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Yeah, health problems will do that! Between my brain haemorrhage in 2017 and the workplace stress that was really beginning to take its toll on my wife around the same time, we quickly gained all the perspective we needed to sell up, move aboard and get cruising. Nine months in now and loving it. Enjoy your travels!

We are a small and close community and just like in everyday conversation topics tend to meander off topic. It's just how we are. There are some who make assumptions, sometimes those assumptions are helpful sometimes not; You can take what you like and leave what you don't like, and you're right you don't have to explain your self but sometimes it helps. We're not complicated though. Welcome to the forum and good luck with your adventure.

canals are for navigation. they are not for mooring. please remember those thousands of navvies who sweated blood and tears to build the canals - they did not do it to provide you with a nice spot to moor up your boat, either for a weekend or permanently. whilst it is reasonable to have to slow down for the occasional moored boat, as others have said if you want to navigate, for example, from Bath to Bradford-on-Avon and beyond, you will never get there if you slow to tick-over every time you pass each boat in the endless line of moored up boats (many of which are little more than floating rubbish skips) unless the wind is behind you.

The OP made no mention of continuous cruising, perhaps they have already secured a fully residential mooring in their preferred location or maybe they don't have a clue about living on a boat.

Athy, a similar thing happened in Kidderminster a few years ago. A pub properly called the Grand Turk, closed, was rebranded the Rank Turd by someone with a wicked sense of humour. If only I’d kept the photo......

Just to close this thread out, I have donated £2.00 per boat for 12 and a half boats (Richard Parry counted as half a boat!) disallowing Carrie-Lou to the specific Python fund at the Chesterfield Canal Trust donations page. That means these bloody noodles have cost me £23 in the auction and £25 for delivery - for instant noodles that I could have bought in Asda for 75p ... In the meantime, I have met quite a few new friends, I have both joined and helped raise the profile of the Chesterfield Canal Trust and I consider it £48 well spent. I burned more than that in diesel this week! If you want this saga to continue, I suggest you switch to this new thread:

How the results are sometimes discussed

It's called Challenge for a reason. The explorer cruises are offered for those who don't want to be challenged. Last year I reckon 4 of us had 2 bottles of malt and 2 and a half hours sleep in our 6 hour overnight break. Made day 2 interesting, especially with the thunder and lightning early Sunday morning. Down and back up including repairing Walsall locks before breakfast is not for the faint hearted. Others take the challenge in a different way, LaurieB will be along shortly to share his methods.

Yes. Get rid of the caravan abomination and put a nice widebeam on that mooring instead. My God did I really just type that??!! ?

My thoughts exactly. Why I've always gone for using lots of water and having clean clothes, rather than trying to minimise this. The minimal electricity usage is more important to me when away from the shore line. Water I can (almost) always get. If water is a problem, say with everything frozen up, then I can make other arrangements, or just be very smelly! Jen

Does it really matter ? Every day we move we pass a number of taps, just take a few minutes and top-off the tanks.

my 4hp Evinrude 2 stroke has a similar one that I made from aluminium plate, hung from 2 pieces of AL strip fixed to the cavitation plate and strapped around the shaft casing. Not quite as smart but much easier to make. It makes all the difference when wafting into a lock in neutral.

Could be worse

Hi, Amused loon! Apparently there are 53,291 anagrams of Mondial House! https://new.wordsmith.org/anagram/anagram.cgi?anagram=mondialhouse&t=1000&a=n

Haha, yes I know everyone means well, I do apreciate all of the help and advice

I’ve thought about it too much! Maybe one day but for now I’ve got a full time job, a young family and a boat to refit; and total confidence in the current incumbents. ? JP

Problems solved! Thanks @Mike the Boilerman you were correct. In the light of day and properly suited up I was able to see that the bolt that fixes the alternator fast had worked its way loose and was lying in the bottom of the bilge. I replaced it and tightened up the belt and voila, we're back up to charging at 14.2V. Sorry for the panic and I really appreciate the prompt advice. Thanks! I actually want to measure the amp output of the alternator because I at this point don't know whether it is the standard 70A alternator or a replacement 100A or 120A. This will be important information while planning out the electrics. This meter will suffice to measure the alternator output yes? I charge for 2-3 hours daily in two blasts, and go for a long cruise each weekend, sometimes more. The battery is still serving its purpose quite adequately and it was only 60 quid. I'm prepared to toss it once the proper system is in place. I'd actually rather kill the battery than put more wear on the engine and disturb the neighbours with more charging than I do. As great as they are, I'm still not convinced that lithiums are the way for me. But they are on my radar.

