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Perhaps someone was trying to get a widebeam through...? ?

Hi Ali and welcome to the forum. Clearly you are looking for a change from your present situation - that has a certain comfortable stability, but is beginning to feel like a grind and a bit of a trap. Only you can know what you feel 'safe' and 'secure' with. So good luck with your research! I think it's important to know that there are many different ways of living on a boat. Some hang out in the countryside; others in the middle of cities. Some move every couple of days, or every two weeks. Some go long distances; others short hops. Others base themselves on a long-term canalside mooring or prefer the community of a marina. (Maybe they work part-time in the chandlery or boat yard). Some are market traders who drift on their own, while others follow an annual rota of organised markets. Some take their boats over to France; others up to Ripon. Some live on very little - enjoying a simple life where they create their own entertainment, develop a personal project, immerse themselves in nature, scavenge for firewood, harvest 'wild food'. Others live a life of luxury with all conveniences on-board and sparky social lives. A few boaters have beautifully compact 30' narrowboats with everything they need to hand, while others insist on the spaciousness of a 12' x 62' widebeam. Some run cars or vans in parallel with their cruising (and tie up near safe places to park them); others depend entirely on their boat and where it can take them. People also convert old GRP cruisers, barges, trawlers ... and live on rivers, estuaries, lakes as well as canals. Basically, there is lots of scope for creating your own way of living aflloat. And I think there is a lot of toleration amongst most boaters and the boating community for different ways of 'doing it'. Just be friendly, helpful and curious - which seems to come naturally to you. Definitely walk the canals and talk to boaters. If you say you're seriously thinking of living aboard I'm sure most people will want to share some experiences and offer advice. Perhaps you could start writing a blog ... about thinking about changing your life by moving onto a boat ... and including all the stuff you learn along the way. It sounds like you are coming at this from quite a unique point of view and circumstances, so it would almost automatically be interesting to others.

This is the usual internet / Wikipedia nonsense written by people who learn off either the internet or from a book. The Grand Union Canal Company had only one purpose built long distance carrying wide boat and that was PROGRESS, built by Bushell Brothers on the Wendover Arm in 1934. PROGRESS attended the opening of Hatton Locks on 30 October 1934, and although this boat was gauged at 75'0'' x 12'1½ it was soon deemed to be unsuccessful and was relegated to maintenance duties. As already stated PROGRESS is currently undergoing a rebuild. The independent carrier Fellows, Morton and Clayton Ltd. built their carrying wide motor boat PIONEER at Uxbridge in late 1934 with a gauge of 71'8'' x 13'7¼'', but this boat was built for the papermill traffic on the lower Grand Union Canal and I have seen no evidence that it travelled through the new locks north of Napton - and it was sold off to another southern Grand Union Canal business in February 1936. By 1961 PIONEER had been sunk in the Yeading Tip arm and was later buried over. I have always maintained that the modernised canal between Napton and Camp Hill is a narrow beam waterway with the benefit of wide locks, with my opinion being based on the narrow bridges or bridges with low arches that prevent easy passage - and I learned the hard way when operating a motor / butty pair, but I did listen to advise when it was available

Just finished helping a neighbour restore her shore power after a speeding boater ripped out the shoreline from her boat. The inlet connector at the boat end had ripped put and needed replacing. Also my neighbour uses two 25 metre lengths of cable to get from their house to the boat and the joining connectors had parted company. Inside cupboards and drawers were open and some possessions had fallen onto the floor. So just a gentle reminder that speeding past moored boats can cause damage, even when they are properly tied up, especially where the canal is shallow.

I am suspicious of the unspecified "Waco cooler". May cool boxes work on the pelter principle and have no thermostat. A quick google sheds little light on the subject. If it is one of these then it will be very power hungry.

Lots of boats moving. We actually had a queue for the locks on the Nene, unheard of! Anyway, here's what I woke up to at Elton locks this morning on the Nene, just before 6am

Not sure where you get that idea from. My 200AH 24V bank (which could be re-wired to give 400AH at 12V) is about the size of an old skool desktop computer. Probably half the volume and a third of the weight of your 400AHs of Trojan battery. And you don't need 400AH of LA in parallel, 100AH will do the job.

