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Returning to the boat this evening, we were enthusiastically greeted by our resident swan family, mum and this years seven nearly grown cygnets, wheep wheeping away. A couple of hours later I was head down in the stern working on the new propulsion system when hearing a commotion, Jo looked out of the side hatch. Two of the youngsters were tangled and tied together with a horrible mess of fishing line, hook and lure. We grabbed a bath towel and some bread crusts and took to the towpath (Jo in her pajamas) to try and get them close enough to grab. Saul moorings are deep with piling edges, but eventually managed to catch the worst injured by its neck, then get hands under and lift it on to the bank and wrap it in the towel. We then had to haul it's sibling in by the line wrapped tightly around it's leg and body and get that one ashore too. Swan one was sitting quietly under the towel so we set about untangling swan two with kitchen scissors - and fending off mum and the rest of the family. With two freed and back in the water we turned to the blood stained number one, still waiting patiently. Under a mass of line, blood and feather it had one of those horrible rubber fish shaped lures with a three pronged barbed hook, two points right through its leg and one hooked around the tendon. The poor thing was being brave, but we must have been hurting it trying to cut away the mess and remove the hooks. Getting nowhere Jo fetched pliers and cutters from the boat and after a struggle we cut the barbed points off and got the hook out. TCP applied. Relieved to see it swim vigorously away using both legs, now we just have to hope for no serious infection. I don't suppose I have to describe our rage at the b****** who left that evil mess in the water. A criminal fish thief, we know the legitimate anglers don't use that kind of tackle. Dammit, those swans are like friends.

Just thought some of you might like to see this fantastic old film. https://player.bfi.org.uk/free/film/watch-barging-through-london-1924-online

I think you’ve had all the pros and cons for that decision. If you cruise early in the day then I’d plump for a modest Solar installation as the alternator has done the heavy lifting leaving the Solar to gently top the Batteries up through the rest of the day. Unless it’s grey and overcast...

I’ve not had a 1000w in winter but I will get 30amps in winter I think which will charge them up. I’ve got a generator too. end of the day you need both imo Them are for my dads camper van he’s bought ?

Which in other circumstances also gives As it is one of those threads designed to try and stir up a situation where it will cause someone to get it locked, my guess is that it has had "moderator intervention", and left in some kind of unsatisfactory state - but that's purely a guess. I wouldn't be disappointed if these political threads clearly started with a knowledge that they break forum rules always got deleted as soon as they appear. Either that or drop the forum rule, but the current situation where some rules can be repeatedly broken, and others not is a complete joke IMO.

It is a combi sorry I should have said. It is very difficult to monitor voltage at the actual time it cuts out as once the load is removed the voltage goes up. When I had problems originally, a couple of years back I actually tried running a video camera to monitor it but the battery ran out on the recorder first. I also tried putting the wife in charge of monitoring but the gin got to her and she went to sleep. I think the most likely cause is a loose connection somewhere which as the previous poster said , has welded itself together I will have a thorough check when I go to the boat. Thanks for the suggestions

I'm sure it must be 5 years since I first saw Keelblack at Crick show, and was suitably impressed. However, even if the manufacturer had made the rather schoolboy error of not blacking a boat with it to show punters photos and evidence of its effectiveness before trying to flog it to us, they've had 5 years since - and still haven't provided that most basic proof. For the cost of a few tins, they could have had a book full of testimonials and photographic evidence by now, but instead were still waiting for a couple of guys here (who took a risk with their own money and boats) to report back. Suspicious? I am. As for bio corrosive attack, this was discussed here a while back. I think there's possibly a lot of boats out there with hull side pitting that their owners have put down to galvanic action which might well be bio issues. Hard to nail down though, eh?

South Lincolnshire (but GRP boat at present to try and avoid the steel boat eating bugs)

I'm OUTRAGED. (Was that ok?)

Skiaflex 252 or 3m 5200.depends if you ever want to get them off again without damage to the roof.

........but, but, but, .......it's still going to have a water valve for flushing............and its bad enough stopping for water points so I couldn't stand having to find Elsan points as well.........and we've only just trained the duck to use this one. Maybe I should get a composting one?