There have been changes to the bonus factors and sections on which scores can be obtained in both directions over the years which is a good way of shifting the balance of what becomes the highest scoring route without upsetting the fundamental purpose of the event. Here’s a few thoughts and observations;- - This year scores could be obtained in both directions between Spon Lane and Brades Hall. I think this was introduced for the two years when the finish was at Titford so that there was a scoring route home without being penalised if it had been covered earlier in the event. This facility could be removed and potentially shifted to wherever next year’s finish is located. - The Walsall scored in both directions which was used to good effect by Good Times in compiling a winning score. Perhaps now that’s been done the Walsall could revert to scoring in one direction only (but retaining both ways down Walsall flight and into the town basin to break up the 40 mile pound from Longwood to Smethwick). (Please note @system 4-50 that you can boat for 24 hours on the BCN and barely do a lock). - The Walsall between Tame Valley (Ocker Hill) and Walsall Jn is easily the most difficult cruising of the Challenge so maybe that could be reflected in a x3 bonus factor, possibly in combination with other sections of the northern reaches being a x2 factor rather than x2.5 to encourage usage of the Walsall - If Pudding Green to Tame Valley scored in both directions it would encourage a circuit that includes both Walsall and Rushall/Daw End legs without then having to commit to Aston/Farmer’s Bridge or a start at either Tame Valley or Rushall Jn. - If Factory to Deepfields scored in both directions it may encourage more use of the Bradley Arm - The scores for Dudley Tunnel don’t seem to take into account that you have to do three x2 bonus factor locks to get there. The scores are shown as Parkhead Jn to Tipton Jn and you’d almost score more for going up and down Parkhead locks and cruising round to Tipton via Netherton than legging the tunnel. - The Birmingham & Fazeley north of Salford Jn should only score x0.5 bonus factor - The Digbeth arm of the B&F from Aston to Typhoo basin could be an out and back score so it can be done in combination with the Aston and Farmers’ Bridge flights. This could be an alternative to allowing both Aston and Garrison as interchangeable routes. Has anyone used the Garrison route since the year when the Aston flight was closed? This would directly reflect what is technically BCN and what isn’t. - Include a 0.5 mile trip into the BCLM moorings and back from Tipton as it’s a good stopping point. JP

My experience is a bit different to most. I lived in cramped accommodation in Tokyo for 10 years, then lived on a narrowboat for a few years when I came back to the UK. I sold that in 2000 and lived in shared houses and flats for a few years while I was in London so it was always just living in one room and sharing a kitchen & bathroom. When I bought my widebeam in 2005 I'd never had so much living space. For me living on boats has never had any element of downsizing, but I'm single. I certainly wouldn't want to do it with a wife & kids (but I wouldn't want to live with a wife & kids in a house either! ?)

Just an assumption - but with 4 school age children CCing would not appear to be an easy option (especially with a family with no boating experience) Without "even any money for a deposit and cannot get finance" I cannot see how they would be able to afford to have a survey(s). I think this will end badly and would re-iterate my suggestion to hire a boat for 3 months via "ETTR" (see post #5) once the house is sold (and paid for) and see if it works for them, before committing their 'life savings'.

I associate ducks with Bombay

We got caught up with the Avon River Festival at Stratford last year on our route out onto the Avon and onto the Severn. We did not realise it was on until we got the Lapworth where another boater asked us if we were attending it. By this time is was a bit late to change our plans so we just carried on and hoped for the best finding a mooring. Well it was not a problem, we arrived on the Friday afternoon by which time most of the festival boats were moored up very neatly on the river. There were at least 3 moorings free on the pontoons in the Bancroft Basin. We dropped down onto the river on the Saturday morning quite late but did not get caught in any festival activities and went through the first lock ( Colin P Witter ) with out any delays.

Me too!

Actually you DID post the rules. See quote below:

Nothing needs to be changed to achieve both of the above, provided you're not competitive and just enter for the experience. When we did it in our boat we decided we had very little chance of winning so aimed for a respectable score and an enjoyable weekend. We ended up coming 25th out of 39 after a lot of work between the three of us which we were happy with, but had a good night's sleep on the Saturday and arrived at the finish tired and happy but with enough energy to enjoy the social gathering. You make of it what you want - nothing needs to change ?