For Immediate Release Skipton town centre canal project set to begin Work to improve the canal waterfront in Skipton town centre is due to begin this month. The works will be carried out along the Leeds & Liverpool Canal in three phases starting with the canal basin from July 8. The works will include laying new, York stone flags across the entire area to ensure that the canal basin continues to be an area of high quality open space that can also support events and festivals in Skipton. Benches, planters and bins will also be replaced to match existing street furniture along the canal towpath. The statue of Fred Trueman will remain in its current spot but with a new plaque honouring the Yorkshire cricketer. The canal basin work will be completed by September 20, in time for the Skipton Puppet Festival in early October. The existing benches will be reused across Skipton by both Craven District Council with some donated to Skipton Town Council and the planters will be planted and maintained with the support of Skipton in Bloom. Also, from July 8, work along the Springs Branch will take place, including towpath resurfacing, installation of new benches and bins, and footbridge painting. Works will also improve the area of open space near Chapel Hill with refurbished benches and areas of stone setts. This work is due to finish by August 23. Improvements along the main canal towpath, between Belmont Bridge and Gawflat Bridge, will start from September 2, immediately after the school summer holidays, and will be completed by October 25. This will include improving the quality of the towpath, relaying and replacing broken flags and poor quality coping stones. This stretch of towpath will also benefit from refurbished and new benches and bins. Councillor Simon Myers, Craven District Council’s Lead Member for Enterprising Craven, said: “The Leeds & Liverpool Canal is a fantastic asset for residents and workers within Skipton. The waterfront provides a traffic-free route for people to walk to work, schools, college and access shops, leisure facilities and services around the town. It’s also a great tourist attraction within Skipton. “Over the years, the quality of the canal towpath and surrounding features has naturally declined. We have identified a number of improvements in partnership with Canal & River Trust, who look after the canal, that will ensure Skipton has an attractive, safe waterfront for residents and visitors for years to come. “We have scheduled these works to enable the least possible disruption for users of the canal and the towpath, and we consulted with residents on the proposed works. “I’m delighted this scheme is about to begin and we look forward to seeing the benefits later this year.” The project is being funded by the York, North Yorkshire and East Riding Local Enterprise Partnership. The works form the first part of the £5m Growth Deal project that also include improvements to Engine Shed Lane, water management along Ings Beck and Gallow Syke and the preparation of a masterplan around Skipton Railway Station. David Dickson, chair of YNYER LEP’s Infrastructure and Joint Assets Board comments: “The LEP is delighted to see works in Skipton commence. We have been working closely with colleagues at Craven District Council to bring forward this significant programme of investment to carry out major works in and around Skipton. By awarding £5m to this project - a sizable proportion of our local growth fund - the LEP continues to demonstrate its commitment to investing to improve opportunities for growing housing and jobs in our vital market towns.” The final design for the scheme has been agreed with the Canal & River Trust, the waterway and wellbeing charity that looks after the Leeds & Liverpool Canal. Work will be carried out by Blackburn based contractors, O’Callaghan Ltd. Sean McGinley, regional director for Yorkshire & NE at Canal & River Trust said: “As the charity that looks after the nation’s waterways, we know what a fantastic resource our canals are and how a visit to your local waterway can help you to relax, unwind and improve your physical health. By working with Craven District Council to help realise these improvements along Skipton’s waterfront we hope to encourage even more people to spend time by water.” Whilst the work is being carried out it will be necessary to temporarily close sections of towpath and moorings. Towpath closures will be notified online by the Canal & River Trust, through signage on the towpath and available on the Council website at www.cravendc.gov.uk/canalwaterfront Preparations are also continuing for a separate, £2 million project, to transform the towpath on the Leeds & Liverpool Canal between Skipton and Gargrave, and Bradley to Kildwick, which is being managed by the Canal & River Trust. Notes: Local Growth Fund Local Enterprise Partnerships are playing a vital role in driving forward economic growth across the country, helping to build a country that works for everyone. That’s why by 2021 Government will have invested over £12bn through the Local Growth Fund, allowing LEPs to use their local knowledge to get all areas of the country firing on all cylinders. Some additional key facts: · There are 38 LEPs covering the whole of England · The government has awarded £9.1bn in three rounds of Growth Deals to local areas to drive economic growth. · LEPs are investing in a wide range of projects including transport, skills, business support, broadband, innovation and flood defences. Northern Powerhouse Some Northern Powerhouse key facts: · The Northern Powerhouse is a key aspect of this Government’s approach to addressing the productivity gap in the North and ensuring a stronger, more sustainable economy for all parts of the UK. · The government has awarded £3.4bn in three rounds of Growth Deals across the Northern Powerhouse. Canal & River Trust The charity cares for and brings to life 2,000 miles of canals and river navigations across England & Wales. We believe waterways have the power to make a difference to people’s lives and that spending time by water can make us all healthier and happier. By bringing communities together to make a difference to their local waterway, we are creating places and spaces that can be used and enjoyed by everyone, every day. www.canalrivertrust.org.uk @CanalRiverTrust @crtcomms Key Facts - Yorkshire & NE Waterways: · 509km of waterways (16.51% of the network are in this region) · 1,097,360 people live within 1km of their local waterway · 19 canals and rivers in the region of the network are: 1. Stainforth & Keadby Canal 2. Leeds & Liverpool Canal 3. New Junction Canal 4. River Ouse 5. Ure Navigation 6. Rochdale Canal 7. Wakefield Branch (Aire & Calder Navigation) 8. River Tees 9. Ripon Canal 10. Aire & Calder Navigation Main Line 11. Pocklington Canal 12. Selby Canal 13. Huddersfield Narrow Canal 14. Chesterfield Canal 15. Calder & Hebble Navigation 16. Sheffield & Tinsley Canal 17. River Aire 18. Sheffield & South Yorkshire Navigations 19. Huddersfield Broad Canal For further media information contact Craven District Council – Jenny Cornish: 01756 706315