No. That's why he wants some additional stick on ones too

Trevor is,I think, in the white overalls just to the left. He left a lasting impression on me, as someone who would produce a top class job regardless of time constraints. His working hours were somewhat irregular.....often turning up in mid afternoon, then working on till the early hours. I composed a limerick for him in the 90s,,,,l A grizzled old veteran named Trevor was at woodwork remarkably clever.... But the speed of his work Made poor Graham look a burk And the simplest jobs lasted for ever. He died a few years ago. Graham, Tony, Glynn and myself attended the funeral. Waiting outside, we were advised by an official that the cortège was delayed by an accident. “ Late for his own funeral “ I commented, bringing mirth from those who knew and worked with him. So appropriate...

It was checked prior to the new batteries being fitted and was fine. I think I might need a more accurate, digital volt meter reader as I am currently relying on an analogue one. So based on my usage, you would say that 4 hours engine running should be sufficient? Good points, thanks.

Proprietary inbuilt 'diesel' generators - cost of aquisition Portable petrol powered generator - you have to run it off the boat to stay safe, you need to run it downwind of your boat and any nearby boats, they produce deadly amounts of CO even 6-10m away from the exhaust pipe, then there's petrol stowage, petrol safety, strict refuelling regime - ashore, not on the boat. There are upsides, but you know those. So if you go down the portable generator route. Respect your neighbours, respect yourself, look after your genny properly. https://www.boatsafetyscheme.org/stay-safe/generator-safety/

I used them to black the boat. We were moored at Kings Bromley Marina so it was very handy. They did a decent job of blacking but left dirty footprints everywhere. I pointed this out and got a shrug of the shoulders. Not the service I was looking for so I didn’t use them again. In theory there’s a living to be made with the mooring and dry dock but you have to get the service offer right.

We were dead chuffed to come home to this sight tonight. Yay!!!

Yet another case of not reading the thread. Or even the OP! Or are you two suggesting Paloma Bob sells reconditioned Palomas with rusted up burners?

Click on the link then click on "Watch for Free"

The domestic batteries go through a switch of course but he inverter is fully fused as per BSS

Ascending! Think MJG. Tha can allus tell a Yorkshireman. Some of my grandspawn hatched over the border. I've trained them to walk upright, not to grunt and hardest of all, to be generous - put weights on their wrists to stretch their arms and sewed up their pocket bottoms. I christened them honorary lanckies.

I think being proud of themselves should be an easy task! Seriously very well done.

I have a run of 4 x 9 ft lengths of 1 inch steel pipe in a zigzag as extra cooling. Was much quicker to fit than building a baffled skin tank. Work out the outside area of a foot run of 1 inch pipe, rembering that 1 inch is the ID. You might be surprised. N

Didn't think we were going to manage for a while tbh, impressed by how calm they all were though, like they knew we were trying to help. Ended up covered in blood and swan poop though, they void their bowels when stressed.......

In the 1990s there were two Seffles, one at either end of the Tring Summit. Lily and Owl could often be heard pop-popping along in that neck of the woods. In case anyone doesn't know what a Seffle looks like, here's the one in Owl. After ten years it was time for someone else to look after the Seffle and we swapped it for a Kelvin.

But you're our crusty rust bucket and we're awfully fond of you.

I am not a rust buckget, just a bit crusty.

We're not far from the Wildfowl Trust at Slimbridge, who we've called on in the past. Mum and five offspring returned to boat just before midnight. Hope that the two casualties were just resting and recovering somewhere.

