. And even with a well tied up boat it is bound to tilt and move around quite a bit with a boat passing at cruising speed, much more so if it is a deep drafted historic boat on a shallow canal. This is unpleasant for those on board. And of course it is quite possible that the moored boater is inexperienced and doesn't fully understand how to tie their boat up properly. It is not your place to cause them distress and maybe damage just to make your point. Therefore compromise is as ever the way to go. No need to pass in neutral, and if you pass at a polite speed but still get a "Slow down!" shout then I agree the correct repost is "tie your boat up properly". However to pass at normal fast cruise speed is rude and inconsiderate. One can only judge you by your posts, but in this context they were self-righteous, selfish, and lacking in consideration or compromise. That is the kind of behaviour that puts most people's backs up, so no wonder those you were dealing with at CRT were looking for weapons to use against you. Anyway, I believe you are an old codger so I have no doubt that your behaviour patterns are well entrenched and won't be modified by my opinion of them. You can however look forward to a miserable and lonely old age, and reincarnation as a mooring fender.

It's a pretty sad reflection upon CRT when they have to resort to cheating in order to save a few pounds in costs when they have lost in court after wrongfully trying to prosecute an innocent boater. When the cheating takes place under the watchful eye, and direct supervision, of their chief executive, it really brings to question whether that chief executive has the integrity needed to run a multi-million pound charitable trust entrusted with safeguarding a very valuable and historic asset. It is very seldom the case that a person will lie and cheat in just one instance. Such malfeasance is ingrained in their personality, just as honesty is in people with that quality.

Unless you can define 'place', which apparently nobody can, then I cannot answer this question.

Solid Fuel Stove