Hi, Some of you may know, I've got an unhealthy interest in Armstrong Siddeley Cars, I own a 1949 Typhoon and 1937 Siddeley Special. This year the Armstrong Siddeley Owners Club is celebrating the Centenary by having a week long event starting this Sunday (7th July 2019) at Bamburgh Castle, home to the Armstrong family and finishing next Sunday at The Memorial Park in Coventry. We'll also be visiting Cragside, Coventry motor museum and Kenilworth Castle during the week. I know there are a few boats fitted with AS diesel's so thought some of you might be interested in attending. We're hoping to get over 100 cars at the Memorial park on Sunday 14th July 2019. Anyone with a passing interest in Armstrong Siddeley's would be most welcome. Rob

http://vcmarine.co.uk/boat-sales/falcon-70-fellows-morton-clayton-josher/ http://vcmarine.co.uk/boat-sales/venice-converted-butty/

I’ve discovered something that might be relevant the canal world, so I thought I’d share it. Sort of my “Community Service” if you will. The subject is mobile telephony. I’ve been with Giffgaff for several years and got used to not getting read receipts on SMS messages. At first, I thought it was my phone settings, but then found out that the ‘feature’ was not offered by Giffgaff, so forgot about it. However, I’ve now discovered how to get read receipts for SMS sent through Giffgaff! Just start your message with *0# (star zero hash) and once the text reaches its destination, a receipt will come winging right back to you. Then, of course, you’ll have to send more SMS to explain why you added the three characters at the start of your message! ? If I am the only one that didn’t know about this code that and all Giffgaff users on the forum knew already, do accept my apologies…

Look what you've gone and done now

You grass him up good, Richard! ? Monkey in trouble now. I missed all the excitement, unfortunately.

Ok so just to clarify then, you have a Victron BMV battery monitor, not a Smartgauge. How long do you normally run the engine per day? The 14.4v and 4A does indicate well-charged batteries anyway, although ours get down to below 1A when they are properly charged over a long period. Looking at the voltage to determine SoC is only any good if the load on the batteries is near zero. So it is possible that when you had 12.4v in the morning, it was with very little load, and when you had 12.1v it was with something taking a fair bit of current. So it would be helpful to quote the voltage AND the current, to give us an idea whether something is pulling the voltage down when you take the reading. All that said, it does seem likely that you are losing capacity. My experience of el cheapo 110AH “leisure” batteries is that they are pants! We had 2 sets, both were down to 50% capacity after 6 months, much of that time being on shore power. Fizzing them up with a couple of hours at 15.5v did restore the capacity for a while but after 2 years they were dead. This is why I wouldn’t contemplate having el cheapo leisure batteries again, and why we have Trojan T105s. Now in their 5th year with no apparent loss of capacity.

Wasn’t sure if anyone would get the reference, but no i’m not actually Ronnie Pickering. Promise I won’t pick a fight with any of you Thanks for the tip there cuthound. I realised today I wasn’t far from Nantwich marina so changed course and paid them a visit. They are going to quote for solar, along with a stove installation so i’ll see how that comes back. Anyone have any experience with them?