That’s about the sum of it. Somebody once said (and if they didn’t they should have) that no rights exist unless you can enforce them; you have to fight for them. That holds true regardless of any Parliamentary statute declaring and granting such rights. Riparian owners along the K&A were granted the right under the enabling Act (as all such Acts invariably did) to construct places for boats to lie alongside their offside banks, and that extended to widening the canal for laybys and however far into their own property they wished. It was the prospect of such riparian owners creating marinas from which BW could gain no financial advantage that led BW, in 1990, to attempt persuading Parliament to extinguish all such rights – specifically citing the K&A as an example of a length of waterway wherein owners could provide large marinas under the strict terms of the Act, which BW would be incapable of extorting profits from or exerting control over. They failed at this attempt when the Bill came before the Commons Select Committee in 1993; the by then notorious Clause 27 was sulkily abandoned with mutterings of problems arising in the future because of this. They soon enough learnt that the 'problems' were illusory, because they could always claim the right to demand consent and cow the majority into acceptance. It was in the course of subsequent proceedings, however, taken against a Grand Union Canal marina (the Act for which contained the same riparian provisions) that BW successfully argued that this right extended to the creation of laybys, but that it would be unwarranted extrapolation to so construe the terms as extending to marinas. Ridiculous, but establishing the right - on BW’s argument - for mooring to one’s own bank, and for that to include a right to dig out into one’s own land in order to accommodate more boats or to remove the boat from intrusion into the navigable channel. As to the right under those terms to simply moor alongside the bank, again BW successfully argued – this time specifically relating to the K&A – in a planning appeal, that all boats not engaged in travelling whether for pleasure or profit, must necessarily have had to moor to the offside banks. “In truth”, said Nigel Johnson (BW’s Legal Director) in giving evidence, “there was nowhere else they could do so”. It has to be remembered that the ruling that moorings for leisure boats was integral to historic use of the canal and involved no change of use, did not apply to the separate question of whether a moored boat could be used residentially – that would constitute a change of use requiring planning consent. As usual, however, BW (and now CaRT) take their own and self-contradictory stance when dealing with their customers. Once again on the K&A, some owners of riparian cottages and banks have faced s.8 Notices and boat seizures for mooring to their own banks, allied with refusal of the unlawfully asserted requirement for their consent. So ask away for the right to pay them for permission to exercise that which Parliament gave freely, but as others have said: you will probably fail to get such consent, and if you attempted to assert your statutory rights, you would face seizure of your boat. Unless you were prepared to fight CaRT in court at the highest levels, you have effectively and pragmatically lost the rights you were granted.

Reminds me of all the who ha that sprang to life in the Broads centred around Osmosis and was all kicked of by a company who set up to treat Osmosis. Generating business through scare tactics. While I agree that Osmosis does occur it is not the instant boat killer that some would have us believe it is The fact is that a boat with Osmosis will probably outlive the owner. Phil

Another option would be to have some raw water cooling via heat exchanger. When you need a little more cooling hit a button to turn a pump on. You could also add a heat/exchanger for your central heating and warm up ya boat instead.

Yes, agree with all of the above. Also, dogs look to their pack leader for instructions. If your all 'coochy coo, there there' when he's looking nervous, will only serve as reinforcement that he should be scared. Show him that you are the fearless pack leader, this way he doesn't feel as if he has to step up to 'protect' the pack, and getting overwhelmed. Have you found out what drives him? Treats or tennis balls? Expect knowing labs it'll be food. Perhaps divert his focus from being scared, to 'working' (sit, down, stay etc.) for a treat? Also, after each time you stop it'll be a walk, or a game time. He needs to associate the engine starting up with a good time.

Actually, check the deeds to the cottage. Some of the old waterways cottages were sold with legacy mooring rights, so it would not be a new mooring under the development plan.

Oh heck, and I thought our Labrador was a wuss! She was late learning that she could swim (and thereafter swims like an otter) and she still has a bit of bother walking on things she can see through like some jetties and some bridges, and won't cross lock gates as our previous labs were happy to do - the latter is perhaps no bad thing other than if we moor opposite the Cape of Good Hope where over the lock is the only way to the pub! I feel the big thing with labs, inherently a clever and confident dog, is to not to let them think something isn't normal. For example, when ours was a pup, every crisp packet or similar was popped before binning it, so that her initial "what the f..!" reaction was just met with the rest of "her pack" caring on as normal. As a result, loud noises, guns, fireworks and the like, are absolutely no issue to her. If you make the engine a big thing by comforting her, it reinforces that she's right to be worried. I missed the boat somehow with our dog walking on things she sees as precarious (although she is a lot better than she was) and I fear you may well have done the same with the Gardner. They are clever dogs though and can learn new tricks fairly readily, so it may not be too late. I think you're just masking the issue with calmers and the like - usually, the way to get the best from a lab involves a biscuit! I'd try the Gardner starting up being a dinner bell so she associates the noise with something good (there's nothing like an excited cry of "Dinner!" to divert a Labrador's attention!) then, once the message is sinking in, drop it to a biscuit before she gets too fat! They make awesome Ship's Dogs though, so it's worth persevering! Good luck!

I’ve not had to touch the ceiling. The original varnish is still in excellent condition. The only bit I have re done is where I took out cupboards between the galley and saloon. Its not quite finished, but I’m pleased with how the modernising is going.