I'll punt that the *one* 110Ah battery you have been using for 6 months as your only battery is sulphated to hell and is only fit for weighing in for a tenner.

It takes careful planning to be that unsuccesful so consistently.

On the long term storage issue, I once put a load of stuff into storage on the basis it would go back into a house when the time came. In the end I paid for about 3 years storage, then disposed of most of the stuff either to the tip, or for very little money. If moving onto a boat, treat the storage as short term. If it isn’t on the boat within, say, 6 months, you almost certainly neither need nor want it. Dispose of everything after 6 months and get rid of the storage costs. If you find there was something you needed, you can buy it with the saved money

I very much doubt that. The insulation on the other hand, tends to expand with age and bulges spontaneously occur to accommodate the increased size. I bet this is what is happening to yours. Take a small blunt screwdriver and push it through the insulation bulge until you feel the copper beneath. Mark the depth of penetration with your thumbnail then push it again through the insulation where there is no bulge. I expect you will be able to demonstrate to yourself the bulge only exists in the insulation. If so, you have a 'non-problem'. Just get on with enjoying having hot water and spend the £600 on more beer.

The BBC programme "The Golden Age of Canals" has quite a section on latter day coal carrying with Midland Canal Transport.

The Noodle was finally delivered last night. I would like to say The Biscuits was really happy about receiving his noodle but he told me he has tried one before and doesn't like them very much so we were unsure what he might do with such a famous and well traveled noodle He certainly doesn't look too happy in the presentation photo but perhaps The Duck is nagging in his ear about not being into bondage? Then some beer was consumed and little Bob (aged 2) wanted to play with The Duck but The Duck didn't want to be played with and so Little Bob decided to play with a noodle and in the swiftest moment you could ever comprehend little Bob had whipped off the top of the noodle and tipped the contents on the picnic bench We threw some noodles to a pigeon that came close by and it promptly flew off never to be seen again!

Tony, the failure mode for HDPE tanks is called 'environmental stress cracking'. The polyethylene used for tanks is therefore designed to have a high environmental stress crack resistance or ESCR. This failure mode sees microcracks form in the polymer due to chain scission and localalised brittleness. For HDPE's with very low ESCR (ie milk bottles, they dont have to last long!), a stress crack like this would grow very fast and crack the tank. For high ESCR HDPE, if a micro crack appeared then the resistance to crack growth due to the polyethylene structure will high and the crack will not grow. If therefore the tank is made out of decent HDPE with high ESCR then there is little problem. I think the 'pores' you talk about will be these cracks etc. It really isnt a problem if the right polymer is used. In BP, we used to make 50 different grades of HDPE - from milk bottles which are formulated for high flex modulus so they are stiff for very thin sections (ie cheap and low weight) but no UV stabiliser and poor ESCR.....but they only have to last a few weeks....to pipe grade HDPE which is formulated to have extreme ESCR allowing them to last 50 years for water and gas use. Bottom line, if you go to a reputable tank maker, he will be using the right grade of HDPE. The cowboys may not and that is where the problem will lie. We had HDPE tanks on our lumpy water boat (liveaboard) and we had no problems of taint. That is the 'simple' response!!!! Now the more complex one. A number of fluids can enhance the stress cracking. Even simple detergents can reduce the stress crack resistance. Sterilising fluid, bleach and certainly hydrogen peroxide will accelerate stress cracking...but that is where the skill in making a decent ESCR polymer comes into play. In BP we tested all our polymers where ESCR was needed in all sorts of liquids using tests that could predict ultimate lifetime. I am now involved with the test lab that was spun out of BP as an MBO before BP divested its Chemicals interests to Ineos and we spend a large part of our work in testing for ESCR on polyethylene for both the manufacturers of the virgin polymer and the users...ie the big tank manufacturers. The test used for ESCR is an FNCT test (full notch creep test) where over a period of 24 hrs to a month, you can predict lifetime to 50 years. Basically you introduce a defect and apply a low controlled stress and obeserve the performance. Bottom line....get the tank from a reputable manufacturer and you cant go wrong. Wash bleach or peroxide out as soon as practical and you will be ok. Dont leave it in for months!