Another advantage of a good second hand boat is you will know it actually exists.

Well spotted. I've always had Rover P6s since passing my driving test in 1990. Still have a 1966 2000TC but had to sell the 3500S when I got divorced. I inherited the Armstrongs when my father died.

This is true but I can't help thinking a new thread might have got a better response, wwithout confusing poor old souls like me.

I find the reply a little ambiguous. Do you mean yes I know they are structurally good, no I don't know their financial situation or is it no the are not financially sound?

Old boaters told me to load slightly bows down. The motor will pull herself stern down as soon as she moves.

That's what the skipper told me.

What was different about your boat? Could you stand up in the cabin? Buttys don't normally have prop shafts or throttle shafts, so the comment doesn't apply to them.

A couple of things spring to mind. My boat is direct raw water cooled,and I am a regular on th HNC.You have obviously done as members have suggested and if your problem persists,then the cooling water isn't getting to where it's supposed to be. Any blockage I have had has been where there is a 90 degree joint in the pipe.The favourite is the water pipe from the seacock. My engine (BMC 1500) has a hose conection on the cylinder head for flushing sediment out of the water jacket (yours won't have this) but it could be that your heat exchanger needs flushing out. Another possibility is that there is an air leak on the inlet side so degrading the suction of the pump. Perished water filter seal? cross threaded seacock cap? loose pipe conections? Sometimes hard to spot as an air leak does not always allow water out. All cooling systems have their problems. Even skin tank cooling is not trouble free. My direct raw water cooling system has not caused any problems (touch wood) in the time I have had the boat.

The CRT crew who were removing the coping stones told me that they were doing so because the bridge had "moved" and the gap had narrowed.

Fancy that - You being the exception to the rule.

@Tumshiethank you for the tip @Mike the BoilermanI really cannot thank you enough Mike and yes you helped me with the Multimeter too, cheers mate

Yeah it does. I bought the cap from ASAP supplies. "The Perko diesel deck filler suits 38mm (1-1/2") diesel hose and 16mm (5/8") vent hose. This 0540 deck filler features an integral tank vent with a flame arrestor gauze and an anti-surge valve". U.S.C.G. Safety Standards, 33 CFR 183

You know those missing bits of impeller ... thats what can happen if they are inside a hose. They block more or less of the flow depending on their angle in the hose or joint. Another possibility is that you caught some debris on the intake, perhaps a plastic bag. They are very annoying, because when you stop the engine to check the mudbox they fall off the intake and you never find anything. Crossed with Alan, but yeah. I'd be trying to find the impeller bits before entering Standedge ...

It won’t cost much in terms of money and time to give it a coat of primer. Why take the chance?

Fact or fiction? That would be very odd because when we went through on Saturday there was somebody on board ABSUMUS (the raw water outlet was in full flow). The skipper of Tranquil Rose had guests that were destined for Warwick. I can't imagine the TR skipper would go to all the trouble and inconvenience of turning round and changing his itinerary for the sake of not asking the other boat to reverse back a bit.

The owner probably called the AA and told them the carburettor was flooded. They're not called the "4th emergency service" for nothing. ?

Just for future : I find that trying to replace the impellor (inside the water pump) on a regular basis is a real PITA, you simply are not flexible enough to get down and watch as it slides in on its splines or key-way, and hold the rubber vanes so they go in the correct direction. I have found it is far easier to have a spare complete pump and just swap it over and you can then do the fiddly bits sitting upright with the pump on the table. You may need an impellor 'puller' to remove the old one. WHEN INSTALLING THE NEW IMPELLOR MAKE SURE THE VANES BEND IN THE DIRECTION OF ROTATION OR THEY WILL BE 'RIPPED OFF' and you will need to install another one. Use Vaseline to assist in installation. Your water pump should look something like this (mine is driven by a 'cog' in the engine where the hydraulic pump normally attaches - yours may be driven by a fan-belt but the pump will look similar.

Not every day, do it every so often. It's hard to say exactly The pump - first check is take the end cover off. This will tell you if the rotor has fallen to bits or if it has got bunged up (I'm guessing you have cleared the inlet and water strainer) The end cover should tell you the make and model of the pump if you need to get a new rotor. If you do, get two and keep one as a spare Richard